Monday, December 31, 2018

Auckland - first couple of days

[Kyle]After almost two days of recuperation for my back at Motuihe, we (Maryanne) finally pulled up anchor and we headed off to a berth at Viaduct Harbour marina in the Auckland city center. Slap bang in the middle of the waterfront restaurant area.

Our berth comes with virtually zero of the extras that you usually expect at normal marinas, like showers and laundry, but still costs a small fortune. It seems like the kind of place that was meant to be far too nice for the likes of us (like Monaco) and we are dwarfed by our highly polished neighbors. I guess what we’re paying for is the convenience and the view. We loved it!

We are right in the middle of downtown and would be in the shadow of Sky Tower if the Summer sun passed to the south, like in the northern hemisphere (Sky Tower is the southern hemisphere’s tallest free standing structure. It looks like a 1/2 scale model of Toronto’s CN Tower, but it is still pretty tall at 328 meters. They are very proud of it).


To get into the Marina, we had to have the busy footbridge opened

A pretty waterfront, with fishmarket, paddling pools, and all you might expect!

[Maryanne]We arrived just before noon and I set off to do the obligatory chores (including several loads of laundry!) leaving Kyle to catch up with more sedate things. Once that was all done, we took a stroll around the harbourfront and marvelled at the very well provisioned area. Paddling pools, great views, playgrounds, and cozy seats with a view. There were 10's of restaurants all doing a great trade, and lots of buckets of champagne in clear view.. Fancy!

[Kyle]With only three calendar days to explore, we did our best to see as much as we could of this beautiful city.

We started with a trip to see the Wintergardens, a large botanic garden showcasing much of New Zealand’s exceptionally attractive flora. Particularly nice was their enormous fernery, which was a misty oasis with a prehistoric feel.


Wintergardens - we strolled around and had a lunch here

We then walked through the park to the War Memorial Museum. The museum does have large sections dedicated to various wars, but mostly is called that because it resides in the War Memorial building. They also have large and interesting exhibits on Natural History (including the giant Moa bird), Geology (with a huge volcano exhibit) and the like, all done really well. Their section on Maori history and the Maori culture show was particularly illuminating. Our ticket price included a guided tour of the museum highlights and a Maori cultural show, but we spent plenty of time wandering around!

I had no previous appreciation for the depth and sophistication of their culture. Their art and music are both amazing. We were particularly impressed with several full-sized artifacts that had to be brought in through walls that had been specially removed for the purpose.


So much to see in the museum - from Moas to Spitfires..
here is just a sampling

Kyle gets in touch with the Maori culture.

One was a big house that was given as a wedding gift, each support post was intricately carved with incredible detail and each panel between had been painstakingly woven with detailed pictures. The whole interior was intended to tell a long story. It was a pretty amazing thing to behold. It must have taken dozens of people months to make such a thing. Also impressive was a war canoe that was 33m (110’) long and could transport over a hundred warriors. Each seat had a different picture carved into it so there would be no confusion about who would sit where.

We left the museum when they booted us out and then walked home via various parks and the University. We then went through several different neighborhoods before making it back to the boat.


We walked most of the way home - but Kyle picked a 'Lime' ride to save his back

I really like Auckland. It reminds me of part New York City, because it’s so vibrant, part San Francisco, because it’s hilly and green, and part Toronto, because it’s filled with friendly, helpful people. Maryanne said she also noticed a little Edinburgh, because of its walkable scale and its abundance of great public spaces. I can see that.

Toward the end, I was suffering a little as my back was not back up to 100% yet. We were walking by a Lime scooter and Maryanne decided to sign me up to get me home. What a great concept! You see one, open the app and scan the scooter to see if it’s available. If it is, you claim it for yourself and off you go! I zipped the rest of the way home on electric power at 15kph (9mph). When I was done, I left it at the marina gate and ended my ride with the app so someone else could have it. It was a bit more expensive than Uber, but hardly less convenient.

For Day Two, we started with lunch at the rotating restaurant in Sky Tower, which we justified on the basis that it was practically New Year’s and we only live once {Maryanne: And we had a little Christmas gift money to treat ourselves with}.


