Puddle Jumpers Flock to the Rendez-vous

By all indications, this weekend’s Tahiti-Moorea Sailing Rendez-vous will draw the largest fleet in the event’s 10-year history. More than 70 boats from various nations have registered, some of which are currently making the 200-mile passage from the Tuamotu Archipelago, having arrived there several weeks ago from the Marquesas, the customary first landfall, after completing the 3,000- to 4,000-mile Pacific Puddle Jump from various points on the West Coast of the Americas.

Designed to be both a celebration of the fleet’s safe arrival in the islands and a means of exposing visiting sailors to French Polynesia’s long-revered cultural traditions, the fun will begin Friday afternoon with a reception and skipper’s briefing on the Papeete waterfront, complete with a blessing of the fleet and live music and dance. Saturday, the fleet will ‘cruise in company’ — okay, some will undoubtedly race hard for line honors — to majestic Cook’s Bay on Moorea. That evening the Club Bali Hai hotel will host a lavish music and dance show. Sunday will be dedicated to a variety of Polynesian beach games, the highlight of which will be outrigger canoe races in the lagoon, where cruisers of all stripes team up with local experts.

Yeah, it’s all big fun, and the payoff for our assistance in organizing it is that we get to hear the cruising tales of dozens of international cruisers. We’ll share those stories and anecdotes with you, of course, in upcoming editions of Latitude 38.

Organized primarily by our French-Tahitian friends at Archipelagoes, with generous support from Tahiti Tourism, Air Tahiti Nui, and a variety of other partners, the Rendez-vous has been described to us by many participants as one of the highlights of their South Pacific travels.

Learn more about the Puddle Jump and see the 220-boat fleet list at the website, and look for our Rendez-vous report here on Monday.