Monday 19/10/15
19 October 2015
Dawn broke as we reached North Cape, and if we couldn't see New Zealand, we could smell her on the wind, It's funny how distinctive the smells of land and trees are when you've been away for a while! Aotearoa lived up to her name, and for a while, the coast line was hidden behind thick clouds and fog. The latter of which soon cleared as the sun rose! Blue sky and warm sunshine accompanied the 25knot winds, sending us on a glorious reach down he coast, with a peak speed of 9.7knots!
It wasn't long till we entered cellphone range, signalled by the symphony of simultaneous beeping, that went on for a good minute as our phones got up to date! We haven't even arrived or cleared customs yet and we are plugged back into society!
We made great progress, passing Cape Brett at 3pm! The wind started to shift, and following a 35knot gust that knocked us down, we've been beating head into wind all day long, and expect this to continue until our arrival tomorrow!
While eating a delicious dinner of chilli-concarne we saw a huge pod of dolphins, perhaps 50-100, moving like lightening along the surface, sometimes leaping out, giving the water an appearance of boiling! Two of the Dolphins came to say hi and played on the bow for a minute, then whizzed off to join the rest of the pod, which we assume was busy hunting.
18 hours till home, and the crew are becoming a little unhinged, their excitement is palpable to say the least!
Sunday 18/10/15
18 October 2015
Glassy seas with no wind have meant we have been motoring almost the whole day. We had a visit from Hectors Dolphins showing us some tricks off the bow which was pretty cool, especially as the water was so clear! We also sighted about 8 whales surrounding us! The water would start to 'boil' then this huge mammal rises up and blows a big water spout in the air. We've never seen Matt get out of bed so fast when we shouted 'whales'!
Matt climbed the mast again (well, he got winched up really, josh and Leah enjoyed the exercise) this time successfully fixing the wind instruments using a special little butane canister the skipper, very proudly, rigged up for one hand use.
Update on our friends on tres bien, we are about 45nm ahead at this stage, go Vingilot! However the race is not yet won, and we're keen on maintaining our lead until Auckland.
We have just seen the three kings islands, the first land we've seen in seven days, the crew are excited as we expect to pass Cape Reinga at dawn.
The invention created by the skipper to secure a splash free shower was a huge success,and skipper seemed, perhaps to the crew, disproportionately excited about it! But It's the little achievements that you are really grateful for out here! Josh continues to to wash on deck with the deck wash, it's less like a shower though and more like a fire hydrant.
The crew have begun to perfect, or at least the perception of, one pot cooking.
Saturday 17/10/15
18 October 2015
Today began around 4am with a visit from a lone dolphin, just playing off our bow. It was covered in Phosphorescence which makes it glow like a glow worm, it was one of the coolest things to witness, an illuminated dolphin flying through the water, a pretty special thing to see!
Later with unobstructed views of the sunrise against a clear blue sky we had a yummy breakfast of a bacon, egg, cheese and tomato omelette with some baked beans on the side.
The waves eased up and we hoved-to so Matt could climb the mast to repair the wind instruments, he did this twice but with no success. We had suspected that the contacts had become wet and corroded. We will attempt another repair at the next opportunity!
Leah and Josh, ever searching for entertainment then created another boat exercise routine and dragged their feet in the water which helped lift spirits a lot (forgetting temporarily that we are racing Très Bien)
It feels like we are so close yet so far, still 150nm to the top of NZ, and each watch seems to carry us an almost imperceptible distance to our destination. The little icon that represents our boat on the chart plotter seems stay fixed and unmoving, and until the evening, suggested that we would miss the north island altogether and head for Nelson instead! Luckily the wind shift we've been waiting for came through, and we are now, at long last, heading directly for Cape Reinga!
The wind is getting noticeably cooler so its ugg boots and big jackets on during the nighttime watches
Friday 16/10/15 - A day at the rodeo
16 October 2015
Beating to windward, double reefed main, with only the stay sail and a little bit of head sail unfurled with 20 knots +! Wind instruments still broken.
It's been like riding a rodeo horse for the past 24 hours, making each trip down below a serious cross fit session. Up above the water it's blue sky's and warm sun, but with an icy south easterly winds, the crew hiding in the cockpit from the seaspray and waves.
Being out here makes you appreciate the little things in life, freshly brushed teeth, a change of pants, tomato sauce on a hot meal (for Leah), a comfortable toilet stop, and visitors from birds who have become our friends! Having skipped dinner last night, Leah and Josh put together mums Beef strog with mash and peas for breakfast!
If anyone recorded the crews conversations they'd hear Josh and Leah talking about their next meal, or about different ways to pee overboard, while Charles and Matt talk about sailing strategies, sail trimming and tacking!