From the Sky tower observation decks we could (just) make out Begonia down in the marina

It was fabulous. The food really was amazing. The views were incredible on a bright, sunny day and, even though they were fully booked (we got lucky getting in), they put NO pressure on us to leave. They do one sitting for lunch, one for tea and maybe one or two for dinner. We had plenty of time to go around twice without feeling like they needed the table. {Maryanne: And as the restaurant rotates, you sometimes are aligned just right to have one of the jumpers pass by your window!}


Lunch and an ever changing view from the revolving restaurant

Afterward, as if we hadn’t spent enough, Maryanne even persuaded me to pop into the casino. They have all of the usual stuff there. My favorite was the trash can that lit up and cheered every time you crumpled up a $20 bill and threw it in. Get it over with, I say. The staff there was very nice, though, and somehow we managed to leave with two loyalty club cards in our pockets. Maryanne!!

After lunch, we headed out to Mt. Eden, which is mercifully free. Mt Eden is the highest point in Auckland and has some pretty amazing views. It’s not much of a mountain, but is instead the rim of one of the 53 volcanoes in the area. I had first become aware of it in a blizzard in Chicago. I was at work and the rest of my flights for the day had been cancelled. The company sent us to a hotel for the night. Since the snow was too deep to go outside, I did my daily run on a fancy treadmill in the Fitness Center. That treadmill had a screen where you could select from various trail scenes to “run” through. I did a long one, so I actually went through the whole New Zealand North and South Island set. One of them was a run to the top of Mt Eden. That was a long time ago when New Zealand was only a distant dream. Now that we were here, I really, really wanted to close the circle by standing at the top on my own two feet.


Mount Eden Views

Again, we walked home (We took an Uber there). We passed through a different set of parks and neighborhoods than the day before and even managed a rest stop at a local microbrewery when we noticed we were getting a little tired from the long day. It’s nice that they put them there so you don’t have to walk the whole way at once.


On the walk home we found a zip-line and a pub
It is hard NOT to have fun in Auckland

As we were making our way home via the city’s many cycling paths, we got to one long section between lanes on the elevated motorway. On one end, we found several Lime scooters parked. Four minutes and $0.71 later, we dropped them off at the other side, shaving fifteen minutes off of our walk. That is THE way to get around!

We had a quick dinner aboard and then went out for a nighttime stroll along the vibrant waterfront. Last minute preparations were being made for The Big Night the next evening and there was lots to see. Restaurants were full. All of the bars had music booming within. Lovers walked hand in hand and kids played in the parks. The barge where the live bands would play was being set-up and the bridge and Sky Tower were testing their laser displays. The air was abuzz with excitement and Begonia had the perfect spot right in the middle of it.

Friday, December 28, 2018

Motuihe Island - still recuperating..

[Kyle]After almost a week of horrendous weather, The winds died down and the sun came out. As we had been told would happen, everybody in Auckland with any kind of watercraft (which is to say everybody) came out to enjoy the nice weather. School holidays are until the end of January and traditionally the whole country goes on holiday starting the week before Christmas.

The weather wasn’t so good over Christmas, but now there were boats, boats everywhere. Our anchorage, which seemed to have a reasonable density at twelve, swelled and shrank hour by hour as boats came and went. Sometimes we would have as many as thirty packed check and jowl, sometimes we would be down to only eighteen. Families were out swimming or playing on the beach. Some stayed on their boats and fished. Maryanne even had a swim herself. I was not doing so well. Every time I looked like I was about to do anything the least bit strenuous, Maryanne would order me to stay put on the settee where I belonged. Bummer.


The sun came and the boats arrived
The Sun was just in time for someone's wedding!

{Maryanne}We're hoping Kyle is going to be mobile enough to enjoy Auckland. The enforced rest is difficult for him to tolerate so I've needed to be extra bossy.

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Huruhi Bay (Waheke) - a rainy Christmas convalescing

[Kyle]Since Summer has officially begun in the southern hemisphere, there was no chance we would be getting blankets of snow for Christmas. We still did get a very wet, windy and white (with fog) Christmas.


A cold sail over to Huruhi, but the duck followed us much of the way
(for the gift of a little bread once in a while)

Since the forecast was not looking good, we got up early and made the long sail to Huruhi Bay, on the southwest corner of Waiheke Island, just a few miles from Auckland. It was nice to be making a trip that was far enough to warrant setting sail, but the whole day was a cold, rainy, upwind slog. The water was flat enough that going upwind was not uncomfortable. Tacking would have been a nice way to see the bay, but most of the time we were flying in the clouds, so to speak. When we set the anchor in Huruhi, we were cold and tired and it had been a long day. We were looking forward to a warm meal and a movie.

my back was not doing so well, so we planned to make the next couple of days easy ones. It rained sideways and the wind howled through the rigging the whole time, so even If I had been feeling better, it didn’t seem too appealing to go out anyway.

