A Week In The Garden Of Eden In Huahine Island

A day in the Huahine lagoon

After a couple of days of returning to my favorite spots, I hopped on a lagoon tour with the guys at Huahine Nautique for a day of fun in the sun, captained by Armando. The tour started with a visit to Huahine Nui Pearls & Pottery. They make… pearls and pottery here – in a very nice setting right in the middle of the lagoon.

Just like with Teva’s mother back in Tahaa, I learned about the making of the famous Tahitian pearls, this time getting a demo with a  (formerly) live oyster. How do pottery and pearl farming match together, you might ask? Well, the owners discovered that the lagoon floor beneath their farm contained clay, and that’s how this odd match came to be.

Having the right family connections

The boat then took us past dreamlike motus (small islets in the lagoon), some with only a single house on them and some so big yet privately owned by a single lucky extended family. That’s what I call ‘having the right family connections’!

The view of Huahine’s majestic mountains from the lagoon was incredible, with some peaks looking more like shark fins rising out of the water. We then hopped in the water and drifted along the coral garden for a snorkeling session, coming across colorful shells and plenty of happy-looking lagoon creatures.

The boat then parked on the sandy shores of one of those dream motus for a picnic lunch. As with every good lagoon tour in French Polynesia, we got a quick lesson on the making of the national dish, the poisson cru. You just can’t get enough of this delicious dish of raw tuna in coconut milk and lime. It brought back memories of Gabi’s lunch in Maupiti and Didi’s feast in Bora Bora – miss you guys!

To get the party started, Captain Armando kept pouring the infinite supply of homemade punch (a.k.a ‘magic juice’), while the ukuleles were playing traditional tunes. We enjoyed an amazing lunch literally in the water, with the mountains around us and endless shades of blue beneath our feet – can you really ask for more?

As Armando sounded the conch shell, it was a sad goodbye to our dream island. We continued to circle the lagoon, pausing for great views of deserted tropical beaches, emerald bays and even one odd-looking cliff that resembles the head of Buddha. They have a wild imagination in Huahine!

Are they suppose to be this close?

Before dropping us off back in Fare, Armando moored the boat and instructed us to hop in with our snorkeling gear. This was weird because there were clearly dozens of sharks in the water… Since trust was already built over the course of the day, we obliged and hopped in the water, grabbing a rope and watching a brave crew member making his way to the center of ‘shark central’.

Before we knew it, at least 50 sharks were swimming in front of us, as chunks of fish were tossed into the water. They all fought for the treasure until another chunk was tossed in a different spot, leading to a mad dash to grab the gold. I’ve done stingray feeding in Moorea and Bora Bora, but never shark feeding. This experience was scary, amazing, surreal and [insert your own adjective here].

I made this short video just to help you understand what was unfolding in front of our eyes for a good half hour. I’ll never forget this experience, and neither will the sharks. They’ll be here again tomorrow – same spot, same time.

It never hurts to try…

To cap off my week in Huahine, I wanted to try and make it to one of the beaches I spotted from the boat tour. Guidebooks and some locals say that Hana Iti Beach can only be reached by boat. It’s one of the most beautiful beaches on the island, secluded and kept as a local secret. They haven’t met yet apparently! Rumor has it there’s a path leading down to the beach that runs through private land. As the saying goes ‘it never hurts to try’.

I rented a bike and headed out to where I thought the beach might be. I asked locals I met along the way for more precise directions, knocked on a few doors (well, they’re actually always open) and pinned down the house that owns the path. I politely asked the lady who was present in the house for permission to use her land and voila! I was on my way to Hana Iti Beach.

The path takes you down through a thick rainforest, complete with massive bamboo trees, colorful flowers and ‘Tarzan rope’ coming out of every tree. There’s even a panoramic spot with amazing views of Huahine (yet again) before the final descent.

After a few sweaty minutes of walking down the path, I had made it! The beach is a beautiful sheltered cove with soft sand and palm trees in the back circling the emerald waters. There were a few visitors who landed here from their yachts and I must say I won some extra points by emerging out of the canopy.

The snorkeling is superb as well. Lots of moray eels (eels… again?), healthy corals and cute small fish. I felt pretty proud of myself for this discovery. Now I just need to find the bike…

On my final night in Huahine, the supply ship docked in town. Together with Air Tahiti, this is the lifeline of the remote islands of French Polynesia. There was a lot of commotion on the dock, as locals were coming back home after a long voyage at sea and a fresh supply was offloaded. I enjoyed the unique experience with the company of a huge portion of chicken chow mein and watched as the ship left as quickly as it came, off to resupply another remote island.

What’s next?

Huahine exceeded all expectations. Together with Moorea, I think I’ve found another candidate for retirement. Every island in French Polynesia seems to top off the previous so it’s onto the next one. After visiting seven islands in the Society Islands group, I’m now off to the Tuamotu Archipelago. The Tuamotu group forms the largest chain of atolls in the entire world and they are a world away from what I’ve seen so far. Our first stop will be Rangiroa, and underwater lovers be prepared: this is one of the best spots for diving in the world! See you next time.

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