Author: richwest3

That’s right. No more pretense of being serious navigation equipment. They’re going after the television market now. Good riddance!

Raymarine with Netflix!

I wonder how Sharknado would look with a radar overlay?

March 25, 2020

Tracking Site: http://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/Legacy

I don’t know if being away from our home country, living on a sail boat with no where to go is any better or worse than any of you have it right now. It is NOT boring, that’s for sure.

We are in New Zealand where our visa runs out in a month. We have been granted entry into Australia, only to be denied the next day, and then given permission again. What looked like a great weather window to make the 9 day passage changed into what looks like a very challenging voyage (but window whiplash is the norm for cruising!).

So here’s the plan:

We’re leaving our berth in Nelson marina on the South Island this morning to go out to the Marlborough Sounds for the next three or four weeks, while NZ is on lock-down. From the satellite photo of the area (below) I think you’ll see that there are plenty of places to go and things to see while we self-isolate.

Internet is spotty out there so we probably won’t update our blog often. We’re going to use the Predict Wind tracker and you can find us here:

Tracking Site: http://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/Legacy

We hope you’re all well, safe, kind and happy during these strange times. (And that you don’t run out of toilet paper!) 😉

More later… Love, Rich and Cyndi

January 20 – 21, 2014

We left Auckland in the morning, made a stop for coffee, then arrived in Whangarei about 2 1/2 hours later, dropping Bob and Linda off at their marina before checking in at our hotel. That afternoon we hunted down some lunch, walked along the waterfront, visited the used-parts boat store, and then met up with our friends for an enjoyable dinner at a pub called Dickens Inn.

Whangarei is not exactly Rich’s and my favorite city in New Zealand, but it does have its nice bits. The Town Basin marina is quite pretty, as is the waterfront with its shops and restaurants. The Hatea River has some very lovely spots. Unfortunately the street that went to our hotel, while along the river, angled uphill and was planted with bushy growth that blocked the river view. I did spot an opening and walked back down from our hotel and got these evening photos. (You can click to enlarge and scroll through any of the photo galleries below.)

The next afternoon we had some time to cross an item off from my “Sights to See in Whangarei” list. With the weather looking a bit iffy, I scrapped the plan for the scenic drive to Whangarei Heads and instead suggested the Native Wild Bird Recovery Centre, run by a man named Robert Webb who rehabilitates injured birds and gives tours of his center. Nearly all the resident birds change as new birds come in while others recover and are released back into the wild, but there are a few permanent residents too badly injured to leave. The most famous permanent resident was Sparky, a kiwi with only one leg. Sparky had become quite tame and sometimes Robert would bring him out and let visitors pet him.

We knew that people often reserved tours in advance, but we decided to just swing by and see if we could get lucky and invited Bob and Linda to come along. Our little group arrived and took a look around the museum-like visitors’ center with informational displays while a docent talked to a visiting family. Finally the family left, and we learned Robert was out collecting a couple of birds but should be back shortly. We decided to wait and not too much later Robert pulled up. Yes, he’d take us on a tour right then and show us the kiwi! Very exciting! A young couple who happened to be hanging around joined us.

Our tour started with getting to meet a pukeko chick being held by Robert’s wife, Robyn. After that we walked down to the aviaries, both containing and surrounded by plants, giving them a feeling of being in nature and probably very soothing for the birds. Below, photos of the chick and some of the cages.

We saw kingfishers, wood pigeons, a rosella, and talking tuis. Then, to our delight, we got to see a young moorpork, a small owl and one of New Zealand’s signature birds. We’ve heard them many times at night but had only seen them in photos where they always seemed to have a menacing stare. In real life, though, this owl looked more like a big-eyed cat and frequently tilted his head inquisitively. He was utterly adorable.

This moorpork seemed to love Robert and liked attention. It also enjoyed—gently–biting fingers. Robert put his finger up to the cage to let the little owl bite it, then we all got to put our fingers up and get ours bitten, too, like a small love bite. How many people can say they’ve gotten a love bite from a moorpork?

Next up, Robert brought a kiwi out of a cage, one that was leaving possibly later that day so we were lucky to get to see it. This was the first live kiwi we’d seen in New Zealand! They’re nocturnal, shy, and  very hard to spot in the wild; so this was quite a thrill.

After the kiwi, we headed to another set of cages and got to see Sparky, the one-legged kiwi. Robert held Sparky and we all got to pet him; then he put him down so we could see him eat. He seemed to love putting his long beak into the dirt, “smelling” for insects.

Robert also brought out a weka, a small bird that looks similar to a kiwi and is a daytime bird. We got to pet the soft feathers of the weka, too. What a treat! We were each given a kiwi feather, then led back to the center where we got to hold a kiwi egg and hear the story of an albatross they’d just let go, which concluded the tour.

