Category: Photo Log

December 17-22, 2014

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Logbook – Wednesday December 17, 2014 (Omakiwi Cove to Opua)

Passage Log

• 1309 SB engine on
• 1327 P engine on
• Depart
• 1340 P engine off. SB + genoa
• P engine on
• 1552 Engines off. Opua

Daily Notes

• Thunder/lightning, pouring rain

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Logbook – Thursday December 18, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Nots

• Shopping in Kerikeri with Camille

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Logbook – Friday December 19, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• Family hike from Treaty grounds to Haruru falls
• Lunch/dinner at Jimmy Jack’s in Paihia
• T- drinks with Jack @ Andy’s house in Paihia

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Logbook – Saturday December 20, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• D – wine tasting with Sarah (Field Trip), Camille (Iguana), Brianna (Tusitala), and Julie (Nirvana). Five wineries – Cottle Hill, Marsden, KaiNui, Fat Pig, Ake Ake

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Logbook – Sunday December 21, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• Back to school & laundry day

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Email to family and friends dated December 21, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Busy in Opua

We came back to Opua after the low pressure system moved on and the blustery weather ended. We are very glad we stayed out and didn’t come back sooner, because apparently the last night of the blow the boats here in the Opua anchorage saw up to 50 kts with lots of fetch and boats were dragging all over the place. Meanwhile, we were in a nice protected anchorage, the most we saw was 36 kts, we had room for plenty of scope, and we had zero fetch. But overall, it’s good to be back, and here are some of the highlights so far:

• Made a dent in the Christmas shopping with an all day trip to Kerikeri
• Family hike, 5 Km each way, from the Waitange Treaty Grounds to Haruru Falls
• Ordered a new thermostat for the freezer and a new depth sensor (it’s nice to be in a place where you can get things easily, and they even price matched an online special for the depth sensor)
• The dinghy outboard motor crapped out when I was mid-way between the boat and shore to go for a run. I checked all of the obvious things (fuel container air vent, fuel level, fuel hose connections) and was just getting the oars out when a nice couple rescued me and towed me back to Exodus. Tim took it up to the mechanic yesterday, and our friends on Iguana have loaned us their outboard in the meantime (they are leaving for Auckland tomorrow).
• I had a fantastic afternoon/evening winetasting with friends yesterday. The vineyards/wineries around here are very small time operations and it was refreshing that at 3 of places we were discussing the wines with the owners, hearing what they like, and why the plant the grapes they do. One of them had a poetry reading, and 80 year old Gladys stole the show and brought more than one member of our party to tears. The wines are not on par with California, but the overall wine tasting experience may have been even better.
• Brenden finished 5th grade and the boys have been enjoying a few days off to celebrate
  That’s it for now. It’s Sunday morning and today will be back to school day and laundry day.
  Love and miss you all,
  -D.

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Logbook – Monday December 22, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• D – Run along coast in Paihia
• D/T – Xmas shopping in Kerikeri
• Boys play on shore w/ Lumbaz, Nirvana, & Iona

December 13-14, 2014

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Logbook – Saturday December 13, 2014 (Urupukapuka to Paradise Bay)

Passage Log

• 1429 SB engine on – for hot water
• 1613 P engine on
• 1624 Depart
• 1701 Engines off – Paradise Bay

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Logbook – Sunday December 14, 2014 (Paradise Bay)

Passage Log

• 0445 Call for assistance on VHF 16 (1)

Daily Notes

• (1) S/V Finesse called for assistance. Whangerai Maritime radio responded. Anchor dragging, engine failure, can’t raise buddy boat Cooper in same bay. Located in bay just North of Paradise. Another vessel recommended letting out more scope, which they did. Situation Stabilized
• Break in the rain. Shore excursion – catch (baseball), D- walked Paradise loop track.

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Email to family and friends dated December 14, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Happy Happy Birthday to Andrew

My first is all growed up and 23 today (really, it’s tomorrow, but here in New Zealand it’s today, and we are celebrating by making pizza.) I uploaded a happy birthday movie to my facebook page, and I only cried about a dozen times while making it. We love and miss you Andrew!

Other than that we are kind of socked in and stuck on the boat due to weather. There was some VHF radio drama last night as a charter boat in the next bay was dragging anchor and their engine wasn’t working. Luckily someone suggested they put out more anchor scope (which I never would have thought to suggest to them, because, well, duh!) and that stabilized their situation. We are in a nice protected spot and our average wind last night was under 10 kts with gusts up to 20, but on the other side of our bay Iguana saw average of 15 kts with gusts to 30. All manageable.

-D.

