a girl back in auckland

We rode the tide all the way to Cape Colville and then again across the Hauraki Gulf to Rangitoto. Forecast was correct. Winter took a rest for 12 hours. Just enough to let us pass.

Anasazi Girl is now tied up at Te Wero Island (South) in the Viaduct Basin.  Visitors welcome.

Tormentina driving out the river mouth at slack tide, calling out the traffic ahead.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

Boys on watch.
Mercury Bay en route to Auckland, NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

eastern coromandel coastline

Mercury Bay, NEW ZEALAND (June 2013)

cook's oyster river

We moved back onto Anasazi Girl and stayed four nights at the visitor's berth in the marina while we waited for a good forecast to move the boat to Auckland.  This is the view of the Whitianga River from our berth.  The river and the numerous coves in this area provide a super protected spot for boaters to tie up.

When Captain Cook came to this area to watch the transit of Mercury and found the river teeming with oysters and shellfish, he quickly named this the "Oyster River".

Morning view of the Whtianga River.
Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

early birthday present

Tormentina's 5th birthday is coming up on July 2nd, so the big topic lately has been birthdays.
She made me this beach sculpture as an early birthday present for me.
Whitianga, Mercury Bay - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

moving day

Out of the shack and back on board Anasazi Girl.
Whitianga, Mercury Bay - NEW ZEALAND (June 2013)

last days in the shack

Busy babies in the shack.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND (June 2013)

jumpers

Tormentina and Raivo jumping off the rocks in the town park in front of the Mercury Bay Library.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

roasted ginkgo leaves

Tormentina made an imaginary fire and roasted her "marshmallows"of ginkgo leaves.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

LINDA.meiden june 2013

A photo of Laura Dekker sailing Anasazi Girl is featured in the June 2013 issue of LINDA.meiden (Netherlands) / Photo by Somira Sao

We took Edwin Delaat, Laura Dekker, George Brasell, and Daniel Tealmann out for a day sail on A. Girl last summer.  I was less than a month away from giving birth and down below watching the charts as the young sailors drove the boat with ease around Waiheke Island.  Nice to pass the sailing torch to the next generation.

Laura Dekker driving Anasazi Girl.
Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand (November 2012)

patagonia, inc. spring 2013

Tormentina and Anasazi Girl are in the current Patagonia, Inc. Spring 2013 catalogs (Japan & USA).

The clothing company is based in Ventura, California and produces incredible technical clothing - including an extensive kids' line.  All three of our children have been wearing the gear since they were newborn.  It's super durable and incredibly well designed for the rigorous + active lifestyle we have on the land and at sea.  It's also the only clothing we carry on our family adventures & ocean passages.   

coromandel relaunch

Relaunch is always a tense time.

How did Cook manage to sort everything out in his head?  Wonder how he dealt with stress?  His purpose for coming here to measure the Transit of Mercury with Charles Green probably got him well in tune with nature, the universe, and everything he needed to know about navigating this harbour and its river systems.

Dirunal tide.  Twice a day, that gives us a two hour window when the Whitianga Harbour is deep enough for Anasazi Girl to be lifted, launched, and moved down river into Mercury Bay's deeper waters.

Darryl Smith, the Whitianaga Marina manager asked us how work was progressing.  We told him everything was moving forward with the haul-out.  Our biggest stress was that if we had any issues with the boat after the launch, the time pressure to get in and out of the travel-lift slip was really tight, as was the time to get out of the river and secured to a safe mooring.

Darryl told us to relax.  The timing was perfect.  The marina was already scheduled to re-dredge some of the slipways that had been silted in due to the extreme tides.  He said he would make sure the visitor's dock was dredged first, so there would be a deep-water berth that could accommodate Anasazi Girl and any other deep draft vessels.

What a huge relief.  This would allow us to carefully check all the systems on the boat before leaving the protected bay.

