Over a year on land...

After a year on land, with Moonwalker out of the water for almost 5 months and a new crew member waiting to come onboard (Ilha Maria Carlyon DOB 24/09/2013) we are finally floating again....

We should have our mast up again in the next few days and hopefully be able to cruise for a wee while before getting this year started and all the new projects we have planned.

Its all very promising with the Offshore Cruising Tenders already in motion but no prototype to show as of yet, we will keep you all informed.

Moonwalker will be on the market this new year and ready to go for a good home. I am looking forward and dreading the day she goes... such a mixed bag of feelings.

Russ has done a marvelous job repainting hulls and deck, logos are updated and color scheme a bit changed but very very classy.

Final touches will be done before we do the full photo shoot but here is a few recent photos.

Merry Christmas and Happy New 2014 - BRING IT ON!!!

Hauling Out 

Moonwalker's tent! 

Getting ready to get back in the water, tent is gone...

Beauty... Russ you are amazing... 

Going back in the water, check this truck guys, its amazing!

Just love this shot, had to share....

Moonwalker back in New Zealand

Moonwalker has been back in New Zealand since 22nd of November 2012 after a very boring 8 days at sea. It was a slow trip, on which we managed even to score a couple of full night asleep just drifting around. We had to motor loads eventhough our motoring capability was seriously diminished after bending the shaft when we were on the rocks in Pangai.

We had the most amazing surprise as we approached the Bay of Islands in the wee hours of the morning, when Relax, a power boat belonging to the ex-owner of Moonwalker Trevor Grass came hooning on us with Russ' mum, sister and two nieces onboard... what a magnificent present! It was a classic winter NZ day,  cold, grey and rainy, but they were out in force to see us! The next boat to give us the salute was our beloved Undine with Peter Richards and a very pregnant Catherine onboard! How cool was that! Then we saw Dan, out on the kayak just to say hello to us! The radio was on full blast on with a few mates calling their welcome home on the VHF.

But Moonwalker didn't seem to want to come home. The engine died, along with most of the wind, so we had to sail upwind with whatever wind was left all the way to Opua. This was an easy task until we got into the Opua area which was obviously crowded and left us with very little space to manouver. Russ decided to check the Quarentine berth and saw a big gap along the outside but thought we were sailing too fast, so I didn't get anything ready... but as we passed by, he changed his mind as he realised there was no way we would have been able to manouver amongst all the boats so we threw a line to some austounded but keen cruisers, and headed to the berth without fenders or proper lines tied up!

Oh my what a stressful time!, I managed to squeeze a few fenders as we scraped the rubber rails of the pontoon, and got another line ashore and our land hands managed to slow us down a bit more and more and more until we stopped just before the Quarantine berth was finished. Puff... Oh my, I really didn't need that bit of adrenaline to finish my cruising time!

We had many friends on the land, but they are unable to come to the Quarantine pontoon so the whole welcoming party was quite of non event as until we got cleared we could not go anywhere.

But we were home, with long black marks on the side of the boat which thankfully came of with little effort, wet and cold but OH SO VERY HAPPY!

We are now into our 5th month on land, moved back into our house in the last month and are not getting Moonwalker ready for his so needed haul out.

Brisa and I are loving our life ashore, Russ is still trying to find his footing, missing the simplicity and cheap life onboard, but nothing another exciting project won't fix. He is being kept busy by doing up our house and now getting the boat sorted.

Now the big news is that now we are expecting our second child! I am already 17 weeks and the due date is  around the 20th of September! We are very happy and so looking forward to meeting our new future crew member.

We will keep you all posted on our adventures, meanwhile I am still putting photos up on the Picasa photo Albuns you can access on the link on the left side of the screen.

Moonwalker's adventures may have stopped for now but it is not finished! Keep tuned!

,

Tonga

Arriving back in Tonga was like coming home. We received many congratulations for completing our circumnavigation but it felt a bit wrong, we still needed to return to NZ but we nonetheless allowed ourselves a bit of celebration with a nice botle of bubbly we received as best dancers in the fund raiser in Niue!!!

Tonga has changed much and as far as we could see the infrastructure for the better. With the huge exception of the roads in Vava'u  which used to be very good and now are riddle with pot holes thanks to the gigantic chinese trucks going over it.

Not quite sure what to say about all the chinese presence in the islands but people seem a bit upset to say the least. Especially in Nukulofa, we heard many complains.

But out in the water things seem great. We had an amazing time, snorkelling the coral gardens and just exploring the lovely anchorages and people. The shelling was incredible. We saw no sharks in Vava'u eventhough a lady got bitten right in the bum while we were there. We did see some rather big sharks in the Haapais though.

The Haapais kept their reputation of wild weather patterns and showed us a very thrilling time to put it mildly. We ended up on the rocks in Pangai harbour after a mini tornado ( as the locals put it) passed through bringing 60 knots plus which hit us sideways without much warning. It was mayhem and our anchor got picked up by our mates that had just managed to avoid a T bone collision with us and we dragged to the rocks. The same friends saved the day by pulling their anchor in, very much attached to ours and pulling us off enough for us to turn on the engine and re-anchoring. It was a nerve shattering experience and the closest we have ever been to losing Moonwalker.

Brisa watched her Tablet and played inside the entire time, we did not hear a peep from our lovely daughter. What a blessing.

Nukulofa didn't fare too bad in the adrenaline side... there while at anchor by Big Mamas we saw up to 74 knots dying to nill then back to 40 for a 12 hour period while the same cyclonic weather greated havoc with the boats on passage to New Zealand.

Brisa Dressed up for a feast

Trevort, Gill, Dee and Coco where our visitors to Tonga and the previous owners of Moonwalker!

Moonwalker and Radiance at anchor in Pangai harbor after spending a good  while on the rocks shown  during a 60 knot  tornado!

The only whale we saw in Tonga this time round as it was very late in the season.

 Brisa with her Halloween trick or treat mates

Coconut trees during a 40 knot - 12 hour long session

The unamed but very much cyclonic weather we endured in Nukulofa. We are on the top baloon just above the arrow.

After the blow this was the view of the beach.

Massive swell created by the passing low.

So Tonga will not be forgotten anytime soon, if ever not only for its amazing scenery and people but by its share of adrenaline fulled moments just before the big crossing home.