From
New Zealand, Year 2
Generally, our motto is to never go back to places we've been since there's so much to see out there, why repeat? But NZ is definitely different; we really love it here. It welcomed us on our last day with fast, flat sea sailing since conditions finally lightened and once we reaching the top of North Cape, you sail in the lee all the way down to Opua. With the wind that we had & a fair current that pushes south, we did 7.5-8kts the whole day until sunset. Earlier that morning, as we began seeing land, we were greeted by lots of seabirds, out for their day of fishing before returning to shore at dusk. I learned in a museum a couple of days ago that the gannets fly 50km out to sea each day to feed and then return each evening. I love watching them. NZ has numerous birds & fish in their cold waters given all of the currents and proximity to Antarctica.
At sunset, the wind died so we started the motor & continued through the night through the Bay of Islands to Opua. It was a perfectly calm, starlit night and all I could smell was the scent of soil and I think manure! No surprise given the number of sheep here! We pulled up to the Q dock at 4am, tied up and then hit the bed for 4 hours before customs & immigration arrived to check us in. We were both exhausted but could barely sleep. NZ really rolls out the red carpet for sailors. Aside from the check- in where they relieve you of any fresh produce, meat, eggs, honey, popcorn, beans or wild rice, they really give you a warm welcome, including a handmade woven bag full of goodies. And, check-in is FREE! I always admire their enthusiasm for their country and the way when asked, they'll go on & on about all that you can do here or places you just have to see.
Right after check-in, we moved into a slip at Opua marina to join everyone else who's sailed back in and to start getting the boat cleaned up. I found out that they just put in a new bike path in the 6 months we've been away and it starts right at the marina. The intention is to make the path run from tip to tip on the north island and I was told they're well on their way. It is the stuff of dreams for us! So, we walked this path the first day to stretch out our contracted legs. We are full of bruises & sore spots from clunking around in the boat on the passage and fighting to stay in one spot with the heel. I usually get a big bruise at the base of my hand from bracing myself against the side of the sea berth when I'm sleeping. You just have to learn to sleep with only some parts of your body relaxed & others taut! But this time, we were on a starboard tack much of the way so the heel was the opposite direction. We both found that we developed aching necks and backs & never really relaxed much at all for most of the trip.
The first couple of nights here it was pretty chilly & the power post in our slip was broken so we couldn't run a heater. One morning it was 55 in the cabin and of course, it was practically impossible to stay warm at night until.... we put the beautiful afghan on the bed that Jon's mom knitted us years ago. It's such a fixture on this boat; it graces the cabin and we mainly use it to lean against on the settees since it's usually so hot but on those first nights, draping that blanket on the bed was heavenly. It's not just any blanket!
From
New Zealand, Year 2
It took a whole day to do the Russell shoreline walk with Blue Rodeo & Charisma. The weather was perfect, the temps had warmed up and it was a great walk. It starts by taking a little ferry across the harbor from the marina, then you walk up to a ridge that overlooks the bay and then the trail meanders over toward the historic town of Russell, through varied terrain. Russell was once known as the Hell Hole of the Pacific in the whaling days since it had a reputation for all the bad behaviors but now it's a cute, albeit touristy little town that's full of little shops & restaurants & a nice little museum that we went to. When you're ready to continue with the walk, you get on another ferry back over to the mainland where the trail picks up again & continues back to Opua. It was a perfect day with great company and lots of beautiful scenery to look at.
From
New Zealand, Year 2
After some slacking off, it's been back to attending to the boat and trying to get ready to go home. We fly out the 22nd, merely a week & a half from now and we still have to move over to Whangarei, a 2 ½ day sail away. At least they're daysails anyway! The varnish on the toerail basically exploded on the passage- this is the worst yet. It was already on the list to be redone but it sure looks sad now and there won't be time to get it redone before we leave. But amazingly, there weren't many casualties on this trip other than the varnish and the toppling over of a lamp that we had velcroed down on a shelf for the past 13 YEARS! So, we're counting ourselves lucky.
Well, it's time to get going for the day. Not looking forward to the long trip home, but sure looking forward to seeing as many people as we can. And wow, it's right around the corner from now!