Year 2 –13 January 2024 -New Zealand to Sydney- Day 8

Kevin and I were on the 11.00am to 2.00am watch and then on again at 8.00am. The night watch was quiet and we sailed on but not too fast so we would not arrive too early. We had an almost full moon which shone its light on to the sea and it looked like a painting. See the picture of the day.

I got up a little early and it was a nice day with a few white clouds. We had still not seen any shipping yet and we gradually drew closer to Sydney and Australia now some 150nm. We did the daily checks and things seemed fine. Most were up and Trevor made another cooked breakfast and we were getting through our eggs and bacon which we will have to give up otherwise on arrival.

As the day wore on we tried to slow Stormbird down as we will be too early otherwise and it proved to be quite difficult to get us to slow down enough. The sun was out and we enjoyed the weather even though we had some rocky waves. Most chatted in the cockpit and I looked at the entrance in the pilot book to Sydney and liaised with the customs who are directing us to their berth in Neutral Bay when we arrive.

We had a relaxed lunch and our 24-hour run was 169 to 12.00noon but we have been trying to slow down. I made a loaf of bread and we chatted about our arrival in Sydney. In the end to slow Stormbird down we took down the main completely and even reefed the staysail and we were still doing about 6 kts.

We had the last of the curry for supper and as we were getting nearer we saw ships drifting in the current on AIS and some rain and thunderstorms which we were tracking. Kevin and I were on at 8.00pm and started to be concerned about the traffic and our course. We saw lighting in the distance and hoped it would not get closer. There was still no sign of land and could see all the ships on the plotter on AIS. At one point we lost our position on the system and we got it back after a reboot.

We just have to slowly sail down to Sydney aiming to arrive outside the harbour at about 7.00am. In the meantime, we will have shifts where we are vigilant about traffic and ships and this will be very different than the night shifts we have had since we left NZ where there has been nothing.

We look forward to getting in tomorrow.

Need/Opportunity Year Two

I am in need of more crew from April to September so if of interest do email me at  hine.nick9@gmail.com  

In year two I will be going from New Zealand to Sydney and hen up the Eastern Australian Coast, Indonesia and then through Bali, Singapore and on to Thailand to end year two about the end of November 2025.

The blog will continue as we continue the journey. If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog then do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com