The renter in our berth said he'd be leaving Tuesday afternoon, but we were unsure what time exactly. We left kawau mid-morning in beautiful sunshine and turned towards the South to be greeted by huge black clouds, flashes of lightening, and rumbling thunder. Being out on the water in a boat with a large metal pole in a thunderstorm is a bit nerve racking! Luckily we kind of stayed in front of it and anchored in Okoromai Bay and then were texting a friend opposite our berth to subtlety try to find out if the renter had left yet (but without her figuring out we were on our way back!). Eventually his crew all arrived and we then just hung out outside the marina entrance waiting to see him leave. We heard him put a trip report in to coastguard that he was leaving, so headed in and passed each other in the entrance channel! He gave a big wave and assured us he'd left the berth as he'd found it - and full of water! (Although I'm sure they made the berths a lot narrower since we've been away!! ;) So, we made it back safe and sound and surprised our friends which was great! Lots of bubbles were consumed and a well earned hangover the next day was to be expected. It's great to be home!!

We turned our AIS off in order to sneak back into Gulf Harbour a bit earlier than planned in order to surprise a few friends. Motor sailed all the way to Kawau and had a lovely calm night there.

Left Whangaroa on Sunday and headed south to Whangamumu. Had a look at the old whaling station there. It's a bit sad really that we hunted these beautiful intelligent creatures for oil. What a lot of people don't realise is that it's thanks to fossil fuels that there are any whales left at all!

Yet another day waiting out the metservice's forecast of 35 gusting 45 knot winds that never eventuated. We're remembering that we never put much trust in their forecasts before - they are usually a "worse case scenario" that never eventuates.

On the plus side we went ashore and got a nice feed of cockles, and chilled. We'll leave tomorrow and head south.

Had a gusty night at anchor. Was 2knts one minute then you could hear the wind coming and it was up to 25 in about 5 seconds. Not sure the wind gear was fast enough to give an accurate reading as it sounded much higher. Still, it's a good anchorage and we have plenty of chain out and room to swing. The same can't be said for Helen and Ben off Felix - a cat that was on our rally and a lovely couple. They got hit by a nasty squal in Bundaberg and another boat broke their mooring and collided with them and their boat has partially sunk. Our hearts go out to them.

We might be able to head a little south tomorrow, but the following days will bring 30 knot southerly/south easterlies - right on the nose for the trip home - so we may be better to stay put until next Monday when it's all forecast to ease off. In the mean time we have plenty of internet coverage and are happily streaming movies and TV and americas cup racing we missed while away. A brew of beer got bottled today and another one in the barrel - not a bad days work ;)

We checked out the bustling Metropolis of Whangaroa - it didn't take long. We stopped at the pub at lunch time for a cold one and had a good chat to the publican. He informed us that there are no scallops in the harbour anymore - they all disappeared a while ago but there are reports they are slowly coming back. We're now settled in a lovely anchorage after an afternoon in the sun - we need to replace the tan we lost after the long hot showers at Opua after our passage! ;)

Anchored in this bay because a book said there were scallops here. They lied.

Decided to explore Whangaroa so turned north out of Bay of Islands. Just heading in now, but not sure if we'll have cell coverage inside the harbour so doing a yit update now. That way if you don't hear from us for a few days you'll know where we are :). Steve says he's gonna go get scallops in here - but only if he can have a long hot shower afterwards!

Back to Opua so we could have drinkies and dinner at the OCC with Graeme & Lyn off Toronui, and Paul & Karen off Gigi. They both just got back from Fiji. Heading out of bay of islands this morning. Not sure if we should turn left to whangaroa, or right towards home ....

Had dolphins come and play with us for over 3 hours at the last anchorage. See Facebook for photos. Have moved to Russell now so that we can catch a ferry to Paihia and meet some friends at Jimmy Jack's Rib Shack. Yum! :)

Left marina yesterday and headed out with another fleet boat to do some fishing. Got heaps of fish included my biggest snapper ever at 65cms! Going for scallops today - although the water temperature might be a shock for Steve. But maybe that will make up for the fact I froze my ass off getting us the fish last night! - Ade.

A late start was followed by a walk to the shop for breakfast supplies - bacon, eggs, tomatoes, etc etc. The remaining 3-4 boats have arrived so there's gonna be another party tonight. We have just cleaned the outside of the boat and will start on the cockpit and tidying up inside. Also time to go use the washing machines, although it'll be hung up on the boat to dry as the marina's drier prices have doubled since we left!! There's talk of going snapper fishing on Sunday with Caprice (Allan is a professional fisherman) so looking forward to picking up some fishing tips. :). Then we'll be having a look around the Bay of Islands and pop up to Whangaroa.

Arrived on the quarantine dock at Opua at 0250 am. Tied up and enjoyed a quiet beer in the cockpit to celebrate. More boats arrived and we helped them tie up and enjoyed a few more beers. Next thing the sun was coming up so no point in going to bed as customs was soon to arrived. Cleared customs and was disappointed that they took our salami that head office MPI had said we were allowed. Luckily we got it back later that day as we were able to prove it didn't need to be refrigerated (because it was proper French salami that only needed to be kept in a cool dry place at +15 degrees) and was therefore allowed it back. Got a marina Berth at Opua and finally managed to get some sleep! Awoke in time for a long hot shower before drinkies on board Panthera that turned into an impromptu party for the whole fleet. Great way to finish. :)

wind SSW 14knots, All well aboard. 63 nm to go. ETA at Opua Q dock approx. 0400 NZDT Steve White (reported 25/10/17 5.08pm)

All well aboard. Fantastic day sailing. Two more tuna in the freezer :) Ade. Steve White (reported 24/10/17 7.56PM)

All well aboard. Lots of rain - boat clean! but getting colder -Steve White (reported 23/10/17 6.02PM)

What a magic sail! we have full main and both jibs out and doing 7.5 - 8 knots in 10-13 knots breeze in relatively calm seas. The water is the usual stunning blue of water that's kilometers deeps. I've Pink, Ed & Jimmy to accompany me on watch, and it just doesn't get any better than this! The wind is forecast to drop, but we'll make the most of what we have for now.

