10/09/2009, Customs Dock Whangarei, NZ
The past 24 hours have certainly entertained Zen and her crew. We saw 18-20 foot seas freight-training behind us like moving mountains. Winds gusting to 40-knots, whipped Zen into making 20 knots of boat speed, with only a tiny piece of the jib flying. Autopilot did a magnificent job, needing only a few hours of hand steering, during the height of the beating. After 8 hours of challenging weather, we gained entrance into NZ with 25 knots of wind on the beam and stars overhead.
Now, we are about to experience NZ Customs and Immigration. We understand it is one of the most thorough in the world. Thus far, communications have included faxes, 48 hour in advance SSB, and emails. And, I think they had a spy plane out there, because at exactly one hour before arrival into the harbor, they hailed Zen on the VHF.
After our voyage from Newport, RI to the Caribbean, South America, Panama, Galapagos, French Polynesia, the Cook Islands, Samoa and Tonga, we are excited to enjoy THIS spectacular destination. New Zealand, as shown in the photo, looks like it will beat all our expectations.
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Comments [10]
10/07/2009, Underway to NZ
The photo is of a pending cold front about ready to slap us with some hefty winds from behind. When giving one's position and current weather on a sailor's SSB radio net, we say, "Oily ocean". Amazing how it can be totally boisterous, giving us a full-on amusement park ride, to becalmed and flat in just a day's time. At this point, it's noon NZ time on Thursday. In just 6 hours, we'll be sailing again, with 25 to 35 knots behind us, surfing us directly towards our mark.
Life onboard goes from boring to awesome. I am not complaining one bit about being bored. After all the built-up anxiety about this ocean passage, boredom is totally welcomed. Last night, Tom watched a movie or two and I played some solitaire while night watches transpired. There were no boats in sight and the double-reefed main and jib caught whatever wind there was, letting the engines do most of the hard work. During the afternoon, an unexpected awesome experience was had, when Tommy spotted a huge bird coming up from behind to check out Zen. Yes, finally, the long awaited albatross visited the Burgess Family. We had hoped to see these massive birds while touring the Galapagos, but to no avail. Our trip is now complete having been accompanied by the global aviator, who gracefully skimmed above the water, looking over at us, and then continuing on his/her way without ever flapping a wing. There's some kind of folklore about sailors and the albatross. Don't know the details, but I am taking this as a good omen.
Our weather details just came in. Tonight is going to be a major surf session. Tom's out on deck rigging the outer blocks, pulling in the awnings, and putting a storm cover on the dinghy. I will clean up after a breakfast of homemade French Toast on coconut white bread with cinnamon, nutmeg and real vanilla beans. Don't know what tonight's rock and roll menu will be, but it's time to hang ten for sure.
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10/06/2009, Underway to NZ
Zen is currently motorsailing on a southwesterly course. The winds are dying and the waves are still big rollers, kicked up from the bucking bronco ride last night. And speaking of last night, I swear I heard the tell-tale whale fog horn song while we were flying at 9 knots. Our starboard daggerboard makes a humming vibration sound when it goes through the water at fast speeds. We could have been in a whale-traffic-lane. Were they hoping we were a female? Or were they beeping their horns for us crazy drivers?
Weather says winds will fill in from behind us in about 24-36 hours. That will send us zooming directly toward Whangarei, NZ. So...in the meantime, we wait, charge the batteries, huddle in the main salon (it's flippin' cold), and watch the puffy white clouds roll by. There's 6 other boats around us, all heading to NZ. Funny, we see them clearly during the day, but nighttime comes, and everyone puts on their cloaking device and disappear. This morning's radio net revealed that we are still about 10 miles ahead of Miss Molly. But, she rolled in her headsail when the winds came in our face, turned on the iron jenny (engine) and started blasting at 8 knots on the rhumbline to NZ. She'll eat us up today. Maybe when the winds come from the north, we'll have some fun catching up.
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