December 10-13, 2014

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Logbook – Wednesday December 10, 2014 (Deep Water Cove to Urupukapuka)

Passage Log

• 1036 Engines on
• 1042 Depart
• 1147 Engines off Urupkapuka Bay

Daily Notes

• Move to Urupukapuka
• D/Boys explore on shore.
• T/Jack – swim with dolphins & scalloping

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Logbook – Thursday December 11, 2014 (Urupukapuka)

Daily Notes

• T/B/Jack – Scalloping – Alex in the dinghy 80 scallops
• Tim perfects cleaning – 2 scallops/minute

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Email to family and friends dated December 11, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Urupukapuka bay

We moved from Deep Water Cove to Urupukapuka bay yesterday morning. Urupukapuka bay is on a small island called Urupukapuka island. The Bay of Islands is reminiscent of Vava’u with many anchorages close together so you have your pick for a blow from any direction. The bay itself isn’t as pretty, but the shore is more versatile in that there is a beach, lots of walking tracks (trails) around the island of varying levels, and grassy areas where Tim and Alex are going to go play catch today if it ever stops raining. I think the last time I wrote I said that Tim and Jack were going to out redeem themselves, and boy did they ever. They came back with two 30 lb Kingfish (Yellowtail) and two huge lobsters. We had quite a feast that night. And then to top it off yesterday after we moved here they went out and got a bunch of scallops. There is a 20 scallop per person limit, so if Tim can’t get the boys to go, I have volunteered to suit up and just sit in the dinghy. That counts, right?
Love and miss you all,
-D.

P.S. We are slowly learning the Kiwi lingo. Jandals = Flip-flops & Trundle = Shopping Cart. And the one you really want to know ahead of time is Tomato Sauce = Ketchup. Learned this the hard way.

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Logbook – Friday December 12, 2014 (Urupukapuka)

Daily Notes

• Rain, rain, go away
• Tim helped Jack fix the carburetor for his dive compressor

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Email to family and friends dated December 12, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Tour boats and dolphins

It rained most of the day yesterday, and there’s neverending rain in the forecast. We think we are going to head back to Opua today because 1) our freezer is broken and we want to see if the part is here before the weekend and 2) We left the car parked on the street. Next time we will leave the keys with one of our friends to let them use it and look after it while we are out. Anyway, I’d like to back up a bit and share some of Tim’s stories from the past couple days. I’m sure I won’t tell them quite as good as he would, but I’ll give it a go.

When they were out spearfishing at Cape Brett, the day they got the two huge yellowtail and lobsters, there were a couple tourboats out visiting the “hole in the rock,” which is basically a huge hole in the side of the island off the tip of cape brett. It’s a big tourist destination, and apparently it’s big enough for boats to transit through. Not sailboats, because of the mast, but all the big motor tour boats go through it. Except this time one of them missed their mark a bit and hit the top of the hole and snapped off their VHF antenna. I guess it was quite a sound and a sight. One of the guides on this same boat had Tim and Jack hold up their catches for the tourists as they all snapped a bunch of photos. I wonder how many facebook pages they will show up on (unidentified, of course.) Then, yesterday after we got here to Urupukapuka and Tim and Jack were heading out to get scallops a pod of dolphins showed up. They were swimming around the dinghy when that same tourboat showed up. Well, at least the same guide, not sure about the boat, and probably not the same driver. Tim thought for sure they were going to get yelled at for being too close to the dolphins or something (and as the boys and I were watching from Exodus we were thinking the same thing.) But no, the guide recognized them and came over to them and started telling the guests about how they are two “expert spearfishermen” and maybe they would go in the water with the dolphins for them. Tim was the first one in the water, and the dolphins were really playful and swimming circles around him, and the next thing he knew there were about 20 people in the water off the tourboat with him. I guess the dolphins were huge, and we’ve seen them several times here in this bay. Twice we’ve seen them go up to an anchored boat and start jumping around and slapping their tails on the water. It’s almost like they’re saying, “c’mon…c’mon…c’mon you little human…c’mon and play with us.”

Yesterday I didn’t have to go out in the dinghy to go scalloping because Alex and Brenden did. Brenden actually got in the water with two wetsuits on, but he still got cold pretty quick. So, they brought back a huge haul. The scallops here are just laying on the bottom in about 10-15 ft of water so the toughest thing is spotting them, once you spot them you just have to pick them up. So, apparently it’s easier than clams because you don’t have to dig them out. Although, Brenden points out that they went clamming in warm water, and that makes a big difference.

Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – Saturday December 13, 2014 (Urupukapuka to Paradise Bay)

Passage Log

• 1429 – SB engine on for hot water
• 1613 P engine on
• 1624 Depart
• 1701 Engines off – Paradise Bay

Daily Notes

• D – shore excursion solo. Lots of sheep and seep poo. Caught in the rain.
• T/Jack – spearfishing at Cape Brett w/ a couple kiwis – Huge yellowtail

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Email to family and friends dated December 13, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Staying put

We decided not to go back to Opua yesterday, because Jack met a local spearfisherman online and he’s invited the two of them out to Cape Brett today. So, they’ll be leaving in about a half hour. We are probably going to move to a bay around the corner for more East protection this afternoon because a low is approaching and winds are supposed to howl out of the east for a couple days. Yes, there is not only online dating but online spearfishing. And some of you might remember it was from the Lagoon owners chat room that Tim found Exodus, not even for sale. The internet is good, but we don’t have it here in this anchorage. Hopefully we can pick up a tower when we move this afternoon, because tomorrow is an important day (day after tomorrow for those of you on the other side of the dateline) and I will need to do some face-timing.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

December 7-9, 2014

Deep water cove is the first anchorage inside the Bay of Islands near Cape Brett. We weren’t really done with everything we needed to do in Opua, but Tim needed to get in the water, and it was well worth it.

