“The first boat in this mini series, which was also built in Tahaa, Raiatea’s sister island in French Polynesia’s leeward islands, is called Faimatu Piti. The major part of the construction of Fafa Piti took place ashore in a barn over the course of 13 months. I see this boat as an early 21st century version Polynesian pirogue - an evolution.
We have chosen a boat which is narrow, 7 meters, relative to its length of 17.2 m, and this has allowed us to maintain our target weight of less than 6 tonnes! To achieve this figure, all the wood used is structural, but what a pleasure to sail, she really slides across the water, propelled by a wood and carbon epoxy mast, 19 meters high! To deal with a small maintenance issue, we were able to put the mast here at Atuona in Hiva Oa in the Marquesas: a boatyard is under construction, equipped with a Parklev for hauling boats out, which should be up and running in a few weeks’ time. This will also cater for multihulls, and they can be stored in a secure area. This is great news for circumnavigators, as until now there has been no such facility anywhere between Central America and Apataki in the Tuamotus, 600 miles from here!
Fafa Piti spent this year’s cyclone season (a very strong El Niño event was predicted for this year, greatly increasing the cyclone risk in the Society Islands) in the Marquesas, where Fafa Piti has been welcoming guests.”
Hervé, on board FafaPiti.
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