No fish yet but fingers crossed- one of the other boats got a mahimahi. Steve White (reported 21/10/17 6.04PM)

Having a fantastic sail! All well on board Steve White (reported 20/10/17 6.46pm(

Cleared customs - check

Stocked up on French cheese - check

Filled diesel tanks - check

Moved to Ile Maitre to pick up a mooring - check

Secured dingy, kayaks, and anchor for passage home - check

Updated YIT - check!

We'll have a last night sleep and then up, coffee (for Steve), breakfast, and then drop the mooring lines and head home.

Looks like there's a weather window this Friday, so we'll be clearing customs tomorrow and leaving early Friday morning. I'll be sending satellite text updates to our good friend Debs who will enter them on here so you can check our progress.

Spent a few windy days in Noumea. Have visited the aquarium and had some fantastic French cuisine at a local bistro. Most of the fleet is here for drinkies get-together tonight. Looking like possible weather window fri/sat for heading home. Gonna be windy this week - blowing the crabs out of the mud! Kite surfers are loving it!

Came back in to Noumea yesterday morning. Got more French food supplies and had a nice 'walking tour' around the city. In parts of the city you'd swear you were in France - lots of shopping, cafeterias, and French people everywhere. Other parts of the city feels like you're in a very pacific island city. We found a cool little shop specialising in Megaladon teeth, black coral carvings, and Mammoth ivory. Most thing were out of our price range, but I did find a nice wood carving of a humpback whale that has found a new home on board Seaforth to remind us of the many whales we saw in Vanuatu.

Left Noumea for Ilot Maitre, about 3 Miles away. Ilot Maitre is the kiteboarding capital of New Caledonia, it's a marine reserve and it's a very pretty little island a stones throw from Noumea's city centre. We're catching up with some kiteboarding friends and hoping to spend a pleasant time snorkelling with turtles, catching up with friends and generally relaxing, having stocked up on fresh food, French cheese and baguettes. Life is great.

Left ile de Casy early before the wind picked up and to also get the right tides to go through Canal Woodin and around to Noumea. Anchored up in a very busy port and went shore to get fresh fruit and veggies. The selection at the supermarket was surprisingly disappointing, so came home with a baguette, about 5 different cheeses, ham, a salami, and lots of other French snacks. Will do some more exploring tomorrow. There is talk of a weather window on Thrusday for heading back to NZ, but it is too early for us and we are in no rush so we will stay a bit longer and wait for the next one.

Decided that it's time to go visit noumea, so have come back to Ile Casy for the night so we can have an early start with the right tide to get through to noumea.

Went for a look up to the head of the harbour. It kind of reminds us of coromandel except with very red soil.

Moved to the western side of the island in order to go visit "Moose" the dog. See Facebook for photos and the story of Moose who lives on a deserted tropical island.

Spent a few days in Isle of Pines before having a lovely sail to Baie de Prony. Picked up a mooring on the northern side of Ile Casy.

We left Beautemp beaupre about 9am and motored in glassy conditions down to isle of pins. We hooked a large yellowfin tuna yesterday but lost it, but landed a skip jack and a nice smaller yellowfin tuna today. The freezer is now staring to fill up with fish to take home. Hard to believe we have 3 weeks to go! Anchored at about 11am in a great little bay with a resident dugong. About to go have a nap after the overnighter after finishing some celebratory cheese & crackers and a G&T.

We moved around to the western anchorage after a few boats left. It was still a tight squeeze and the holding wasn't as good at the northern anchorage, but there was a sandy beach to go ashore. We missed the bird show but stayed two nights escpecially after everyone else left after the first night and we had the place to ourselves! We had kayaked around the island from the previous anchorage, and in this one we walked ashore and walked around to see the nesting birds, birds of prey taking advantage of them, and more mating turtles in the shallows. Fantastic island and definitely a highlight!

We left the beautiful Ouvéa and sailed up to Beautemps Beaupre Island. It was described as 'national geographic on steroids' and that description wasn't wrong. There were birds nesting on the island and turtles mating in the waters. It's a small uninhabited island at the southern end of a lagoon and it's pretty small and remote. The birds put on an amazing show for us in the envening - they would all fly up and then form a column of birds circling in a clockwise rotation - it was like a cyclone of birds. It was hard to photograph that, but we got plenty of other photos that you can see Facebook for photos! We anchored on the northern side of the island as there were too many in the western anchorage, and it was nice to have plenty of room and no bommies to swing onto.

Another day in paradise! Apart from the 3 hour wait for our rental car (what better place to get stuck in!) we had a great day exploring the sights and tourist spots of Ouvéa - when we could find them that is! It was a fun treasure hunt as nothing is signposted so we ended up asking locals for directions - and the locals only speak French or the local kanak language. Still, we had a great day and I have posted heaps of photos on Facebook. :)

Motorsailed up from Lifou to Ouvea atoll. It's a very long white sandy beach covered in tons of shells, and beautiful turquoise water. The fine white sand means that the water is not very clear which is a huge change from being able to count the grains of sand on the bottom in 10m of water like the last anchorage. Here we are in 6m and can't see the bottom. See Facebook for photos. We will be here til about tues and then leave for either Mare or the Isle of Pines.

