Dec 1, 2014 Onshore and busy in New Zealand

We were extremely fortunate to have the calmest passage from Tonga to New Zealand that anyone has heard of for years. There were times that we wished we had a little more wind, but fortunately that didn't last too long, and fortunately we did not have to put up with nasty weather. Thankfully we had beautiful sailing for most of the passage.

We spent a lot of the passage making food as we knew that NZ biosecurity does not allow a lot of foods into the country. They are trying to stop the spread of certain insects, rodents and lizards. Even with our best efforts NZ biosecurity confiscated all fresh fruit and veggies, fresh and cooked meats, eggs, dry beans, wheat berries, popcorn, honey and 3 coconuts forgotten in the dinghy. We filled 2 enormous garbage bags. Needless to say our fridge was completely bare after that.

As we sailed into the Bay of Islands we were greeted by an enormous pod of dolphins. Hundreds of dolphins rushed to greet us, jumping and frolicking in the waves, better than any Seaworld show. They came swimming from all angles and only turned inches from the boat the ride our bow wake. I have never seen dolphins make such sharp turns. 

After we cleared customs we attempted to proceed to the slip the marina provided. We told them multiple times how much we draw (in feet and in meters) and they said no problem getting to that slip. Needless to say we ran aground well before we reached the slip. Fortunately it is soft mud, but it was a falling tide so I jammed it in reverse and churned up the bottom to get off asap. We proceeded to anchor almost in the start line of the Wednesday night racing. As boats were circling around us, one offered to take another person, so Gary hopped on. Too bad he picked the slowest boat in the fleet, but he had fun. Ronnie had sailed his 27 foot POS from San Francisco to NZ, but before he left CA he sold the engine to get some cash and make more room for his surfboards.

After racing we went to the Opua Cruising Club for dinner. It is a really awesome, small, friendly sailing club. It was a busy night with all the Wed night racers and all the cruisers who just had all their food confiscated. Very fun!

The next night was American Thanksgiving and the Opua Cruising Club put on a spectacular dinner with entertainment for the American cruisers. It was special that they went to so much effort for non-members. The highlight of the night was the entertainment, a group of local ladies that sing acapella and have won many awards (they were very good), performed a number of songs for us. For dessert, all the cruisers brought a dessert to share, there was way too much and there was a fantastic variety. It ensured that we could over-eat just like is always done in the US for Thanksgiving.

The reason it has taken a few days to get the blog out after our arrival has to do with all the things that I have done. I have setup a bank account, got phones for Gary and me, figured out the long-term car rental for my parents and us, got their rental unit squared away, gone grocery shopping, done massive amounts of laundry, done some schooling with the kids, bought Gigi pants that fit her (he has grown a lot),… Gary's list is similarly long and my favorite projects he has done include buying and installing a brand new stove and installing a battery charger that works on NZ 240 volt power so we can plug in instead of running the motor to charge.

Axel taking a break from errands in Paihia. Everything is so green here.

Sadly we say goodbye to Harrison as he heads back to Canada for ski season. We have definitely lost the heart of music from Nirvana. We and the South Pacific cruiser fleet will miss Harrison. 

Before he left we spent the day touring Whangerei. The kids really enjoyed the amazing playground. We all liked the fact that the river and marine basin is right in the heart of town. We met at least a dozen cruisers that we knew on the docks.

Tomorrow Gigi and I go to Auckland for a few days to get my parents and see a little bit of the city. My parents are renting a place here in Opua for 4 months. We plan to use this as a base and go touring via boat and car from here.

Now that we have been here less than 1 week, but accomplished about 2 week's worth of projects, we have found that all the Kiwis we have met are the nicest people. We have had to deal with them for challenging issues and they are still the nicest, cheeriest people. I am really looking forward to our stay here.

Cheers,

Julie