A nice welcome to NZ with rain, thunder and lightning and 30kn NW winds. We are surfing and fish tailing our way towards Opua at present, hoping to miss the lightning strikes. Very exciting to be home, but would be nice to be still for a couple of days. Looking forward to catching up with friends and family

We had a good day sail yesterday until about midnight and then we started motoring after the wind started coming from NE. We are rolling around a bit now, but not much wind. We are picking for an arrival into Opua tomorrow morning sometime when the wind picks up a lot more.

We had a very boisterous day yesterday with wind between 25-30kn w, just aft of beam, with 3-4 m swells. Later in the day it slowly turned to more of a reach and then slightly more south, forward of beam and the wind declined to about 16kn. At present we have 11kn SW winds, which is a lot more comfortable sailing.

A good night of sailing beam reach with 19-25 WNW winds, 2-3 m swell. We couldn?t ask for better sailing, maybe a bit less swell. We have had trouble sending these YIT messages, so hopefully this one is successful.

A great day of sailing after a day of motoring yesterday. We started sailing about 0100hrs and it?s been plain sailing since then. We have 25kn WNW winds and cloudy conditions with the chance of rain ahead.

Yesterday the sea was like glass, and moving around the boat felt like being at anchor. We motored all day until about 0100hrs and then we started sailing. Since then we have been sailing nicely with 13kn Westerly winds, but it?s a little bit up and down at times. The wind is meant to come up more mid morning. We are cruising with another boat called Halo and they are right next to us. Nice to have the odd chat.

leaving today to Opua, from Noumea. Currently motoring and probably will be all today, then the wind is meant to kick in tomorrow. Hoping for a nice soft passage home.

we have had a good day sailing and will be approaching the Havanna Pass about 2000hrs. It has been a pleasant day, passing little deserted islands in the Loyalty Group along the way. We should get a better sleep tonight. Looking forward to getting to Noumea.

A bumpy old night, but the sea has calmed down a lot and much smoother with a half knot e swell. Overnight the wind was up over 20kn, but now it is about 13kn E. We had a full main, and just the stay sail, but when Wok wakes up we will put up the Genoa sail if the wind stays like this.

A good day sailing, but slightly on the nose. The sea a little sloppy, but all in all reasonable progress. We haven?t seen anything exciting, except lots of sea. Hopefully we will have an uneventful evening.

we have had a fabulous time in Vanuatu, but are now heading to New Caledonia. We have 18-20kn e winds, with a very sloppy sea. We have a 2 m swell. Hopefully it all settles down soon. Hopefully be in Noumea in a couple of days.

We stayed a night in Port Villa and caught up with our buddies off Gallivanta and Beserker for dinner. Got some more supplies the next day and headed to Mele Bay for the night then today had a nice sail up to Kakula Island and met up with Tom and Lynn from Roxanne. This spot is awesome, not only beautiful, but perfect for kite boarding. Looking forward to spending the next few days here. It is a private island though and we got permission to stay here.

This morning we got up at 5.00am and sailed out of EPI under full moonlight. It started out very glassy, but as we left the Leigh of the land, it got windy and pretty boisterous as we sailed south. A good sail and arrived 1500hrs at Havannah Harbour, but we got told we couldn?t stay because they were trying to eradicate coconut beetle. We up anchored and headed for Mele Bay which is where we are now. Heading for Vila tomorrow to stock up on fresh veges And catch up with our friend Stu Clark.

This morning we left Malekula and headed for EPI on a SE wind. Not a bad sail, a little on the nose but we arrived by lunch time. After lunch we went for a gorgeous snorkel, colourful coral and lots of fish, moray eels and turtles. The Dolphins played in the bay most of the afternoon and we watched them while drinking gin and tonic and eating a bag of chips.

In the morning we got up and headed to Uliveo Island with a sand cay right next to it. After lunch the wind came up and we went for a kite on the sand cay. Fantastic spot, but the anchorage is a little rocky at night tide.

We arrived at Awei Island about lunch time, which is part of the Maskel Yne Island Group. We talked to several locals who came up to us in their dug out, outriggers and gave away a few gifts for the kids. We are heading out tomorrow to some of the other island in this region, hoping to find a spot where we can go kite boarding. The wind is up after tomorrow.

We spent the night tucked behind Lanur Island, which was a gorgeous spot. We spent lots of time in the water swimming and snorkeling - great coral. We left this morning heading for the Maskel Yne Islands.

We have spent the last couple of days at South East Bay with a couple of other boaties, Indigo and Beserker. We had drinks on our boat last night which was nice. We paddle boarded up the river mouth to a big lagoon which housed quite a few villages. A snorkel today was eventful with a 5 foot black tip reef shark showing far too much interest in me (Lanie) as I was swimming from the reef to our boat. He approached me twice and got within 3-4 feet of me. Back on the boat, we had a nice display of a pod of dolphins jumping out of the water chasing fish. Tomorrow we head south.

We spent the night at Malua Bay, Malakula which was a great anchorage and in the morning went into the village to give away some gifts. We walked up to the fresh water hole, had a quick dip and then before we left we went for a long snorkel and saw what looked like fire flies in the water. As we got closer to the rocks, we saw heaps of Eagle Rays that stayed around us for ages - so awesome!! Now we are heading south to discover another bay.

