Like a Boomerang, We Keep Returning to Amanu

November 2023, we visited the atoll of Amanu for the third time since arriving in French Polynesia.  Many sailors skip this atoll because it is on the eastern part of the Tuamotus, but we consider it one of our top three favorites.

Atolls are coral reefs that form a ring around a lagoon. Some say that originally the coral ring was on the outside of a volcano and that as the center area of the volcano eroded back into the water, the coral reef continued to grow upward and remains long after the volcano has disappeared.  

Amanu was the first atoll in the Tuamotus that we visited way back in June of 2022.  Most atolls have one or two passes that are deep enough and wide enough to enter, but not every atoll has even one navigable pass.  This means most of the water enters and exits an atoll through these passes and the currents can be very strong in an outgoing or incoming direction depending on tides, winds and waves. 

The video above is how the water looked as we entered the pass into Amanu in November 2023. The video is long, but might be of interest to some people. In this case the tide was against us but TTR handled it well.

Amelia was on board with us when we arrived in Amanu and although the three of us had read many cautionary reports about entering and leaving atoll passes, we had an easy time entering Amanu.

The Tuamotus atolls have a very low profile but they still offer good protection from waves and wind as long as you are on the shore from which the wind is blowing. We watch the weather and move from one area to another to find protected anchor spots as the winds change.

Within the atolls of the Tuamotus, there are many coral heads that grow up high enough to be hazardous to the boat.  So when traveling inside of an atoll, we have to be vigilant about looking for these coral bommies.  Thankfully, modern satellite images are a huge help navigating these bommies which can often be seen in the satellite picture but are not visible from boat level.

In the images above, the yellow lines are tracks recorded as Ticket to Ride moved inside the atoll. Each of those small white dots is a coral head that must be avoided.

Amanu has a unique, large coral growth inside its atoll that we call Star Reef. The weather needs to be perfect for a visit to Star Reef and we were lucky enough to have the perfect window.

We dropped anchor in the one anchor area available at Star Reef, then stern tied to a large, submerged rock to prevent us from swinging into any coral heads or the reef itself.

Since Amanu was the first Tuamotus atoll we visited, we weren’t certain what we would find but it exceeded our expectations. Amelia, Frank and I spent 5 days anchored by Star Reef marveling at the clarity of the water and the amazing coral and aquatic life. 

We snorkeled around the whole reef which meant we swam in waters anywhere from 8 to 90 feet deep.  In the deep water we could see large fish and sharks below us and in the shallow areas we could peek into coral crevices and to find unique fish.

At the end of a day in the water, we sometimes watched a movie or documentary. Some evenings we really got into the spirit of things with facial masks and “dressing” for the movie…

During our first visit to Amanu, we were surprised and delighted to find octopuses several times. At Star Reef we found a small, but very shy octopus which we visited more than once; but because she was shy we didn’t crowd her or put a camera in her face.

One day we had taken the dinghy to the shore and when we returned two octopuses were right next to our dinghy! I was so excited to get to see octopuses both swimming and in the coral.

On our first visit to Amanu, we did not go to the town anchorage because we thought there weren’t viable places to anchor TTR. But as our experience in the Tuamotus grew, we gained confidence and knowledge which allowed us to visit the main town of Amanu on our second visit.

Our second stop in Amanu was in February 2023. We left the Gambiers and sailed west to Amanu. This time it was only Frank and I on Ticket to Ride and we once again lucked out. The weather allowed us to go to Star Reef and drop anchor once more. The anchorage is very small and there might be room for two boats if they both stern tie to prevent swinging. We were lucky to have it to ourselves again.

We spent a few days relishing in the beauty of the reef and searching for our octopus friend. The reef was as captivating as we remembered, but we were unable to find our octopus.

We decided to up anchor and stop at the main town to get some internet and see what the town was all about.  Well, the town was quite cute and very small! There are 200 residents on the whole atoll of Amanu.

We had read that Amanu has a very young mayor who is energetic and outgoing. Apparently he is very proud of Amanu and is trying to make some improvements to the atoll. He has successfully found funding for and completed a pretty little harbor that accommodates local fishing boats and visitor dinghies.

When we went into town, we tied up at the dinghy dock and strolled about, but it was almost like a ghost town. We only saw about four people as we walked around.  Supposedly there are two magazins (small grocery) in Amanu but one was closed and we couldn’t find the second one. A local woman realized we needed help and very kindly showed us to the magazin.

Interestingly, the magazin had almost no signage and was tucked away in the trees without any sort of road leading to it and no parking area. I guess you have to know what you are looking for! 

