34:33S 173:12E

 

We woke this morning to clear blue skies and sunshine – the kind of sun that warms your bones.   And our bones needed it!  Yesterday was one of the coldest days we’ve experienced and both of us were layered up with plenty of merino and cashmere and our wet weather gear....but still couldn’t get warm.  When we anchored all we wanted was a hot shower but, as we’d been sailing, the engine hadn’t been running so no hot water! 

 

For the first time in weeks we had breakfast in the cockpit this morning and it was just gorgeous with not a breath of wind.   We’d anchored in a bay on Cape Karikari near a DOC camping ground and as we sat enjoying the sun (still with several layers on I might add) we watched a couple of tourists (they had to be tourists...probably German) strip off at the water’s edge and go for a swim.  Hmmmm...needs to warm up considerably before you’d get us in.

 

We left the bay after breakfast and motored around spectacular rocks thinking out loud about how many crayfish would be living here.  Don’t think there’s much chance of getting David in the water to catch one....but we did score one last week thanks to Kiwi cruisers Pete and Eliska on Tahimi.   We met them at the Bora Bora Yacht Club and again in Maupiti.  As we sailed out of Neiafu they were on the Q dock clearing in.....but then we met them at Opua.  We spent a night together at Russell and, as Pete had been diving, he gave us a cray which was absolutely delicious.

 

The wind was non existent this morning but slowly filled in and by coffee time the sails were up and Bandit was trickling along on a flat sea doing 5 knots in about 6 knots of wind.  Let’s hope it stays this way!