6th November  2009 – Passage to Opua.

2100hrs.

But wait! There's more!! As we draw closer and in the fading light, we see it isn't Innovation abeam us ... IT'S THE ITALIANS !!

The unmistakably beautiful lines of the Swan 53 right there less than a mile off our beam. Rod & Viv on Innovation, it transpires, are further to leeward. So with 14 miles to Cape Wiwiki it's a sprint for the finish! Their Volvo against our Perkins. I'll take the Perkins any day! Have we got enough diesel at full revs....have they??? Are they sprinting..or do they not really give a toss and are enjoying a grappa?? More later.

Splash tango and Jakima getting to know each other in Opua Marina.

As above.

Well it wasn’t to be. We wound up heading into Opua Marina in a procession, line astern. Jakima leading, with us 20ft astern and Innovation 20ft behind us, then came Ishka with Ian and Ida. And yes, there was a bit of a celebration on the dock. The following evening after we had cleared in, Marco and Dino came and joined us for dinner at Don and Felicity’s farm “Totara Valley” where an intense debriefing took place amidst a lot of laughs and a very pleasant meal.

All in all, although we could have done with a lot less motoring, a good passage.