Afterwards, we all gave donations, giving generously after this incredible experience and seeing the wonderful work that they do. This had been such treat and something we’d highly recommend to anyone visiting the Whangarei area. This is definitely one of New Zealand’s special places. –Cyndi

January 19, 2014

At 9am, we picked up our visiting friends from their hotel and drove to La Cigale, the weekly French market in Parnell. We started with cappuccinos from the coffee truck in the parking area, then took them inside the building where we bought some freshly-baked croissants and got a table.

Up to this point, our friends been somewhat mystified as to why we were so excited about a farmer’s market. Then they started to look around and spot intriguing things. Soon, they’d each gotten up and disappeared into the magical French labyrinth of La Cigale. For a while, they were nowhere to be seen, and this pleased me to no end. I knew they’d love this place, but it was nice to see it in action.

We all found each other some time later, and we assured them we’d email them all the information so they could find this again on their own. As we left we passed a booth selling cherries from the Central Otago area of the South Island. I’d read about these cherries in one of my guidebooks; so we bought some to try. They were huge, and fabulous. Central Otago cherries had indeed been worthy of the mention given them in my guidebook, and Rich and I continued to seek these out during future visits to La Cigale. (Below a couple of photos of La Ciglae and the Central Otago cherries.)

Now it was time to go to the car market/auction, held on what seemed to be fairgrounds next to a racetrack. We all walked around and looked at cars. Bob and Linda didn’t find anything they liked enough to buy, but I had to talk Rich down from his keen interest in a jeep and remind him we’re not the ones here who need a car!

Meanwhile, Bob and Linda decided to wait until they got to Whangarei to look again, and we offered to drive them up there the following day. There were a couple of boating stores Rich wanted to visit there; so now would be a great opportunity to do so.

By now the day was bright, hot and sunny, a classic summer day. After we piled into the car, I had a proposition for everyone. No one was really hungry yet, but what, I asked, if lunch involved Belgian Beer? Like, really special and good Belgian Beer? Who can turn that down? Our friends were definitely agreeable. My idea was to drive by Auckland’s beaches, specifically Mission Beach which had a branch of the Belgian Beer Cafe, a chain of restaurants in New Zealand (and Australia) with amazing food and beer.

So we headed to the coast, first leading beach-loving Bob and Linda to Mission Beach’s long stretch of white sand, which they really seemed to enjoy. We then headed to De Fontein Belgian Beer Cafe and handed them the restaurant’s Magnacarta Fermenta (aka The Great Book of Beer) listing over 50 specialty Belgian beers, including the “Bucket List” beer, Westvleteren 12, made by Trappist monks and costing $100 a glass. We didn’t order the Westvleteren, but hey, maybe someday. Meanwhile, the regular Belgian beers were fabulous.

We ordered the breads and spreads to enjoy along with the beer. The sun was shining, it was warm, and people were coming and going from the beach and the park. We were next to an open-air part of the bar, inside yet almost outside, enjoying the sights and sounds of summer and drinking great beer. This was a terrific way to soak in the feel of this area, and so nice we lingered to enjoy a second round.

After beer, we headed to the Movenpick next door for their Swiss ice cream, then made one more visit to the beach before getting back in the car and continuing down Tamaki Drive to see the other two beaches. We then turned around and headed back up along the coast and made a stop at Orakei Marina, the pretty little marina we’ve tried (but never succeeded) to get into.

It was well into the afternoon when we dropped our friends off at their hotel. Tonight, once again, they’d have the city to themselves while we’d have a relaxed evening on the boat and prepare for the road trip to Whangarei the following morning. During the day we’d had a surprising coincidence when we received an invitation to a party there! The friends we’d spent Christmas with were having a birthday party in two days, and would we like to come? Yes, absolutely! It’s amazing how some things just work out.–Cyndi

January 18, 2014

Our plan for today: Waiheke Island! And this time, by taking the car ferry, we’d have our own transportation!

It was early when we boarded the first ferry to the island, but we could already see it was going to be a glorious sunny day. The ride over took about an hour and give us some great views of islands of the Hauraki Gulf.

After landing we made the winding, hilly drive to Oneroa, the main town. Since Linda loves beaches, I began our tour by leading the group down the slope to Oneroa’s beautiful bay and white sand beach. The bay was still and calm, boats quietly anchored in the sparkling water. Waiheke was putting her best foot forward today!

After the beach, I next wanted to take everyone to the town’s market. I believe that to see  this little grocery store, its wide array of international foodie items managing to fit into one small place, is to understand this island. Our friends were a bit confused as to why I’d be so anxious to go to a market, but when they saw it, they understood. We all bought bread, warm loaves being delivered just after we got there.

Next up: breakfast. We headed to our favorite cafe overlooking the main street and the bay, lucking into a shaded table on the patio outside. After excellent coffee, eggs, and for Rich and I, bacon and egg pie, we were ready to start touring the island.

