Day 4 (March 19, 2019): Up Close and Personal...

Our third day in Moorea was to be our “adventure day”.  And beyond adventure, a better descriptor might be “going out of our comfort zone”. 

We had arranged a four-hour tour of the lagoon with a French guy named Jerome, who moved here from Guadaloupe a few years ago and bought a catamaran to offer tours.  Up at 6 AM, another nice breakfast at the hotel, and then we were picked up by a French woman named Liza at 8 AM and shuttled to the Hilton Hotel, 20 minutes away, where Jerome was waiting for us. By 8:30 we left the dock to start out adventure - and to embrace that “out of our comfort zone” element: swimming with sharks and stingrays. 

Jerome normally takes up to eight people but as luck had it, today there was just us. So we had our own private cruise! We lay back on the front of the catamaran and savoured every second of Moorea’s stunning scenery passing by.  Within an hour, we arrived at a special spot in the lagoon where the black tip reef shark (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blacktip_reef_shark) and giant sting rays gather. With a deep breath of courage and Jerome’s assurance that all would be fine, we jumped in.  And within seconds there were sharks and rays everywhere.  For the first while, we were apprehensive and guarded - not only with the sharks but the rays, too, as we clearly recalled the fact that Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, died from a ray’s lethal stabbing. But these creatures were gentle and curious, and just floated around us. And although the sharks were less pretty and much more intimidating, they certainly weren’t in “chomp mode”! A wee bit scary to have five of them all around you, however, sporting that stealth aggressor look. 

We swam with them for a good half an hour before setting off for a coral reserve snuggled between two”motus” (small islands). Another half hour of the most relaxing and enjoyable snorkeling imaginable:  the quantity and variety of both fish and coral were beyond our expectation. 

When we finished our snorkel, Jerome welcomed us back on board with cold pineapple juice and a beautifully prepared fruit tray!

Our last stop was at the mouth of Opanuhu Bay, where a number of tikis (Polynesian statues) were dropped into the Bay 40 years ago. It was neat to search them out - with Jerome’s help, of course. We were impressed that, while we snorkeled, Jerome took the time to dive down and clean the tikis. He told us that, along with another small boat operator, they try to keep the tikis in good condition. It says a lot about him. 

Four hours after we left the Hilton, we were back at the dock. What an incredible experience! Truly the adventure we had been seeking in Moorea. 

We rounded out the day back at our own hotel with a lunch on our balcony, a snooze by the pool, a visit to the Moorea Dolphin Centre (located on the hotel property) and trying our hand at both paddle boarding and kayaking. Although for the latter, we got stuck on a coral reef and could not get dislodged!  I’m sure that for the people on the beach it provided some great entertainment. 

One last dinner at the hotel and by 9 PM we were dropping. We will be truly sad to leave Moorea tomorrow morning. But hey, Bora Bora awaits. And how bad can that be?

The overwater bungalows at the Hilton Moorea, where we started our catamaran tour. 

The jagged mountain peaks around Opanuhu Bay.

Turquoise waters and coral, as we approached the IntercontinentL Moorea Resort. 


The lagoon’s gathering spot for sharks, rays... and apprehensive tourists!

So many sting rays it was hard to count them. 

Less graceful but equally as impressive, the black-tipped reef shark was present in great numbers.  It typically grows to over 5’ in length. 

The coral reserve for snorkeling stop #2. The variety of coral and fish was 10/10. 

Our captain,Jerome,greeted us back on board with this fruit tray. 


As we were nearing the end of our sail, the daily rain clouds gathered. Dark clouds, green mountains, white sand, turquoise water - a total artist’s palette!


Ahhh... all good things come to an end. This is Jerome’s catamaran,named Taboo. 

Wrapping up a perfect day with a paddle board attempt. (Pam did way better than I did.)


One of three American-born dolphins at the Moorea Dolphin Centre.