We left Port Villa 12 days ago with Nick and Kirsty on aboard and made our way slowly up the islands stopping at Port Havannah, EPI, where we had a cool snorkel and walk on the beach at Lameh Bay. From there we headed to Malekula Island spending a night in Port Sandwhich, which was gorgeous and then a night in port Stanley. On the 30th July we made it to Santo, spent a nice last day with Nick and Kirsty and they left on the 1st. We did a couple of nice dives, the second being the President Coolidge. Very cool! We spent a few days discovering Santo and Aore Island before making our way back South.

Another great night of sailing and we saw land about 0430hrs. We have had between 12 - 18kn SE winds during the night with slight seas. We have another couple of hours before we reach Port Villa. Nice to have another passage under our belt without using too much fuel. Glad to be here.

A great day of sailing making really good ground, so we should be in Vanuatu early morning. The sea state is about 2m swell and averaging 20 knots of SE wind. One more night at sea and looking forward to catching up with Rob and Carolyn Port when we get there and a big bunch friends arriving on Saturday. Party time!!

Initially we had about 12kn well aft of beam, which was horrible in 3 m swells, really rolly and banging sails, but about 1800hrs the wind came up strong SE 20-24kn and we have had that ever since - fantastic sailing. Both slept a bit better last night. Hopefully the wind will keep blowing today and we will be in Vanuatu tomorrow all going well.

We have had a good day sailing although the 3 m swell makes Fusio a bit rock and rolly. We have between 10 to 15kn ESE, but it would nice to have a bit more wind. Wok caught a Mahimahi but threw him back because we felt sorry for him. He swam away greatfully.

We have had a good day sailing although the 3 m swell makes Fusio a bit rock and rolly. We have between 10 to 15kn ESE, but it would nice to have a bit more wind. Wok caught a Mahimahi but threw him back because we felt sorry for him. He swam away greatfully.

we motored for about 4 hours coming out of Denarau, but then started sailing gently with light SE winds. Through the night the wind varied between 16-20knSE and the sea got a lot more bumpy. So a typical first night of not much sleep, but we have all day to do that and it really is good sailing.

We have checked out of Port Denarau, Fiji and now heading for Vanuatu. Looking forward to a nice easy passage, cross fingers. Loved our time in Fiji, especially Blue Lagoon where we had some awesome kiting. Going to miss our friends here, but looking forward to catching up with a whole bunch of new ones - looking forward

Made our way up to the Blue Lagoon with Rhum Coco and arrived on Friday. Went for a kite Friday afternoon which was breezy to say the least, then a couple of beers at the bar to watch the sunset.

Not as wind today as yet but things can change up here.

we can finally see land and heading toward the reef where it will be a lot calmer. We have 9 miles to the pass and a couple of hours motoring into Denarau. We are too late for check in, but have organised and 8.00am check in tomorrow. We will organise ourselves and have a quiet motion free night. Thanks for following us on our passage to Fiji - it?s been a great ride.

Another great night of sailing and making good ground (sea) with more trade winds. Looking forward to seeing a bit of land for a change and not having to brace oneself. Can?t complain though, the wind has really turned it on for us this passage, it?s been fabulous. We will save on the diesel.

What can I say, same old same old. Still sailing with 21kn E winds, big swells and cruising at similar speeds with stay sail and main sail. We will probably put a furl in the main tonight, but other than that, food is the most exciting thing at the moment. We hope to be in Denarau about 2200hrs tomorrow night. Looking forward to that.

Another full on night of trade wind sailing, but we?re getting used to all the noise and movement, so both of us sleeping well, but not needing any blankets - getting warmer. Still no sign of any boats nearby. Rhum Cocoa are well in front in these conditions, (beam on strong wind). Yesterday they were 20 miles ahead, but I?m sure they have made some ground over night.

Another boisterous day of trade wind sailing (right on the beam) with up to 3 meter swells. We?ve had between 18-28kn of E wind with just our stay sail and a Reef in the main sail. It is meant to stay like this all night, so a bit of bouncing around, but we are making good headway.

A good night of constant wind, approx 20kn ENE wind. Still no boats seen on the horizon and as it?s so black at night with no moon, we certainly would have seen a light if there was one. Looking forward to another day of pure sailing.

A good sailing day with lots of E wind, at the moment 20kn. We still are sailing with the Stay sail rather than Genoa and intend to Reef the main again tonight. Forgot to mention we saw a whale yesterday, which appeared to be heading south. We still haven?t seen another cruising boat yet, so maybe tonight. Fingers crossed for a steady night of sailing. We are about Half way to Fiji. Still chilly at night, but that should change in the next few days. Bring on the warmth.

We weren?t expecting last nights weather with lots of squalls and changeable winds up to 30kn. We reefed the main and changed the position of our stay sail a few times. Not the best night sleep, but I?m sure we will make up for it today in between squalls.

A great day of sailing with the trade winds doing their job with nice 19kn E winds. We haven?t seen any boats out here, just Swallows trying to land on our solar panels, playing Russian Roulette with our wind generator. Looking forward to another good night of sailing.

