It’s difficult to sum up the magic of this leg of our journey. Of course, just being together on WWII, sailing in the spectacular Bay of Islands is a long awaited dream. We were here in 1997 when the girls were small and it’s a thrill to be back in this part of the world. The landscapes here are stunning and we have taken full advantage of many of the bush walks and island tracks over the past 5 days. And just as we remembered it, Kiwi hospitality is second to none and we’ve made fast friends with the locals and lots of other yachties along the way.
A few highlights:
kiwi names of things – Urupukapuka for e.g.
diving off the boat into warm water!
eating fresh oysters from the beach
the smell of the kiwi bush
long hikes in the sunshine
vistas of the Bay of Islands
the Southern Cross and full moon from the cockpit
puhutekawa trees in bloom
talking to our friends on ham radio
flat whites
quiet secluded anchorages
fantails, tuis and sheep …everywhere
sailing downwind, warm breeze, on the foredeck
Wonderful! Your pictures bring back lots of fond memories of my cruise in 2007. (Though we were the only boat in that anchorage then…)
Enjoy your time on West Wind!!
Wonderful pictures! So happy for you both!!! I will not sail again, but your pictures bring back many happy memories of those days!
best, Susan
HAVE JUST HAD MY NEW ‘PUTER ‘INSTALLED ,+ ‘TABLET’ , ECT (HAVE TO LEARN HOW TO USE IT) hee hee BEEN OFF THE AIR , FOR 5 DAYS. YOU BOTH LOOK WELL. THE VIEWS OF WAIHEKE , ARE AS USUAL. NICE PART OF THE WORLD. BE GOOD. A/E , E.
At minus 26 with a windchill of minus 39 the pictures are lovely. So good to see. Best wishes to you both.
Pat and Fred
Cheers Glenn and MaryLou…looked like a bumpy ride across the Tasman. Enjoy the Bay of Islands…we remember it as being almost as nice as our Gulf Islands :) All the best for 2015!
Hey you guys, a very Happy New Year. The pictures are great and we know them well, as we walked the same region last year when we spent only one day in the Bay of Islands. Such a beautiful area.
WW2 looks in great shape.
Look forward to catching up when you get home.
Love, James and Louise
Great news! We met you in 1997 on the South Pacific ‘milk run’ and left Tonga a few days after you. We were also sailing with our two young daughters . Now our eldest is living on her own boat in Victoria harbour and the other is in NZ. Hope to meet again in person sometime.
Wonderful.