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Logbook – Sunday December 7, 2014 (Opua to Deep Water Cove)

Passage Log

• 1020 Engines on
• 1027 Depart Opua
• 1141 Engines off. Main + genoa.
• 1310 Engines on
• 1334 Engines off – Deep Water Cove

Daily Notes

• T/Jack – Spearfish Cape Brett. 2 small yellowtail!
• Beers w/ Iguana

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Logbook – Monday December 8, 2014 (Deep Water Cove)

Daily Notes

• Sound of surf
• Awesome hike from Deep Water Cove to Cape Brett lighthouse
• Resistance w/ Iguana. Epic win by Alex & Brenden

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Logbook – Tuesday December 9, 2014 (Deep Water Cove)

Daily Notes

• T/Jack – spearfishing – 2 30 lb yellowtail + 2 huge lobsters
• Dinner w/ Iguana

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Email to family and friends dated December 9, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Deep Water Cove

We escaped Opua a couple days ago and we’ve been anchored out near the entrance of the Bay of Islands in a spot called Deep Water Cove. It earns its name, because we have to anchor VERY close to shore to find a suitable depth. Tim and Jack went out spearfishing the first afternoon we were here, and they came back with just a couple small (illegal sized) yellowtail, but they are heading out this morning in the drizzly rain to redeem themselves. Yesterday, we all went on an amazing hike, about 4.5 hours round trip, from here out to the Cape Brett lighthouse. It was along ridges and up and down ravines, and the views were stunning. Afterwards, Alex and Brenden schooled us in a game of resistance, and I’m starting to get really worried about how good Alex is getting at this game… We have cell service out here, but the only device we have set up for internet is Tim’s iPad, which is why I’m not constantly on Facebook now. Love and miss you all,
-D.

November 27 – December 6, 2014

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Logbook – November 27, 2014 (Opua)

Passage Log

• 1150 Engines on- depart Q dock
• 1221 Engines off – anchorage

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Logbook – November 28, 2014 (Opua)

Passage Log

• 0955 Engines on (1)
• 1025 Engines off

Daily Notes

• (1) To the fuel dock to fill water tanks
• D – road trip to Kerikeri with Tusitala & Rigel
• T/Boys – reanchor Exodus. Gusty winds – almost collision w/ Iguana at anchor. Move Exodus
• Boys play on shore all day. Fluenta’s here.
• Resistance night w/ Iguana and Tusitala

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Logbook – November 29, 2014 (Opua)

Passage Log

• 1127 Engines on – move to marina
• 1202 Arrived at marina

Daily Notes

• Move to Manrina
• D – run/hike along waterfront trail
• Boat chores!!
• “Thanksgiving dinner”
• T – socialize at Danny’s (s/v Lumbaz) birthday

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Email to family and friends dated November 29, 2014

Subject: Exodus – No Thanksgiving (yet)

So, we still haven’t celebrated Thanksgiving yet on Exodus, but we have reasons to be thankful everyday. The night before last we all of a sudden ran out of water, and we only realized it when the water pump started sounding funny. Our first reaction was, “Boys, check the bilges!” because we could just imagine a leak had occurred and the contents of our fresh water tank were now in the bottom of our boat. Nope. They were dry. It was almost dark, and we are anchored near the mouth of a river, so we REALLY didn’t want to run our water maker in here. So, we went the night without water. I joked that we still have all the pouches of water in our ditch bag that Marsha gave us for Xmas before we left in case we got desperate. The next morning we went to the fuel dock to fill our tank with shore water, and it seems everything is working fine. I guess for the first time ever we mismanaged our water supply. But it all turned out great, because while we were raising anchor to go to the fuel dock our friends on s/v Tusitala, whose dinghy outboard engine isn’t working, rowed over and very sneaky like tied their dinghy to exodus to get a tow to the dock. It was comical. Anyway, they were borrowing someone’s car to go into town and they invited me to go. What a great day! We went to the main town of Kerikeri about 20 km away, and it has a quaint downtown area that is jam packed full of nice coffee shops, restaurants, and stores. We walked around for hours and then as a last stop hit the HUGE grocery store. It was just like being at home. Not only was it huge but it had everything you could ever want. Mexico and French Polynesia had huge grocery stores, but it was still often a challenge trying to find the things you are used to and if you did they were insanely expensive. But not here. I almost wept over the bulk food aisle. Anyway, I bought all the fixins to make steak, mashed potatoes, and asparagus (asparagus!) for our own little Thanksgiving dinner, but we got back kind of late, and we didn’t even stop at the winery on the way back (winery!) Upon my return we had a decision to make: go ahead and cook and have a late dinner OR make something quick and then play Resistance with Iguana and Tusitala. Resistance won and we had sandwiches for dinner. So…. Thanksgiving will be tonight on Exodus.

Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – Sunday November 30, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• More boat chores (Laundry, mattresses, etc.)
• Kid (boy) movie night on Exodus. Girls on Fluenta

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Logbook – Monday December 1, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• Even more boat chores
• D – run along the bike track south
• No pizza 😦 Emergency bean & cheese burritos

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Logbook – Tuesday December 2, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• T – Auckland to buy a car
• D – Paihia to open a bank account

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Email to family and friends dated December 3, 2014

Subject: Exodus – In the marina

We’ve been busy in the marina, and I haven’t had much to write about, but in general, since we have internet, these emails will probably be less frequent. Just to catch you up… we’ve been crazy busy doing boat chores and laundry while in the marina. We are supposed to check out today, but we are going to ask for 2 more days so Tim can service the dinghy outboard. We’ve also opened a bank account and bought a car. Yes, that’s right, Tim went to Auckland yesterday and came back with a car. I haven’t even seen it yet, but it’s a big Toyota thing that seats 8 and is big enough we could sleep in it. I’m so excited for the freedom of having a car! We also learned that we can get our iPhones unlocked by AT&T (it’s the law they have to do it), so then we would be able to buy new sim cards here and then have data and phone service right from our phone. Can you even imagine! (oh yeah, most of you have that all the time…)
The boys have done their share of boat work, but they’ve also been part of the kid pack that roams the marina. It’s mostly the same group of kids we were with in Tongatapu and Minerva, they have just picked up where they left off. It’s mostly girls and younger boys, and I think Alex might be the oldest of the bunch. It was 52 deg F in our salon when I got up at 6am this morning, and I’m still bundled up even though it’s warmed up all the way to 56 deg. I made a trip into Paihia yesterday, which is the closest town to Opua, and I was a bit disappointed to find myself amongst the entire population of a cruise ship. And apparently the library had free wifi, and you could tell this from far away, because of all the people loitering outside on their smartphones and iPads. The crowd of the ruiseshippers aside, it was WAY more touristy than Kerikeri. I think every other shop was a souvenir shop, and the cafes and coffee shops were bland and generic, like they belonged in an airport or something. I think we are going there for dinner tonight with another family (they helped Tim with the car buying process since they had already blazed that trail) and they know of a good place, so maybe I’ll be pleasantly surprised. I know I’ve talked to a few of you about skyping, but our internet is mostly still very spotty during the day. I think it’s just due to the load of users on the wifi hotspots, because early in the morning it’s great, but by the time the boys get up, not so much. But we’ll keep trying.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – Wednesday December 3, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• Dinner in Paihia w/ Field Trip

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Logbook – Thursday December 4, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• Renewed EPIRB registration (every 2 years)
• Coastguard doc renewal (every year)
• Tim’s b-day – Pizza & Resistance w/ Iguana

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Logbook – Friday December 5, 2014 (Opua)

Passage Log

• 1223 Engines on – depart dock
• 1243 Engines off at anchor

Daily Notes

• Left the marina
• Afternoon in Kerikeri

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Logbook – Saturday December 6, 2014 (Opua)

Daily Notes

• (Nothing recorded)

November 20-26, 2014

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Logbook – November 20, 2014 (North Minerva to Opua)

Passage Log

• 1435 Engines on
• 1445 Depart Minerva
• 1503 Engines off. Main + Genoa. 13.4 kts SE TWS
• 1607 P engine on for about 15 min (1)
• 2302 Alex watch end

Daily Notes

• (1) Huge fish on the line, got away

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Logbook – November 21, 2014 (North Minerva to Opua)

Passage Log

• 0310 Main + genoa. 17.5 kts SE TWS
• 0955 Engines on (2)
• 1033 Engines off. Main (1 reef) + genoa. 18.9 kts SE TWS
• 1843 Main (1 reef) + genoa. 19.1 kts E TWS. 606 MTG (3)
• 2130 Brenden watch is down – Alex coming up (Brenden’s handwriting)

Daily Notes

• (Tim’s handwriting) 3am STBD genoa sheet car slid aft. Can’t shape sail for upwind. Fix in AM.
• (2) Engines on to reef main & fix genoa sheet car. Wind previously 20-25 kts true.
• Pizza celebration for crossing 180 deg
• (3) Course change for add’l westing
• (4) (Brenden’s handwriting) during Brenden’s watch, silowet disaperared from chart

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Logbook – November 22, 2014 (North Minerva to Opua)

Passage Log

• 0337 Main (1 reef) + Genoa. 14.2 kts NE TWS
• 0852 Main + Genniker. 13 kts E TWS
• 1344 Main + genoa 16.3 kts SE TWS
• 1855 Main + genoa. 466 MTG. 11.2 kts E TWS
• 2003 B on watch. 11.1 kts E TWS
• 2130 B off watch – Alex on watch. 13.1 kts E TWS
• 0001 Alex off watch. 11.1 kts E TWS

Daily Notes

• Caught a dorado – handline

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Logbook – November 23, 2014 (North Minerva to Opua)

Passage Log

• 0310 Main + genoa. 8.5 kts SE TWS
• 0452 P engine on. 1600 rpm
• 0538 P engine off. Main + genoa. 9.2 kts SE TWS
• 0816 P engine on 1400 RPM 1522 off
• 1511 SB engine on (1) 1740 off
• 1738 P engine on (2)
• 2200 B watch end 8.8 kts SE TWS
• 0000 A watch end 7.3 kts S TWS

Daily Notes

• (1) needed hot water
• (2) switched to port to balance weather helm

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Logbook – November 24, 2014 (North Minerva to Opua)

Passage Log

• 0319 P engine. Main + Genoa. 4.4 kts S TWS
• 0333 “Any Station ” VHF hail s/v Starseeker (3)
• 0637 1 kt current in our favor, wind to SW
• Port engine + main
• 0748 VHF call to Starseeker (4)
• VHF call to Tusitala
• 1045 P engine off. SB engine on.
• 1337 SB engine + Main 11.1 kts SW TWS
• 2100 Both engines no sails
• 0000 A end watch