We motored until 0100hrs and then the wind kicked in and now we are sailing, hopefully for the rest of our passage. A gentle 11kn E breeze means nice side on sailing. This is a what it?s all about - cruising. (And it is slowly warming up) .

A day of motoring due to a lack of wind. Looking forward to some Light SE winds to kick in tonight snd slowly build over the next few days. The seas are slowly settling down, so hopefully that is also the pattern for the next few days.

We sailed all through the night just with the main sail, travelling about 6.8kn average with 15kn S winds. Have just started motoring through lack of wind and expect it will be like this for the majority if the day. No cruising boats in sight, but a couple of ships passed by during the night. Nice to see Albatross circling our boat once again.

We are leaving Marsden Cove Marina and heading for Fiji. The weather looks good with 18kn southerly winds. Hopefully not too much swell. We will be travelling with SV Rhum Cocoa. Relieved that we are on the high seas and heading for some warmth. Have a great winter. Xx

We can see land and expect to be tied up outside the quarantine wharf at Opua about 2300hrs. It?s been a lot of motoring in the last 3 days, but it?s been easy and even coming into NZ the sun is shining and it?s relatively warm. Not at night though as we are both layered up big time. Looking forward to going for a walk and seeing a few people we haven?t seen for a while. It?s good to home.

Another night of motoring. The wind has turned SE, but only about 11kn. So we are sailing into the wind, but it?s not too uncomfortable. We should be at Opua late today all going well. It?s been quite a lot of motoring, especially the later half, but on the upside, it?s been a pretty cruisy passage. Looking forward to getting home and catching up with friends and family.

A full day of motoring, initially - very sloppy seas with a 2 m swell coming from lots of directions. The sea has calmed down now with just a 1m S swell and 3 kn of wind, so quite glassy. Still warm enough to shower outside, but there are no fish in the ocean. One more full night of motoring before we head towards Opua. Hoping that it stays this warm.

Another night of next to no wind and motoring compiled with a 2m messy swell, makes for a bit of a washing machine effect. We have a very good side berth that allows us to get a bit of sleep, so not complaining. So far it?s been a pretty easy passage. We did see one ship come by very close during the evening, but other than that, just RhumCocoa following close behind.

we have been motoring all day due to lack of wind and a 2 meter swell is making it quite rocky. We have beautiful hot weather and still showering outside. Unfortunately still not a fish in sight. I?m not even going to mention tomorrow! At this stage we are on target for getting to Opua late Monday night - all going well.

The wind has finally disappeared and we are motoring with about 7kn of N wind. Sails are all down as they tend to bang around when there?s a bit of slop and no wind. Anyway can?t complain, we have another fine day and we are not getting hammered (yet). We are about half way through our passage and it?s been very comfortable.

Another great day of sailing averaging between 6 - 8 kn in approx 11 kn of NE winds, aided with an ocean current from behind us. We turned on the motor for an hour, mainly to make water, but are currently sailing. Just as well we have meat in the freezer because the fishies don?t want to jump onto our hook. Tomorrow?

A great nights sail with 13kn E winds. We are heading east in anticipation of the E / SE winds that are predicted on our arrival into NZ. It?s been easy sleeping so far at night, so may it continue.

A good day of sailing but light winds of between 8-14kn E. We did put up the gennaker for about an hour, but the wind came around too much on the nose, so had to bring it down. Still no fish. There?s always tomorrow.

A good nights gentle sail with 10-14kn E winds. We did the odd bit of motoring during the night. The wind is slowly dying, but hoping for another day before we need to start the motor for a high in the middle of our passage. Not a bad nights sleep considering it is the first night. Another gorgeous day on the horizon and Rhum Coco is the only boat we can see, a few miles behind us.

A fabulous first day with blue skies and 10-15kn E for nice comfortable sailing. Fairly calm seas, but haven?t caught any fish yet. We can still shower outside, but I?m sure that may change in the next couple of days. All in all, a good first day.

We checked out of Noumea yesterday morning and had a fabulous kite at Maître Island in the avo when we should have been getting ready to go, but we are on the road now and we are sailing in a lovely 16kn easterly breeze. Looking forward to a light passage home.

It is 0500hrs NZ time, but 0400 hrs in New Caledonia. We have arrived safe and sound, sailing all the way mainly just with the main up. The rain has arrived to wash our boat down. We are looking forward to a couple of hours of normal sleep before heading in to Noumea to check in.

We have slowed down so that we can go through the Havannah Pass with an incoming tide in the early hours of the morning. The sea state has been messy today and we are sailing only with a main sail. One more night and we will be there, which is a nice thought.

We sailed all night but with the wind slightly more easterly (from behind) sloppy seas and up and down winds, we decided to pull in the Genoa as it was flapping a bit. Not good when you are trying to sleep. Anyway we are racing along now with just the main up between 7 - 9.5kn, so not complaining. One more night to go and we will be in New Caledonia. Yeehaa!

After motoring half the night, the wind came up enough 12kn SE in the morning to gently sail again and have been sailing ever since. The forecast says wind for tonight, about 17kn SE, so looking forward to a good sail.

We sailed under a full moon until just after 0100hrs when the wind died to about 11kn. Because it was slightly behind us made the conditions very sloppy, so we pulled down sails and put on the motor, which is still going now. Oh well, we are all charged up, so can?t complain.

