Swimming With Sharks & Stingrays In Moorea

Feeding sharks & stingrays

The following morning, I headed to the Pier of the Intercontinental Resort for some marine thrills with Moorea Mahana Tours. It all starts with a quick ride inside the lagoon to Moorea’s worst-kept secret – the shark and stingray feeding spot. Boats from around the coast gather in this shallow area, where blacktip reef sharks and stingrays gather by the dozens for their daily feeding. We were told the sharks are harmless, but what do you know…

The excitement was well felt among the few Americans and 20 or so Japanese tourists on board, as we neared the feeding spot. Just beneath you, the sharks and rays know what’s about to come and gather around the boat. Great time to step into the water, ah? The feeling of swimming with these guys is surreal. At one moment you’re looking at a nearby shark, only to find a stingray cruising between your legs!

The sharks are not to be touched (good luck trying to catch up to them anyway), but you have a green light when it comes to the rays. Their skin is jelly-like and super weird to touch. Their tail… forget about touching that, just ask the late Steve Irwin. It’s spiky and not very pleasant. Good thing that the rays themselves keep their lethal tail at bay, and away from the visitors. It’s all very safe folks, not to worry.

When the fish had enough, it was back on the boat for a quick ride to one of the motus for lunch. There are a few of these small islets within the lagoon and they are so beautiful. The sky Gods were also cooperating by now, rewarding us with breathtaking views of Moorea’s coastline and the neighboring motus. Are you already in love with Moorea by now?

As lunch was being prepped up, we got a chance to do some snorkeling and this is definitely the best spot on the island. Literally thousands of black reef fish were apparently gathering for a huge mating session. These guys were all over the place and attracted a few curious lagoon residents to watch what all the commotion was about, like this massive stingray.

The presence of thousands of mating fish apparently disturbed one creepy-looking resident, who was busy trying to fend off invaders of his little coral home. I’m talking about this massive moray eel, definitely the biggest I’ve ever seen. Its head was sticking out of the coral, but its tail was popping out of the other end. I wouldn’t want to be up close with this guy, but I did anyway, to bring you these pics. Taking one for the team… just sayin’.

There’s nothing like snorkeling and feeding fish to work up an appetite. Lunch was served right on the beach, and we even got a lesson on how to make coconut cream – much to the amazement of my fellow Japanese gang.

Here’s a quick video summary of this awesome excursion.

Yann is such a gentleman!

While I was away in the lagoon, my neighbor and friend Yann was busy fixing boats on the beach right by the Tiki Village. As light rain began to fall, he noticed a lone woman looking for shelter beneath the palm trees. Being the good samaritan that he is, Yann called her over to the sheltering comforts of the container that also doubles as the workshop. The lovely lady’s name is Charlotte, and it turns out she’s from Brittany in Northern France, just like Yann. Charlotte travels the world and she’s the kind of traveler that doesn’t make too many plans, just trusting her senses and good fortunes. Yann invited Charlotte to stay with us for a couple of days and we had a great time cooking dinner and sharing experiences. As we speak, Charlotte is in Martinique, somewhere in the Caribbean, where she’s looking to buy a boat to sail back to French Polynesia via the Panama Canal. Cool, ah?

Diving with sharks

After getting a taste of the marine life in Moorea, it was time to really get down to business and do some diving. I was told by the folks at Moorea Blue Diving to meet them at 7:30 am for an early departure. I haven’t been up during those early hours lately, but Stephane and Diane sure knew what they were planning. The skies were pretty much free of clouds, and the boat ride offered us amazing views of Moorea’s twin bays from angles I’ve yet to enjoy. The sight of those lush green mountains and the turquoise blue seas are exactly how you’d imagine French Polynesia to be.

Stephane and Diane’s claim to fame is their shark specialty, which means the chances of seeing sharks when you dive with them are pretty damn good. They certainly did not disappoint! Our first dive started with a sighting of a huge barracuda, hovering close to the surface. As we continued our descent to 24 meters, we got our first glimpse of a shark. It was a decently sized lemon shark, and he was curious to see what we were up to.