On Christmas, we woke up to bright blue skies. Maryanne managed to get a picture of me standing somewhat straight on the trampoline with the hills and the town of Surfdale in the background before the storm returned and pinned us down again for the rest if the day.


The perfect Christmas outfit for loafing about
(and a brief moment of sunshine)

In the middle of the night, the wind shifted from blowing out of the bay to blowing in and things got a lot less comfortable. We decided to bail out and try to find some shelter from the increasing waves. We found a spot in the lee of Motuihe Island, along with a dozen or so other boats. It was only a couple of miles away, but each was hard won. By the time we set anchor, I was soaked and shivering from having been continuously drenched in flying spray. Our nice, clean boat was now covered in salt crystals and the interior was a shambles of things that got thrown around. So much for an easy trip to the end of the road…

Saturday, December 22, 2018

Arkles Bay

[Kyle]After the Orokomai downpour eased a bit, we moved a couple of miles west to Arkles Bay. We had received an invite to lunch from a family we met when we were anchored in South Minerva and wanted to make the walk to their house a little shorter. They actually live just up the hill from Big Manly Cove on the opposite side of the Whangapararoa peninsula, but Big Manly was going to be the unprotected side for the next few day’s winds, so we decided to play it safe and anchor in Arkles.

Arlkes had the benefit of being close to a big grocery store, so we used the opportunity to fill our big overnight camping backpacks with provisions for the coming weeks. We were glad the relative positions of the store and the boat meant we were walking up the steep hill with empty packs and back down when they were bulging and heavy. Because my back was still marginal, Maryanne insisted on putting as much of the really heavy stuff in her pack as she could fit. She got all of the cans and bottles of liquid. I got pavlovas and bread and cereal. Her pack was easily twice the weight of mine and I thought mine seemed pretty heavy. It was good to get the job done, though. We were starting to get low on a few things and weren’t sure when another well-stocked store would be so convenient.


Arkles Bay

The next morning dawned beautiful and sunny, with a forecast for heavy rain in the afternoon. We took our time walking to our friend’s house, marveling at how nice New Zealand is and how lucky all of the people are who get to live here. We found their trim and tidy house amongst all of the other trim and tidy houses. They welcomed us warmly and then showed us to their main room. Wow! They have one of those window-walls that can be folded away to make a really big balcony and the views of Big Manly and the Gulf all of the way back to Kawau were breathtaking. Big Manly is even prettier than Arkles. The whole way here, we kept saying to each other, “People live here!”


Waiau Bay - a small detour from our walk to see Dave and family
The provided us some great company, and a delicious meal

Yeah, these people: Dave and Sue and their son Sam. This is their house! How cool must that be?

They are all great. We traded stories about what we’ve all been up to since Minerva and about how we all ended up there in the first place. Sue and Maryanne grew up in the same area of the UK (Peterborough/Stamford), so it was interesting to hear how she also ended up on the other side of the world. She made us all an excellent meal, plus seconds and thirds, which I was more than happy to help with.


The lovely Family (and view from their home)

Dave told us some of his story. He was a boat builder for years and then decided to quit and design, build and open a hydroelectric plant. He didn’t know much about it, but he’s hard working and clever, so he just went to the South Island on long hiking trips, and started scoping out locations he'd identified via Google Earth. Eventually, he found a place, bought the land and then built the whole system himself with the help of Sam. Now they sell electricity back to the grid and the plant pretty much looks after itself. Needing a few days of regular maintenance every six months or so, he and Sam use maintenance as an excuse for some South Island tramping (hiking).

When our time was up, they were nice enough to drop us back at the shopping center by Arkles. We picked up a few last-minute items and then tried our hardest to pretend we couldn’t see the Christmas gifts in each other’s baskets. It’s kinda hard when you’re in the same checkout line and paying with the same card. We both agreed to act surprised when the time came.

The rain held off until the second we ducked under the bimini with the last of our shopping. How lucky is that?