Even though there wasn’t a lot happening in town, we were happy to look around and it was apparent that homes were well cared for. Perhaps we had come when many of the residents were visiting family on other atolls?

We were delighted to find a very nice place to anchor TTR that was an easy dinghy ride to town and to the pass for some scuba diving.  The tide was not conducive for diving the pass, so we decided to try diving the wall outside of the atoll between the two passes.

It is unusual for us to dive on the outside of an atoll, but the weather was very settled so we gave it a try. And what a delight it was diving on the outside of Amanu!

There were walls and valleys of healthy coral that seemed to go on forever! This was by far the healthiest coral we have seen in all of our travels.  Other places may have more schools of fish or be well known for their grouper spawning or their sharks, but we were thrilled to find so much healthy and colorful coral.

***To save download time, I have linked some dive videos at the very end of this blog post.

Our most recent visit to Amanu was in November 2023. This time the weather did not allow us to visit star reef, but we were able to anchor near town and this time we found things much more active on shore.  In fact, we met the mayor, François, and he invited us to a picnic lunch.

Apparently Francois and his wife invite all of the cruisers to lunch on the beach and they provide everything.  We were very impressed as were the other sailors who joined us.  

The story about how Francois became mayor is actually a very sad one.  Francois father was the mayor of Amanu but tragically, he died in a boating accident when Francois was only 18 years old.  The townspeople decided Francois was the logical person to become mayor even though he very young.

Francois must be doing a great job because he has been the mayor for 16 years! 

Oh, also, when we told Francois we had visited Amanu earlier in the year, he was upset that we hadn’t been invited to lunch. But then we all realized that while we were in Amanu, he and his wife were in Tahiti where she gave birth to their second child.

This visit to Amanu felt very different from our first two visits. The first time we didn’t get to town so we were isolated out on the atoll. We saw only two other boats and it felt like we were alone in the atoll. The second time, little was happening in the village and it felt deserted. This time we met many more locals, enjoyed the mayor’s luncheon and met several other boaters who were visiting Amanu. 

Based on the number of sailboats we saw this last time, I think the secret of Amanu is out and that more and more sailors will find their way to this lovely place with its welcoming residents.

The weather in August through December 2023 has been decidedly different from the weather we experienced during the same period last year.  From what we have been told, 2022 was a very mild and unusual year.  However 2023 appears to be much more “normal” weather which for us means that the weather has been more difficult than last year.

This year we have experienced more wind, rain and lightening than last year. Also, we have experienced challenging weather because the convergence zone has been upon us in the Tuamotus. The convergence zone, where two fronts meet, has unpredictable weather and we have had to change anchor locations often to position TTR properly for comfort and safety.

In addition, this year is specified as an El Niño year which means the chances for cyclones is greater than it was last year. This higher risk has influenced our decision to sail back north to the Marquesas Islands which, although part of French Polynesia, is not in the cyclone zone.

Happily there is also a very special festival being held in the Marquesas this year and we are excited to attend it.  But more on the Matavaa Festival in another post.

Thanks so much for stopping by to read our blog. I hope this gives you a little glimpse into the beauty of Amanu, Tuamotus.  We wish you excellent health and fun adventures.  If you would like to hear from us more often, please visit us on Facebook or Instagram.

VIDEO LINKS: a sampling from Amanu

Anemones are so easy to miss, but they are also cool to watch swaying in the current. This video shows a couple of anemones as well as clownfish and domino damsels : https://youtu.be/2l8Lrof7PPU?si=ohxE6F_87OTGwzze 

Clownfish have a symbiotic relationship with anemones and in the wild are always found living among an anemone. The give and take between clownfish and anemone includes clownfish hiding from predators within the anemone’s stinging tentacles as they are immune to the sting. Clownfish chase off fish that try to feed on the anemone and when the anemone spits out undigested food, the clownfish eats it thus getting food and cleaning the anemone. Finally, the clownfish lays its eggs under the host anemone’s disc which helps protect the eggs. Domino damsels also seem to be immune to the sting of the anemone, but in the wild, they do not always live within an anemone like the clownfish do.

Juvenile African Pompano have long filaments that trail off of their fins but as they get older the trailing fins shorten and disappear as they age. This video shows juvenile pompano: https://youtu.be/yTv1lwtkn2o

This is a large clam (about 20 inches long) on the reef in Amanu although it is not nearly as large as a giant clam: https://youtu.be/-GE6szxpeeE

This is a video showing a small lionfish: https://youtu.be/i5v3jNDb6gU

A video showing a variety of fish on the reef. The colors of the reef are a little garish but the colors of the fish are pretty accurate. It’s hard to get great video when we are diving in deeper waters: https://youtu.be/uzx7oMFfq7c