Making good ground with continuing winds of SE 19-21kn. A couple of leaks to sort out, but otherwise a great days sailing. We are both a bit tired, but the first day is always the worst. Looking forward to another good nights sail.

Great night of sailing with SE winds just aft of beam, with full mainsail and stay sail a nice combination. A full moon made it easy to see, and we both managed a little bit of sleep, so all in all a great start. Looking forward to another beautiful sunny day.

Its 2.30 in Friday afternoon and we are just about to head through Navula Passage to New Caledonia. Our time in Fiji has been fabulous so very hot and sunny, just like today. We are just about to put up our sails as the wind is coming around nicely. Hopefully set them today for the next four days. We will friends here, but are looking forward to catching up with some other ones.

After spending a fabulous couple of weeks in the Yasawas, we headed back to Lautoka for a dentist appointment that was finally successful and then onto Musket Cove where we have had friends, Brett and Jann stay for a few days. The weather has been fantastically windy and we have been kiting most days. Yesterday, we were kiting with whales which was an awesome experience. Brett and Jann are now staying in the Musket Resort and head home on Thursday, so we will take them into Denarau and we will then be catching up with Team Huggett. Looking forward to that!! We intend to head to Noumea end of August.

After spending a couple of days with the Mantarays, we headed up to Blue Lagoon and had 3 days of great kiting with the Guys off Joli Fou, Roxanne and Mustang Sally. The wind has disappeared for a few days so have headed further up the Yasawas and are staying in a gorgeous secluded bay with lots of pretty coral and fish. We are still waiting for my second dentist appointment, so until that is established we will enjoy the Yasawas and the wind that is meant to turn up on Thursday.

We have been at Musket Cove for a while and have just said goodbye to Julie and Celia who have been on board. It?s been great catching up with a Bruce and Lyn from Jolie Fou and Grant and Jude from Blinder and lots of others. We met some new friends, Tom and Lynn from Roxanne. Tom gave me a go on his foiling kite board behind the back of his dingy, which was a new experience for me. Totally different from normal kiting, but lots of fun trying. Last night we stayed at Mana Island and now we are anchoring at Mantaray passage, hoping to see the Mantarays. We intend heading up to Blue Lagoon in the next couple of days hoping for some wind and maybe go even further up the Yasawas.

We are still at Nananu-i-ra and enjoying the kiting. The wind is slowly building and the kite size is getting smaller. Whistler and ourselves did go out for dinner at Wananavu Resort on Saturday to watch France get dicked. Great game and good food.

We keft Namena on Wenesday and tried to sail to Makogai with our Geneka, but ended up having to motor most of the way. We stayed only one night in Makogai, because there was too much sea lice in the water. We had a smooth ride going to Nananu-i-ra, absolutely no wind, so we made water, beer, did clothes washing and cleaning the boat inside and out while we motored. Its lovely to be back here snd see that the effects of cyclone Winstone have gone. Lots of greenery and building going on. We went for a big paddle board this morning, because it was nice and still, but there is lots of wind in the forecast, so we are looking forward to getting into some kite boarding, along with our friends from Whistler.

We had a lovely sail yesterday from Savusavu to Namenai. We didn?t dive, but had a nice snorkel around. I think we are heading off to Makogai today with a couple of other boats.

We spent a couple of days at Duff reef kite boarding in the most amazing warm aqua blue water. The kiting was great even though we were on an offshore situation, but the anchorage was a bit rolly at high tide. Both SV Whislter and ourselves decided to do an overnighter to Cousteau, (Savusavu), making the most of the wind. We had a great sail, the wind was beam on all day and night apart from the last two hours, we motored, making water and powering up. We intend to rest up today (being a Sunday) and then cruise on in to the market and get provisions for the next journey.

We spent 5 days in Vanuabalavu which was amazing. Lots of swimming, snorkelling and paddle boarding. We met lots of lovely cruisers and are travelling with a couple from Canada - Monty and Marge off Whistler. We had a great sail and are currently anchored in a Reef Called Duff Reef. A tiny little island with 2 palm trees. We went for a kite this afternoon - flat aqua water, one of the best kiting spots we have ever been in and have just come back from having dinner on Whistler. Fabulous day.

After spending a few days at Savusavu, catching up with a few boaties, we got our Cruising Permit and we headed to Cousteau Resort for some snorkelling and lazing around. Yesterday we headed for the Northern Lau Group. We knew we weren?t going to get anywhere before dark, so we did a very slow overnighter and arrived in Vanuabalavu this morning at 0600hrs. What a fabulous place with lots of little mushroom Islands everywhere. We are anchored in 5 meters of crystal clear water. Just heading out for a paddle board to have a look around. Paradise!!

We motored for the last 6 hours making water, washing down the boat and clothes washing. All those normal things you do early hours of the morning. Arrived into Savusavu about 0200hrs and slept. We are now waiting for customs, immigration, bio security and health to turn up before we are cleared into Fiji. Not too hard really with fresh hot meals and hot showers every night with very little diesel burnt. Now we can moan about how hot and sticky it is. Nice to be here though.

