The Marquesas are only 8.9 degrees south of the Equator, which explains how far north we have travelled and also explains the extra heat and humidity encountered at Nuku Hiva island. Sydney is at 35 degrees south making the Marquesas level with Papua New Guinea. Seeing Nuku Hiva at 530am in the morning was like seeing Skull Island with King Kong ready to stomp down the giant basalt pinnacles and sharp ridges covered in lush green vegetation. My 10km run was on a treadmill this morning given the time limitations on the island, the extreme heat and extreme slopes. We docked at our first pier and disembarked at 730am to the sounds of the ships two cranes working overtime to unload cargo for the island. All passengers were divided into groups of four matching French, English and German speakers with guides to boot. Several 4WDs were ready at dock to take each group of 4 on a tour of the island. Steve, Werner and I were lucky to get a 4WD with open-air bench seats at the back allowing photos in all directions without the need to roll down windows. Excellent. Our first stop was Catholic Cathedral of our lady, which was finished in 1975 taking 3 years to build. It was a large structure with its own courtyard entry gate and made from steel, stone and wood. Its main feature was a huge cross with the 14 stations of the cross carved out from a single peace of local hardwood taking one sculptor 1 year to complete. From here we drove to the Archeological site of Tohua Kamuihei. Along the way we rose high into the sharp volcanic ridges surrounding the town of Taiohae with lush green jungle en-route. This is a wild place with dense jungle and jagged mountaintops. We watched a local Marquesan Haka (like New Zealand) in front of a huge Banyan tree at the entrance to the Archeological site before venturing into the site to see several rock platforms and remains of old dwellings that were built by the first Polynesians on the island to store breadfruit and make predictions of weather using petroglyphs. From here we drove down steep ridges into the village of Hatiheu that was nestled around a pristine beach with tall thin pin like needle formations watching on in the background – truly prehistoric stuff !!! From here it was back up the ridges and down again into the Bay of Virgins at the end of which lay the tiny village of Taipivai where we enjoyed our first truly traditional Marquesan and indeed Polynesian lunch of pork and goat cooked in the ground (hungi style), breadfruit (like soft potato or potato gnocchi), purple coloured sweet potato, ceviche-style raw fish salad and fried tapioca. Polynesians LOVE raw fish. It is everywhere and features on our ship for most lunches and dinners. I reckon locals probably have it on their corn flakes !!! This lunch was absolutely delicious and washed down by local lager beer which was gold after a very sticky hot morning. Our drive back to the boat got swamped with rain, which is often the case here in tropical conditions. Terrific for cooling but bad for photos but luckily we came back the same way and had already photographed everything. I had intended to visit the town of Taiohae but there was not much in it and it was raining so I decided to go back to the boat and go for a swim along the adjacent rocky coastline and wait for the weather to clear. The plan went well. I managed to swim 1.7km along a very choppy and rocky coastline. Got back to the boat, cleaned up and let the drone up with some sun breaking through. See for yourself below. Dinner that night was a sumptuous Marquesan Banquet with every type of seafood and meat eaten by the locals but really spiced up and presented well by the staff of the ship. Sleep came instantly for me given the run and swim mixed with heat and humidity and the long drives.
NUKU HIVA STATS:
Distance from Papeete: 1,400km
Size compared to Sydney: 3.1% (30km by 15km)
Coastline: 190km
Population: 2,951
Highest Peak: 1,223m
Claim to fame: Northernmost Island in the Marquesas & home to American writer Herman Melville in 1842
Please enjoy our first Marquesan island of 6 in French Polynesia…
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