Talking about Tactics, we are racing "Tres Bien", who is currently 60nm off our starboard beam, so it's neck and neck!
Thursday 15/10/15 - Becalmed then 30 knots!
15 October 2015
We enjoyed a beautiful overnight sail seas calm, it felt like we were flying! On Josh and Leah's first watch, Leah was laying on the leeward side of the cockpit and got a huge freight as a flying fish landed on her chest! Josh rushed to help but the battle with it left scales everywhere! We whipped up some cheesy scramble eggs and baked beans for breakfast, it was delicious, so far we have been eating well.
Matt, Leah and Josh had another deck wash, Matt had to wait till the water was warm and even then we heard a few squeals! The skipper wasn't into the deck wash thing and used his shower, coming out with a very excitable announcement that he invented a contraption to have a splash free shower, we all got a demo.
Becalmed for lunch, cheese and crostini things, finely sliced baguette baked with butter and garlic until crispy. Josh and Leah had some energy to burn so created a little boat workout, triceps dips, press ups, planks (these are tough on a moving boat!) and crunches. In the afternoon, the sea state changed rather quickly and was very lumpy. So it was all hands on deck as we responded to it and tired to keep our course broadly towards NZ, easier said than done!
We then settled into overnight watches again, these watches required a lot more effort than the previous ones given that early in the night our wind instrumentation failed so we had no accurate info on wind strength or direction so had to sail the old fashioned way until such time that a brave sacrificial lamb must go up the mast to repair it! A game of rock paper scissors should sort this decision out!
Wednesday 14/10/15
14 October 2015
Matts birthday!
Leah and Josh made a breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, tinned spagetti and fresh baguette, which was well recieved by all :)
Once the sun had risen high enough to be warm, Leah and Josh sprayed each other with the deck wash, soaped up and then then fresh water washed off, felt really good to be clean!!! All that they could hear from the cockpit was "They're crazy"! It was a bit cold in the wind though...
Leah and Josh, the galley crew it seems, made a cake for matties birthday. Leah wipped it up with what we had onboard, pure inspiration, no recipie. It was deadly. We managed to use 350grams of chocolate, 1 Liter of cream, to make the cake, chocolate ganache and caramel sauce! We could only muster a tiny slice each, and even then most of us got indigenstion afterwards. Looks like this cake will be with us for a while!
The afternoon brought calmer seas, but almost no wind! and we had to put in a few easterly tacks that made us feel like we are going backwards. We're not making our layline, and at our current rate we're looking like we'll be visiting stewart island! We're not so keen on that.
However, there was not a cloud in the sky for most of the day, and much Reading, tanning and napping was had in the warm sun.
Leah attempted to use her shewee off the back of the boat. She first phycd herself up, then did a mock run in the cockpit, and when she finally felt ready, she stepped out to the back of the boat. Everything looked good until cries of "It's running down my left leg!! my left leg!!" were heard, evidently not successfull this time. However, we have many days left for practice, though i'm not sure how many pairs of pants...
The boys are feeling quite lucky with how well their hewee's are working :P
Josh and Leah also spent a considerable amount of time planning dinner, which turned out to be chicken drums sticks, mash potato, peas, garilc and cheese crostini and a tomato and cucumber balsamic salad. Dessert was fresh fruit salad with the cake we didnt finish earlier, still warm, and totally decadent.
Matt's quote for the day, when asked for how his birthday has been : "It's been great", truely inspirational our matt, and perhaps it's also true that scopoderm affects focus.
We're gonna rig up a movie screen and watch something fun XD.
Tuesday 13/10/15
13 October 2015
All up at sunrise today to join the crew in the cockpit. We had a few flying fish land on us in the night, nasty slippery little beggars they are! Apparently they taste good so Leah might go all Bear Grylls tonight and eat one. Our seasickness is largely under control with the help of lots of medication and short dashes below unless of course to sleep. We put in a tack today to make some ground East. Leah and josh made cheesy, bacon and tomato sauce baguettes today for lunch. They were yum. Leah is already planning her homeward bound meal, no surprises there. We are all a bit feral and plan on having a shower on deck tomorrow if we can be bothered. It's quite beautiful out here, cool to see nothing but blue skies and blue sees forever. We are supposed to be getting some lighter winds late today but haven't seen any sign of it easing. The two tacks were the most exciting part of the day, sad but true. Tonight we need to make up some good ground as we are sailing back with anot her boat, one of Charles's friends, Trevor on 'tres bien', a cool catamaran. They are ahead of us at present but we have the easterly advantage so the game is on!
