On Tuesday we headed back to Hobart and, with the Bosun’s permission, tied up to the fuel dock at the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania.  This is where Customs would come to clear us out of Australia on Wednesday afternoon.

Mary spent all of the next day preparing meals in order to reduce the amount of time spent in the galley while at sea.  She made pizzas, boiled eggs, made a spaghetti pie for the first night out, filled a container with couscous and vegetables, and made a pot of soup (thanks Ann Robinet – your hamburger soup recipe was again the hit of the passage!).  We already had a container of chili con carne and homemade banana chocolate chip muffins (made by Jenn) in the freezer.  All of the remaining meat in the freezer was thawed and cooked and sliced and put back in the freezer.  We would lose all uncooked meat when we arrived in New Zealand. 

Mary also organized the galley so that commonly used items were more readily at hand and all breakables put away safely.  Jeremy and Jenn did all of the remaining grocery shopping and Paul finished preparing the boat for an ocean voyage.  We had already completed a thorough  inspection of the rigging a few weeks prior. We filled the fuel tanks (as we were prepared to motor in order to cover the 1200 miles quickly) and only half-filled the water tanks (to reduce weight).  We have a desalinator and would be making water when needed.

Customs officials arrived at Bella Via on Wednesday at 1630h and officially cleared us out of Australia for January 29.  We had dinner that evening aboard Bella Via with Cate and Rob from Indecision and said yet another good-bye to dear Australian friends.

January 29, 2009

At 0600h EDT (Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time), we left the fuel dock in Hobart and headed out to sea.  We had 1200 miles to cover to Nelson, New Zealand, and we were hoping to make the passage in 8 days.

Here are our position reports and highlights of our passage as they were described in email communications to family and friends.

Day 1, Thursday, Jan. 29

TIME: 1853h EDT
POSITION: 43-08.43S, 148-44.13E
SPEED: 4.8
COMMENT: Enroute, Hobart to Nelson, NZ.

Day 2, Friday, Jan. 30

TIME: 1836h EDT
POSITION: 42-43.08S, 152-26.71E
SPEED: 7.0
COMMENT: Starting to calm down after a rough 18 hours.

Paul writes to Mary’s sister:
“Theresa,
We've been at sea now for a day and a half.  The first 18 hours were relatively windless and calm seas.  The crew was happy.  The second 18 hours were relatively windy with 3 metre seas.  The crew was feeling a little queasy.  One lost her cookies. Yech!  In either case the boat doesn't care, it just trundles along.”

Day 3, Saturday, Jan 31

TIME: 0659h EDT (This was the first time that Paul posted a morning Position Report.
POSITION: 42-30.88S, 154-17.71E
SPEED: 8.1

IME: 1849h EDT
POSITION: 42-17.13S, 156-18.77E
SPEED: 9.1
COMMENT: Kids had the spinnaker up all afternoon. 9 knots.  Yipppee!!!!

Paul writes to Jenn Sabean’s father:
“Brent,
So far we have done a little bit better than an 8-day passage.  To complete the 1200-mile passage in 8 days we need to cover 150 miles per day.  We did 154 the first day and 183 the second.  Today should be as good as the second, mostly because of the kids.  We've got a little, informal, distance covered competition to see whose shift takes us the furthest.  So far the kids lead by a whopping 33 miles after only two days.  It looks like they will have lengthened that lead significantly by tomorrow morning because they put the spinnaker up for most of the afternoon and really got us moving along nicely.  Mary and I will have to take the spinnaker down before dark.  It's too complicated a sail to be messing around with in the dark.

Jenn's stomach has settled down nicely and Mary has even had a bit of food today.  For the first time since our first night at sea the four of us sat together and socialized for a couple of hours.  Up until now we have all grabbed every moment of rest that we could get when off watch.”

Day 4, Sunday, Feb. 1

TIME: 0558h EDT
POSITION: 42-03.02S, 158-21.18E
SPEED: 8.2
COMMENT: 180 wind shift overnight. Kids shine again while dad sleeps.

Paul writes to our daughter Jenn Major:
“It's the morning of Day 4 and we were 4 miles short of a 200 mile day yesterday.  Although we are beam reaching at the moment at 8 knots, the wind is expected to go on the nose and get lighter during the next 24 hours so I don't think we will make 200 on Day 4.  Progress is good.

