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Bora Bora Coast Road Bike Ride

Posted on February 23, 2009 by: Traveler

Closest City: Vaitape, Bora Bora
State:
Country: French Polynesia

Bora Bora Coast Road

Vaitape: Danielle and I were staying for four nights at the TopDive Resort on the island Bora Bora. For our third day on the island, we asked our proprietor for bicycles to rent. Our plan was to ride around the island’s 32-kilometer coast road. We were directed to the nearby town of Vaitape. TopDive was just on the outskirts of town, so we walked over and found some decent looking riding machines amongst a row dilapidated bikes. I remembered our bike riding experience from the island of Rangiroa. On Rangiroa, Danielle and I rode approximately twenty kilometers along a series of motus that connects Avavtoru to Tiputa Pass. At the bike rental area of Bora Bora, Danielle immediately made the comment that our current rental bikes appeared to be far superior riding machines (that is still not saying much because the bikes on Rangiroa were falling apart as we pedaled). I did the math for our current riding milage and at 1.6 kilometers per mile, we would need these bikes to hold up for a 20 mile day. The bike ride would be mostly sea level with the road rising slightly at Fitiiu and Paoaoa Points. I read only small portions of the coast road would be “unsealed” by asphalt making the day a leisurely ride. Armed with our Lonely Planet guide “Tahiti & French Polynesia”, we took off in a clockwise loop (opposite the “anti-clockwise” direction outlined in the guide).

Bora Bora Island: Our starting point in Vaitape is located on the western side of Bora Bora. The wharf of Vaitape is about a 45-minute ferry ride from the island’s airport (constructed by U.S. troops in 1943) on the northern Motu Mute. While taking the ferry over to the “mainland” wharf, we could see Bora Bora’s two highest mountain peaks (Mt. Otemanu at 727 meters, 2,385 feet and Mt. Pahia at 661 meters, 2168 feet) loom high overhead. From the air and while ferrying over, Bora Bora’s 38 square kilometers appeared to rise vertically from the water’s edge culminating in these two high peaks. The land doesn’t appear suitable for construction of infrastructure, but human ingenuity prospered. The distances (as the crow flies) of Bora Bora is only nine kilometers from north to south and four kilometers at its widest point. The main island today rises from the center of an ancient volcano whose crater rim can be traced along the edge of the motus surrounding the lagoon. The main break in the island’s lagoon reef is Teavanui Pass. This deep pass is capable of allowing large marine vessels such as the Polynesian cruise ship “Paul Gaguine” to enter Bora Bora’s wide and sheltered lagoon.

Coast Road Riding: Danielle and I only had two requirements for this ride: we would stop where and when we liked (for pictures mostly) and we would eat when we got hungry. We had points of interest in mind but we were doing the coast road loop in the opposite direction outlined in the book. Distances in the Lonely Planet guide to points of interest were measured by kilometers from Vaitape. We set out under a blazing morning sun with huge cumulonimbus clouds scattered across the sky. We had been on the island for a couple days now and saw how quickly the white clouds switched from big, white and bubbly to dark, ominous and rainy but figured rain would be a welcome respite from the tropical humidity. Soon enough we had already stopped at a clearing looking out to a large bay. This was Faanui Bay and its shore was lined with coconut and banana palm trees. The banana palms were interesting with their clusters of fruit growing down from a long stem whose bottom resembled… well, I’ll just say it was phallic in nature. Shortly after rounding the north side of Faanui Bay, the guidebook mentioned Marae Fare-Opu located right alongside of the road… and we actually found it. Marae Fare-Opu consisted of several upright standing stones that were somewhat rounded. Depicted on the marae stones were sea turtles. Turtles were sacred (and hopefully still are revered) to the ancient Polynesians. Right as I was about to take some pictures, a tour Jeep pulls up and blocks my vantage. It was only temporary and they soon pulled away. I thought how much more rewarding of a day Danielle and I were about to have because we could go it alone and not have to worry about anyone else’s schedule.

