LOOK IN THE PHOTO GALLERY UNDER MUSKET COVE AND FIJI TO NEW ZEALAND PASSAGE FOR UPDATED PHOTOS!!

Zoom in on google earth and see this very picturesque area. We're here safe and sound but at the end of the trip we were out there in a gale warning, rushing in before a big southerley hit. Our other friends are out there in it BUT we spoke to them on the radio last night and all is well on board their boats.

It's freezing,here in Opua, New Zealand 5.2 deg outside and 11.5 deg inside the boat at 5:30am, the day yesterday was glorious though AND it's absolutely wonderful to be here. It's a long weekend in New Zealand AND it's "The Coastal Classic Yacht Race" from Auckland to Russell, so a couple of hundred boats are going to converge on the area.

We arrived Thursday night at 10pm, spot on Greg's ETA he set 2 days before, but have been a bit too busy getting the lay of the land to write. what we've seen so far of the Bay of Islands is simply stunning, so looking forward to exploring more.