I am quite proud of how well Jeremy and Jenn are handling the boat without our intervention.  I had forgotten what a capable sailor Jeremy is, despite his lack of experience on big boats.  He has set the jib with a barber hauler to position the sail so that it is drawing better than I've ever bothered with.  As for Jenn, she's a fast learner and right in there following Jeremy's directions during maneuvers.  For me, they are making this the easiest passage ever.  They are actually enjoying it.  While mom and I were sleeping yesterday they quietly put the spinnaker up and had us close reaching at 9 knots in 15-20 knot winds.  By early evening, the admiral (Mom) ordered the spinnaker down, much to Jeremy's dismay, when the winds briefly got up to thirty.  During the night they easily handled a gybe in 30 knots, again on their own.  They had just completed the task of bringing the jib around when I went on deck.  They were both wet, grinning from ear to ear and both were still attached to their harnesses (as expected) as they stepped back into the cockpit.  Jenn is very safety conscious; a good influence on Jeremy.

Mom is feeling a little better each day.  She had her first meal last evening, a small one, but she managed to keep it down.  She would much rather be sitting by a fireside in a small inn, drinking coffee and reading a book.  I better be grateful what she does to be with me. Love dad.”

(Jenn Sabean writes to a friend.)
“I'm giving email a crack, as I've been too queasy up until now to try writing on a computer. What a journey, and we're only nearing the halfway mark. I can send this via their radio system, not the internet, and I wanted you to know we are doing well and surviving this crazy journey! If you want to forward this on to the rest of the ladies, please do...
 
Life on board Bella Via out on the open ocean (well, Tasman Sea) is an interesting routine. The first 3 days were hard on the body, as the seas were up to 3m and confused, as well as my internal organs with it, so it was gross and I didn't fair very well, but the drugs are kicking in and I seem to be getting my sea legs.  There's a healthy competition going on between the 2 alternating shifts to see who can make the most mileage in each 6 hours on duty; Jeremy and I are trying to make good time without running the motor, and have had favourable, albeit variable, winds.  We even managed to squeeze some extra speed by putting the spinnaker (the big beautiful sail shaped like a shield) up in light winds yesterday...we tried doing it without waking Paul but he busted us near the end.  It's a big sail and a little tricky to work with, so it's good that Jer knows what he's doing.

Sleeping every other 6 hours is hard; we have been trying to come up with a good description. Imagine a bowling ball with a plank on it.  Now imagine a guy trying to balance on that plank.  Imagine 3 more of these guys.  They are all holding up a corner of a small water bed in which are lying.  Below you is a large sumo wrestler with a massive drum.  In no logical order they periodically drop various corners of the bed, while you slosh around on it, and the drummer whams his drum at random.  That’s kind of what it's like.

I enjoyed Stuart Maclean's podcasts late last night on the graveyard shift; amazing how his voice can make me feel right at home when out in the middle of nowhere.

I better get back on deck and see what the winds are doing.  Though I have moments of anxiety and dread about being out here and knowing we still have another 4 or 5 days to endure, I’m grateful to be experiencing this crazy journey with these great people, and wouldn't pass it up in a second.  Love, Jenn”

TIME: 1820h EDT
POSITION: 41-50.28S, 160-11.53E
SPEED: 7.4
COMMENT: Halfway point.  No turning back now.

Paul writes to Andrea Sabean, Jenn Sabean’s sister in Ottawa:
“Greetings to Andrea, our newest addition to this growing email list.

Now that we have the entire Sabean family aboard, at least by email, there doesn't seem to be much to talk about today.

I could tell you about the storm petrel, a small bird that flew into the cockpit during the kids' watch at about two in the morning.  They apparently aren't very afraid of humans because Jenn was holding it lightly in her hands when I got out on deck to see what the fuss was about.  Jenn wanted to know if she could keep it as a boat pet.  I went to bed.  The bird was gone by morning.  End of pet story. 