The wind has finally calmed down and we have 11.8kn NE. A nice gentle sail to do all our clean up, washing down all the salt that had been coming over the boat. It has been nice passing all the surrounding Islands. We still haven?t seen a soul during either of our passages, but I?m sure that will change during the night. We should arrive into Savusavu sometime around 0200hrs. Yippee!

After downloading weather grips that said maximum 20 kn NE, we set our sails, but probably could have done with another Reef in the main, hence to say it was a bit of a wild ride. It was raining most of the night with winds between 25-34 kn NE and a very messy sea and lots of water coming over the canopy. We are currently passing Islands connected to the Lau Group and daylight is making everything a bit more comfortable. We will probably make Savusavu later this evening. (A corrected position for this morning)

After downloading weather grips that said maximum 20 kn NE, we set our sails, but probably could have done with another Reef in the main, hence to say it was a bit of a wild ride. It was raining most of the night with winds between 25-34 kn NE and a very messy sea and lots of water coming over the canopy. We are currently passing Islands connected to the Lau Group and daylight is making everything a bit more comfortable. We will probably make Savusavu later this evening.

Raining steadily with 22kn NE winds. Stay Sail out with Reef in the main. We nearly had to get our wet weather gear out. Thank goodness for canopies.

A nasty NE wind unexpectedly turned up st about 1900hrs ranging between 25-13kn. The NE was predicted for later Sunday. We furled up our stay sail and have had an uncomfortable night of bashing into it and not going very fast. I?m sure we will have a decent sleep when we get to Fiji.

We are having a nice sail with 20kn E winds. It?s a bit cloudy, but warm and looking a bit black ahead of us. We have put out the stay sail instead of the Genoa and have reefed the main. It is meant to get windier tomorrow.

After having a nice respite and a few beers with the crew from a big motor launch called WILL, we are leaving North Minerva now and it looks like it?s going to be good wind - 18kn E winds and half m swells. Yay!!

Another good night of sailing with full main and reefed Genoa. 12kn ESE winds (beam on) perfect conditions with very little swell. We are coming into North Minerva Reef now and the sun is just about to come up - perfect timing. This part of the journey has seen us use about 3 hours motor time. We intend to stay here for one or two nights before heading to Savusavu in Fiji.

A fabulous day of sailing with full main and Genoa. 18kn SE winds (beam on) perfect conditions with 1 meter swell. We should reach Minerva Reef about midnight tonight. We are hoping for a full moon and clear skies to manoeuvre into Minerva. Looking forward to sleeping in a real bed with little movement.

We sailed all night apart from a couple of hours where we motored because the wind had died and it was coming from behind. Fortunately the wind moved around to the east and now we are sailing nicely with 16kn (beam on). The most comfortable we have been since we started out.

Another day of leisurely sailing with SSE winds 20-30 knots. We have only the main sail up as we will not get to Minerva Reef by sunset tomorrow. We thought about going straight to Savusavu, but would get pinged with extra costs being a weekend. We are stopping at Minerva for a night or two.

another night of sailing under a full moon. The pace is a bit slower than when we left NZ, around 6-7knots, but still making good ground with 16 kn SE winds. The sea has settled down a bit, with about 1 m swell. Sleeping is getting easier too, although not awake enough to realise I put SW in my first report rather than SE.

another night of sailing under a full moon. The pace is a bit slower than when we left NZ, around 6-7knots, but still making good ground with 16 kn SSW winds. The sea has settled down a bit, with about 1 m swell. Sleeping is getting easier too.

We motored for a couple of hours allowing us to charge up and make some water before the wind came back up and we have been sailing ever since. Not quite as quick as before, but a bit more comfortable. Still big 2-3 SW swells making the boat rock around a bit. We have been catching up on some sleep today, hoping for another good night.

The wind seems to be dying. We have been sailing all night, but half an hour ago, we started motoring as the wind is nearly directly behind us. Sleeping is getting easier as we get used to the motion again.

A fabulous days sailing with SW winds between 20-30knots. We have been sailing just with the main sail until mid morning when we put up the stay sail. Cruising between 6-14knots. The boat is still rolling around a lot, but we are getting used to it. We have had a number of Albatross circling most of the day. They are awesome to watch. Hoping for a better night sleep tonight.

A great night sailing travelling between 6-13knots with winds between 20-34kn SW winds. Not great sleep with the boat rolling around, but making good ground tho and it?s always a relief to get the first night over with. Looking forward to more sailing today.

Just leaving Marsden Cove Marina heading for Minerva reef. A rough ride out of Whangarei, but a nice southerly breeze to start our voyage on. We will not miss the cold, but we will miss our friends & family.

Just leaving Marsden Cove Marina heading for Minerva reef. A rough ride out of Whangarei, but a nice southerly breeze to start our voyage on. We will not miss the cold, but we will miss our friends & family.

we are anchored in Leigh Harbour, waiting for the NW winds to turn SW to head further north. We are hoping to leave for Fiji in the next week.

We are back in NZ cruising down the coast towards Opua to check-in. It was a good night sailing until just after midnight when we turned on the motor and motor sailed into NZ. It's great to be back!!!

A good day sailing and making good progress. We are expecting to get into Opua sometime tomorrow early avo. We have a beautiful sunny day with easterly winds between 12-19kn and half metre SE swell. One more night and we are home - Yay!!!!!

