Log: 8/3

Tēnā koutou, tēnā tatou katoa. Voyage 937 is off to a good start. Everyone signed on in the afternoon, settling in and unpacking. After meeting all the crew, we set about familiarizing ourselves with the ship safety equipment before casting off. Our anchorage for the 1st night is Takutairaroa, at Motu ihe. Finishing the day with a dip in the sea before bed. Day 2 starts with a swim and the team are having a cleanup before getting into the day.

Log: 9/3

Morena whanau. Day 2 was awesome. After cleanup the team got into their first climb and learning how to speak sailor. Once all sufficiently familiarised we set sail north of Waiheke heading around to Opopo bay using the time to cover the last of the safety talks and play some name games along the way. Not long after the anchor hit the bottom, a bunch of the team hit the water. The evening was spent planning what to do with our voyage and finishing with a group taking the guitar on deck and singing together until the crew chased them off to bed.

Log: 10/3

Talofa lava, a big day yesterday and everyone is starting to feel it. During clean up we motored to motu Rotoroa where the team paddled ashore for games and to see the wildlife. After 3 days at sea we're starting to look at little wild ourselves. While ashore the crew left onboard shifted to the other side of the island meaning our rangatahi had to portage the rafts across the motu. From here they swam over 500mtr back to the ship while the rafts were towed. After a good kai we set sail in a light westerly across to Te Kouma harbour. On the way the crew practiced an emergency steering drill which it turns out required some teamwork and using all the trainees. Everyone was pretty tired by the end of the day so welcomed JRs (he's our cook) warm meal and a good night sleep.

Log: 11/3

Kia ora, friends and whanau. Our day started early with an activity affectionately known as boot camp morning. This involves everyone paddling ashore running up and hill then swimming back to the ship. By the time we'd cleaned after breaky the wind was picking up so we set sail for Aotea. Crossing the colville channel in 30 knots and 2 meter seas got the better of a few so the calm water of port Fitzroy was a welcome sight on arrival. The afternoon was a pretty chill time so a game involving play dough and a lot of yelling was the way we decided to finish off the day.

Log: 12/3

In the words of Dr Seuss "I know it is wet and the sun is not sunny, but we can have lot's of good fun that is funny". With a 50 knot forecast we decided it was a good day take a walk in the ngahere. The team walked up Hirakimata, Aoteas highest point, then sliped and slided their way back to the ship. It was impressive to see everyone in high spirits when they arrived back onboard wet and tired, proud of what they had just achieved. A few decided the best way to clean themselves was to jump overboard. The day ended with a hot roast lamb for dinner and apple strudel for desert.

Log: 14/3

Morena e te whānau. With all the stormy weather, we decided to stay onboard all day on Day 6. It didn’t make sense to go sailing either, so we set about making our own fun. Everyone took a turn climbing to the top of the mast, which is a great way for some to test the limits of their comfort zones. Those who weren’t mast climbing were learning a bit about navigation until it was their turn to climb. The rest of the day was spent writing letters to our future selves and doing leadership exercises. This morning we set sail again in a gentle northerly and headed to Kawau Bay, where the team set up the slide and rope swing and had a pool party.

Sofia, Stella and Alex say hi.

Peace. Out.

Log: 15/3

Ata mārie e hoa mā. Day 8 saw the ship steam to Mahurangi, where we set up the luggers (our little sailing boats). Two teams headed out in them to explore the harbour, while the other two teams went ashore to do a beach clean. It was super cool to see everyone jump at the chance to make a positive difference.

Yesterday ended with dinner ashore and a paddle back to the ship in the dark, finishing off a fun day with hot chocolate once all the boats had been put away.