Dave went back to Upper Hutt two days ago after a good week sailing round some local anchorages on the coast here and over on Malolo Island. Ted flew in from Auckland to crew on the voyage bound for NZ. The cruising boats are starting to thin out as some have gone south already and most will in the course of the next month. The only alternative is to stay here on board in a suitably protected spot or just leave your boat here during the cyclone season in such a place like Vuda Point Marina. However in the last cyclone there was still damage to many boats left there. Some folk head north to Pacific Islands nearer the equator to be north of the danger zone.
A few interesting points last week. Firstly I had been swimming under the boat scraping weed and barnacles off and had just climbed back on board when a sea snake swam by along the side of the hull - all black and yellow banded and looking very threatening . The bite of some species is very poisonous.
While under water I had to scrape off quite a large number of Goose Neck Barnacles which I have never seen on the hulls before. They can grow quite large and hang on a fleshy stalk.
The other unusual visitors were a bunch of what some people call 'Jesus Bugs' because they can walk on water. Ten delicate little insects prancing about next to the dinghy on a calm early morning. The other name is Pond Skater and I remember seeing them on ponds in England years ago whilst quietly fishing. Apparently 10% of the species live in marine environments skating about on their long legs which have huge numbers of tiny hairs which helps repel the water. The surface tension of the water is the main factor holding them up.
Ted and I are busy studying the weather reports at the moment, trying to work out when will be the ideal time to head south on Katipo.
Next message will be sent later in the week with an update and to let you know how the weather is going.
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