At 9 a.m. Saturday, we departed anchorage near the Kia-Rao Hotel, on Rangiroa. Another megayacht arrived as we weighed anchor. It was a good reminder that someone always has a bigger boat. The one we saw in Fakarava looked like it had to squeeze to get its helicopter on the aft, upper deck. This one fit nicely above its 200' waterline. In fact the sailboat, the fishing boat, the launch, the inflatable hard bottom and the jet skis all fit nicely. Crew member Geoff Curran left this morning for R&R, back in Hawaii. He will re-join us at Raiatea. We departed through Passe D'Avatoru against an incoming current and followed by a strong south wind. We called on the extra power of our Lugger diesel, and powered our Nordhavn through the turbulent pass. No problem. Outside the pass were two unlucky sailboats, tilted over high on the reef. We finished our tour of the Tuomotu Archipelago and now our course is set for Tahiti. We have seen the spectacular mountains of the Marquesas and the ringed reef of the Tuomotu Atolls. Next, we will see the towering mountains of the Society Islands that are surrounded by a ring of coral. We are planning for landfall tomorrow morning at Passe Teafa, 17-44.8S 149-10.1W, on the southeast coast of Tahiti Iti. . Dick and Gail Barnes Aboard Ice Dancer Nordhavn 50 #22