I decided to start with Rich’s and my very favorite place on this island rather than saving it for later; so I directed Rich to drive us to Man O’ War Vineyard. Rich was a very cooperative driver, especially considering that my inner tour guide often fell down on the job as a navigator (unfortunately, she is prone to ADD and tries to pay attention to too many things). Rich’s inquiries as to “Which way now?” tended to be met with, “Huh?” “Uhhhhh…” The problem was my paper map was much less detailed than real life, and Google, at that time, was not quite up to snuff here. No matter; we’d always figure out how to get back on track.

The drive took us over the beautiful rolling hills and past expansive Hauraki Gulf views. We made a a couple of stops for photos; then the road took us down the hill to the magical seaside cottage of Man O’ War Vineyards. Once again we headed to the beach first. With its brown and white gravel it has a very different look from the island’s white north-side beaches, but it has its own peaceful and quiet beauty.

After taking in the bay, we headed to the tasting room to sample their wonderful wine and olive oil. One of the joys of playing tour guide is to watch others fall under the spell of a place, and Man O’ War has a powerful, wonderful spell. I wish I could bring everyone I care about to this place!

Below, a few photos from our Man O War Vineyard stop (click to enlarge and scroll).

It was time to head on and see more of the island. I had bought a map for our friends so they could follow along as we drove, and this turned out to be fortuitous in that Bob asked about a winery called Passage Rock. Rich and I hadn’t been there and it wasn’t on my list for the day, but hey, why not? So we headed to the cellar door (tasting room) and instantly were taken with the lovely scenery, the winery and the people doing the tastings. As it happened they had excellent wines, and we all bought at least a couple of bottles, plus a bag of locally grown plums.

We headed back to the car, feeling good. Grape vines, good wine, gorgeous scenery and warm sunshine. Does it get any better?

Next stop was a winery I’d been wanting to try: Poderi Crisci. We made our way there, finding a nice looking vineyard and restaurant, the vines nestled amid the hills. There was a restaurant, a beautiful vegetable garden, and what looked like a nice grassy walk through the vines. But then a man came out to ask what we were doing there, and we told him we’d like to do a tasting. He explained how he doesn’t do tastings unless it’s during the week, by appointment, because he’s running a restaurant and can’t possibly do that and do tastings. Uh, OK. We didn’t bother to point out to him that pretty much every other winery on the island does just that!

Still, we understood where he was coming from; yet we didn’t like feeling he was about to run us off the property before suddenly getting distracted by an arriving van full of lunch customers. His distraction gave us a chance to look around a bit and take some photos before heading off to the next place. Meanwhile, his remark became our joke of the day as we’d recite it (“You can’t possibly run a restaurant and do wine tastings!”) every time we passed a winery with a restaurant or cafe.

Next up, I managed to direct Rich to Peacock Sky, the winery we so enjoyed on our last visit that paired specific wine and foods together so the taster could see how they interacted with each other. We knew our friends would enjoy this as much as we had, and today we a got bonus tasting as they let us try their limoncello and a wonderful orange brandy.

After that wine experience we headed to spectacular Onetangi Beach, sitting on an embankment to enjoy a baguette and pate while watching Linda comb the beach for shells. I had a couple more places in mind to visit, but we’d done so well today that I wasn’t worried about seeing anything else.

Not far from Onetangi Beach was one of our favorite wineries, Obsidian, an especially lovely place to sit and enjoy tasting some wine and enjoying some nibbles. It was an easy choice to bring our friends here next!

After our Obsidian visit, the afternoon was getting on, and I had to make a choice between two more places. I chose Kennedy Vineyards, the charming winery that also makes incredible manuka pohutukawa honey and olive oil. We arrived to find it had closed for the day, but we now had time to do my other choice: going back to Oneroa to a place called Little Wai for Te Ponu’s incredible ice cream, especially the salted caramel flavor. The ice cream was a big hit with our friends so I was glad we’d been able to fit this in.

We now headed back to catch the evening ferry back to Auckland, tired and happy after a whirlwind day on Waiheke Island. Below, a few photos taken during the day, including a photo of Rich, Bob and Linda on the ferry ride home.

We didn’t have any plans together that night. Bob and Linda would enjoy some sightseeing in Auckland on foot (their hotel had an ideal location near the multitude of shops and restaurants on Queen Street and charming Elliott Stables), while we’d relax on the boat. We’d all bought several bottles of wine today; so enjoying Waiheke Island wine was something we’d all be doing.

The next day would be our friends’ final day here, and we planned to go to the Saturday car fair as they were in the market for a new car. I hoped to take them to La Cigale, the French market in Parnell, before we did the car thing. I’m not sure anyone was doing back flips at the idea of being picked up at 9am, but I assured them it would be worthwhile. –Cyndi