2122UTC | 16 47.52’S 151 00.50’W
Anchored, EXPLORING
Phoebe did not lie in her previous post as we did wake up and packed today to feel like an entire week of adventuring. We woke up in peaceful Baie Tapuamu in Taha’a, stuffed our electric, yet mighty dingy with all eleven of us, and puttered over to an alleged manta ray cleaning station. The water was rather cloudy, and some of us were convinced we might not see much that day, however the coral reef was nice enough for a paddle and we were quite quickly rewarded with a prolonged visit from two manta rays (alongside their trusty ramoras), a quick glimpse of 5 eagle rays diving below the pelagic zone, and plenty of brain coral, groupers and damselfish. Since that wasn’t enough fun we came back to the boat where a treasure hunt for Mary and Phoebe began. They were impressed with some of my hiding spots so that’s all you need to know about that.
After a glorious snack session orchestrated by Big Chickpea Mafia (who I am sure is paying Mary big bucks for her to promote hummus to everyone she meets on board) we puttered over to a world renowned floating coral garden nearby, where we were immediately greeted by a stingray. We walked across the beach towards the channel from where the current rips you across “bushes” and gorgeous lumps of coral. Some of it was overgrown and bleached which was quite sad, but most of it was in pretty good shape. Nemo fans went a bit mad as there were quite a few clown fish in the sea anemones. The vibrant Giant Pacific clams and Guineafowl pufferfish were a personal favorite of mine and Kates, while Maddie was quite mesmerized by a reef octopus (perfectly camouflaged as a rock — not sure how he spotted it). The octopus was trying to get a bite at the coral reef conveyer belt buffet so Maddie stayed still trying to watch it, but because he stood so perfectly still for so long people kept going up to him to ask if he was okay, so I am not sure the octopus ate much once we found it, but grateful Maddie shared his discovery with us.
While the fish and coral were outstanding, what I really need to get out into the world is that ASMR is missing out on underwater noises. I did not foresee enjoying listening to parrot fish munching on corals as much as I did, but some of us spent quite a bit of time doing that as well. This was a top 3 snorkeling destinations for all the divers on board and we pretty much had the corridor to ourselves which was incredible. We were a bit gloomy Mary had to be onboard harassing the watermaker, but she also managed to make us all delightful poke bowls for dinner because she is perfect Mary of all trades and captain of all.
Andreea Didconu
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Going Coconuts!
From a muddy anchor bow to a heeling, wind-charged run past Taha'a's reefs, Falken's crew earned every knot of the passage to Huahine-Iti. Scooters, a near-miss dog, a mosquito ambush, and a crocodile lurking at the dock rounded out a day that had no business being as good as it was. The coconut nut is, in fact, a really big nut—and somehow that tracks perfectly.
Tantalizing Taha’a
Turns out you can fit eleven people, a treasure hunt, and two manta rays into a single day — if you're willing to putt across a lagoon in an electric dinghy at dawn. Taha'a delivered one of the trip's top snorkeling spots: a floating coral garden where stingrays, reef octopuses, and parrotfish crunching on coral competed for attention. The only casualty? Mary, stuck aboard wrestling the watermaker — though she still managed to produce poke bowls for eleven by dinner.
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Taha’a-haha (say that correctly five times fast)
Ten heads bobbing around the stern, cold beers hidden a meter below the waterline, and coconuts dodged through the reef — the crew of NORDIC FALKEN have arrived at Taha'a, and they're wasting no time. First Mate Pheebs reports from a golden-hour anchorage in the Society Islands, where strangers became shipmates somewhere between Papeete and paradise. Manta rays and what might be the world's best coral drift snorkel are on tomorrow's agenda — if Skipper Mary's mushroom risotto doesn't slow anyone down first.