Daily Notes

• (3) SV Starseeker requesting weather for Opua area. Currently located 20 06 S 175 22E
• (4) Shared updated weather. Tony + 2 crew

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Logbook – November 25, 2014 (North Minerva to Opua)

Passage Log

• 0352 Both engines. No sails
• 0725 SSB call to NZ Maritime radio (1)
• 0800 SB engine off. Wind died (2)
• 1130 SB engine on / P engine off 8.5 kts W TWS
• Main + genoa
• 1238 P engine off. Sailiing again! 12.8 kts W TWS
• 1500 SB engine on
• 2200 B off watch 10.9 kts SW TWS
• 0000 A off watch 10.6 kts W TWS

Daily Notes

• (1) Hailed on 6215 kHz, switched to 6224 kHz working channel. Provided updated ETA to Opua. Thurs 11/27 8am local
• (2) Turned off SB engine & increased P engine RPM to 2000 SOG dropped 0.2-0.5 kts
• VHF w/ Tonka 50 mi away!
• Jellyfish in the water. Caught 3 bonito (small), kept one

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Logbook – November 26, 2014 (North Minerva to Opua)

Passage Notes

• 0045 STBD engine off
• 0345 P engine on 1611 off
• 1358 Main + genoa 60 MTG 17.5 kts W TWS
• 1905 Main + Genniker 21 MTG 17.3 kts NW TWS
• 2120 S engine on
• 2346 Engines off. Arrive Q dock

Daily Notes

• The water is a gross green color 15 miles out
• Cloudy & damp w/ little wind coming in the bay

November 15-19, 2014

If you’ve never heard of Minerva Reef, please google it.

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Logbook – November 15, 2014 (Tonga to North Minerva Reef)

Passage Log

• 0658 Engines on
• 0705 Depart Tonga
• 0717 SB engine off
• P engine + Genniker
• 0830 SB engine on
• 0853 Engines off. Main + genoa.
• 1858 Main + genoa

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Logbook – November 16, 2014 (Tonga to North Minerva Reef)

Passage Log

• 0110 Main + Genniker
• 0317 Main + Genniker
• 0428 P engine onn
• 0556 P engine off
• 0823 P engine on – Main only
• 1154 P engine off. Main + genniker.
• 1620 SB engine on
• 1851 SB engine + Main + genniker

Daily Notes

• Dorado!
• Nasty current 1.5 kt

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Email to family and friends dated November 16, 2014

Subject: Exodus – fast, then slow, then engine up

To summarize our passage to Minerva so far:

First 18 hours – fast and furious. Winds 15-22 kts close hauled, boat speed 7-8 kts. We didn’t reef the sails going into the night like we usually do because 1) The weather wasn’t squally and 2) The wind was supposed to die.

Next 12 hours – slow and determined. As expected, the winds died in the night, but mostly we were able to sail, with just a couple dead spots where we ran an engine, also to charge batteries. The seas calmed down and the boat was much more comfortable.

Ever since – engine up. We finally engined up yesterday afternoon when we were going only about 1/2 knot. I told Tim there would be mutiny if we actually started to go backwards (we had a 1.5 kt current against us).

We are still motoring, but the current has gotten better, so maybe we can arrive before dark. There’s no surprise that we’re motoring. I said before we left that if we departed on Sat morning we’d probably have to motor the last 1/4 to 1/2 of the way. If we want to sail all the way we would have needed to wait a few more days. But then we’d miss the calm weather at Minerva, so we went for it. But going into it eyes wide doesn’t make it any better and we are still hoping for a faulty forecast and a little bit of wind to push us there today.

The boys are standing night watches for the first time on this passage… Brenden 8-10pm and Alex 10pm-midnight with Tim sleeping in the salon. Alex had a hard time staying up last night, but hopefully he’ll sleep in today so he can stay up tonight in case we don’t get there in time.

We were like a parade of boats leaving Tongatapu, and I’m not sure there’s anyone still there. Some boats are stopping and Minerva and some are pressing on to NZ without stopping. This morning we still have 2 boats in AIS range, and a few more within VHF range.

Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – November 17, 2014 (Tonga to North Minerva Reef)

Passage Log

• 0350 SB engine + main. Current better.
• 1004 SB engine + main + genoa
• 1208 SB engine – no sails
• 1526 P engine on
• 1550 Engines off. Arrive N. Minerva

Daily Notes

• Arrived at Minerva. T/B in the water immediately diving outside the pass
• Excitement on all the boats re: huge tiger shark
• We are here w/ Fluenta, Iguana, Nautilus, and Lumbaz. Breeze & Koa on other side of lagoon.

