On the evening of November 22, we reach
New Zealand. It is already dark, and the quarantine jetty in
Opua is only dimly lit. I am glad that I was here last year and can remember a few details. That helps immensely in the darkness. When you see on the trackers how many boats are heading for New Zealand, it is a little surprising that there is so much space here. I drop Gaby off on the jetty and throw her the ropes. Of course, we can't miss out on the arrival beer, and our thoughts return to the crossing. We made the passage in just eight days instead of the planned ten. Of those eight days, we had two days of calm. Looking back, we're glad we had them, as they allowed us to recover a little from the exertions. On the other hand, we could have gained another day and sailed the 1,100 nautical miles in just seven days. We look ahead and wonder whether the officials responsible for clearing
customs in New Zealand will even be working on Sunday. But we'll find out tomorrow. For now, it's off to bed.
Three other boats are moored alongside us at the jetty, waiting to be cleared through customs. Although we were the last to arrive, we are the first to be visited by customs and
immigration officials. The paperwork is quickly completed, as we had prepared all the documents the evening before. The young official was very pleased and said goodbye to us after half an hour. Next,
biosecurity came on board. This is basically the biggest hurdle to entering the country. In addition to the hull, the officer is interested in the anchor chain and food supplies. She takes note of the
hull cleaning certificate, but it is not decisive. Photos of the hull would have been better, she said. She looked at the hull with a camera and was surprised at how clean it was. I was relieved, even though I knew the hull was clean. But you know how it is, it's like when you get pulled over for a traffic stop and immediately feel guilty, even though there's no reason to. The anchor chain is also fine. That leaves the food. Since we had done our homework, there wasn't much to find here either. We had either eaten the food that we weren't allowed to import or hadn't brought it with us in the first place.
Lentils (only the dark brown ones) and some popcorn went into the black bag that our official had taken with her on her tour of the ship as a precaution. After a good hour, we were done. The guest flag replaced the yellow quarantine flag, and we were free to move around New Zealand.
We spontaneously book a spot at
Bay of Islands Marina so we can carry out the most urgent repairs. After more than two years, you arrive in a country where no one looks at you with wide eyes when you ask for a spare part. Instead, they ask for the type, model, or picture, then disappear into the warehouse and reappear five minutes later to place the spare part on the counter. The wide eyes have changed owners. I am thrilled. Even the supermarkets offer a wide selection again. We meet
Mareike from the Moana. With over 30 years of sailing experience, she has made a name for herself and passed on her experiences in books. We are delighted to have met the
Hamburg native in person. After three days, we leave the marina and move to Paihia, just five miles from Opua.
This is where we start our first hike in New Zealand. From
Waitangi, we head to the
Haruru Falls. The
Waitangi Track leads five kilometers inland along
Hutia Creek to Haruru. Through the forest, which is also home to the rare
Kiwi bird, the trail takes us over bridges and through
mangroves to the waterfalls at Haruru.
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| Waitangi Trekking Tour through the Mangroves |
The waterfalls cascade over a horseshoe-shaped rock edge into a wide basin. We reach the falls before a horde of tourists descends on the area. After enjoying the view for a while, we decide the crowds are too much for us and start our way back. The path is well maintained and easy to walk on, but much too long for our sailor's legs. We struggle through the forest floor for the last kilometer. Despite all this, we still have to get back to Paihia from Waitangi. When Gaby stops talking, I know she's at her limit. So we're all the more delighted to see the sign saying “
Happy Hour from 3 pm to 5 pm.” We settle down on a seat and rehydrate. Then we have something to eat, and Gaby starts talking again. We'll definitely have sore muscles tomorrow. But no matter, it was a wonderful hike. We didn't see any kiwis, but we did see a parrot.
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| Happy and satisfied to be back |
Next week, we plan to sail to
Whangarei. There, we want to leave our
Katinka Enjoy in a marina and explore New Zealand by land. Until next time, we wish all sailors
fair winds and keep a stiff upper lip.
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