We spent several days in the last anchorage. We got mini buses across to Wé, which is the main township on Lifou. We managed to get a SIM card as Vodafone don't do roaming here. Instead of buying data bundles, you buy it by time - so we activate it for an hour at a time, and it's fast so that's good. We then walked along the stunning Baie de Chareaubriand beach (see Facebook for photos). We stopped at a resort for lunch and then visited the supermarket to stock up on French bread, French cheese, pate, wine, .... oh and some fresh fruit and veggies! This morning we came across to Baie de Chepenehe. We got a taxi to Baie de Doking. We had a great snorkel, saw a turtle and some large fish, ate French bread, cheese, pate and wine, visited a cool little church on a cliff, and then returned to the boat for drinkies, along with French bread, cheese, pate ... are you spotting the pattern here? ;)

Arrived 3pm and dropped anchor in bay De Santal, Lifou Island, New Caledonia. Took 31 hours from Port Villa. Now have to wait till Tuesday to clear in, so will be reading lots & watching movies. Are allowed to swim around our boat but no fraternising with other boats or on shore. Steve White (reported 17/9/17 5.27pm)

Arrived back in Port Vila on Monday. Have filled in what seems like a mountain of paperwork yesterday in order to leave Vanuatu and get into New Cal. Off to get duty free booze today (nz$10 for a 1L bottle of rum!!! 8-) and to vote at the NZ Consulate (so glad we missed all the election bullshit back home).

We moved to Mele Beach so that we could spent some more time at the Mele Beach Bar. We came in for the fire show again on Friday which was great once again. After a quiet day Saturday, we're back in at the beach bar listening to a local band who are really great. There's a cultural show on tonight that we have heard is good and is by the same locals who do the fire show. Heading back into Port Vila tomorrow and will start getting ready to head to New Cal on Friday.

After the excitement of the three day "Port Havannah Cup" regatta, we upped anchor this morning and headed back to the anchorage near the Wahoo bar and Francesca's where we had an awesome Italian lunch. We'll be leaving here tomorrow morning to head around Devil's point to start heading back to Port Vila to get ready to leave for New Cal by Friday next week.

After a bit of a rolly night we moved back to Port Havannah. We spotted another walker bay dingy on another boat and found it was their sailing dingy. We then spent three days having an americas cup style regatta that resulted in three days of fun and an amazing tin foil trophy. See Facebook for photos soon.

Moved around to another anchorage just down from the infamous Wahoo Bar. We had stopped here for lunch on our round the island drive and it was a great location and nice food.

Port Havannah. Went ashore early this morning for a look around. Saw a 40ft steel yacht that got blown aground a few years ago - kinda sad to see. Went tothe local village and were met by friendly smiling Vanuatu folk. there seemed to be music and people gathering and a women approached us and we chatted for a while - her eldest daughter of 5 is getting married this Friday - hence the celebrations. After a while she invited us, but we are not sure if we will be here still by Friday. If not, we will at least drop in a gift for her daughter.

We visited one WW11 Museum which seemed to be a guy in his 90's who had lived thru it and charged $6 for a look at some old Coca Cola bottles - still , he was very passionate. After a short but hot walk to Havannah Resort (very flash !!!) we enjoyed and hour or two relaxation and drinks before heading back to the boats by noon - must have left too early in the morning! But just as well - it drizzled on the way home and then showered off and on all afternoon before settling in with solid rain this evening. Its very hot still though with 30C below earlier just easing to 27C at 9pm. Sitting in the cockpit now with the "wings" out to keep the rain at bay. Cool breeze but thermometer still showing 26C.

Hope its starting to get warmer in NZ!!! Otherwise don't know how we will cope! Steve White (reported 30/8/17 10.20pm)

Anchored up in Port Havannah after an easy trip around Devil's Point. Nice to be back at anchor again after almost a week on a mooring. Looking forward to sundowners on Panthera in an hour or so - plus they caught two tuna on the way here so there will be sashimi to enjoy!!

We have been having a great week in Port Vila exploring and relaxing. The girls have had afternoons out shopping in the markets, and then a group of us went for a road trip around the island yesterday. We got to feed turtles and swam at the blue lagoon. We've tried lots of the local restaurants - both cartering to tourists and locals. The ones catering to the locals are of course far cheaper and sometimes better food. The veggie markets here are fantastic! With a great variety of fresh fruit and veggies that we didn't see in Tonga or Fiji. We're off this morning to get some final supplies - they'd run out of pineapples yesterday - and some 'pain au chocolat' from the French pastiserie. Then we're off to either Mele island or Port Havannah, which are both just around the corner.

Arrived in Port Vila way too early after a fast sail overnight. Mooched around in circles in the harbour until the sun came up and then entered port over 2.4m deep shallow area (we draw 2.4m) and then under 23m high power line. Made it thru both obstacles, picked up a mooring, and then went ashore for big breakfast, then back to the boat for a sleep! Dinner ashore with friends rounded off the day.

Had a whale circle the boat in the anchorage last night before dark, then a mother and calf hanging around near the boats for about an hour this morning. Up anchored and moved north to this position ready to do an overnight passage to port Vila on the next island of Efata.