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Logbook – November 18, 2014 (North Minerva Reef)

Daily Notes

• Family snorkel/spearfish. B shot a bigeye jack – cleaned it and fed it to the sharks. also shot an almaco jack – took the bolt. Great snorkeling – like Sea of Cortez, bug fish just swam right up to you. To cold, though.
• Party on s/v Nirvana for Julie’s birthday
• Fluenta kids over to play Risk
• T/A lobstering

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Email to family and friends dated November 18, 2014

Subject: Exodus – North Minerva Reef

We’ve been here almost 2 days now, and I’ve been reluctant to write, because I’m not really sure I can adequately describe this place. I was thinking that maybe I’ve started becoming numb to the amazingly beautiful places we get to visit, but if so, this place has shaken me back to my senses. I’ve taken to just sitting in the cockpit and soaking it all in, totally undistracted.
It is basically just a ring of coral out here in the middle of the ocean. From a distance you can see that it is there by the waves crashing against the reef. This sort of place was definitely a navigation hazard prior to GPS as it would be virtually invisible at night with nothing to give off a radar signature, unless the surf was really big, I suppose. But since we have GPS and accurate charts and waypoints from cruisers who came before us, we entered the pass into the reef and plopped our anchor down just inside.

We are fortunate enough to be here during very sunny and calm weather, so we are feeling a little better about burning all the diesel to get here. The water inside the lagoon is shallow, and it’s like sitting on a giant swimming pool with the most beautiful turquoise water you’ve ever seen. Our first day here we were all entertained by a huge tiger shark that made it’s rounds visiting all the boats as they cleaned their fish, and I didn’t see this, but I heard that occasionally he would get really riled up and start ramming the dinghies. The squeals from all the kids as he was doing this must have been audible from quite a ways away. Our first night here two of the kid boats went out lobstering on the reefs, and again, the squeals were quite entertaining. Tim and Jack didn’t go that first night, I don’t know, I guess they were tired from the really tough passage we had. Anyway, they collected 75, I’m not kidding, 75 lobsters. They shared them with the whole anchorage and then had a lobster and cocktails party yesterday evening to celebrate a birthday. It was a lot of fun. Tim and Alex went out lobstering last night and they are still sleeping so I haven’t gotten a report yet, but I did notice our lobster bag hanging off the back is more full than it was yesterday. I guess we are having lobster for lunch and dinner, oh yeah, in addition to the Almaco Jack that Iguana gave us. And there’s the rest of that Mahi Mahi in the fridge too. We are once again living in seafood paradise.

We went out snorkeling and spearfishing as a family yesterday, and as soon as Brenden was in the water he shot a really nice looking fish. Tim was so excited, he was yelling, in that proud/excited dad way, for me to throw him the go-pro, “just throw it!” LOL. Turns out it was a big eye trevally, not so tasty, so after Brenden cleaned it and we realized what it was, he fed it to the shark. I didn’t see this one, but Brenden keeps talking about it, the one that got away. Apparently he shot a huge Almaco Jack, but it was stronger than him, and it took his spear. I think he probably dreamt about that fish last night.

The snorkeling was pretty amazing. The colors of the coral, mostly hard coral, rivaled anything we’ve seen so far, but there were so many more fish. And not just the tiny reef fish, it was like back in the Sea of Cortez where the huge parrot fish and groupers aren’t afraid of you and they just swim right up to you. The only downside is that it was cold. Air and water temp are just a couple degrees cooler here than in Tonga. I don’t think I’ll be doing any diving in New Zealand.

Sadly, our friends on Iguana have left us, because they have a friend with them helping with the passage, and he needs to catch a flight in New Zealand. So, once again, Tim is left without a fishing buddy, and there aren’t any more island packets in the fleet so I’m not sure what he’s going to do. He got over this breakup much more quickly and he was out in the dinghy making the rounds to see some of the other guys who also like to spear fish, so maybe a bond will grow rapidly here in the next day or so. Lol!

I’ve already written way too much, but I’ll close by saying we may leave tomorrow. Or maybe not.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – November 19, 2014 (North Minerva Reef)

Daily Notes

• T – hooka and spearfish. Lobster for lunch
• D – paddle – followed by sharks

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Email to family and friends dated November 19, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Lobsters

Alex and Tim and a successful lobstering night last night and came home with 12 lobsters. Even more importantly, by setting a good example they were able to influence the rest of the fleet to not take the females with eggs. Tim said he shared his philosophy with a couple guys, and they must have talked to others, because by the time they were getting ready to head back in the dinghies, everyone was throwing the females back. I am very happy and proud about this, because it is so important for the health of the population.

Boats are slowly trickling out today, but there is still no wind here. I am sad as each boat leaves because I know this special time is ending. This group of boats that we’ve been with in Tongatapu and now Minerva have been really great, and for the first time in awhile I feel like we’ve really forged some lifelong friendships.

I will update if we don’t end up leaving tomorrow.

Love and miss you all,
-D.

November 7-14, 2014

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Our second week at Big Mama’s consisted of mostly finishing our preparations and watching for a weather window for the passage south, but we managed to have a bunch of fun while we waited.

