31 December 2024 -New Zealand- South Island - Auckland -North Island – Return to Stormbird

We woke at a reasonable time and had breakfast having watched the planes on the runway from our room.  I had heard from Mark Goodwin ( the first of the Sydney Crew to arrive) in the night and that he was leaving Singapore and his flight was due in at 9.25am. He later messaged to say he was getting his bags.

I went over to the terminal and met Mark and then we returned to the hotel to introduce him to Jules and to have a coffee. Once we were ready I said goodbye to Jules and Mark and I got in a taxi and we were off to Orams Marina (in the centre of Auckland where Stormbird was moored. She had been brought here after the lift in on the 19 December 2024. Jules and I have had a fantastic month travelling around NZ and we have seen a lot.  She was due to get on a flight later.

The taxi took about 40 minutes and we went into the marina and there she was looking polished and with a clean bottom. See the picture of the day.  

However, inside she was a bit of a mess as various workmen had left bits and pieces etc. The first thing to do was to go to the supermarket to get some provisions before the shops shut. This was about a 10-minute walk. Once done we then  sorted out our beds and then began to start the tidy up. After a few hours we decided to walk into the centre of town along the front going east and round the flats and private moorings. I showed Mark Steinlager 2 and other ex-Americas’ cup boats.

We then went and had a good late lunch/early evening meal at Giraffe which was nice with some beer and wine. This took a number of hours and we then walked around and decided to go to the Queens Bar some 21 floors up which had a fantastic vista of Auckland Harbour. After a few beers we then walked back to Stormbird and had some cheese and biscuits and saw the New Year in.  It was good to be back on board again.

Happy New Year to you all and here’s to a great 2025.

Need/Opportunity Year Two

I am in need of more crew from April to September so if of interest do email me at  hine.nick9@gmail.com  

In year two I will be going from New Zealand to Sydney and hen up the Eastern Australian Coast, Indonesia and then through Bali, Singapore and on to Thailand to end year two about the end of November 2025.

The blog will continue as we continue the journey. If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog then do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com