This does give me an opportunity to tell about a very important (safety wise) daily routine that happens on the boat.  Every morning I participate in a 'radio net'.  That's a loosely formed group of sailors and a few land based HAM radio operators that meet every day on the radio at the same time.  Conversation is usually about the weather and boats.  This net is a good source of information and it was on the net this morning that we learned that the bird was probably a storm petrel.  Sure enough this was confirmed when we looked in our copy of "Sea Birds of the World". 

The safety feature associated with participating in such a radio net is that I give those that are listening a position report every morning.  If I didn't come up on the net, they would begin to worry and would certainly start some search and rescue action … Paul”

Day 5, Monday, Feb. 2

TIME: 0611h EDT

POSITION: 41-35.83S, 162-16.13E
SPEED: 6.6
COMMENT: Day 5 dawns as sunny and bright as the crew. 398 m traveled in last 2 days.

Note: Two hours later I posted a new position report with the following comment:
         “- motoring, no wind, no waves, but a 3 metre swell. UP and DOWN”

Later the same day, Jenn writes her family:
“Hi guys,
Wow, it's like being back at summer camp when my name would get called out at mail call and there would be a loving letter from home with great updates.  I can't believe we can email each other from where we are to you.  Paul has really enjoyed his virtual chats with you - he keeps giggling away over the 'private' emails between Dad and him - though I'm sure it has something to do with incorporating a handicap of some sorts into the competition.  I'm on to you!  He keeps asking more questions of me about each of you, and says how much he knows he's going to like you guys.  Mary is hanging on every word, as Paul does all the emailing…

Today was a great day - the winds have gone from a starboard beam reach to a close haul, so that's not as great as we had it the past couple of days for un-powered speed...but that also means the seas have calmed down so there is this incredibly gentle rolling swell passing by us (up to 3m waves that are not breaking - a rare treat) that are not causing the typical slamming between the two hulls.  It makes life on board a lot more bearable, and we are all feeling well with better appetites.  Jeremy and I enjoyed an incredibly starry night last night including some sparkles in the sea from the phosphorescence, and even got to watch a bit of a movie to pass the hours, then welcomed a beautiful sunrise over the silvery waters.  We cooked up some yummy scrambled eggs (desperately trying to keep them from sloshing out of the pan between waves) and all ate together as Mary and Paul took over around 6am, then we hit the hay.  Our afternoon shift was so pleasant - we were able to do some laundry and hang things out to dry without them getting coated in salt, and wiped down some surfaces, which are getting crusted badly.  I can't imagine very long passages without a water maker on board - everything would get jammed up!  These guys have a pretty sweet set up, with the option of two motors when things get slow, solar panels and a wind generator (currently broken from a windy squall that broke out in Hobart the day before we left with winds gusting at 50 knots), and all the gadgets to get us there on course and with comfort.  But today has been my favourite day by far as it has been a lot easier to enjoy, rather than endure.  I don't know if my sea legs are on as it is now day 5, or if it's just because the seas are a little less choppy, but at least my appetite is back and we are getting some more time on board together, rather then all skulking away to our cabins as soon as our shifts are up.

It's something else being out here on such a quiet ocean - as in undisturbed.  No planes overhead, only one small boat sighted last night by Paul (believed to be a crew of 5 Kiwis headed home), lots of birds, but otherwise not much else. OH - speak of the devil - FISH ON!!!

An hour later Jenn writes her family once again:

“Hi guys,
Sorry to cut you off there - we have had a long line out for days with no success, and just as I was about to do the dishes after dinner and hit the hay after our shift, Mary screamed 'fish on'! Now both lines were out, which usually means two dorado, as they are life partners, and I guess can often both be caught at once. apparently this is better than killing the one and leaving a widow!  but it turned out one was a false alarm, and the other was an albacore tuna. See if you can find a good photo on google - it's the long pectoral fins that make it stand out. Paul can tell you more about it later in detail I'm sure.  It's a beautiful fish and I'm sure will taste great later on - but of course sad to see such an impressive creature slain…

Pray for good winds and calm seas (though that appears to be a rare combo to find out here). It's great to be well past the half way mark now, knowing that the big swells from the south are coming from Antarctica!

