19 November 2011
We checked out of Tonga and left town yesterday (Friday) back to Big Mama's (Pangaimotu) It looks like we'll be leaving on Monday (though still not 100% official!) Spend too long talking to other boats and looking at weather websites and your head can get into a right fuddle! Today was spent cleaning the barnacles off the bottom of the boat. Even though we're in Tonga, the water is a little chilly once you've been in for half and hour (me) or an hour (Mark) so the bouts were interspersed with hot cups of sweet tea (more to wee into your wetsuit later for extra warmth!) We've just got one more side of one more hull to do, and Pegasus is lovely and smooth. I did the metre I could reach with my snorkel and mask which didn't involve me putting my head too far into the water and then Mark did the rest (propellor etc) I do understand why New Zealand sets such stringent regulations but feel a bit sorry for poor Tonga who has all the barnacles of all the boats' bottoms from the Pacific that are heading to NZ. Now we're off to the beach with the kids so they can clean the bottom of the dinghy.