Skipper Pete, Di, Barb, Michelle, Alistair and myself are still talking to each other.

Arrived at Minerva Reef at 3am morning after 7 days at sea and waited at the entrance way to the atoll which is only 100 metres wide in the middle of nowhere until daylight. The reef is 3 miles across and the outer ring is only a couple of metres above sea level.Minerva North and South are 780 km from NZ and it is a place that not too many people have had the chance to visit. Public transport is scarce. So are Italian Restaurants. It is a bit surreal being anchored in the middle of the ocean with no land mass around you. Just ocean.

An abundance of sea life with significant shark numbers so no swimming at night, sunrise or sunset. I have been asked to go first into the warm tropical waters with the rationale that after a main course of Tones, Cyril Shark and his mates will be well fed. The swim this morning was devive.

A tough week after the first 2 days of no wind and motoring out of Opua heading east. After that it was a succession of days with 20 knots of breeze sometimes building to 35 knots and some spectacular seaways coming at us from the beam. Frequent visits from Albatross, Petrels and Flying Fish. Just when you thought you were drying out from the last dousing in came another liquid dumper. At least when the water runs down your back it has become increasingly warmer the further north we got.

We looked at the option of hooking east across to the Kermadec Islands (Sunday Islands) and sliding north through these islands, past Esperands Rock to Raoul Island, favourite destination for Johnny Wray and his 'South Sea Vagabonds'. It was becoming increasingly harder on the nose and the breeze clocked north so we opted for the more comfortable course and slid past with the Kermadecs only 60 mile to our east.

Them the breaks so Alistair and I have decided that a trip on Lion New Zealand should be hatched with 'South Sea Vagabond' fans. A couple of days in, around and on the Kermadecs Islands with the biggest hurdle been permission from DOC. Those green Nazi's funded by us the NZ taxpayer consider these treasures theirs so we will need to work a plan. The bastards cut down all the orange trees that were planted on the island by whalers and settlers in the early 1800's. Such is DOC's indecent haste to return these islands to 'their perception'. The best tasting oranges in the world are no more.Take the Auckland Islands:DOC in their wisdom culled the cows that had been habitants for over 100 years. What made the cows happy campers was that they were the worlds only seaweed eating cows having changed their diet to suit their environment. Not good enough for the Green Nazi's. Plonkers.

So a day of looking after Bonoparte the Beneteau 51 footer that is home. A comfortable piece of kit that has been well prepared by Peter and Di as they start their 6 month cruise around the Pacific taking in Tonga, Va'vau, Fiji and the many islands spread in and around these special places in our backyard.

Bonaparte is scrubbed down, dry and cleaned below, the wet weather gear is tied off on the cockpit canopy and we are dining on scrambled eggs, spicey onion and tomato and surprisingly for us youngsters, washed down with a bottle of Chateau Les Vallees Bordeaux. The second bottle cork has popped..... The most tropically warm breeze is blowing through the boat. Our thoughts are absolutely no where near you poor bastards freezing your neather regions off.

Cheers,The Bonoparte Crew.