Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Getting Off the Beaten Path?
The only disappointment (if that's the word) of our Marquesas cruise were the crowds we
found at each of the main anchorages. In the peak months of April, May, and June, hun-
dreds of boats pass through the archipelago. Our record lows were in Ua Pou (two boats)
and Comptrolleur Bay (four), whereas Atuona was packed with thirty boats and Fatu
Hiva's Bay of Virgins hosted a full complement of seventeen. Of course, you can anchor in
any number of less-frequented bays, but many are avoided for good reason: they can be un-
comfortable or downright perilous, such as either of the two slender bays in seldom-visited
Ua Huka. “We wanted to get off the beaten track,” lamented one sailor who ventured her
own way. “Now we know why there is a beaten track!”
The Marquesas were our first taste of Polynesia, and what an introduction it was. Again
and again we found ourselves in awe of our surroundings. We were infinitesimally dwarfed
yet entirely at peace with our small existence within this magnificent world. The wild, wel-
coming islands gave us a deep appreciation of how good life can be when days unfold
slowly, our family taking its pick from the many possibilities that each island offered. It
was only the promise of more Polynesian islands beyond the horizon that drew us - ever so
reluctantly - away.
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