Saw more whales on our way here. They seem to hang out quite close to land - but it can also be over 100m deep just a 100m offshore. We'll leave here about 5pm and will arrive about 6am. We'll probably pick up a mooring in Port Vila and then enjoy the bright lights (& internet) of the big city for a few days. Steve White (reported 22/8/17 4.48pm)

The first half of our passage to Erromango was uneventful, but the second half made up for it in spades! First was the barrel shaped skip jack tuna - nice! Then we noticed Panthera had changed course dramatically. While looking at them a humpback whale breached between us. It then headed right for us and surfaced only a couple of boat lengths away- boy it was big. Just the top of its back where dorsal fin is was about 3m across. So it was probably bigger than our boat. It dove down and then breached behind us. We turned and followed at a respectful distance. There were about 3 whales and they were obviously having fun and breaching every minute or so. So amazing to watch! We eventually turned back to where we were heading and saw more on the way to the anchorage. One boat reported being surrounded by a pod of half a dozen. We saw several more pods & lots of breaching. Another boat reported one directly under their boat. We guessed maybe 30 odd humpback whales in total. Amazing day !!!! Chilling with a beer in the anchorage. Village chief just came in his outrigger to welcome us all. Gave him half the skip jack as a gift and hoping to trade some fishing gear for some coconuts. Loving Vanuatu!!!!!!! Steve White (reported 21/8/17 5.20pm)

OH MY GOD. That was the scariest thing I've ever done! Steve was OK with it, and maybe it was that I am not good with heights, but standing on the side of an active volcano while it explodes hot lava into the air was enough to make me very nervous!!!! I was amazed they let us list so that I don't have to do it up there with no guard rails or anything to stop us falling in!

It's definitely something I'm happy to tick off the bucket list again!! We're sitting in the cockpit now having dinner and a beer. (after a shower to wash the fine volcanic grit out of every orifice !) and can still hear it exploding and rumbling every now and then. We'll be here for a few days to wait out some unfavourable weather, so may have to get used to the rumbling. Steve White (reported 19/8/17 10.04pm)

Arrived in Port Patrick after a 2 hour motor up the island in dead flat seas. Saw two groups of whales and stopped for a look and photos. Went a shore at Anchorage and meet the villagers. Had a tour and then a walk to the river for a lovely fresh water swim. Lots of crops along the way - pineapple, mango, pawpaw, avocado, kava, pompelomous, cassava, taro, banana ect ect ect. Also chickens, cows, pigs.

Back to the boat for sundowners on Felix ( a cat of course!). Early start to 7am to Tanna to see the Volcano. Bad weather also coming so will be in Port Resolution for 2-3 days. Hope to see fire walking while there as well. One boat caught 1.8m Wahoo so fresh fish for dinner and heaps in the freezer. Am getting use to this cruising life. Steve White (reported 18/8/17 8.18PM)

Had a great day yesterday. The village invited the fleet to a double wedding. One couple by choice but the other was an arranged marriage. The bride cried most of the way through! Ceremony was in pidgin English which was entertaining.

Today we had a village tour and looked at traditional ways they do things. Leaving soon to attend "cultural Evening ". Leaving tomorrow for Northern side of island and then to next island & volcano the next day.

Steve White (reported 17/89/17 3.41pm)

You are gonna laugh. We just came back to the boat after visiting and are freezing cold. It's 9.30pm nzst (8.30pm local time) Just put a blanket on the bed.

Thought we'd check the temperature since we are so cold....... it's 25 degrees C!!. Must be getting too use to the tropics! Steve White (reported 14/8/17 9.47pm)

Hi Ya, Anchored up in Anelghowhat Anchorage, Anatom, Vanuatu at 8.30am local time. All well on board!

Going to sleep now. Steve White (reported 14/8/17 10.05am)

Another rolly night last night. Wind died away this avo, so motoring. Seas calmer. ETA tomorrow AM. All well on board. Steve White (reported 13/8/17 7.16pm)

Bit of a sporty start to the passage to Vanuatu with 2m swells and 25 knots. Making good time thou. All well aboard. Steve White (reported 12/8/17 6.17pm)

We moved around to Musket Cove a couple of days ago. The socialising continued and we had sessions for filling in our customs paperwork for leaving Fiji and arriving in Vanuatu, and also a chart marking session which gave us a rough idea of what we'll be up to once we get there. We're going to be going up an active volcano and the stories sound exciting, but also frightening!

But dominating all that is a sadness that we are leaving Fiji. We have had an awesome time here. Many people in the fleet are leaving the rally here to remain in Fiji for the rest of the session, but there are still 28 ish boat continuing on this morning to Vanuatu. We did think about stopping here as well, but we're also keen to continue to see the rest of the highlights on this quick tour of the South Pacific.

It's a 3 night/4 day passage so we'll be out of contact until then. I will text my friend Debs our daily updates for her to put on here, and will update ourselves once we find some internet again :)

Farewell beautiful Fiji, and vinaka vakalevu.

Back at Musket Cove. The fleet have gathered together again and we have about 4 days of 'activities' before we depart on the 11th and head to Vanuatu.

Went back to Manta ray pass for a snorkel as we'd spotted some good looking Corel there yesterday from the dingy. It did not disappoint! And in fact was judged to be the best of the trip so far. It was like snorkelling in a large aquarium. Will upload photos to Facebook.

We're due back in on the 7th, so are heading south again and have stopped in at Yalobi Bay again for the night. Hope to make the 30nm trip to Musket tomorrow.