On Thursday afternoon, after James prepared and painted the under-side of Anasazi Girl's keel bulb, the boat sat in slings overnight at the marina.  The next day, Darryl and Graham Murrell (who is in charge of the travel-lift operations & maintenance) showed up at 5:45 am, in the dark, to launch us.  A. Girl slipped into the water without a breath of wind or drama.

The kids and I met James at the boat later that morning.  We were no longer boatyard rats.  We were in the water:  E Pier, end-tied, floating once again.

The fresh paint and non-skid on the decks and cockpit felt good on our bare feet.  Rough on the delicate clothes and the soon to be crawling baby, but clean, safe, secure.  It would keep us firmly attached to the boat in wet conditions.

Tormentina and Raivo were happy to be back in their home space.  They took a break from sibling rivalry to get re-acquainted with the boat.  They measured their bodies' growth since we had moved off by hanging on the carbon grab bars, sitting up on the water tanks, and crawling through the quarter berths.  Their tiny bodies had grown, but they could still slip easily through the escape hatches, in and out of the transom.

I was blown away when they called out to me from the aft compartment to tell me, "Mom!  Everything is dry in here.  Dad did a good job."

Big relief.  We were back in the water.  The water was on the outside of the boat.  Thanks to the marina for their excellent service and support during our haul-out in Mercury Bay.

Anasazi Girl is currently end-tied to E-Pier.  Visitors are welcome.

Graham Murrell, Marty Pooley, and James remove the acro-props from Anasazi Girl's cradle area.
Whitianga Marina, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

Graham Murrell shifts A. Girl into position for launch.
Whitianga Marina, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

James under the bulb preparing the under-side for primer + paint.
Whitianga Marina, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

James, Mitch Pascoe and Karl Storey inspecting the underside of the keel bulb.
Whitianga Marina, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

A. Girl on the freshly dredged slipway at E Pier at the Whitianga Marina Visitor's Dock.
Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

runner river

hide & seek

Raivo seeking a hidden Tormentina, with Pearl asleep in the 50 Caliber.
Whitianga, Mercury Bay - NEW ZEALAND (June 2013)

rudders and bearings

James gives Anasazi Girl's rudders a fresh coat of Pettit Vivid Performance
Marty Pooley's Workshop, Whitianga
Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (May 2013)

New bearings from Russell Davis at Absolute CNC.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (May 2013)

Installed rudders, ready to make some more miles.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

Installed rudders & A Girl's slick bottom.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (June 2013)

gary baigent

James Burwick & Gary Baigent
Cox's Bay, Auckland, NEW ZEALAND  (May 2013)

Over the weekend we had a chance to spend a few hours in the magical scene of our dear friend Gary Baigent. Gary is the designer, builder, and sailor of the multi-hulls Sid and Groucho Marx, which are often moored in Cox's Bay.  He also built a two-masted monohull which he calls the Cox's Bay Black Skimmer.

Aside from having a passion for boats and sailing, Gary is also a very talented painter & photographer.  His work is part of the permanent collection at the Auckland Art Gallery, Te Papa, and he has been published in books including The Unseen City and The Sixties, featuring vintage photographs which document life in New Zealand in the 60's and 70's.

What a unique education for my kids to be in the mud at low tide with the sea creatures, these awesome boats, and listening in on the conversation between two old sailors.

Groucho Marx in the foreground, with Sid in the upper left.
Cox's Bay, Auckland, NEW ZEALAND (May 2013)
More about Sid from Owen Corely McKenzie:  HERE  

Sid is a lightweight foiling trimaran.
Cox's Bay, Auckland, NEW ZEALAND (May 2013)
More about Sid from Owen Corley McKenzie:  HERE

"precious cargo" show follow up

We took a three-day vacation from the Coromandel.  On Thursday afternoon we rented a car, strapped the kids in, and drove up to Auckland for the media presentation at Richmond Yacht Club.