Another night of pounding and very little sleep, but the finish line is only a day and night away. So we have made good ground and that's the main thing. Most of the night was 17-20kn easterlies on the nose. Still about a 1m E swell and we have a beautiful sunny day today, so can't complain.

Another long day of crash and bash, but making headway. We have about 289 miles in a straight line to go until we get to the Bay of Islands. 16-20kn ESE (on he nose) with a sloppy sea (just perfect!).

The crew was wondering if Sue was keen for lunch in Opua on Saturday?.

It's been a hard night of on the nose sailing, lots of banging and not the best sleep. Oh well, we are predicting just over a couple of days to go. We have had 19kn easterlies with 1m E swell. Another fine day, with quite a bit of cloud. We are crossing our fingers for a NE wind to kick in. Won't hold our breath tho. AND not long after the first Mahimahi was caught, we got another one. Fresh fish last night and fish curry tonight.

A day of mainly sailing, a little bit of motor sailing. The highlight was Wok pulling in a Mahimahi, which we will have for dinner. 11kn SE and 1m SE swell. We are ticking along ok. The wind is expected to pick up tonight, so hopefully push us closer to home

The easterly winds finally kicked in, so we tacked and are heading slightly more south. Not the best of nights sleep, as the wind is stronger 13.5kn SE and on the nose, but it's nice to be making some progress. It rained a little bit overnight and It's a bit cloudy today with the odd back cloud, A 1M SE swell on the nose which makes it a bit uncomfortable, but not unusual - homeward bound!!

Another beautiful day going not very far. A bit frustrating with the lack of wind, but hoping that the easterlies kick in very shortly. We have 6kn SW winds with 1m SE swell. We have had the motor on and off intermittently during the day. Currently motor sailing. All good on board.

A nice calm night of motorsailing and everyone getting heaps of sleep. Still heading mainly east and hoping that when the forecast wind kicks in, we will get a nice run into New Zealand. Sounds good anyway. Not much wind at present - only 9 knots S and 1m SE swell. Looking forward to heading in the right direction and getting home. (Paul says hi to Sue)

Sailed all morning and just before lunch turned on the motor and have been motorsailing ever since, heading ESE - slowly dog-legging to NZ. It's been a fine warm day, but that should slowly change. Not bad conditions wth 2m SE swell. All happy on board.

A good night of light sailing between 10-13 kn SE with a 1m SE swell, slightly in the nose. As we have Paul Ranum with us as crew, we have managed a little more sleep than usual which is nice. They both sound like they are sleeping well. Maybe another day of heading in the wrong direction. Could be a long passage!!

Trying to get as east as possible, but feels like we are heading to Fiji. There is only one advantage - it's not getting any colder yet. SE breeze - 10-13kn and 1m SE swell. All crew happy and well.

Hi Guys, we are just about to leave isle of Pines, New Caledonia shortly. It's been a fabulous season, but we are looking forward to seeing friends and family back home. We are going to have to head east a little bit this time and it won't be a quick / easy trip, but there hasn't been many great Windows to head home so far, so we are taking this one. Look forward to seeing everyone. xxxxx

Baie d'Citron

We had a great sail using the Gennaker, until about 2200hrs and then motored the rest of the way to New Caledonia. We have just come through the Havannah pass and heading towards Noumea to check in today. We have been fortunate with the full moon all passage and this morning was a gorgeous sunrise - a nice welcome!

Not a lot of wind and fairly calm seas until about 11.00pm when the wind got up to between 10-12kn and was on the right angle for a Gennaker run. It's been a lovely day of gentle sailing. We will pull down the gennaker when it gets dark, Still no fish at this stage. Still in track to get to Noumea by Friday avfternoon - yay!

A quiet night with the exception of the motor. Not a lot of wind and fairly calm seas with a 1 m SE swell. On track to get to Noumea by Friday avo. Only one more night!

We sailed for most of the day until about 1500hrs, when we turned on our motor as we have finally run out of wind.

A good night of steady wind of 20 kn, but has now eased early this morning to about 14 kn E. Still moving along nicely with a reef in the main and just the stay sail, but we will make some changes when Wok wakes up. Still making good ground.

A big lazy rock and roll day, but moving along nicely with a reef in the main and just the stay sail - making good ground.

Bumpy night with between 20 - 27kn SE winds. First night is always the hardest with not much sleep for me. Wok managed a few hours with the help of Pihia Bombs.

Just to confirm correct dates, Fusio is leaving Fiji Monday 4th September not Sunday

Heading to Vuda Marina to check out, as we are leaving Fiji today for New Caledonia.

Still hanging around Musket Cove area with a little Kite Boarding, playing on the paddle boards in the surf & some trips to the outer reef for a snorkel.

Maybe heading for New Caledonia in a week or so.