Wow, just stunning snorkelling. More fish that we've so far on our whole trip combined! Plus Manta ray! Doesn't get much better than that! See Facebook for photos.

Had a great day yesterday. Went for a snorkel and finally found Nemo, so that's good. Sat on the beach with the crew of Panthera and buried Jim in the sand (apart from his head!). Then back to Panthera for dinner. A cold beer finished off the perfect day in paradise!

This morning we up anchored and we were going to go back to Musket, but after chatting with Moreport on the radio, decided to head up to Manta Ray pass to hopefully see some Manta Rays. About to head out to the pass so will report back later how we got on!

Winds turned to the north which was not forecast. The anchorage we were in got even more rolly and unbearable with a lee shore until we decided at the late stage of about 1pm (keep in mind you should only move 10am-3pm) to get the *%#} out of this bay. Our anchor was stuck around a bommie (which we had guessed it was since we hadn't swung into a cat close by - the one with Serendipidy, Sarcasm, Impotence & Insufferable on board - or whatever their names were ...), but we eventually made it out and headed north for shelter. We had a great evening on Panthera with lots of laughs (the kids think we're mad). After two hours of bashing into the swell to get here, the evening, laughs and flat anchorage made it all worthwhile.

Musket Cove is addictive. It has everything you need: cold beers, free showers, laundry, island bar, cold beers, lots of friends to hang out with, swimming pool, cold beers, restaurants, etc. Now, the observant amongst you will notice that I mentioned one thing in particular three times. This wasn't a mistake - it's just that that one item was such an important reason that I thought it was worth mentioning it more than once.

Eventually, however, we thought we'd better up anchor and venture out to see more of Fiji. So we motorsailed up to Nevandra and anchored in what looked like a charming little bay - but oh, what a deceptive little bay! Come evening the wind changed and we suffered from a very annoying roll all night. Looking at the guide it seems that most of these bays up north are like that - maybe Musket wasn't so bad after all! ;).

On the plus side there's a charming little beach and sandspit heading out to a headland. We went ashore to discover that even though it wasn't inhabited, apparently it's a good place to drop your children and leave them to their own devices for hours on end (which included lighting a fire!). They would have ranged from about 4-8 years old and were named Intrepid, Integrity, Vitality and Chastity - no seriously! I shit you not!! Turns out they are from California - that explains everything! It is the pot-smoking Capitol of the USA after all ....

Wanted to move closer to Musket but also wasn't keen on the lee shore and "Wilson Carpark" feel of Musket, so have anchored on the other side of the island. We can see the boats etc, but have plenty of room, the bay to ourselves, and don't have 20-25 knots with a reef a few boat lengths off our stern! Were told by a friend that you can get ashore and walk around, but the shore spends most of its time behind exposed reefs, so not sure we we can get ashore at anything other than high tide. Might investigate tomorrow as it will be a good spot if we can.

Yesterday after Panthera arrived in Musket, we came around to Likuliku Bay again for some shelter, which was much more pleasant than the 20-25 knots at Musket. With a lazy 5-10 knots we watched the seaplanes, helicopters, and turtles and had a relaxed night on board Panthera, sampling the Mahimahi they had just caught, some lovely red wine, and then finally some port. Today, the wind was still up so we decided to stay put. Steve & Jim went for a paddle and investigated the resort in the next bay - which was cruiser friendly! 'Udder Life' turned up, and after a few drinks we headed in for a somewhat wet ride around the corner into the wind and waves for a nice get together at the Malolo Resort. Steve pointed out that the pool with the bar in it was one we had visited 18 years ago on our honeymoon! I recognised the bar stools in the pool in front of the bar, but the rest had changed so much. Never-the-less we had a fantastic night, including many friendly Fijians - both the drink and the real thing! Steve played a couple of songs with the very talented band boys, and then we had another exilarating ride home for drinkies on Seaforth before it was cruisers midnight, and therefore time to retire. A fantastic night was had by all! We have plans for a repeat at waiheke island when we get back to NZ.

Back at musket cove. Spent the day trying to keep cool - at one stage it was 30 in the shade and no breeze! Quite a few swims later we headed into the island bar and caught up with half a dozen other boats - Fusio, Jolifou, Adikt (well Mikey at least), Moonfish plus others. Was a great night. Back on board for dinner and run the annoying noisy engine to charge up the batteries for the night. Enjoying a wine in the cockpit listening to Jimmy Buffett and surfing the net while Polly does her thing (charge batteries!).

We headed just out of Musket Cove to make some water. I think our tank monitor needs recalibrating as it said we had water left but the main tanks ran out last night. We need to fill them to the top to recalibrate so are sitting just off a reef and making water while collecting vitamin D and having a swim every now and then. We decided to swim over to the reef for a snorkel, and it was looking pretty good until the first shark turned up. He had a white tip on his dorsal fin, so I tried to remain calm. He circled us reasonably closely 3-4 times and then wondered off - much to my relief. But it didn't last and he came back with a mate. That was enough for me and after a calm but "brisk" swim back to the boat, I'm happily out of the water and safe back on board. Steve laughed and said I barely used the ladder as I leapt out of the water and onto the boat. It was the way they were circling us that made me nervous, and reminded me of a joke about the baby shark asking the daddy shark why they circled their prey before attacking. "Well" says the daddy shark, "Because they taste better if you scare the crap out of them first!".