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Logbook – November 7, 2014 (Pangaimotu to fuel dock and back)

Passage Notes

• Engines on
• 0850 Depart
• 0919 Engines off fuel dock
• Engines on
• 1308 Depart fuel dock
• 1337 Engines off Pangaimotu

Daily Notes

• Long wait (3 hrs) at the fuel dock waiting for the fuel truck
• Party @ Big Mama’s
• T/D so tired we don’t even make it to dinner
• Boys home @ 9pm

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Email to family and friends dated November 7, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Ready, Set, Wait

We’ve been in Nuku’alofa for a little over a week now, and we are all set and ready for our passage south. Engine inspections? Check. Rigging Inspection (Tim up the mast)? Check. Steering cable inspection? Check. Hull clean? Check. Sails repaired? Check. Propane and gasoline? Check. Provisions? Check. Cleared out of Tonga? Check. Duty free diesel? Check. Beer/rum? Check. Weather window for departure… crickets
Unfortunately weather is not cooperating, and it’s possible we’ll be waiting for a week or so more. But there’s a big crowd of boats here, including a total of 6 kid boats, so the boys are having a lot of fun playing on shore everyday.
We will relax this weekend, and then maybe do some touristy things on the island next week. Or maybe we go try to find a place to spearfish. We’ll see.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – November 8, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• D- ferry to town, run on the malecon
• Boys – volleyball, dodgeball, on shore with other kids
• Kid boats: Fluenta, Breeze, Lumbuz, Nautilus, Nirvana, Koa

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Logbook – November 9, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• Nobody leaves the boat day
• Alex – sore throat/puffy eye

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Logbook – November 10, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• D – short run along waterfront, market, bakery
• T/Jack – spearfishing. 0
• Dinner on shore

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Logbook – November 11, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Passage Log

• 0925 Engines on briefly – re-anchor (1)

Daily Notes

• (1) let out about 20 ft more chain to 175′ total. Original estimate of 168 ft must have been incorrect
• Strong westerly. 20 kts sustained most of the day
• As of 1649 max of 28.4 kts (later 28.7)
• Max & kids brought over a bottle of Anejo to say thanks to Tim for helping with the sail

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Logbook – November 12, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• D – run (3 miles) & light shopping. Fell while running in the street
• Boys finish school early, play on shore
• T/Jack – spearfish
• D – fell in water trying to retrieve flip-flop
• Potluck on shore, fun group of boats, CA people gravitate to each other

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Email to family and friends dated November 12, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Weather Extremes at Anchor

It is eerie quiet as I sit here and type this. The skies are clear, there is hardly a breath of wind, and the water is like glass. That low pressure system that has kept us here in Tonga has now moved well past us, and we are sitting on a high pressure ridge. What a difference a couple days makes. Two days ago we had westerly winds blowing at 20-25 kts with higher gusts, and all the boats were hobby horsing like crazy. Usually it seems when we’re having any sort of bad weather, the worst of it comes at night, but this time we were fortunate and by the time I went to bet it had already started moderating.
It’s looking like Saturday may be firming up as a departure day for Minerva, although I haven’t gotten the weather yet this morning, so that could possibly change. We had a potluck on shore last night, so of course everyone is swapping ideas about when the best time to leave might be, and the general consensus is that Saturday morning will be a mass Exodus and the race to Minerva will be on.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – November 13, 2014 (Pangaimotu to Tau and back)

Passage Log (Tim’s Handwriting)

• 0915 Engines on
• 0945 P engine off
• 1235 Arrive Tau Isle
• 1655 Depart Tau (SB engine off)
• 2000 Arrive Pangaimotu engines off

Daily Notes (Deanne’s Handwriting)

• T – Exodus spearfishing excursion to Tau w/ Jack & Phil (Iguana), David (Tusitala), & Gary (Nirvana)
• D/Boys – on shore all day
• Pig roast

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Email to family and friends dated November 13, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Pig Roast

Last night we had a big pig roast at Big Mama’s. One of the other cruisers organized it, and we all paid in advance for the pigs, and while Alex and Brenden and I were on shore doing school yesterday a boat pulled up and we could hear the squealing of the three little pigs. The guys promptly took them out back and slaughtered them, put them on spits, and put them over the fire for slow roasting. We didn’t watch the slaughtering, although if the boys had shown any interest I might have let them, they are old enough after all. The party started at 6 and went at least until midnight, which is when Alex got home, and he said some of the kids were still there. They were all having such a good time. Big Mama even got up and danced to Abba.
Last weekend I was bummed that the weather was causing us to wait another week, but now I think it was a really good thing. We’ve gotten to know quite a few new people, and the kids have had one of those rare cruising times when there are a lot of kids together for more than a day or two.
So, why were we doing school on shore yesterday? It’s because Tim took Exodus and 4 other guys on a field trip to a small island and reef about 12 miles away to do some spear fishing. They came back with about 5 fish, but unfortunately no tuna. More importantly they had a great time, and they even made it back to get served one of the pig heads, which apparently according to the Tongans is the best part.
There’s no wind right now, but hopefully there will be at this time tomorrow and we will be pulling up anchor.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – November 14, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• D/Boys – last trip to town for donuts & veggies
• Prep to leave, last internet
• Lots of boats leaving too including Iguana & Fluenta

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Email to family and friends dated November 14, 2014

Subject: Exodus – ready for departure to Minerva

We are planning to leave Tonga later this morning. It’s early now and raining, but the forecast still looks good to get to Minerva, even if light winds. I’m up before everyone else to bake biscuits so we all have something to munch on as we navigate out the channel. I’d say about half the fleet here is leaving this morning, some left last night, and some are waiting until Monday or Tuesday. Leaving today might mean motoring the last bit to Minerva, but our strategy is to try to get there while we will still have a couple days of light winds for the diving and spear fishing. It’s about 260 miles away so it will likely take us 2 full days to get there. We haven’t been on passage for quite some time, and I can’t say I’m looking forward to it.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

October 30 – November 6, 2014

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Tongatapu is the southernmost island group in Tonga, and it’s also where the capital of Nuku’alofa is located. We are anchored off of a small island called Pangaimotu about a mile’s dinghy or ferry ride from Nuku’alofa. Big Mama’s yacht club is on shore at Pangaimotu, and all the cruisers are having great fun using it as a home base.

