North of the Chatham Islands, New Zealand 10 April 2011 43S37 176W38

I think the Chathams is one of those places you could spend a few months – that way you’d increase your chances of getting a few days calm enough to go ashore. As it was, we had a quick visit ashore at the main town (yes where Frank’s unkempt week old watch attire, fish-blooded rubber boots and all, won him best dressed at the local pub – a rough and tumble bunch indeed). Then the very next day with winds expected to turn Waitagi into a lee shore, we sailed across the bay to Port Hutt (we did have time to catch up on sleep first). We only visited shore once at Port Hutt, it was a beautiful rugged windy place, and when the winds were down the rain was up. Ahh, autumn. It feels like birthday weather, next should be pumpkins, turkey, peppermint cappacinos with Marsh before work, and the scent of pine bows. But no – April fools – in this upside down world we’re headed back to the tropics. It’s way past time too.

So after 50-60 knot winds at anchor night before last, and a big SW swell that worked it’s way around our protective point and into our little bay, the weather has calmed, a high is nearby. We won’t be taking this opportunity to explore the Chathams by looking for fossilized sharks teeth, visiting the flower pot, or seeking out some life birds for Gary (Logan claims that if he, Kennan, and I all see the same new bird, it counts as if Gary had seen it…genetically speaking). Instead, we’re grasping a different opportunity, and jumping into this open weather window, fingers crossed that it will stay open for the next 2 weeks. If it closes? Close your eyes and hang on tight, we’re going through anyway. If you look on the map in a southwesterly direction you can see that nice white antarctic wind source. We won’t be turning around and heading into that anytime soon. Eastward ho. Maybe next year we’ll get a chance to do something other than school in the Chathams.

xoxomo

P.S. Gary have you ever seen the Buller’s Albatross (or Mollymawk) We just had 15 of them fighting over a fish-head off our stern, neat looking birds. Big, mean, colorful beaks, I’m glad I wasn’t between the fish-head and that pack. They have a slight indentation in their feathers that runs from the corner of their beak in a line under their eyes. It looks like the line where the elastic should run to keep a fake beak in place. They probably have some whimpy gull beak underneath. You can officially check him off your list, along with the dramatic black and white Cape Pigeon. There are lots of little blue penguins too, but I think you’ve seen those.

P.P.S. Frank just turned in for a nap, and informed me that we have 7 layers of blankets on our bed right now. Let’s see about 14 days ahead of us, but we won’t start removing any till we head north in about 5 days. I’ll let you know at what rate we get to peel them off, degrees of latitude per blanket. On my person, I only have four clothing layers below and 6 on top, plus hat, hoodie, foul weather hood, and headphones on the ears (every little bit counts). It’s almost tropical under all that – almost – there doesn’t seem to be a tropical solution for the fingers though; they just stay cold.