I'm beat - 'night! love, jenn”

Paul writes to Jenn’s sister:
“Andrea,
You know your sister well.  It was 2:00 in the morning, and one of the first things she said to me about the bird in her hand was that its name was "Bella Bird".  :)  Jenn obviously knows how to pull my heart strings.

Yes, Andrea, technology is indeed cool.  We have two amazing examples on board…
First, let me tell you about our integrated GPS, chart plotter, autopilot system.  The GPS determines where in the world we are to within metres.  It then displays that position on a chart plotter screen.  This chart plotter has detailed maps of the world, if we so wish.  We then point, on the screen, to our destination.  This becomes our 'waypoint'.  We tell the chart plotter to 'GO TO' that waypoint.  It then communicates with the 'autopilot', telling it the direction to steer the boat, taking into account any current that might take us off course.  The net result is that, except for sail change maneuvers, we rarely need to steer the boat.  Prior to this technology, someone would have had to be steering the boat every single moment of the trip.  There were and still are mechanical auto steering devices that ocean travelers use, however, there were many points of sail and wind/wave conditions where the mechanical devices just couldn't handle the conditions and hand steering was the only choice.  Modern technology has made a passage such as this sooooo much easier.  We still need to stand watch 24 hours a day, but that's a whole lot easier than steering a 23,000 pound vessel.

The second bit of cool technology is our communications aboard Bella Via.

We are sending and receiving these emails, from the middle of the Tasman Sea, at any time of the day or night, absolutely free.  The is made possible by the generosity of time and equipment provided by a group of HAM (Amateur) radio operators located around the world. This is a different group of HAM radio operators from the conversational group with whom I communicate with each morning.

Our computer is connected to a special kind of modem (Pactor modem) that links the computer to our HF (Ham) radio.  Similar to the way your modems make it possible for your emails to transmit information over telephone wires, ours makes it possible to transmit emails over radio waves.  In our case, there must be a land based radio station that is 'ON' and tuned to a specific frequency, ready to hear the transmission coming from our radio.  These stations sit in the homes of participating HAM (Amateur) radio operators located around the world.  Their radio is also connected to their computers with their Pactor modem.  Once their computer receives our emails via radio waves, the computer posts our email on the traditional land/telephone based internet network.  The service is called Winlink and it is absolutely free to all HAM radio operators.  It is the primary reason why both Mary and I got our HAM license before moving aboard. 

Although this communication link provides us with email capability 24/7 there are some fairly restrictive limitations due to the limits of the technology at this time.  For example, we do not have full internet access, we can't browse the net.  We only have email capabilities.  Additionally, the transmission rate of the equipment is tremendously slow by today's telecommunications standards.  Our emails often come to us as slow as 300 bytes per minute.  We get real excited when we have a good connection and we see them coming in at 3,000 bytes per minute.  I have lost track of the speeds at which data comes into your home computers. Because the transmission rates are soooo slow, we have to be very careful about how we, and those who communicate with us, use the service.  Additionally, SPAM filters used by the WINLINK service provider block all messages that are from an unknown email address.

Your email address has been added to our 'acceptance list'.  If you attempt to email us from any other address, it will be rejected.
 
Before I sign off I should give you a brief report of our day.  It started with Jenn and Jer making scrambled eggs for all for breakfast.  This was a real treat since our meals have all been pre-prepared prior to now.  At the moment they are working on some fajitas.  Mmmm.  Our progress up until this morning has been quite remarkable. Traveling 200 miles in a day is most cruisers dream.  We were 4 miles short of that on day 3 and yesterday, Day 4 we did it, covering 202 miles in a 24-hour period.  We have now traveled 816 miles and have 475 to go.  However, the wind died this morning and we are now the m/v Bella Via (motor vessel Bella Via).  We are not purists when it comes to sailing.  We have enough fuel to travel 1500 miles by motor alone.  More than enough to get us to NZ.  The down side is that our speed is down from 8 knots to 6.

It was a sunny day, our first since departure.  The surface waves are almost nil, but a huge swell (2 to 3 metres) started coming in from the south.  These are being created by some very strong winds 800 miles south of us.  It's fun to watch these swells as the boat goes ‘uuuup’ and ‘dowwwwn’.  Fortunately we have all acquired our sea legs.

