Pitufa.at

For Pitufa and her crew, 2018 was a very exciting year. We visited many new places, some of them were rather off the beaten track and some were real nature paradises. We made several new friends with locals and enjoyed Polynesian hospitality over and over.

We started our tour in January 2018 from Rapa Iti in the Austral Islands and we are back in Rapa again, but we were active in the meantime and sailed about 4.700 nautical miles. First our round trip brought us to the Gambier Islands for the height of the cyclone season and then to our favorite atoll in the Tuamotus before we had busy times with plenty of boat projects in Tahiti and Raiatea.

With a newly painted Pitufa we left French Polynesia in July and sailed north to escape the colder winter months in the Southern Line Islands and in Penrhyn in the Northern Cook Islands, where we found an amazing wildlife. Then southward again to Manue, Aitutaki and Rarotonga in the Southern Cooks. After two months in the Cook Islands we left well provisioned and sailed southeast to the Austral Islands and hence returned to French Polynesia. On our tour through the Australs we only missed Rimatara, but we stopped at all the others: uninhabited seabird sanctuary Maria, geologically fascinating Rurutu, friendly Tubuai, beautiful Raivavae, and remote Rapa Iti with its unique culture and stunning landscapes.

Some destinations were quite adventurous and challenging, but we learned a lot, particularly anchoring on outer reefs. We spent many sleepless or at least uncomfy nights rolling and pitching in open anchorages, but it was definitely worth it: we had incredible wildlife encounters, met wonderful people and enjoyed stunningly beautiful scenery.

We wish all our readers merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and exciting New Year!