A ‘squash zone’ forms in the South Pacific when a deep low nudges up against an intensifying high. On Saturday the high intensifies to 1045 hPa and the squash zone is forming bringing strong winds to French Polynesia. All boats have been juggling their options to find somewhere safe to ride out a week of stronger weather.
We spotted an opportunity to sail 300 miles to Huahine and, after a blustery and bouncy couple of days at sea, we are now comfortably tied up on a mooring at the Huahine Yacht Club awaiting the Maramu Winds to build further.
It’s always nice to find a friendly face in any new harbour and we were delighted when Richard Freeman jumped in his dinghy to attach a strop to the mooring and then pass it up to us as we approached in gusty conditions. Many thanks Richard!
We are looking forward to exploring ashore while Shimshal lies safely on a mooring. Meanwhile, a few hundred metres away, a mast is projecting at a crazy angle from the reef. A wrecked boat and a ruined dream for someone caught out in an earlier storm.