Whangamumu

We have enjoyed time in the Bay of Islands at a few different places before heading back into Opua for the last of our rigging work. We were lucky to get a slip for Monday and Tuesday and connected with the rigger who had the part for the roller furler. That got fixed and the rig got adjusted. Michael had also been spending a whole lot of time trying to connect, then trouble shoot the installation of a splitter to connect the AIS and the VHF radio to the same antenna on the top of the mast. When connected we would not be able to hear the radio. After putting on new connectors and trying everything he could, we ended up hiring someone to come with a VSWR meter to check things out. Then Michael put on all new connectors and still nothing. It seems the brand new splitter box we got isn't working. So now we have to return that to the manufacturer and wait for a new one. Bummer.

After we finished with the boat projects, laundry, a resupply of food, and mailing our immigration extension paperwork, we were off again. Now we are making our way south towards Whangarei. We spent a few nights back in the Bay of Islands and then headed to Whangamumu where we are now at anchor in a very pretty bay.

This used to be an old whaling station. The remnants of that place remain as a historical reminder. We took a nice hike up the hill to a pretty viewpoint and it reminded us that we had been lazy sitting on the boat too long! The uphill was tiring!

Our friends on "Gypsea Heart" sailed in as well and we met some other folks in the anchorage - which is always fun. Michael went and spoke with a few teenagers who were in the water the previous day for hours. It is cold here and they were free diving so he wanted to know what they were going after. People collect scallops, crays (lobsters), oysters and various other critters. Later that morning the two boys came over to Astarte with a cray for us (lobster). How great is that! They just made us promise not to tell anyone where they were diving. Lips sealed! We gave them a giant candy bar as a thanks, but we came out way ahead in that deal! Nice guys – so New Zealand.

It is sure nice being out at anchor and enjoying meeting new folks and spending time with good friends. Plus it helps the budget. We've enjoyed many game days on Gypsea Heart. Today, we'll take another hike and perhaps meet some other new folks. This is a really nice spot. The lift at Docklands is broken so our haulout that we originally scheduled for Wednesday won't happen so we have a few days to kill. We'll find out on Thursday if it is fixed and when we can get hauled. Until then and the major work time, we'll enjoy time along the north island coast.
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At 12/14/2016 2:09 AM (utc) S/V Astarte was located at 35°18.95'S 174°07.22'E

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