The smells from the galley tell me that I had better stop here or be late for dinner.”

Post trip notation:  At this point I became too busy and missed sending an evening position report.

Day 6, Tuesday, Feb. 3

TIME: 0650h EDT
POSITION: 41-13.65S, 165-26.37E
COMMENT: Dawn, 397 miles to go.  FISH ON!!!  Yippee Skippee!

TIME: 1825h EDT
POSITION: 41-00.49S, 167-18.80E
COMMENT: Fish for breakfast, fish for lunch, fish for supper. A 3 fish day.

Paul writes to Jennifer Major:
“Jenn,
Yesterday started with a bit of excitement when I made contact with Taupo Maritime Radio, New Zealand for the first time via HF radio.  We are required to notify New Zealand Customs, via Taupo Radio, of our arrival at least 48 hours in advance.  Which we did.  We must do so again when we are approximately 12 hours away.  These formalities add to the fun and excitement of traveling to new countries. 

Almost immediately after this radio contact, mom and I landed our second fish this trip. This made the fishing tournament score 2 for the parents, zip for the kids, though they still lead the distance traveled competition by 50 miles. We won't catch them on that.  Back to the fish. Later in the day, during the kid's watch, they had one fish right after another in short sequence.  Fortunately for the parents, the third fish managed to wiggle off the hook before the kids could land it.  So that leaves the fishing score tied, 2 - 2.  My lines are out now, while the kids sleep.  They have just gone to bed for the day after their midnight watch.  It's now 7:30 in the morning. Jeremy cooked us up a heap of bacon and yummy French toast before retiring for the day.  We must use all the meat and eggs on board or toss it.  NZ quarantine will not let us into the country with fruits, veggies, eggs, meat and other misc. items.

At this point in time we have 210 miles to go. Our ETA is late afternoon, early evening tomorrow.  Sea conditions are almost completely calm as there has been very little wind now for the last two days.  We have been motor sailing almost continuously for two days.  Our fuel consumption is only 2.5 litres an hour so we don't hesitate to use an engine if the winds don't cooperate.

Don't be a bit surprised if you don't hear from us for a few days.  Arrival in a new country is always a busy and exciting time and we are prone to forget communicating with those dearest to us.
Love, dad”

Day 7, Wednesday, Feb.4

TIME: 0705h EDT
POSITION: 40-46.43S, 169-18.45E
COMMENT: Dawn, Cloudy, drizzly.  French toast for breakfast.

TIME: 1859 EDT
POSITION: 40-46.19S, 170-31.68E
COMMENT: Humans make plans & God laughs. Arrival NZ delayed due to headwinds.

Day 8, Thursday, Feb 5

TIME: 0701EDT
POSITION: 40-39.24S, 171-50.69E
COMMENT: Dawn, LAND HO! After 19 hrs of strong headwinds (we have covered) only 115 m in the last 24 hrs

Jenn writes her family:
“Hi guys,

Thanks for the letter mom - it was so nice to get one from you and to hear your thoughts on the journey, and what your students are taking an interest in.  I have taken some photos of life on board that I promise to put together in a pdf someday soon and send your way so you can give them a tour. This is definitely a very comfortable boat compared to many...though I was starting to wonder if doing this crossing in a mono hull would have been better after yesterday our calm seas and favourable winds turned into choppy in our face yuch.  The catamaran allows you to stay relatively stable in terms of your horizontal position to the sea surface, which allows you to cook and go to the loo and sleep with relative ease - whereas a mono hull would be cranked over at 30 degrees the entire time, for example, making these activities much more tricky.  But when things get rough out here, I feel the two hulls cause so much added confusion and noise to the trip as the waves get under there and slam something awful.  Jeremy says I should try this trip again on a mono hull though and see which of the two I prefer then.  The sailing I did in the BVI's with the Surrette's was definitely in much calmer waters, so I really don't have the experience to compare.

Land Ho, Jenn says, at first sighting of New Zealand.  Due to headwinds, we still had almost 24 hours of motor sailing before we made landfall at Nelson.