Had an awesome night anchored off a flash looking resort with over water Bure. The crew from Adikt came over for beers, dinner, and talking and laughing all night. This morning we were awoken by the first sea plane coming in bringing guests to the resort. Helicopters and more sea planes followed throughout the day. We looked up on the internet to discover the resort was quite flash indeed - and expensive! NZ$15,000 for a week. All food included (but not alcohol) and a complementary arrival or departure via helicopter or seaplane - that explained it! We had a great morning swimming, soaking up rays, and watching the flights in and out - the helicopter pilot looked like he enjoyed himself as he bearly left the ground before banking heavily and flying what felt like merely meters above our mast. Will head back to Musket Cove for tonight to see if any more of the fleet has arrived.

Decided we'd better venture out since it was such a beautiful day. Thought about heading around to Castaway, but then ended up anchoring off Honeymoon Island where the snorkelling is reported to be very good - and it was! Will upload photos to Facebook soon. Now anchored off a resort on the north western side of Malolo island. It has lovely Bure over the water, but the cruising guide says the resort is not cruiser friendly, so we'll just hang out on board tonight with a cold drink 😉

Having a great time just relaxing at Musket Cove. It was a bit windy the first 3-4 days so the kite boarders were out in force. The wind has gone now though and we had a glorious hot day yesterday and looks like another one today.

Made it to Musket Cove in our own boat! Have been here several times before - by plane, ferry, and other people's boats, but now we will have bragging rights that Seaforth has been here in person and we can join the Musket Cove Yacht Club (you must arrive by yacht to do so). Fusio is anchored two boats down and I think we saw them kite boarding past as we were navigating into the bay and past the two big super yachts. Time for a coldie!

Arrived in Port Denarau yesterday after a 2 day passage from Fulanga. From remote tropical island to civilisation. From remote tropical village to busy and bustling town centre. From seeing no more than half a dozen people at once, to hundreds of tourists! Super yachts, cheese burgers, cold beers, fresh veggies - it's like it's own little paradise.

Monday. A lot of the fleet have left for a short hop north to another island. Two have headed straight for Kadavu. We will follow them later tomorrow. Looking forward to some civilisation & keen to go to a resort that does a cheeseburger & fries & cold beer!. Would kill for a nice crisp apple!. Remote islands are all very nice, but we've come to realise you can't beat the creature comforts (& help when needed) that western civilisation has to offer! Steve has even been dreaming of a salad ! Steve White (reported 10/7/17 9.00am)

Bit slack on the updates sorry! Thurs was overcast & drizzle so lazy day on the boat reading. Friday went to village for big lunch & festivities. A good day but long day. Rained heavily last night so boat had a good wash. Probably another inside day with a good book and good chance to do some boat chores. Steve White (reported 8/07/17 8.54am)

Wednesday update. Same anchorage. Ade still a bit under the weather, so chilled on board with a good book & collecting vitamin D in the cockpit. Steve went with friends to snorkel the reef pass. They reported it was the best snorkelling yet so will have to go back! Then they ventured outside the outer reef (in big dinghy) & caught a 1.3m Walu. After sharing it around with 5 other boats (way too much fish for us) we had sashimi. Can I admit I'm hanging out for a steak?!?.

I'm feeling much better today and went out for a dingy ride to outer reef. Stunning. Reminds me of Minerva. The day dissolved so will have to do more exploring tomorrow :) Steve White (reported 5/7/17 5.40pm)

Tuesday update. Same position. Ade woke with a swollen throat, so stayed on board while Steve went with the fleet to do sevusevu at the local village. After the ceremony each boat was adopted by a family in the village and they went back to their houses for hot drinks and something to eat. The people are so lovely & friendly. We are going back on Friday for a lunch. Later that evening there were 4th July celebrations on shore and old parachute flares let off while the star spangled banner (Jimi Hendrix version) was played on channel 16. A great day was had by all. We'll be here a while longer as so much to see. Steve White (reported 5/7/17 10.32am)

Arrived and anchored in Fulaga/Vulaga. OH. My. God. Have truly arrived in paradise. Or maybe have died and gone to heaven. Steve White. (reported 3/7/17 12.03pm)

Left Vanua Balavu & heading for Fulaga. Overnight sail. ETA late morning. All well on board after a yummy dinner by Steve :) . Steve White (reported 2/7/17pm)

Had an awesome time last night as we were welcomed ashore by the villagers at Susui for sevusevu and a feast. It was held in a beautiful lagoon accessible only by dinghy. They sang to us as we landed and put green vines around our necks a bit like leis in Hawaii. There was lots of singing and the kids all had matching sulu - one style for the boys and one for the girls. They really enjoyed performing for us and then we had the sevusevu ceremony where we presented the chief with kava and they welcomed us into the population of their village. We then had a feast of local seafood and pork, and finished the evening before dark in order to return to our boats out the reef pass. A few dinghies struggled to find the gap in the reef in the fading light, but eventually everyone made it home safe and sound. Probably one of the highlights of the trip so far. Sent from my iPad

Moved to Susui village for a feast this evening in the hidden lagoon. Finally have some internet coverage - is slow, but at least it works!