Playing in the wind a Musket Cove

Ourselves Shenanigans and RhumCocoa had great morning and afternoon kite sessions at Nananu-I-ra Thursday. Friday there was no wind, so we all headed off towards Vuda Marina where we were meeting up with Richard Edlin our friendly boat builder. We spent a night halfway down and all had drinks on our boat and then arrived today at lunch time. We went Into the bar and had a beer with Richard - great to catch up. We are all going out to dinner tonight at the Marina. Both RhumCocoa and us are hanging out on our picks, so could be a bumpy night - all part of the experience!

ourselves and Shenanigans arrived at Nananu-I-ra Tuesday evening about 5.30pm and immediately had arrival drinks. We had a great afternoon of kiteboarding today (Wednesday) on the point, with the five of us all kiting together. Tomorrow is meant to have more wind, so bring it on=20

We spent 4 nights in Savusavu which was a fabulous time of socialising and going out for dinner each night which was soo cheap. $22.00 Fijian for a night on the town - not bad. We caught up with Pete and Wanda from RhumCocoa who had sailed from Tahiti, so that was very cool spending some time with them. Yesterday ourselves, Shenanigans and Sharp Focus moved on to Namena to do some diving, but it wasn't quite what it was before Cyclone Winstone - sad! Today Shenanigans and ourselves are sailing on to Nanunanu I-ra to do some kite boarding - bring on the wind!!

Its 3.45am and we have about 20 minutes to go before we pull up a mooring in Savusavu. It's been a great ride with always a little bit of drama attached, but all in all fantastic to be here. Looking forward to setting foot on land for a few days.

we have passed quite a few islands so far, through the Koro Sea and expect to arrive in Savusavu about 3am for a couple of hours sleep.

We turned off the motor at 2200hrs and had a fabulous sail through the night and it should continue until we get to Savusavu, which should be early tomorrow morning. Yay!!

Another day of motoring because of lack of wind. We are hoping that that changes sometime tonight. Nice day of sitting in the sunshine, although almost too hot to sit in it for too long.

A night of motoring due to lack of wind. We have been side by side next to Shenanigans all night. We have also had passenger all night at the top of the mast. Obviously a very tired bird, but he isn't suffering from constipation.

There is not much wind, so motoring at present. Had a fabulous time at North Minerva catching up with lots of other yachties, but now looking forward to getting to Savusavu in Fiji.

anchored at North Minerva. Spent the evening with Rob & Carolyn from Shenanigans with crew Ian. Mulling over the journey and trading war stories.

Another good night of sailing, but the wind was slightly more forward of beam, which makes the boat launch off the waves a little more. 40 miles before we reach Minerva, so we should be well and truly there before lunch time. Yippee!

The wind and big swells are persistent, meaning we are cruising along nicely. Unfortunately today, I managed to burn my arm making hot drinks when a big wave hit, so I have a couple of blisters to contend with, but not too serious. Still on track for North Minerva tomorrow, along with Shenanigans who are right behind us.

Another good night sailing and making good progress, but the big swells and wind chop still hanging around. Finally saw our friends from Shenanigans on the radar (AIS) last night. Hopefully get into Minerva similar timing. We are thinking Thursday. Bring it on!

Another good day sailing and making good ground, but the seas make it a tad uncomfortable.

A fabulous night of sailing and making good progress. We are just behind Bill from Liberation. Both of us slept well & hopefully only two more night shifts before Minerva.

Great day sailing and making good ground after a slow night. We have Bill & crew from Liberation just ahead of us and Mal and Pauline from Mahia, just behind us. We have been chatting frequently.

The winds have dropped a bit, so a slower sail last night, motored for a while. We both have caught up on some sleep which is a good feeling. Nothing eventful happened which is also a good thing.

great sailing day, making good progress, with a couple of reefs in the main - good cruising conditions. Hopefully a bit more sleep than last night.

sloppy seas with sw winds made it hard for sleeping, but great sailing with just a handkerchief main up. No foresail. Will catch up on some sleep today as the sea flattens out today. Both well on board.

good to get away. Good sailing but a bit sloppy. Hoping the sea calms down a tad so we can get a little bit of sleep tonight.

we have finally cast free of the Marina and on our way to Minerva Reef then Fiji. Had a great time in Opua with all the other cruisers, but time to go to a warmer climate.

Still waiting for cyclones to disappear. At the moment we are in Opua Marina doing a bit of socialising while this windy drizzly weather remains. Today we went up to Doubtless Bay with Irene and Lionel off Kiapa and had a kite surf. Lots of fun. The night before we were at Don Salthouse place having a party. Never a dull moment.

We are hanging out at Urapukapuka Island after spending the last two days at Russell. Last night we went into the Russell Boating Club for dinner and there was a band playing. Rob and Carolyn and Ian from Shenanigans were with us. Rob and I did a few numbers and we had a bit of a dance as well - a great night.

Anchored at Moturua Island in the B.O.I, waiting for cyclone Donna to pass by up North to make it a safe passage. Not a bad place to be though, hanging out with our friends Rob and Carolyn from Shenanigans and Phil and Patricia from Blue Bie. All going for a walk today around the island

Arrived in Opua yesterday and today caught up with some boatie friends. We are still sorting out some teething problems, but should be ready to go anytime after today when the weather window permits. There are some ominous cyclone systems coming down from up North, so waiting for those to pass.

currently cruising past Tutakaka heading for B.O.I

gulf harbour marina. Two days to go before leaving for Opua, Bay of Islands.

