Lazing in Opua but poised for the next leg of the voyage down the coast to Auckland

What a change of lifestyle - one day sailing at sea on watch every 3 hours at night and every 6 during the day, trying to get enough sleep if conditions are rough, physically working hard changing sails as required by the wind speed and direction , cooking below in a constantly moving galley, watching for shipping especially near the coast. Also checking the boat for signs of wear or tear - a worn lashing, a loose bolt, chafe on a sail etc.

Now at anchor in Opua all is suddenly changed - we can relax more, have a yarn to fellow cruising sailors on shore, cook in a quiet, still galley, go buy fresh bread and fruit and the daily newspaper. This morning I had a great hot shower after going to see the folk in the Marina office. I was told that we would have to move from the pontoon on the edge of the marina as catamarans are too wide to be near the fairway. So we cast off and are now anchored nearby, only a short dinghy ride to the shore and facilities.

Life is not too lazy however as the boat has to be sorted and tidied up . ropes coiled here, water from spray through a hatch when opened on passage to be cleaned from the bilge there, and lots of soggy clothing, towels and so forth to be washed. Fortunately there is an excellent laundromat next to the marina office here so I have just returned from washing and drying two big loads. Because on this voyage most of the time we had the wind just forward of the beam there was a lot of spray flying and one tends to run out of dry clothes. The passage from Auckland to Rarotonga on the other hand was for many days with the wind aft of the beam of the boat, so there were dry decks , no spray and less wet clothing.
We are currently waiting for favourable winds for the trip down the coast to Howick - no point having to sail to windward when the wind is likely before too long to go
to a more northerly direction - it brings to mind that old saying of "gentleman don't sail to windward'.

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