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Logbook – October 30, 2014 (Kelefesia to Pangaimotu)

Passage Log

• 0707 Engines on
• 0712 Depart Kelefesia
• 0731 Engines off. Main + Genoa.
• 0931 Main + Genoa. TWS – 15.9 kts E
• 1006 P engine briefly on (1)
• VHF contact with Fluenta
• 1126 Main + Genoa. TWS – 14.4 kts E
• 1157 Fish on & landed. 4 ft Dorado.
• 1351 Engines on. Sails down.
• 1458 Engines off. Arrive Pangaimotu.

Daily Notes

• (1) Fish on and off. Tried to slow down by heading up. Too much. Overcome by weather helm w/ genoa depowered. Used port engine to avoid irons.
• Safe arrival drinks w/ Jack on Exodus
• Fluenta, Fluenta, Fluenta! Big mama’s for burgers, beer, internet, and friends.

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Email to family and friends dated October 30, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Fluenta, Fluenta, Fluenta!

We made excellent time to Nuku’alofa. We were having safe arrival cocktails in the cockpit by 3:30, and we were on shore getting (not as good as we thought it would be) internet and snacks by 5:00. We were so excited that after all this time, we arrived here on the same day as our friends on Fluenta, who we haven’t seen since Mexico. We have been following their adventures by email, but it was so nice to catch up in person. The boys had fun running around with Jonathon and Victoria again, well, OK, mostly Brenden, because Alex is a teenager now and teenagers are just boring. We also caught up with another boat that we hadn’t seen since Mexico called Code Blue. They are one of the few boats we spent the summer in the Sea of Cortez with last year, so that bond still remains.
We are anchored off a small island, called Pangaimotu, across the harbor from the main port of Nuku’alofa, and we are with about 20 other cruising boats. There is a bar/restaurant/yacht club here called “Big Mama’s” but today we are going to head over to the main city to explore (and do our check-in, of course). This morning I started to get serious about watching the weather for the passage to Minerva Reef, and then New Zealand, and yesterday Tim and Jack started the more important business of discussing the terms for the Exodus/Iguana Tonga to New Zealand fishing contest.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – October 31, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• Dinghied across to Nuku’alofa. Checked in with Customs.
• Lunch at Friends Restaurant. Groceries, market, Digicel.
• Most Tongans we meet have been to the U.S.
• Halloween Party

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Logbook – November 1, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• T – Engine inspections & steering inspections
• D – run around Pangaimotu 5x. Ferry to town all day.
• A/B – Play w/ Fluenta on shore after school.
• Dinner on Fluenta. Met Phil s/v Silhouette.

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Logbook – November 2, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes:

• No school. Just Spanish. Boys play on shore.
• T/Jack – Fix Jack’s generator.
• Dinner on Exodus w/ Fluenta and Iguana

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Logbook – November 3, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes:

• D – Ferry to town. Holiday so most things are closed. Luckily, bakery is open.
• Internet @ Big Mama’s. Boys clean hull.
• Easy dinner. Tim to Iguana to look at watermaker.

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Email to family and friends dated November 3, 2014

Subject: Exodus – Prepping for Minerva/New Zealand

We are hoping to be able to leave for Minerva Reef this weekend, but of course that will depend on weather. Our visas expire on Saturday, so we will do our check-out on Thursday and then leave the first day after that the weather looks good. We are checking out Thurs rather than Friday, because we’ve learned from experience you just don’t leave these sorts of things to the last day. There could be a surprise holiday or a requirement we didn’t know about or anything that might delay us a day.
Many boats leave here with uncertainty whether they will stop in Minerva or not, because if they have a good window to keep going to New Zealand, they don’t want to miss it. Well, it’s a little different for us, and we will be stopping in Minerva regardless of what the window looks like to keep going. It is a destination for us, and we are hoping for lots of tasty fish and lobsters. We are all doing our share to get ready, who are cleaning the hull, and they don’t even get skittles this time.
Love and miss you all,
-D.

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Logbook – November 4, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Passage Log

• 1321 Engines on
• 1338 Engines off. Re-anchor complete

Daily Notes:

• D – Ferry to town – more shopping. reanchor. T – fix generatory.
• Boys go to shore, don’t come home until 8:30. Movie night.

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Logbook – November 5, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• Boys – Finish hull cleaning w/ help from Jonathon (Fluenta)
• T – helps Fluenta w/ sail repair
• T – Up the mast
• Dinner on shore

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Logbook – November 6, 2014 (Pangaimotu)

Daily Notes

• D/T – Ferry to town to clear out & arrange duty free fuel. Coordinated with Ika, Tusitala, Nirvana, & Iguana
• T – more help to Fluenta w/ sail repair
• Game night on Exodus w/ Iguana & Tusitala (David & Briana)