It has been cold windy day here in Opua as it has been in much of New Zealand. Ted and I were going to go ashore today to get some victuals from the supermarket. The outboard motor on the dinghy has been starting first time for months but today I yanked on the start cord time and again with no go. I cleaned the spark plug , I changed the plug for another one not new but should have been ok . We checked the fuel flow and everything else we could think of - still no go. Meanwhile the gentle breeze had risen to a brisk 20+ knots. I decided to row in to shore, which is some way, to buy a new spark plug from the chandlery shop. It was a hard row but they had some in stock. Back to the boat - new plug in - "it will go this time " I confidently said to Ted ! No luck - so it looks likely we will have to get it sorted on Monday.
One tends to take the outboard for granted and it is not until it stops working that you realize how handy it is ! Still it is really a luxury - Joshua Slocum managed just fine without one!
There seems no chance of an easy sail down to Auckland in the next three days , a high pressure system is moving across from the West to the East of NZ slowly. But as soon as the Westerly or Northwest winds kick in we will be off.
I intend to write a short summary or overview of the trip, highlights, lessons learned, any extra gear or changes to make next time etc later.
I will write again on the blog as soon as we get underway again over the next few days .
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