Moving on

After a slow morning (and a long net session due to someone having difficulties in the Tuamotus) we moved the boat a couple of miles north to where we’d once heard we might find some manta rays swimming of the inner reef.

We took a while to find a good spot but once settled we were in the dinghy and checking out a couple of nearby spots. The water wasn’t as clear as we’d have liked and although it was Ben’s best snorkel Helen and I weren’t overwhelmed. Helen eventually swam back to the boat and on the way saw a lot of stingrays so it wasn’t so bad.

After lunch we pushed a little further north and found and anchorage away from it all (except for the over water hotel rooms just to our south).

We explored ashore finding a path over to the leeward side. There we found a sheltered reef giving us (at least Ben and I) the idea of going lobster hunting when it was dark. On the way back to the dinghy we collected firewood so we could have some guaranteed fun ashore – I guess I was assuming our lobster hunting would be a triumph of hope over experience.

After it had gone dark Ben and I went ashore. This is not so easy as the last 100ft have to be waded and it’s a lot harder in the dark.

We eventually found the path to the other side and made our way over carrying the hookah lid to contain our anticipated bounty.

Well we waded around with out dive torches for some time and only saw some confused fish. We eventually turned back deciding we could at least have a fire. Ben spotted something odd and when I came over we discovered it was a creature related to a lobster and definitely edible. It was not large but we caught it and with renewed enthusiasm looked for more. We did indeed find two more which joined the first in the lid. This was not much of a feast but at least it was something we could boil up and nibble on.

Back at the dinghy we decided to light the fire as we’d gone to the effort of collecting the wood. There is always something special about a fire on a deserted beach with palm trees around and the stars overhead.

We were too full from dinner and far too tired by this point to eat the lobster like things so we put plenty of water in the lid and left them overnight. No bananas for breakfast today.