Monday 12/10/15 - Bon Voyage
13 October 2015
We were all up early today with lots to do before our departure. Charles went to immigration early to be sure we could clear and depart. Joy and co packed for their departure and helped with a few odd jobs to assist the slightly anxious crew. After a heart stopping moment that we had no scopaderm (sea sick patches), the skipper saved our lives and made a deal with a friend to acquire some patches in return for four baguettes. Cheap price to pay as the patches amongst other pills have literally saved our lives so far. At 11am we said goodbye to Numa as he helped us exit the marina berth in some gusty winds. And we were off, crew and skipper in good spirits but a decidedly nervous mood remained. The winds were stronger than expected and once we were outside the outer reef, the sea state was a little ugly. We had 30knots of wind on our nose and found it challenging to settle into a rhythm and point towards New Zealand. In our first six hours, we were on course for Brisbane and a t best Stewart Island! So we knew some tacks were required in the coming days. Matt had a good sleep for the day, so good that the skipper was concerned about bed sores setting in. According to Matt, he was just making hay while the sun shined. We had baguettes a with spreads for lunch then josh whipped up soup and spag bol throughout the rest of the day. What a superstar he is. Josh and Leah have had fun in the cockpit singing and no doubt annoying the crew below. We then settled into our watches for the night and made good progress although we still want to head a little further east but we will sort that tomorrow!
Sunday 11/10/15
13 October 2015
It was an early start today as we were going on our exciting excursion with Numa and Louise! We all rushed to the Port Moselle showers at the crack of dawn only to be disappointed by a queue starting to form- the cleaning was under way! We had a nervous fifteen minute wait before we were allowed to be admitted to the men's toilets/showers as the women's was still being attended to. Leah discovered after forgetting her soap and shampoo that toothpaste made quite a good body wash but didn't quite cut it for her hair!!
Back to the boat and a quick pack up of water bottles and sunscreen and we were ready at 6.45am sharp for Numa to pick us up. Numa arrived with naval precision right on time. We then drove away from Noumea until we arrived at a little roadside place under a big tree.
We very carefully removed the banana leaves from the van (that were collected the day before) and laid them under the tree. We were also joined by several other guests.
Mami, Louise's grandmother, was in charge, and instructed the men to build a fire, while the girls were asked to prepare the vegetables. At this point we were sure that we were about to do some traditional cooking!
The fire had to be built in a very specific order, and Mami made sure the men were doing it correctly! First they laid down small stones, followed by the wood that was cut the day before, which was laid down in perpendicular layers. Then they were instructed to remove the fibres from coconut husks and place them in the gaps in the pyre to act as kindling! The fibreless husks were then placed on top. Next the remaining stones were placed on top of the pile, and the first flame was started at the upwind corner, using matches and some firelighters. Everyone took turns breathing into the fire, but eventually the wind picked up and did the work for us! The fire took quickly, which we were surprised about because the wood was still green (having only been cut yesterday)!!
Meanwhile the women delicately dealt to the vegetables with knives. Large yellow and chunky bananas (called piantas) were peeled and then sliced into large sections. The yams were first peeled and then a fork was used to perforate them, this was to enable the coconut pulpy water to be better absorbed. We then used the fork to stab into the yam and make thick disc-like sections. Kumala, sweet potato and taro was peeled and thinly sliced as well and placed into a bowl. Squash was cut in half and then sliced into moon shaped slices. Then the coconuts were split in half with a machete and the middle was scraped out with a special utensil. It was a wooden seat with a sharp tool on the end. The coconut grinders would sit on the wooden plank and then grate the coconut into a bowl below. Water would be added to the grated coconut later to produce a milky liquid.
After the fire had started producing some real heat, the men placed Agave leaves on the fire until they turned brown, which was difficult to do without burning them, but they soon got the hang of it! The softened agave leaves were then torn into many long fibres, two sets of 4 would then be tied together with to make long ties, double the length of the original leaf.
The banana leaves were then gently laid over the fire, and heated just until they became soft. We had to be really careful here as the banana leaves were for holding the food, so there could be know burnt holes and not breaks in the leaves! To make them easier to bend, the spine sliced in half in parallel to the leaf, without breaking it. This was done so the leaves could be bent, and eventually wrapped around the food.
While Josh disagrees with the gender split (women preparing, men doing the fire), once you've handled the fire, stones & wood etc, your hands are so dirty that nobody wants you to be involved in the food prep anyway!
Bowls were then set aside and Louise instructed us that we needed four bougna chiefs. Josh volunteered, and this time the gender split was far better, with two male chiefs and two female chiefs! Josh was the first to start, but under the guidance of Louise and Mami, he did well!
