[password] Ridingmore
[position] 16 45.06S 153 08.6W
[weather]N 18-25 knots
[status] Ah ha, finally the day has come! After several glorious weeks of magnificent holiday weather, mirror like seas and light winds, the breeze certainly has arrived over the last 24 hours! Originally due to depart yesterday with 10-20 knots forecast it was looking good, then the trough to the west of us deepened, and with the wind forecast up to 40, we decided to wait another day. So we had our second, last day in French Poly, which this time was spent doing a last fuel top up, swimming with mantas, and eating bagets and sweet treats from the patisserie. Yum!
Patea is loaded with fruit and veg, and we're ready to go! So at 1030 local this morning, we pulled anchor, hoisted sails, said goodbye to the biggest mantas we have ever swum with, and headed out the narrow pass that dissuades many cruisers from visiting this beautiful, precipitously cliffed atoll. Thanks for having us French Poly - we'll be back again soon!!
Friends of ours on Bacchus are also heading off today - hopefully we'll see them out here somewhere, as we head SW to the trades, which hopefully we will all be within tomorrow evening.
8 hours in and boat life resumes - Izzie is combating 'seasickness' (with emphasis on the inverted comas!) by watching dinosaur movies and hiding from the sun down below, Kath is dodging spray at the helm, Denis is on the downwind hull focusing on feeling good, and Selma seems much perkier now we have sails up and are on our way. I'm stoked cos we've got 18-20 knots of N allowing us to beam reach west at great speeds, even with 3 reefs in the main (we've been seeing squalls on anchor of up to 30 knots, so I'm expecting the same out here). And....
WE'RE GOING TO NEW ZEALAND!!!!!!
Its particularly exciting, and (mostly) not too bitter sweet, being that this passage ahead of us heralds the end of 2 years of amazing, privileged and wonderful travelling and sailing for the RidingMores. We've visited some beautiful places, had many fantastic experiences, and have made some wonderful friends. I wish we could keep doing this in New Zealand!!
Oh, just caught our first perfect sized tuna, which is providing sashimi this evening and tomorrow, plus dinner:)
Hope everyones happy and well, hugs from the Patea's.

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