Author: Scott
It is hard to image that 18 months ago today we reached New Zealand, rounding the Whangarei Heads to sail up the river to Ray Roberts Marina. Tournesol was wet, tired, and in need of some serious refit attention. Pam and I were in about the same condition. We had just experienced our worst weather during the voyage and a warm meal and dry bed were only a few miles away.
So much has happened since then. Tournesol got the attention she needed by her new owner(s), and will probably live out her maritime days in the beautiful but challenging waters of New Zealand and the South Pacific. Starship was purchased and turned out to need even more refit attention than Tournesol. She was wonderfully spacious and filled our thoughts with the excitement of more live aboard space while at the same time filling us with apprehension of a bigger boat to manage, clean, and navigate. Riverside Drive Marina would become our new home with its eclectic mix of sailors and future friends. Boat project management would become all consuming, until the day we returned to the States to work to feed the cruising (and boat project) kitty.
Our time in the States was a blur; working hard, living on land again, and thrusting ourselves back into a foreign and oddly frenetic lifestyle. Too little time, but time indeed to see our good friends in San Francisco and families! We have wonderful memories of our little room in the big flat that we shared with Joan and Richard, who opened their home to us. The boat was one unbelievable project after another and ate up any free time, and she also managed to eat up most of the cruising kitty funds we were trying to replenish. Then before you could say "box of fluffy ducks" we were racing back to New Zealand to prepare for our departure.
Since our return to New Zealand in early December the pace has only quickened. Boat work continued to dominate, but we found time to meet a new season of cruisers and we even managed to make some wonderful new friends. There were times when this whirlwind year was ground to a dogged pace of monotonous daily chores and endless lists, and a minute later the past eighteen months seems to have been sucked away by some mysterious worm hole leaving us wondering how we could possibly still have such a list of to dos left.
At the end of the day (or eighteen months) I am left with an overwhelming sense of anticipation to get going, memories to reflect on and savor, unfinished journal entries to write, more wonderful star filled nights to sail under, and but most importantly - I am even more excited to continue this wonderful adventure than ever! The first ride on the roller coaster is complete, we waited in line, paid for our ticket, and now we are getting strapped in for whatever comes next! Whatever lies ahead there is no doubt that we are on an E ticket ride, so Mr. Toad look out!
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