We continued floating along the reef, with tons of beautiful hard coral beneath us and an endless ocean of the brightest blue you can find in these depths. Occasionally… let me correct that – frequently, we saw sharks zooming in and out of our frame. At times it was the bigger lemon shark and at others, it was the smaller yet quicker blacktip reef shark. We saw so many sharks, that it started to seem like the norm.

Routine or not, as we got closer to the boat and met up with other divers, schools of fish gathered around us. With the fish, came the sharks… and they were hungry (not for us luckily).

Our second dive was a bit tougher but ever so rewarding. We battled our way through the reef passages, treading with our fins when the current was in our favor, and waiting it out while the counter motion kicked in. A few current cycles later, we were deep in the channel and saw a sea turtle just wrapping up lunch and swimming away (spot the sea turtle in the video below).

Stephane then took us to visit a few caverns, where lots of fish were taking refuge as well as one lazy nurse shark who was taking a nap!

The dives were some of the best I’ve done so far. Here’s a video clip that’ll bring you close to the action, accompanied by some local Tahitian music.

With such an early departure time, I still had the entire day upon getting back to the dock. I paid one last visit to Mareto Beach, which was glowing on this day. I just love those palm trees that choose to be different and grow in wild angels! Postcard anyone?

Waterfalls coming out of everywhere!

To cap off a busy last week in Moorea, I actually hopped on the ferry to Tahiti, where a huge Tahitian man was waiting with a sign that had my name on it. This was Teuai Olivier, and he was about to take me into Tahiti’s interior – the Papenoo Valley. I missed out on a few chances to visit the valley when I was in Tahiti, a month ago due to the bad weather. So with the sun shining and Teuai as my guide, I knew this was going be a great day! Teuai comes from the distant Austral Islands. He is 48 years old but looks 35 and he rarely wears shoes. He was crowned ‘Mr Tahiti’ on two occasions, winning the Heiva Festival in his weight category. The festival is a HUGE deal in French Polynesia, with contestants from all islands battling it out in events such as giant rock lifting, coconut picking, dancing and singing – to name a few. So here I am, with a real Tahitian, about to embark into the valley!

The Papenoo Valley is essentially the crater that was formed inside the towering extinct volcanos of Tahiti. Barely anyone lives here and it’s accessible by 4X4 only. Funny enough, there is one hotel here, with amazing vistas of course.

The views as you enter the valley are breathtaking, exactly as you imagine Tahiti to be. With the Papenoo River flowing roadside, you maneuver in and out of flowing streams with every turned corner.

Our first stop was at Topatari Waterfall, where Teuai took me all the way to the base of the waterfall. We were completely soaked from the gush of the water.

The road then took us past beautiful panoramic views and waterfalls that just seemed to be coming out of everywhere, even from inside the mountains themselves!

We stopped for lunch in the middle of nowhere, followed by a short hike through the rainforest. Needless to say, Teuai was skipping along without shoes… Eventually, we reached one of the most magical places I’ve ever been to. This is Te Pape o Teura Vahine, and if you can’t say it, don’t worry. Most locals can’t either. That’s why they also call it Maroto Waterfall. Have a look for yourself. This place is so nice, we couldn’t resist jumping through the waterfall and into the azure pool.

The Papenoo Valley is also blessed with quite a few marae, or ancient temples. Tahitians who refused to convert to Christianity, as well as those opposed to French rule, fled to the valley to continue and practice their ways. I’ve visited quite a few marae on this trip, but never with a guide. It was great to have Teuai explain how this place worked in ancient times and also see a few petroglyphs and learn about the local tropical fauna.

Here’s the entire visit to the Papenoo Valley in a time-lapse video – enjoy!

What’s Next?

I’ve spent a memorable month & two days in Moorea and it is time to leave. I’m really going to miss this place and my friend Yann. So many good memories from an island that you must all visit. I definitely found the spot to retire in… now it’s just time to save up a few million to afford to buy a place here! Here’s what Moorea looks like from the air. Now you see what all the fuss was about?

I’m now off on the last leg of my trip across the South Pacific. I will visit 3 out of the 5 French Polynesian archipelagos, with 9 islands in 7 weeks. Bora Bora is on that list, along with who knows how many other surprises. The island of Maupiti is first up on the island hopping list, and it already looks promising from the air! See you soon!

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