Bougna Instructions: Six Agave leaf ties were laid down in a star formation underneath the bowls and five outer banana leaves were then carefully placed on top, followed by two inner leaves which would be ones in contact with the food. The inner leaves were very special and were the most inner leaves of the banana plant. Soft, and unbroken. The food would sit on these leaves! The chiefs then had to Layer all the food (all the vegetables and some chicken), careful to not let anything poke out, that might damage the bougna when it is made! We also added Chopped onion, garlic and parsley with Salt and Pepper as the first and final layers. Once all the food was in the bougna, the coconut milk/water was poured on over the vegetables until the bowl was full! They then had to very delicately fold and wrap the leaves, then tie, 1 strand at a time, making a knot of 4 strands, until all 24 strands are tied, forming a water tight ball. The extra lengths of ties were then platted and made into pretty patterns to identify the bougna, and the chef who made them!
By this time most of the wood had burnt, leaving hot coals and rocks. The fire was opened, and the rocks spread over the ground. We then very gently carried the tied bougna and placed them on the rocks. Rocks then banana leaves were placed on top of the bougna until they were covered completely. The rocks were maundered using special wooden chopsticks! This was followed by carpet and then earth until no smoke could be seen. We then left the food cooking for 2.5 hours!
In the meantime, everybody sat down for a game of Trivial Pursuit, which turned out not be so trivial (for us), as it was all in French!!! The did translate the questions into English however, and we all had a lot of fun! At some point the questions were seen as too easy for both language groups and were read in German or Spanish! When each team won a point, there would be loads of cheering and high-fiving, full on celebration!
Mami informed us that the meal was ready, and within 5 minutes we had removed the earth, carpet and rocks (with the special chopsticks), we loaded the bougna into the car, and sped off to Numas house! The smell in the car was AMAZING!!
At Numas we were joined by some more people (Including Justin, the NZ consulate general and his assistant Maire-Jo who had been with us the whole morning and was one of the bougna chiefs!), which brought the total to 26 Guests! The bougna cheifs then opened their work, and a magnificent feast was had by all! in addition to good conversation, drinks and many many stories!
Justin had recently spent three years in Kabul, so were treated to some excellent work stories! Interestingly he had met one of dad's cousins through a conservation project!! What a small world!
Numa and Louise are amazing hosts, and we all felt really lucky to have enjoyed the whole experience of the meal, from collecting the wood and leaves, to preparing the vegetables. It really brought everyone together, even though most of us didn't know each other! Louise said this is exactly how it is at a wedding, where everyone gets to form a special connection with relatives they haven't seen in a while :).
After a fantastic evening the crew returned to Vingilot on a high, to prepare and sleep for tomorrow's departure!
Saturday 10/10/15
12 October 2015
Blue skies again but 30 Knots of wind meant the morning swim turned into an effort not to drown! Mum had to hang onto the ladder for fear of being swept away! Breakfast was our staple Yogurt and cornflakes.
We were very lucky to have been able to pre-book a berth from midday at Port Moselle, so at 9am we made our way from Ilot Maitre to Noumea. On they way in we met Lil' Explorers, who said they were going to leave tomorrow for NZ!
Matt, Dad and Rebekah went to fill up with diesel, while Jade, Josh and Mum went ashore to do an obscene about of grocery shopping, so much in fact, that we needed to take a taxi to get everything to the boat!
Leah arrived at the marina just in time to help Matt and Dad bring the boat into the moorings. This proved difficult with the odd 25Knot gust threating to push us into other boats! However, they proved their seamanship and we got in without drama.
Josh, Leah and Rebekah then went shopping for pizza and baguettes, which we had for lunch.
After lunch it was time to start cleaning the boat getting ready for our departure on Monday morning. Matthew got into his scuba gear and started cleaning the bottom (to pass biosecurity inspection in NZ), while Josh, Jade and Leah scrubbed the dingy clean!
Numa and Louise very kindly let us take our dirty washing to their house, so that the crew could have clean underwear for the trip home! After the washing was started, Numa took a van load of us on a mystery road trip to cut wood! We had no idea what it was for, except that it was going to require us to be ready by 6:30am the next day! He dropped Josh and Leah off at the top of a random hill, handed them a machete each, and instructed them to cut down some of the bush, which they thoroughly enjoyed! Once we had filled the van with freshly cut wood, we drove to another location to gather/cut agave leaves, and then again to get banana leaves! Leah reasoned that we will either be building a traditional house, or cooking in an earth oven! Regardless, we are excited about the surprise he has planed for us tomorrow!!!
Dinner was BBQ sausages, mash and roasted courgette, plus after-eight desserts to celebrate matts upcoming birthday!
It was then quickly to bed, as we have to get up early for Numa, with military precision!!