Moved to next bay for the night. Lots of reefs to go around but more tomorrow. Went for a nice snorkel then back to the boat to clean up and settle in with a good book, a rum lime & tonic and have taken steak out for dinner. Frozen food lasting a lot longer than I thought as we have not been eating big dinners (just drinks and nibbles instead) or have had fish. Will head to Susui tomorrow. Ciao, Steve White (reported 29/06/2017 5.30pm)

Moved around to Bavatu harbour. Lovely walk up some amazing stairs and thru awesome trees/bush. Still no internet so have to save photos for next time we find coverage - hopefully in next day or two before heading to southern Lau (probably none there). Steve White (reported 28/6/17)

Went for another great snorkel - more colourful fish we haven't seen before. Heading for pot luck dinner with two other boat. Will toast ETNZ again !!!!!! Steve White. (reported 27/6/17 4.30pm)

YIT update for yesterday. Had a fantastic day! Locals took us in long boats to see the sights and visited 3 caves. Some great snorkelling too. Then rafted up in "Bat Cove". 15-20 dinghies rafted up and tied off to a tree. Lots of fun & drinkies & nibbles. The hard core of 6 left after dark and travelled, still rafted up together around boats singing and having a laugh. Finally got invited on board one for more drinkies and food. Great night was had by all. Steve White (reported 27/6/17)

Bay of Island, Vanua Balavu. Went for kayak-stunning place. Will upload photos when we get internet. Heard the snorkelling is really good too so will go tomorrow before the locals take us on a "safari tour". Fruit bats all around. Super yachts anchored close by. Wait till you see the pic's. Steve White (reported 25/6/17

Enjoying Vanua Balavu with the ICA rally boats.

Anchored off Dalicone in Vanua Balavu, Fiji. Hooked Mahimahi outside reef. Just got it on the gaff and it shook itself off gaff and hook to self release! AHHHHRRRR Sooooooo close!!!!!!

Stunning looking fish. Couldn't decide if it was yellow or green. Gorgeous! About a metre long. Steve White (reported 22/6/17)

Hooked but lost freight train this morning. Full drag but stripped most of line in about 2 mins then snapped line. Steve (received 21/6/17)

COG 270M 6.5K. Wind E 18 knts.

All well. Had a lure out but no luck. One boat got 20kg Mahi.

Another lost huge tuna. Steve (dated 20/6/17

Leaving Vava'u and heading for Fiji. Bit of a swell and wind right up the chuff, but good to be on our way.

After a day of just resting and reading books to make sure I was fully recovered from the flu, we stopped in at this lovely little spot for a snorkel. We then headed into Neiafu for a "farewell Tonga" dinner on Sunday night. It wasn't a late night because we were back in at the Mango Cafe at 6am to watch very patchy internet streaming for the Americas Cup. We'll have to rewatch the races when we get home, but the main thing is we won both! Yay!! We then had our departure briefing and got instructions for going to fiji. We then cleared customs, did a final fruit and vegetable shop, refuelled with 400 L of duty free diesel, and are sailing back to Port Maurelle (it's the central hub of this place!) to overnight, and then leave first thing in the morning for Fiji. We may not have much in the way of internet when we get to Fiji, so I might get a friend to update this site when I send them a satellite text. Otherwise, we'll post again when we get internet!

Headed out to Tapana island yesterday to catch up with friends Grahame and Lyn off Toronui who are in Gulf Harbour with us. Had a very quiet day as Ade has come down with a bit of a flu. (Steve thinks I have too much blood in my alcohol stream! ;). Had some locals come to the boat selling fruit and still had plenty of bananas, so just bought a pawpaw, and then they gifted us two coconuts as well. Will be interesting trying to open those! 

We headed back into Neiafu today to check with the local pharmacist and pick up our Minerva Reef Yacht Club t-shirts. He thinks I just have the local flu but will keep an eye on if any symptoms pop up that could point to anything worse. Lotsa rest and fluids in the mean time. Feels like we're not seeing much of Vava'u as a result - guess we'll just have to come back next year 😉. The trip has all felt quite rushed so far anyway because of the 3 week delay in Opua due to bad weather. I guess things will settle down in Fiji where we have 7 weeks to explore. 

Headed back into Port Maurelle this morning. Anchored up and then jumped on Adikt to go and explore Swallows Caves and Mariners Cave. They are all on a cliff face that disappears straight down to about 80 meters, so one person just stayed on the boat and motored up close while the rest of us snorkelled in for a look. Wow! Amazing! Will download photos later and put them on Facebook. Time for a quiet beer and a rest!

Spent last night at Neiafu on a mooring. Went ashore to do the customs thing and buy a few meagre fruit and veggies from the local market. Was a bit run down with lack of good quality sleep and not drinking enough water (no, nothing to do with alcohol for once!!), so had an early night to catch up. Will head back to port Maurelle in the morning to catch up with SV Adikt who we met in Opua.

Arrived in Vava'u and anchored up in Port Maurelle bay just before sunset. Had a "sporty" sail, 15-25 knots of wind well aft of the beam, so a little rolly with the swell, but chewed up the miles doing 7-9 knots and peaked on the log at 10.0 knots! (While surfing down a wave!!). Even managed to pass a few boats in front of us ("it's not a race!") 😆 Enjoying a G&T and having some internet to check americas cup results (Go ETNZ!!!!).

Just leaving the Ha'apai group and heading for Vavu'u. Should arrive later tonight and find somewhere safe to anchor up.

Left the Ha'apai Beach Resort in 20-25 knots and bouncy seas. Had a white knuckle entry into the Matafanoa anchorage - reefs and bommies everywhere. We are anchored with a coral head less than a boat length off our stern! The cruising guide says room for 4-5 boats in here - currently have 14.

