Rangiroa

Rangiroa is a Atoll of the Archipel of Tuamotu in French Polynésie. This one is the chief town of the common of Rangiroa. It is located at approximately 350 km in the North-East of Tahiti.

It is the second larger atoll in the world by the surface of sound Lagon, true inland sea. In its high limits of size the lagoon 80 km is long for a width 32 km, maximum depth is only of 35 meters.

Because of this low depth, according to the swell and of the exchanges between the sea and the lagoon by the Master key S, it happens that interior Tempête S occur in the lagoon. Only two islands out of the 418 which compose the atoll are inhabited permanently. The population is approximately 2000 people.

Rangiroa is known universally for its exceptional underwater fauna. Dolphin S, Shark S, Poisson S of reef and Pelagic S and in season of the Baleine S are observable there.

The villages are Tiputa (971hab), Avatoru (817hab) and Ohotu (546hab).

Rangiroa is well served daily since PAPEETE by ATR 42 and ATR 72 of Air Tahiti.

Activities

Rangiroa has a thermo plant which produces electricity as well as satellite antenna for the telephone calls.

In addition to usual the tranferts of resources of the metropolis towards the overseas territories by the means of the wages of the public office, Rangiroa has some clean economic activities:

Tourism

It is certainly the pricipale economic activity of the island: connections day laborers with Tahiti, an exceptional lagoon and master keys which constitute privileged sites of Plongée underwater attract a regular number tourists. The latter are lodged in some hotels and boarding houses.

The Perliculture

The pearl-bearing oyster breeding in the lagoon makes it possible to produce black pearls .

Fishing

Primarily food part of the production is however exported towards the island of Tahiti.

Vine growing

The atoll of Rangiroa is also known for its Vignoble, single in the world. The vines there push at the edge of a lagoon beside a cocoteraie, and produce two harvests per annum. The Chai is located in full center of the village of Avatoru. The grapes are brought back to the wine storehouse by boat.

The creation of this vineyard required long preliminary analyzes, to find the best site able to accommodate the vines. The first stocks were imported in 1992 and underwent tests of acclimatization and selection in the principal archipelagoes of Polynesia, with the uncertainty of their adaptation to the Climat. About thirty type of vines was imported various areas Europe.

The tests took place:

with Southern on the high islands of Rurutu and Tubuai,
with the Marchionesses with Nuku Hiva,
in Tuamotu with Rangiroa,
in Tahiti in plain and mountain.

With final, the atoll of Rangiroa was retained, in particular its absence of cryptogamic Maladie, the absence of insects défoliateurs, and its relative proximity of Tahiti. The type of vines retained and currently in production are: the Italia, the Carignan, and the Muscatel of Hamburg.

The problem of water

As for much of atoll, there is no running water with Rangiroa. Each hearth must recover and store rainwater in cisterns. The lenses of fresh water which are formed in the coral reefs are for the majority of enter they from now on made up of brackish water because of an excessive pumping. Some are also polluted because of the hiding of waste.

Characteristics

Rangiroa is little known for its Vigne. It is however the only atoll of French Polynésie where wine (red and white) is produced in spite of the saline air and the absence of ground.
Of the sedentary Dauphin S (Tursiops Truncatus) regularly comes to play in group in the master key of Tiputa. One can observe them since the dry land but it is also one of the rare places where they are let approach in deep-sea diving.
When the current is returning, a wall of sharks of approximately 100 specimens are formed at the entry of the master key of Tiputa to about fifty meters of depth. Carried by this fort running the sharks can thus remain motionless and allow the plungers to observe them without difficulties, as well as large lines manta (manta birostris)

Exceptional sites

the lagoon Bleu is a lagoon inside the lagoon, its very low depth contributes to enrich the single pallet by blue which is offered to the visitor.
the island with the reefs is very particular and shows fossil coral formations, called “feo”, which seem to be created at the time of the " cataclysme" what caused the exit of Tahiti (much young person geologically) of the ocean floor.
pink sands are sand banks located at the extreme south of the atoll. The place is superb but its distance holds it for the very calm days.

See too

French Polynesia
* Wine of Tahiti - Official site

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