21 April

There is no internet where the boat is now so i am posting their latest message:

We are now on the North side of Hiva Oa in a delightful bay sheltered from the swell which was quite pronounced in Atuona. We spent the day cleaning gooseneck barnacles of the hull and doing other odd jobs. How these barnacles manage to attach themselves is amazing as the hull was clean when we left Galapagos and we have been on the move ever since. We went ashore and wandered around the village in Hanaiape Bay which is everything one would dream of in the south pacific. All manner of fruit trees and other fauna in a perfect looking valley bordered by steep cliffs. Lots of local goats and chickens wandering about also.
One of the locals offered us some mangoes from his tree, so fruit for desert tonight.
We are off to Ua Pou, and island in the Marquesas about 60 NM north west of here, tomorrow. We may find some civilization there but it's OK if we don't. After that, it's going to be Nuku Hiva where we will spend a few days to provision for the Tuamotos.
Van and Marcia Hughes left the boat on Monday and will stay a few more days on Hiva Oa and then fly back to San Diego via Tahiti.