By Richard Crockett
The few cruising pieces I have shared recently have hit the mark with followers of this Blog, so here’s more, this time from Jutta Werbeck who describes a visit to the atoll of Raroia in the Tuamotus where Kon Tiki, the first scientific raft of Norwegian Thor Heyerdahl and his five men, ran aground on the windward reef on 7 August 1947 after 39 days at sea.
Entering this atoll in a sailing vessel is not for the feint-hearted as described here: “Suddenly we were out of the rushing water and in the wide lagoon with its many glorious hues of blue, turquoise, green and crystal clear water, now and then observing a brown or yellow “bommie” … a coral head coming straight up from the bottom of the lagoon. My stomach was twisted into a knot, which now started relaxing.”
There is a thriving black pearl industry on the island, yet despite meeting some islanders, and exploring it thoroughly, the author said, “It may be more romantic to just pass through and not look behind the scenes. We left this “paradise” a lot sadder than when we arrived.”
READ IT ALL HERE: Pages from 1994 12 – SA Yachting – OCR