Tag Archives: coral gardens

Piazza's Pizzazz Up Sugar Shack

Piazza’s Pizzazz Up Sugar Shack

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Our friends Rocco and Linda Piazza came for a short visit.  Rocco and his mom, Linda stayed at Hotel Conrad for a few days before we picked them up.  It was door to door service, we brought Sugar Shack to motu Toopuia where the hotel is located and picked them up in Sweetie.  Matt flew our giant Texas flag just in case the Piazza’s were uncertain as to which sailboat was Sugar Shack.

Pick up the Piazza's at Hotel Conrad

Pick up the Piazza’s at Hotel Conrad

A trip to Bora Bora would not be complete without dinner at Bloody Mary’s.  Lucky for us it was happy hour night as well (happy hour is Monday, Wednesday, and Friday).  When you are ready to eat, they take you to their “menu table” where the fresh selection is laid out for you.  The host walks you through each selection of fresh meats and fish, how it is prepared and the cost.  You place your order and are seated on beautiful, varnished tree stumps in a Robinson Crusoe style dining room.

Dinner at Bloody Mary's

Dinner at Bloody Mary’s

BORA BORA TO TAHA’A

We left the next morning for Taha’a.  It was a beat into the wind and the waves making for an unpleasant first experience for our guests.  But the Piazza’s were troopers and kept smiles on their faces.  We raised the jib once we entered the lagoon for the short 2-mile jaunt to the Tautau motu and the coral gardens.  It was really busy in front of the gardens, so we decided to anchor in front of the Taha’a Pearl Resort.

Rocco jumped in the gorgeous water immediately!  It was time to wow them with the beauty of the coral gardens.  We did a little walk about on the resort’s property which had a lovely little beach.

Taha'a Anchorage

Taha’a Anchorage

We jumped in at the mooring entrance after securing Sweetie.  There was no current which made our leisurely snorkel even more enjoyable.  I am still working on the underwater camera settings and filters, so forgive the funky colors of the fish.  Hopefully you still get a feeling for their true beauty and curious nature.  The top photo was meant to be a stellar photo of Rocco, but a butterfly fish had different plans.

Coral Garden's underwater photos

Coral Garden’s underwater photos

We found an area that was teaming with a wide variety of fish.  They were incredibly friendly and inquisitive!  My favorite is still “Nemo” playing with the sea anemone.

Coral Garden's Underwater Photos

Coral Garden’s Underwater Photos

Little Shopping

The next day we made the short journey to Uturoa, the main village of Raiatea.  We picked up a mooring from Dream Yacht Charter and headed into town.  It was fun exploring a new island and markets with the Piazza’s.  We did some provisioning and found some cool new plates for the boat!

New plates for Sugar Shack

New plates for Sugar Shack

Coming Up Next

Be sure to read our next blog where we hike to the top of Tapioi, hunt crabs, snorkel and travel to other Society Islands with Rocco and Linda.

Sea Anenome in Coral Gardens, Tautau

Tautau and the Coral Gardens

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The maramu finally started to dissipate so we took advantage of the break in wind and made the short 30nm sail from Huahine to Tahaa.  Raiatea and Tahaa are enclosed in the same reef which has 10 passes.  We entered through the Toahotu Pass on the eastern side, went between Raiatea and Tahaa and up the western side to a motu called Tautau.  Imagine our surprise when we realized we anchored in front of the “coral gardens” one of the best snorkeling spots in French Polynesia.  The photos below show the beautiful pass entrance complete with lush, green hillsides, remote islands, and beachfront property.

Pass Entrance Between Raiatea and Tahaa

Pass Entrance Between Raiatea and Tahaa

We anchored in 10 meters of turquoise, clear water.  However, we ended up sitting in 2 meters of water by the time we let out scope.  We enjoyed watching a family of sting rays glide by under the boat.

Matt jumping out of the water behind the boat

Matt jumping out of the water behind the boat

Ile Tautau is “technically” a private island with a small hotel called “Tahaa Pearl Resort” complete with many thatched huts hovering over the water.

Tahaa Hotel Complete with Thatched Huts Over the Water

Tahaa Hotel Complete with Thatched Huts Over the Water

CORAL GARDENS

By sheer luck, we anchored in front of “ coral gardens ” which lies between the two motus (sandy spits).  We had not heard about the coral garden and certainly did not know where it was located – so lucky us!

GoogleMap of Coral Gardens

GoogleMap of Coral Gardens – photo courtesy of “Snorkeling Report“

The coral garden is the most renowned snorkeling spot of Tahaa. This crystal clear water channel, which separates two motus, is located in an idyllic setting in the middle of one of the largest lagoons of Polynesia. While let yourself drift over colorful and preserved corals, you will observe alternately school of butterfly fish, lion fish, brightly colored wrasse, clown fish huddled in their anemones and great giant clams sunbathing right under the surface of the sea.

Tautau anchorage in front of Coral Gardens

Tautau anchorage in front of Coral Gardens

Coral Gardens is the name of the cut between the two motus.  We ended up walking “sweetie” as it got pretty shallow.

It was pretty surprising how shallow the gardens are.  We jumped in at about 2 meters and began our swim.  As we continued up the cut, the depth varied between 2 meters to 2″ just below our bellies.

Coral Gardens Underwater Photos

Coral Gardens Underwater Photos

A healthy, red, soft sea anemone was busy cleaning several fish.  I watched the fish swim in and out of the sea anemone.  It was a beautiful dance together.

Coral Gardens Underwater Photos

Coral Gardens Underwater Photos

The fish were particularly curios and friendly coming right up to my mask as I hovered over their underwater home.

Coral Gardens Underwater Photos

Coral Gardens Underwater Photos

Save Coral Gardens

This true to life aquarium was magnificent to swim in – what a blessed opportunity we had exploring this oasis.  Typically this is a drift snorkel where the current carries you through the corals and down the channel.  However, the weather was screwy with us due to remnants of the maramu and we had no current – which was fabulous.  We could swim up and back at our own pace with no current.

Imagine my horror as I researched the history to learn that the years and public have been  hard on the environment.  The devastation has been exponential which is just heart breaking.

The tour companies bring tourists in by foot and they trample on the coral and sea life.  Plus some areas are so shallow you rub or touch the coral as you swim overhead.  Not sure how to remedy this other than to shut down certain areas.