35:02.38S 173:45.72E

We’d had a great time cruising the Far North with benign conditions, but our 4D Weather App was telling us that a bit of weather was on its way, namely a sub-tropical low, and it was time to head for more sheltered waters.  What better place, we thought, than the very protected Whangaroa Harbour.  So we weighed anchor and left the Karikari peninsular and had a glorious sail in flat conditions, with wind just abaft the beam and a positive current.

This time, to sit out the weather, we chose Waitapu Bay.  The sub-tropical low has duly arrived and we were very well protected from last night’s strong winds.  Now we have the torrential rain with 58 mm forecast in an hour around lunch time (glad we stowed the dinghy on deck!).  Happy New Year to you all.

Views from the cockpit including St Paul’s Mount which we climbed a few weeks ago:

The Weather map – we’re at the little blue dot… and the rain forecast.  A wet and windy start to 2016:

New Year’s Eve Sunset: