Getting to Pitcairn is no easy feat therefore returning from there is no easy feat, either. Today would sure be a lengthy one! It was very wet and grey as the MV Silver Supporter was closing in on Mangareva. It was breakfast as usual and getting our bags ready. As you gaze at the sheer cliffs of Mangareva, you seriously feel like you're at the end of the world. It was the same rigmarole of riding in a tin boat, this time whilst fighting rain, back to shore. The captain had to take our passports to the gendarmerie to be stamped in; that gave us about 15 minutes to walk around, so I called in at the Cathedral of St. Michel.
George was in a dilemma: the flight from Mangareva to Tahiti is full, so he asked me if I'd like to let him have my seat and then get on the Thursday flight. I was unaware there was a second flight per week but Air Tahiti will schedule another flight if demand is high enough. I said to the nurse (who is half American and speaks English fluently) that if some accommodation can be sorted I'm totally happy to stay on Mangareva for a couple of nights. It would have worked out perfectly because I have 12 days in French Polynesia and would have received my wish of spending a couple of days in Mangareva. In the end I wouldn't be lucky as George got the remaining seat, therefore we'd both be in Tahiti this evening. 1000 XPF (about $12) is an awfully steep fare for a short boat ride that everyone must take to reach the airport. On top of that the ferry was so full that I had to stand for a half hour. At Mangareva's tiny airport I met Charles Veley: CEO and founder of Most Travelled People.
George is on the left and Charles is in the middle. The latter has visited every sovereign country and territory in the world and his personal favourite place is Lord Howe Island. He has visited Pitcairn Island before but not Henderson, Ducie, or Oeno. The next sailing on the MV Silver Supporter will be an "explorer's voyage" taking in all four islands of the Pitcairn group. My aim is to visit every country in the world so I'll do that sort of trip when I reach every country. Going to Pitcairn by itself will be one of the most expensive journeys I'll ever do, and it's a good thing I did it this year because I noticed on the Pitcairn tourism site that the fare on the Silver Supporter is going up by $500.
As it rained heavily and was very windy I wondered if this chock-o-block flight was even gonna take off. In the end we did and the plane wobbled back and forth and side to side as we powered above the dark grey clouds. Due to the extra weight we had to make a refuelling stop in the island of Hao in the Tuamotu Archipelago. Mangareva and Tahiti are rugged and volcanic but Hao is a palm-fringed coral atoll. Everybody, including George, had to disembark as the plane was being refuelled and we had to take all of our stuff. They said it'd take about 30 minutes to refuel so that allowed me to dip my toes in the water and snap a few photos.
Only an hour and a half earlier we had heavy rain and wind in Mangareva, yet now it was sunny and blue in Hao. It ended up being the quickest 30 minutes ever because we had to line up after only about 15 minutes. The rest of the flight was rather uneventful as George and I chatted whilst I had a shot of whisky. Tea and coffee onboard are free but you must pay for everything else. It's amazing to see how big Tahiti is compared to other islands as you fly in from the east. George would have someone waiting for him to bring him to the hospital and then I had to figure out a way into town. Thumbing a lift from Faa'a Airport I checked into Mahana Lodge: one of the few proper backpacker hostels in the South Pacific. Finding CouchSurfing hosts in French Polynesia has been near impossible. Bernhard is currently in France so he can't host me, but he did allow me to store some gear at his home so I picked that up after settling in. With all my gear off my back I walked to the food carts at Place Vaiete for some Chinese food. Sweet & sour chicken wasn't as good as it was a couple of weeks ago but still tasty.
What a long day it was with many forms of transport to go with it: the MV Silver Supporter, the ferry to shore, then the ferry from Mangareva to the airport. The flight from Mangareva with a stopover in Hao, and then a lift in a ute from the airport to here. It's no wonder I'm worn out. Mahana Lodge has all sorts of interesting things painted on the walls, including this perfect quote...
So true, so true! Speaking of part of this quote, tomorrow I plan on meeting Jay and Carol to thank them for allowing me to stay at their home on Pitcairn. Other than that, there isn't much to keep me here in Pape'ete so I'll be making a run for the magical island of Mo'orea. One night is enough in Tahiti's capital, and as I lay here in bed tonight it gave me time to reflect. What a journey! What a journey it was! My journey to Pitcairn is complete, and it was no easy feat. After today I'm ready for a long rest, and I miss Mrs. T already.
