Fakarava is one of the largest and most visited atolls in the Tuamotus. It offers several magasins (markets), fuel, propane, fruits and veggies, and yacht services. However, 25nm down the road is its sister island Toau which is hardly ever visited and a sweet oasis.
This little atoll does not have any magasins or provisions or services. It used to get a supply ship once a month but that has ceased as well. Valentine and Gaston who live on the main motu near the false pass have a beautiful garden with tomatoes, bell peppers, pamplemousse, lemons, noni, avocado, and a few other items. They open up as a restaurant during peak season (April-Oct) and offer cruisers fresh fish, lobster, and available meats. Super friendly and always willing to accept visitors.
Valetine and Gaston’s Home on Toau
They have a plethora of animals. When we arrived at the dock 5 dogs greeted us with sloppy kisses. They have cats and new kittens.
Tons of chickens and a family of pigs.
They even have a pet frigate bird named Mumu that has been with them for over 11 years!
Pet Frigate bird
Valentin is very religious and had a sit down with us discussing God and her beliefs. They even have their own church for the 3 people on the motu.
She has a large collection of shells that she gifts to visitors and shares with newcomers.
Snorkeling
We had great fun snorkeling the pass during incoming tide. We found several black tip sharks and lots of big schools of fish as we drifted in towards the bay. The reef behind us was a treasure trove!
The reef had lots of large coral heads (bommies) with tons of varieties of fish around, and inside them. I think you could snorkel here for days and see something new.
Our weather window opened up and we needed to leave. It was a short visit to Toau but we will certainly return. On a sad note, we will be parting with our good friends on Maple (Janet, Daryl, Ella, and Iris). We met them in Bonaire and have sailed with them across many miles of ocean, visited many countries, islands, and atolls. They will be heading to Japan in January, then Alaska, then Canada. It was really hard to say “so long.” Hopefully we will see them again as they have been an amazing blessing in our lives.
We will certainly need to come back to Amanu as we did not have a chance to go inside the lagoon. We had too much fun exploring the false pass and visiting with Valentine and Gaston.
Events from this blog post in Toau occurred around the 3rd week of November, 2020. Our blog posts run 8 weeks behind our adventures.