Then, as we rounded the large sandy spit that makes up the northern tip of this part of the island, which we had to round to then go south to Nelson, the winds calmed, we had a beautiful sunset that lasted hours, and great views of the sand dunes that ran for miles to our starboard.  We got to eat at the table all together for the first time in 8 days, and ate a yummy meal with wine - how civilized!  The final sundown was great - perfectly calm and beautiful and welcoming. Then to top it off, some dolphins joined our bows and rode with us for a while to welcome us in!!

We enjoyed a wonderful pasta meal, prepared by Jeremy and Jenn, on our last night at sea.

Jer and I were too wired to go straight to bed at 6pm, so we waited for sunset, then watched a bit of a movie. THEN, once it was dark, Paul called us out to the bow.  The world around us was surreal; like floating on a thick blanket of black silk, and the moon up high in the sky giving everything a silvery glow.  It was perfectly calm; the waters like those of Long Lake on a calm night, not the ocean.  And then - two dolphins - alight in phosphorescence - skimming as though flying through the water, their propulsion lit like jet streams by the sparkling microorganisms.  It was beyond words - really hard to believe it could be real and that we could watch this as though the luckiest and only people in the world for those amazing 20 minutes or so.  The stars were out in full force, so much so that the milky way was clearly visible, and when we were back on watch by midnight, the distant lights of Nelson started to twinkle on the horizon.  We followed those in for hours; Jer napping by my side and each time I would step out of the cockpit to do a boat check, I would check the endless stars (the odd shooting star of course), and breathe in the sweet smell of earth blowing in across the water.

What an unbelievable way to finish what has been one of the most unique experiences in my life.

Of course today it's all about cleaning and getting organized on land again; we had customs and immigration on board this morning and all went well, then got some zzz's before quickly heading in to town by foot to find a nice breakfast place, and now it's off to the laundromat. Jeremy turns 33 tomorrow, and we are celebrating on board tonight then in town tomorrow.

Just wanted to let you know we are safe and sound, and doing really well. Hope all is well with you and thanks for keeping up with us the whole way along - it was nice to have supporters and a cheering squad from across the pond.

love, jenn”

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Mary and Paul wish to express their thanks to Jenn for giving us permission to include these emails that she sent her family during our passage. She truly captured the essence of the trip in these writings to her friends and family.  Thanks Jenn.

The final results of the informal competitions were quite surprising because the leads in each category changed hands during the final 24 hours of the passage.  Catching 4 fish on our last evening at sea allowed the kids to easily win the most fish caught category.  In the last few hours of the passage, the parents took the lead for greatest distance traveled, beating the kids by only 4 miles over a 1200 mile journey.
 
Here is what Paul wrote in an email to our friend Steve, from sailing vessel Jams, on the topic of picking a weather window:

“By Thursday morning, the 28th of February, I was convinced from the data I had that the next 8 days was an acceptable window for our crossing.  In fact, this window was slightly different than others that I had identified in that it had more back-to-back highs that were dipping further south than any of the previous opportunities that I had documented.  But I am getting ahead of myself. 

First, I wish to tell you about the research that went into my final decision. 

Every morning since December, 2008, I acquired and analyzed the MSLP (Mean Sea Level Pressure) maps for the Indian Ocean (because the Tasman’s weather comes from the west) and Tasman Sea, along with wind and wave forecasts for the Tasman sea.  All of this data comes into Bella Via via weather faxes and emails through our HF radio.

During this period I had identified, tracked and documented 8 possible weather windows in which we could have made a relatively safe crossing.  When Jeremy and Jenn arrived, I presented them with copies of this data for each of the 8 phantom passages and asked them to rank the 8 in order from best to worst in terms of which offered the best passage.  The three of us did this, and then we compared notes.  I was most impressed at how these kids quickly assimilated and evaluated the data.  I had been looking at this kind of information for more than a year.  Despite their novice background it was quite interesting to note how similar our rankings were, especially for the three best passages and the three worst.

It was interesting to notice that our three top choices were windows that I found fairly recently despite the fact that I found some the previous year.  I suspect that by this year I was getting better at the task and hence the more recent choices were better than the ones that I had made a year ago.

