Auckland - The Final Countdown

We left Gulf Harbour late on the 25th, feeling a bit rushed, but with a weather system (the remnants of Cyclone Wati) predicted to arrive the next day. We sailed into Auckland at about 8 pm, with the City of Sails lit up like a Christmas tree. The SkyTower (think CN Tower), with its purple lights, was definitely an impressive sight from the water. The winds were really picking up as we found the entrance to Westhaven Marina (over our shoulder by the bridge) and scoped out our spot. Running down the narrow gap between docks to a berth we'd never seen (i.e., didn't know exactly where it was) in gusty winds at night is definitely an adrenaline rush, but we found our spot and tucked in for the night.

We've spent the last few days checking off the ever-diminishing list of tasks and watching the weather. One of the most important tasks was updating the blog...we are so thankful to finally have access to broadband internet. We hope you'll enjoy the stories.

NZ Riviera - The Glam Life!

Don and Edie had booked a waterfront condo at Gulf Harbour on the Whangaparaoa (pronounced "Fongaparoa") peninsula, about 30 km north of Auckland, which was supposed to come with a slip for Demelza. After some confusion with the property manager (no, we can't just "park" our boat in the lot next to the other trailered boats), we managed to source our own slip about 20m away. Lo and Gary moved Demelza down from the Bay of Islands (Opua) on an overnight passage and brought her to her new home on the NZ Riviera! This was a perfect place to get her ready for the trip back to Canada.

We fell into a leisurely pace for the first few weeks, spending a couple of hours a day working on the boat, then fitting in an activity like hiking or shopping for the days culinary treats. Evenings were spent playing cards, watching DVDs, talking, or taking in the Commonwealth Games (big coverage in NZ). Our favourite hikes were in Shakespear Regional Park, which is a cross between a sheep farm (intentionally as a link to NZ's rural heritage) and a park. Situated at the tip of the Whangaparaoa peninsula, the park offered rewarding views of Auckland, the Hauraki Gulf (home of NZ's America's Cup races), and the surrounding islands.

Having a base allowed us to introduce Don and Edie to some of our NZ friends in style. We had dinners with cousin Penny Maeder (who met us in Opua with Lolah), Sergio and Caroline (Ummagumma), Nick and Anna (Dolittle), and Penny and Simon Dawson (South African friends with whom we'd stayed twice while in Auckland).

We also did two short road trips: one to the west coast kauri forests on the way up to Opua, and a second to the Coromandel Peninsula and Rotorua. The kauri forests were superb, with some massive trees. The Coromandel was gorgeous and home to many baches (kiwi beach cottage). We drove around the peninsula and stopped at Hot Water Beach, where tides were perfect for constructing a quick hot tub in the sand. Rotorua is the North Island's main attraction, famous for its incredible geothermal activity. The main city park is dotted with steaming vents, bubbling mud pits, and stinky lakes...you could really blend in here after a huge Mexican food dinner. The main geyser field was surreal on the cloudy, rain-filled day we visited.

It goes without saying that it was hard to see Mom and Dad Ross leave. We had a fantastic five weeks together and thoroughly enjoyed having them to ourselves. They were also great workers, with Edie doing some professional quality sewing (propane tank covers and a new bimini) and Don helping install the new throttle/transmission cables and compiling our list of provisions. It's great to see a couple so in love after so many years together.