One of the great things about Gambier, is that there are both luscious islands as well as smaller motus (islets) by the outer reefs. We enjoyed the diversity of the archipelago, and went back and forth between the bigger islands and the motus by the outer reef as often as we could. The anchorages by the motus, are normally only comfortable in little wind, hence the need to move in between the blows.
The northern motus and the false pass
The motus located in the northern part of Gambier, are by the airport. These motus are larger, and provide good protection from easterly and northerly winds. In between these motus is also the location of the infamous false pass of Gambier. More about that later…
The anchorage by the false pass is our favorite anchorage in Gambier. We probably went back and forth there 5-6 times during our almost 3 months in Gambier. We liked the diversity of what the anchorage offered. It is a great place to do different kind of activities, like standup paddle, foiling behind the dinghy, snorkeling, and there is also an onshore path we could walk shaded by trees. Oh, and the water is crystal clear, at least most of the time.
Practicing foiling behind the dinghy together with Jill and Michael from SV Gerty. Video footage by Red Seas.
We snorkeled the false pass several times, and loved it every time. The captain also dived the false pass together with his son Christopher, when he visited together with his girlfriend, Lorena. We thought the best way to see the false pass is actually free diving/snorkeling. It is not really deep enough to have a good dive experience.
The reason why the false pass is infamous amongst cruisers, is that there have been two attacks by grey reef sharks there over the past five years. The first attack happened in 2020 to a local man who was spear fishing. The last attack in May 2024, happened to a cruiser who was snorkeling in the pass (read about this attack on this website by the cruisers who experienced it).
Both incidents were due to the shark smelling fish (the guy in 2024 was wearing a wetsuit that smelled like fish due to previous spear fishing activities), and going into hunting mode. Both attacks ended with evacuation by plane to Tahiti, and both survived their attack.
Several cruisers we met were quite sceptic to snorkel at the false pass, as these stories are circling in the community. Which is a pity. We found it to be the nicest snorkeling experience in Gambier, and the shark we saw there were not behaving more intimidating than what we have seen elsewhere.
Motu Tauna
Tauna is the most popular motu amongst cruisers. It is located on the Eastern side of Gambier, and has room for 3-4 boats to anchor comfortably, depending on the swing radius required by the weather/wind shifts.
We went twice to Tauna, first with the kids (Christopher and his girlfriend, Lorena) and then again by ourselves in February. The first time, we stayed at the anchorage closer to Tanua, and the second time we found a sandy spot a little north, where it felt like we were anchored in the middle of nowhere.
Together with Christopher and Lorena we had a beach bbq with hamburgers for lunch.
Tauna is awesome for standup paddle and snorkeling as well. Beautiful corals surround the island.
Motu Kauku
Kauku, which is a motu near the east pass, is a lesser known anchorage. Swells often wrap around this motu, making the anchorage a little rocky. Therefore, it needs to be very calm to make this a comfortable place.
We stayed in Kauku twice, once in search of a wall to dive on the outer reef (we had no such luck), and the second time to explore the snorkeling and witness one of the nicest sunsets we experienced in Gambier.
After searching Gambier for scuba diving spots for a few months, we think we have established that this archipelago is not the best for diving. There are no walls, and the marine life you see at 20-30 meters is not diverse from what you see while snorkeling.
We have loved our time in Gambier, and are slowly planning our travels back to the Tuamotus archipelago, as the cyclone season now is coming to an end. We are just going to do a pit stop by Pitcairn Island first!