Bound for Hawaii

Transmission over the HF radio has been problematic, so Mark's emails have been quite brief. I'll pass along his reports from along the way, but might amplify or paraphrase his comments a bit, as the transmissions are sometimes telegraphic.

Mintaka left Papeete, Tahiti on Monday May 18. They made their way through the pass in the reef at 1600, bound for the Tuamotus, a group of coral atolls scattered over a huge area of ocean. There was very little wind, and they motored on mostly flat seas.

As of a couple of hours ago they were moored at Anse Amyot, on the atoll of Toau. We spent a week or so on Toau in 2003, on our way west across the Pacific (the photo at left is from that visit: Mintaka is the boat on the right). It's a beautiful atoll, one of those quintessential South Pacific islands. Almost uninhabited, the only residents are two related families living at Anse Amyot. Mark and Bronson intend to spend the night there, then leave tomorrow for Hawaii. I'll add more as Mark sends me updates.