We had a fabulous SW sail down the coast from Opua yesterday and anchored at Christian Bay (inside Kawau) for the night. We intend to be back at Gulf Harbour today as we have a few people to catch up with in the next few days. It's been a fantastic 6 months away!

Just arrived in Opua Marina after a lovely sail and then motor to make water and have been cleared by Customs and Immigration. Glad to be back and looking forward to a decent sleep tonight. Thanks to all those who sent support messages. Its great to know that people are keeping a long distance eye on us. Will spend a couple of days at Opua and then head down the coast to Gulf Harbour early next week. Look forward to catching up soon.

A good night of sailing with SSW winds & a boat speed of 6-8kn. We passed North Cape about midnight and are now on the home straight, with nice smooth seas compared to what we have been used to for the last few days. Looking forward to catching up with our Kiwi friends.

Another long day of constant SSW winds between 22-27kn and very uncomfortable sea. We are progressing quite well and expect to be in Opua sometime Sunday avo (all going well). All the winter woollies have come out of the closet. One more night of shift - yeeha!!

Not a great night. A frontal system hit us about 1700hrs that was alot stronger than we thought it was going to be, gusting wind speeds of over 40kn NE and rain and 3 mtr N swells and wind chop. Our gennoa pole got knocked out of position and bent, hanging overboard and Warwick had to go forward to tied it off - not fun. Very rocky night and i have a couple of bruises to show for it. It is still blowing between 25-30kn SSW and uncomfortable - cant wait to get home now.

Its been a wild ride this afternoon with thunder and rain and 15-30kn N winds, averaging 8-9 kn, and surfing down waves at 14.9kn. We had to bring out the wet weather gear and hot drinks - a stark contrast to yesterday with board shorts and bikinis. Definitely getting closer to NZ.

At 0900hrs the NW wind arrived and we have been sailing ever since, averaging 7.5kn with 15-20kn behind us. We have had a slight problem with our Gennoa furler sticking, so we have the stay sail goose rigged at present, which makes things a little more comfortable. All good on board.

Started the day motoring, but then with the NE winds picking up 10-12kn, we put up the gennaker for a couple of hours, before the wind turned NNW and died. We have been motoring ever since, good chance to make water and charge up. Beautiful sunny day and the crew are all well.

A good start to the night of gentle sailing with between 10-18 ESE winds, then the wind died and turned NE about 2.00am and the motor went on and is still on. A couple of cargo ships passed us and the odd yacht we passed, just to keep us on our toes, but other than that a quiet night. By the way - the Mahimahi was delicious!

Not a bad sunny day of smooth sailing, even the genneka came out for half an hour. A couple of times we put the motor on briefly, but mainly sailing with between 8-14kn SE winds. The long line was out and Hug saw something on the end of it. Warwick pulled in a good sized Mahimahi and thats dinner for tonight - not a bad days effort!

We had a great nights sailing with SE winds of between 15-20kn and doing between 7-10kn. Unfortunately about 5.30am on my watch the winds have died and we have started up the motor, so motor sailing until we get some wind??? It is a little cloudy now, but still warm. We have all slept well on the first night and all fighting fit (I think - some are still in bed).

We have had a great day of Sailing 10-15kn SE Winds, travelling between 7-9kn. Beautiful sunny day - almost too hot when you can't jump off for a swim (no complaints tho - Im sure we will be wanting the wamrth back in a couple of days). Nothing much to do but play cards and eat and enjoy the sea. All good on board.

D-Day has arrived and we are finally leaving from Baie de Ugo in the Isle of Pines. We checked out of Noumea last Wednesday and spent our last few days doing some amazing dives with Bruce and Lyn off JoliFou - will really miss those two. The weather window looks pretty light, but should get lots of sailing in hopefully. With our extra crew member (Hug) we should get a little more sleep than usual on passage. Looking forward to seeing all our NZ friends again.

Sailed down to the Isle of Pines after checking out of Noumea on Wednesday. Had a dive at Gadji on Saturday & will dive again today. Looking at heading home this week all going well with the weather, we don't want to motor home but would like to miss being hammered as well. Have young Mr Huggett on board for the passage.

Its

been a great week of kite boarding at Ilot Maitre in Noumea with lots of new friends we have been hanging out with every day for the last 3 weeks. We all went out for dinner and watched the All Blacks win - yay. It was fantastic to meet up with our good friends Hug and Yvonne who watched the game with us as well. We are saying goodbye to friends one by one who are all heading off in different directions. At present we have Rob and Carolyn from Shenanigans are on board with us for three days before they catch a flight home to NZ. We intend to spend some time with Hug and Yvonne while they are here and then Hug is coming on board as crew for the trip home. That should be fun and a bit more sleep for the two of us. We will be starting to look for weather Windows from the 1st November onwards.

The wind has finally arrived and we have been kiting at Ilot Maitre (a small island 20 minutes from Noumea). Quite a few NZ and Aussie boats who are all kiters have gathered and we are having a blast on the water and off the water. Our friends off  Shenanigans, Rob and Carolyn who are amazing kiters have been helping us with a few tricks which has left both of us with a few sore parts, but it's a lot oof fun. It's going to be sad when everyone has to head back to either NZ or Aussie. We will be looking for weather Windows at the beginning of November.