35:14.023S 174:10.132E

Thursday 23^rd April 2015

A busy day yesterday – Steve’s birthday and a visit from some old friends who are joining us on the boat for a few days.

I spent most of the day moving things around to clear the forward cabin for our guests, and Steve spent most of the day nipping off to other boats under some pretext or other and then staying for a birthday beer or two!

Between us we got the boat ready, and Anne & Mike arrived just in time for us to be joined by Rod & Mary and Pepe & Bear for sundowners of birthday bubbly.  It was a double celebration as Anne’s birthday was on the 20^th. 

This morning we familiarised Anne & Mike with the boat a little, then Steve took them ashore to buy bait and any other bits of tackle Anne advised for fishing over the next few days.

Then back to the boat, and by mid-morning we had slipped the buoy and were heading out into the bay.  As we hoisted sail and turned off the engine to give our friends their first taste of sailing, Anne remarked on the sudden quiet, a moment I always enjoy.  We sailed a short way out into the open bay, and then on tacking found that we were heading pretty much back where we had just come.  So after giving Anne & Mike a taste of pulling on ropes as we tacked a few more times, we finally admitted defeat, furled away the jib, put on the engine and motored straight for our lunchtime anchorage on Roberton Island.

A rather broody sky over lunch at Roberton Island.