It is during the deep night of the South Pacific when you’re most overwhelmed by potential. You’d think the daytime—with the sun shining bright in the cerulean sky above, sparking the unspeakably blue water below like voltage—would be the apex of your daily routine. But there are moments in the small hours of the evening sailing the waters of French Polynesia that nearly burst your heart with promise, where the wild curiosity of adventure and exploration peak.
Here in the darkness the white canvas sails of the “Panorama II” snap overhead, pulling the twin-mast luxury yacht ever north to our next island in the Society Islands archipelago. The sky inky black, its mantle sprayed painted with an impossible collection of glittering stars; the wolf moon high overhead paints the frothy wave tips in purple light. Gently the boat lolls over each swell as the heavy, warm air—paradoxically