We had a full house at RYC and gave away some awesome door prizes from all of our generous sponsors:  bottom paint (Altex Coatings),  freeze-dri food (Back Country Cuisine), Icon headlamp (Black Diamond Equipment), logo-wear (C-Tech), logo-wear (Doyle Sails NZ), 1-year subscription to UK's Seahorse Magazine (Dibley Marine Yacht Designs),  Harken Squall Bag (Harken NZ), product & work voucher (NZ Rigging), 1 free night berthage (Viaduct Marina), voucher for a haul-out, powerwash, hard-stand & relaunch (Whitianga Marina), 2 kevlar gear bags & logo-wear (North Sails NZ), Baltic 3-hook tether (Safety at Sea), & 3 shoulder bags (NKE Marine Electronics).  Sadly for the anarchist fans out there, the Sailing Anarchy prizes got stuck in customs!

We were happy to see the faces of so many friends in the crowd and flattered that everyone stayed until the end.  The best part of the night was Tormentina (age 4 going on 21) grabbing the microphone and putting in her two cents about what it's like sailing on Anasazi Girl in the Southern Ocean.  She is planning to do the next talk, so maybe we'd better ask for two mics next time.

Thanks again to our sponsors and to Trish Lewis, Bryon Wright, & Fleur Cox for organizing the show.  Our midwife Tina Patrick and her husband Jonny kindly put us up for two nights.  Our good friend Andy Ball (who also happens to be Tina's brother) let us stay on the Sea Harmony the night of the show.  We are so lucky to have friends in this world.

upcoming show may 24th, auckland

PLEASE JOIN US!

"PRECIOUS CARGO" The Second Voyage of Anasazi Girl

Photography by Somira Sao & Talk by James Burwick

Richmond Yacht Club, Westhaven Seawall, Auckland - NEW ZEALAND

Friday, May 24th 2013 @ 7:30 PM

Free Entrance & Door Prizes

maramaratotara bay

As the punch-list for Anasazi Girl's haul-out grows smaller, we have been able to drag James away from the boat-yard for some nice doses of nature.  The beach along Flaxmill Bay has crystal clear water, beautiful black sand, wild rock formations, and weathered Pōhutukawa trees.

Tormentina (age 4), Raivo (age 2), and James.
Maramaratotara Bay (aka Flaxmill Bay), Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (May 2013)

whitianga harbour at low tide

One of Tormentina's favorite activities is to comb the beach at low tide.  She carries in her pack a red pail and a Northern NZ Rocky Shore Guide so can identify what she finds.  The dress below is designed by Tormentina: a woman's cotton floral button-up shirt from the op-shop, converted into a strapless little number here for the beach. Other times it is worn as a paint smock.  

We are savoring these days of unseasonably warm & sunny autumn days on the Coromandel.

Whitianga Harbour, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND (May 2013)

Tormentina at age 4 - our happy clam in the mud.
Whitianga Harbour, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (May 2013)

"precious cargo" talk by james burwick, may 24th auckland

Following my solo circumnavigation via the three great capes East-about (including Cape Town to Cape Town), is the 2nd voyage of Anasazi Girl.  "Precious Cargo" is all about giving my children the gift of the sea and human connections in the major ports of the world.

portrait of laura dekker in our backyard

Laura Dekker after a healthy dose of South Island goodness.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (April 30, 2013)

shack rope swing

Tormentina (age 4) on the blue line.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - WHITIANGA (April 2013)

ben ditto & shawn reeder

Our good friend Ben Ditto (a kickass climber & photographer) recently connected us with a fellow photographer named Shawn Reeder who is currently shooting on the north & south island of New Zealand.  Check out Shawn's excellent time lapse videos HERE.

Shawn Reeder & the Anasazi  Girls.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (April 2013)

justin bastien

The backyard of the shack has become a regular stopping point for our traveling friends.

Last month, Ventura (California) based photographer, Justin Bastien came to visit us after a few weeks of surfing, caving, climbing, and shooting.  What a treat to have his positive energy here and to see his recent work.

Justin B. & Princess T.
Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND.  (May 2013)

wild child tormentina

Whitianga Harbour, Coromandel Peninsula - NEW ZEALAND  (April 2013)