Woke up a bit stiff and sore after the big beach walk (after being on the boat for so long with not much walking opportunities available!). Just as well they'd organised a yoga session for 8.30am at the Sea Change retreat! Time for a great stretch and refresh the body. Had breakfast there too and then walked to the other side of the island where there was reported to be some great snorkelling. It wasn't as good as we expected, with coral damaged by previous storms, but still great patches of live coral and millions of colourful tropical fish. The tide was a bit low so it was a bit nerve wracking floating just inches above the coral, but we all managed to get back to shore with no coral cuts! We then headed back to the ha'apai beach resort to sort some more customs paperwork before we head north on Sunday. Some locals turned up with bananas, pawpaw and coconuts which were all gratefully bought. We made sure to dunk our bananas and pawpaw in the salt water before bringing onboard. After dinner on SV "Morepork" (John Stewart - Boss Hogg and Googie Girl say hi :) we headed home for an early night. I've just got around to installing the SIM card we bought two days ago, so now have some Internet - hence these posts! I'll try to download some photos to post on Facebook soon too.

After clearing in at Pangai, we anchored up outside the Ha'apai Beach Resort and had a few beers to celebrate at the bar. The next day we did a run into "town" for diesel, and then upped anchor and headed to Uoleva for the night. OMG - lovely long white sandy beach and tons of palm trees! Went for a long walk up the beach, then "happy hour" at the Sea Change Eco Retreat bar. We kinda got stuck there as the heavens opened and it pissed down - oh dear what a shame!

Arrived in the ha'apai group in Tonga this morning and cleared customs. After a swim to cool off, we washed all the salt off the boat and relaxed with a cold beer. Went ashore at 4pm to meet up with others for more cold adult beverages. Gonna go find some snorkelling/dive spots tomorrow!

about to enter Pangaii for check in

Organising their peed to arrive in Hapaais midday tomorrow. Have a squeek in the rudder stock that needs investigation when conditions permit.

all well aboard. will slow down so eta wednesday noon in pangai

on passage to Pangaii in the Hapaais

hAVE ANOTHER TUNA AND SEEN SMALL WHALES

All well on board as anchored at N Minerva

15 boats in South Minerva so quite a cloud

Safely anchored at south Minerva reef. all very well on board.

via sat phone as they are too busy eating tuna to get on the radio! please calibrate your barometer when you get there!

Was a bit of a sloppy start with swell and no wind. Wind has started to fill in now. Very happy to be on our way! All well on board!

Ok, so apparently the weather models have altered slightly and there's a 90% chance the bulk of the ICA fleet will be clearing customs and leaving tomorrow. If that's the case, we'll be amongst them.

Ok, so it turns out that there's a little bit of a delay. A suspicious low pressure area and a bit of a squash zone means that we'll be departing maybe (maybe) on Sunday. At this stage, things are still a little unsettled so it's a bit up in the air. Some boats left Opua today, some are planning to leave on Friday or Saturday. We're planning on a Sunday departure (no superstitions violated there) but it could change.

I'm not desperate to get going, but the waiting is starting to get a little frustrating.

So things are looking better weather wise for a departure, maybe on Friday (give the seas a chance to calm down a little). There's an old sailor's superstition about departing on a Friday but a) I'm not superstitious (it might be unlucky) and b) we can maybe appease Neptune with a tot of rum and a request for clemency.

Sitting in Orokawa Bay, Bay of Islands sitting out the rain and wind and trying to see a suitable weather window for departure in the next week.

stuck in Opua marina waiting for new autopilot and TC Donna to disapate.


=20

Well, we're still waiting for a weather window. Cyclone Ella is having a go now and there's no point in departing NZ to get snotted by the remains of a cyclone.

We got the autopilot fixed (new hydraulic pump and electric motor) and the old unit is being repaired and will become a spare.

In the meantime we've left the marina to a) save some money and b) have a change of scenery while we wait for a weather window.

TC Donna has caused us to re-evaluate the wisdom of departure on Saturday. Doesn't look like we'll get a decent window for departure for a while now ... maybe a week.

Good lord it's getting chilly! We're in pants, sweatshirts and woolly socks. The weather is looking good for a Saturday departure as planned. We're keeping an eye on a small depression north of Vanuatu but at this stage it's all looking good.

So tomorrow is the first briefing for the ICA fleet. We've all been watching the weather and it looks like Saturday will be good for departure. We should get a good kick out of NZ for the first 2 or 3 days with brisk winds before it starts to ease a bit. Paperwork has been filled in, duty free orders made and we're less than a week from departure. Looking good.

The ICA Pacific Rally fleet is starting to assemble here in Opua. Boats are sporting battle flags, crews are introducing themselves and we're all starting to form friendships and sort ourselves out. With only 10 days to go, we're also studying the weather patterns and looking forward to departure.

Holed up in a quiet little bay waiting for the remains of TC Cook to come visiting. Should be OK here. Might get a bit boofty but we'll cope.

Anchored in Paradise Bay, Urupukapuka Is after overnight passage from Gulf Harbour. Not a bad sail, bit sloppy and at times we ran into big holes with little breeze. Average speed of 6.2 knots over 106 miles.  Max boat speed 8.9 knots. Time for breakfast and a snooze.

Finally, the rain has stopped for a bit. We're stowing gear and getting ready for tomorrow's Cat1 safety inspection.

Still working on the boat, trying to work out where everything can be stored and trying to get ready for a Category 1 safety inspection. We'll get it all squared away soon (I hope).

OK, so there's about 2 weeks to go now and there's still a list of things to do. It's not a long list, but there's still plenty of jobs to get done. Working hard and spending money like its going out of fashion.

6 weeks to go until we head north and join the ICA rally bound for the South Pacific. A long list of things to do before then!!

At Gulf Harbour Marina