7.35am anchors away, blue skies and sunshine but as we motored out to the entrance of Akaroa Harbour we could see a band of dreaded sea fog approaching. An overnight sail of 158 nm to Port Chalmers. The fog drifted in and out all day, one moment brilliant blue sunshine, the next grey, damp air surrounded us. Very light northerly breeze, genoa up and motoring. Calm seas, easy conditions for us. Plenty of albatross about. So ungainly trying to take off. The boys had no joy fishing but we did have pods of dolphin swimming with us for a while. Big chunks of kelp floating in the sea - need to watch we don't catch it in the propeller. Spot the dolphin! 5.30pm bloody miserable conditions! Fog like pea soup. Grey. Damp. Cold. Zero visibility. It's going to be a long night. Expected dawn arrival in Port Chalmers.
Oh my goodness ... hot flush ... what a rock star ... check out those abs! Ready for the tropics. The crew thought Skipper was adjusting the halyard but Commodore had other ideas! Los tres amigoes! Alan, our legendary, skilled helmsman hit the fastest speed this trip - 8.9 knots. 4pm coming into Whangaroa Harbour. New Zealand's best kept secret! Stunning, superb, amazing, fantabulous, exhilarating, other-worldly - this is a place to put on your bucket list. Waitupipi Bay, our anchorage for the night. The scenery looks like something straight out of Jurassic Park. Sometimes you just have to borrow a pic from the internet to really showcase something special. This is how Whangaroa Harbour actually looks. The landscape is just incredible. It's from another world. Don is in the galley cooking up a storm. Crew lazing on deck after bubbles and nibbles. An end to a perfect day! But wait, there's more ... there's a TV on board (James Bond style - it magically rise
Breakfast in the calm waters of Port Chalmers before we hit the big swells! 24 hours to go. Morning smoothies in a big swell! 2 hour watches through the night, 2 crew on at one time, PFD's and tethers so we don't lose anyone. 4 hours sleep. Looking for lights on the horizon in the pitch black of darkness. Stunning night sky tonight. A tricky landfall in the predawn light. Motored into Oban but too exposed so headed off around the island to Golden Bay, anchor down at 8.20am. Breakfast then we all hit the sack for some much needed shut eye. An ominous sunrise coming into Oban. New crew Georgie and Guy joining us for a week of cruising and exploring Stewart Island. 7 of us onboard.
Comments
Post a Comment