Wrapping up Life in Moorea… and on Irie

Of weeks that fly by fast, this last one certainly made my top! With Mark slowly getting settled in the Boston area, I rounded up our life on Irie in Moorea. While initially, I enjoyed some more time sightseeing the island and meeting up with friends, the closer my departure date approached, the more I focused on Irie. For days, I cleaned up, organized, sorted, decided, packed, and cleaned – wood, ceiling, forepeak, cabinets, kitchen, bathroom, decks and cockpit.

Here are some photos of my final week in Moorea, French Polynesia: hiking to waterfalls with Christian and Birgit from SV Pitufa, reconnecting with Shane and Ava, friends from California I hadn’t seen in over ten years, and dealing with our boat.

Dusk over Tahiti, seen from Vaiare marina

Walk to find some waterfalls in Moorea's dramatic scenery

Where is the rest of the motorbike?

Baby waterfall in the jungle

Not much water flowing down this waterfall in Afareaitu, but tall it is indeed...

The water is distributed over three little falls on the bottom

This cute, sweet and smart dog showed us the way to the falls

What a pretty location to live!

The Intercontinental Hotel on Moorea

This is where I met our friends Shane and Ava, who visited Moorea for their 10 year anniversary

The set-up and setting of the hotel is pretty nice!

Catching up beach and lagoon-side

Visiting the Intercontinental for the afternoon felt like vacation!

Yummy dinner in the "Lezard Jaune" (Yellow Lizard) with Shane and Ava

Birgit from SV Pitufa making curry in Irie's kitchen

Another tasty meal in good company

A couple of days later, we were thinking big... Our goal was to reach the top of the highest mountain (which has a hole in it) or at least the ridge leading up to the peak.

We found a hidden waterfall along the way...

And some tropical scenery

When we reached this waterfall, we knew we had taken a wrong turn somewhere.

Not a bad turn of events, though

The real trail to the top was very challenging, with a steep climb, roots to maneuver through, up and over, or under, and slippery rocks to navigate

After an hour and a half, realizing we left way too late for this arduous hike, we turned back, without coming across any (anticipated) view, but it was a very interesting and beautiful walk nevertheless.

Hitching back to Vaiare from Afareaitu

Spotless forepeak on Irie