We saw some pretty amazing sights around the island’s coast road. We didn’t see everything we had hoped to but the Lonely Planet guide still proved invaluable on this day because we were able to identify how far we had to go from the (basic) maps. After a leisurely ride along Vairupe Bay we passed some gorgeous condos built on stilts up the hillside. Jutting out over the water were several over water houses (at least they were big enough). Past the condos and closer to Taihi Point, we came upon a usual and rather unfortunate sight. Jutting out over the water in a gorgeous portion of the lagoon were the remains of hotel. This over-water project was begun by the Hyatt Hotel’s chain… then stopped due to the lack of funding. Danielle and I sat for a minute in sheer amazement that a hotel chain would be able to cease all efforts of returning the landscape to its previous condition. I guess they had gone a lot further in the construction than what we were seeing and “local” efforts to clean the site had been underway. Hopefully, it is back to normal as you read this. Some local “artists” left their mark on the remaining walls and that is one of the only times I considered graffiti to be acceptable.

On the far side of Hitiaa Bay and just past Outurau Point Danielle and I came across the Marine Museum with its miniature replica boats from bygone eras. The museum is open to the public, consists of one room and only took us about ten minutes to view all the display cases. Danielle liked the tiny ship inside of a light bulb and I thought the replica Viking ship was pretty amazing. The Marine Museum is 21 kilometers (anti-clockwise) from Vaitape, so that meant Danielle and I had pedaled 11 kilometers (clockwise) to reach this point.

The scenery was spectacular along Taimoo and Haamaire Bays and we could see the peninsula at Fitiiu Point jutting out into the lagoon. Remember, this is one of the two locations where the coast road diverts inland and rises above sea level. A dirt track veered left as the road turned right and up. Looking left out to the point we saw what the tourist board of Bora Bora probably doesn’t want guests to see… the island’s garbage dump area. The area just seemed to be a mound of trash that was on fire so we rode closer but turned around from the thick smoke. I guess with a tiny population it is possible to simply burn all trash items. On other islands, Danielle and I saw lots of fires burning in yards (this island too) and realized people were burning fallen yard waste consisting of coconuts and palm fronds. We wondered what resorts and locals did with their waste products (food and indoor items) with limited room for large trash dump sites like in the United States. We learned the islanders push for recycling because when I returned my Hinano Beer bottles, my next round of drinks were heavily discounted J.

We cruised along eastern side of Bora Bora until just after Paoaoa point when the road began its last rise above sea level. Off to the right, we came upon a wooden stairway leading up the hillside and disappearing into the tropical vegetation. I believed this to be the viewpoint (called a belvedere) identified on our rudimentary map. Danielle stayed with the bikes and I ran up the stairs to the top of this ridgeline. I could look back down and see the Club Med Bora Bora (recently transplanted from north of Vaitape after a cyclone wiped out the old compound). Looking south, I could barely make out Matira Point. The views stretched far to the northwest down onto Povai Bay (where we would soon be riding to), up to the high peaks and the lagoon beyond. There was a thatch shelter on top of this ridgeline. I could only briefly enjoy the views and snap a couple of pictures before I had to return to my patiently waiting wife. We rode down the hill to Matira Point and found a nice restaurant although I can’t recall the name. Instead of stopping any more, Danielle and I just rode the rest of the loop back to the bike rental area in Vaitape and returned the trusty stallions (the bikes held up beautifully). We now had something entirely different to look forward to; lounging the rest of the afternoon away at the infinity pool area of the TopDive Resort.

After cycling around the coast road of Bora Bora, I could definitely see what the draw of staying on one of the motu resorts would be. These luxurious motu resorts and their over water bungalows (looking toward the mountainous mainland) in the shallow reef area where the water has many shades of blue is where postcards are made from. The motu resorts are also why travel magazines consistently describe Bora Bora as the most beautiful island in the world, enticing the rest of us to travel to this tropical destination. For our seven-island tour of French Polynesia though, I believe Danielle and I did it right to stay on the mainland. We were able to get away from the cushiness of the TopDive Resort and experience the island on our own terms and were also lucky enough to interact with locals in places that don’t necessarily see a lot of foreigners.

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