Year 2 -3 January 2024 -New Zealand- North Island - Auckland
We woke quite early and had breakfast and then Mark started to clean and polish the top sides which did not seem to have been done. This took most of the morning and he did one side which now looks great.
Mark found one small leak into the deck which we will have to reseal when it is warm and dry enough. I had to get on with admin and to print out various documents and then started to deal with the customs requirements for departing New Zealand and entry into Australia. It was lucky I did this as I noticed my Australian visa was just out of date. I therefore had to apply for a new one and this took some time. It took the whole morning to fill out forms etc for the customs duties as I have to do it for all the crew as it is my responsibility to ensure all the formalities are complied with. We then had some lunch.
I was also checking about how and when we would put up the mainsail as it would be tricky with just two of us. I noticed that one of the battens (rods which stiffen the sail) had split a little so I rang around to see if I could get another and hopefully one will arrive tomorrow. We thought Trevor Greening was arriving at 5.00pm so we headed off to do a little more shopping as we thought we would eat in when he arrived.
We headed out about 4.00pm to have a beer and to wait for Trevor and as he should have landed by now and we had not heard from him, Mark rang him. He was still in Singapore and was not arriving until the next day. He had told us the 3rd January but that was when his flight was leaving Singapore. He will therefore arrive with the others tomorrow. Mark and I therefore decided to eat out and go into the centre of town where we sampled the local ale. The picture of the day shows us spoilt for choice!!! They do make some great IPA and Pilsners although they do not have pint glasses but slightly smaller ones and it is quite expensive. It is one of the features in NZ and many brew their own beer on the premises. The town was busy and we had to dodge the regular rain showers and it was quite windy as well.
We went to bed and will await 4 new crew tomorrow.
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