We have been onboard for a week now so thought
it time to write a post even though its been pretty low key for the last week.
Nik and I finally made it back to New
Zealand from Australia after a few delays encountered over the last month and a
bit. Whilst frustrating the time we
spent in Perth was really enjoyable (there are worse places to be stuck) and I
managed to get a few odd jobs done around the house and catch up with a few
people. One problem with delays however
is that it gives you time to order more stuff for the boat - by the time we
left we had about 45kgs of luggage – everything from electrical tools,
kitchenware and clothing to a new sateliltte comms systems. Yes we purchased a Starlink mini to give us coastal
internet coverage on the boat.
Sea Otter has been in a pen in the Bay of
Islands Marina in a place called Opua for the last seven weeks and I was
expecting all sorts of issues when we got onboard.
We arrived onboard on Thursday afternoon (6th
Feb) which was Waitangi Day here in New Zealand. Waitangi day is essentially New Zealand’s
National Day commemorating the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi between over
500 Maori chiefs and the British Crown in 1840. Luckily we avoided any of the crowds as
Waitangi, the place, is the centre of all the action and is right in the Bay of
Islands.
We moved
onto the boat immediately upon arrival and next day started to get ready to
depart. We had to run up all the onboard
electrical and mechanical systems, ensure the watertight integrity and to provision
the non-perishables for the next few months of sailing. Luckily the marina had a courtesy car which
we borrowed to carry out the shopping as three months of food is about two big
shopping trolleys full. Once purchased
and loaded onboard the next issue was where to store it. The boat is much smaller than our last boat
but Nik did a great job in squirreling out spaces for storage.
Opua is a nice little place but there is
not much more than the marina, boatyard and some supporting businesses and a cruising club. It’s a Port of Entry for New Zealand and a
great spot to have work done on your vessel.
We departed the marina on Sunday heading for Manawaora Bay, one of the
numerous tranquil bays within the area – the idea being to decompress for a few
days and get used to living onboard.
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| Nik on the lookout |
Had a great first sail with a steady 15kts of
wind and then relaxed at anchor for a couple of days. Moved around and anchored in a couple of
different bays (Kaimarama Bay & Entico Bay) over the next few days and have
ended up off a town called Russell. We
will stay here until the beginning of next week as it gives us a chance to buy
some fresh food, wander about onshore and also some protection from forecast
25+ kts of wind.
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| Manawaora Bay |
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