We then tried to identify the key features in these three best windows.  They were:
- we would have departed in fairly strong westerlies on the back of a moderate low,
- other lows in the Indian Ocean were moderate and centered quite deeply south
- there were one or more moderate highs north of these lows

This is what I was looking for and yet it is not what we left on because in the days leading up to our departure I saw what I believed to be an even better pattern.  Specifically, several moderate, back-to-back highs centered further south than I had seen before AND a very moderate low approaching Tasmania.

My goal all along was to find the safest, easiest ride, even if we had to motor all the way across.  Sure enough that's what we got.  The wind rarely went over 30 knots and when it went on the nose it was light enough to motor through it, with the exception of one 18 hour period where we had 25 knot headwinds.  Other than that 18-hour period, the winds were either light and variable or just aft of the beam.  There were NEVER any dangerous seas.”  End of Paul’s email to Steve.

Paul wrote to our friend Rod Peturson on Feb 13:

Rod,

“It has been one very full week since we arrived in Nelson, NZ and this is the first moment that I have had to leisurely respond to the few emails that I have received since our arrival.  The week has been full of reprovisioning, customs and immigration formalities, trip planning and conversations with locals. 

Reprovisioning can be as simple as a visit to the grocery store or a little more involved when trying to get our exotic fiberglass propane tanks filled in a new country.  When and wherever I bring these tanks the service people have NEVER seen such a rarity before and they often balk at filling them.  Fortunately, they have only been refused the once.  In this case the attendant recognized the Australian approval stickers and proceeded to do the job.  Phew!!!

Another item under reprovisioning was to get a new SIM card for our mobile phone.  That should be simple enough except that three days later, half of the talk time that I had purchased had mysteriously been used up.  To make a long story short, a phone call to Customer Service resulted in discovering that phone numbers are re-cycled by the provider and the previous owner of this number had subscribed to a variety of text messaging services, none of which had been canceled by the phone company when they sold me the SIM card.  I was NOT impressed.  All has been sorted out and our account has been credited the amounts that were due.   I HATE phones.

On a much more positive note, our treatment by government officials continues to be absolutely wonderful, even pleasurable.  Customs and quarantine met us on the dock in Nelson at 4:00 a.m. on a holiday.  They were friendly and helpful.  Quarantine took very little off the boat, mostly because Mary is so very well versed in what is and what isn't allowed into a country.  Although the Customs officer only provided us with the minimum length allowed for a cruising permit, he clearly explained the process for applying for an extension.  Based on some additional research that I did with some other yachties, by mid week I applied for and received permission to leave Bella Via in New Zealand without incurring any import duties for a full year.  Customs has already made it clear that it will simply be a formality next January to receive a further extension of 6 months because New Zealand, compassionately, will not force yachties out of NZ during cyclone season.  Yesterday we mailed our application for an extension to our visitor's permit.  Canadians don't need a Visa to visit NZ, we automatically get permission to visit for three months upon arrival and we can apply for an extension for up to one year, which is what we have just done. 

Because we have approval to keep the boat in NZ for a full year and expect approval to keep our bodies in the country for a year we are in NO hurry to get north.  In fact, we have already booked a car and some accommodations to do a two-week road trip of South Island commencing next Friday.  We will leave Bella Via at the Nelson marina for the two weeks.  As it turns out, the kids, Jeremy and Jennifer have also booked a car starting the day before.  They will be away for about three weeks and are focusing on doing some serious back-country hiking. 

Today is our first day to be out of the marina.  It was only a 3 hour sail to an area known as Abel Tasman National Park.  After dropping the anchor, I ferried the kids into shore where they will hike for a couple of hours south, camp out overnight, and pick up a chartered kayak tomorrow morning for a two day trip along the coast of this national park.  We plan on picking them up at the end of their kayak adventure.  Then a few more days of sailing before returning to the marina in preparation for our two-week inland tour.

Following the land tour we are taking Bella Via to Marlborough Sound where once again we plan on meeting up with the kids for a few more days of sailing after their land tour and before they depart for North Island and then home.

We will linger here, cruising Marlborough Sound until the weather drives us north.  Isn't it nice to have all the time in the world!  End of Paul’s email to Rod.

February 20, 2009

We are off on our two-week driving tour of the south island.  We will share our journey with you when we get back!