Princess Wharf

4 November 2024

Princess Wharf

We are now en route to Sydney! After a maintenance period and Darwin Leader Week in Whangarei, we spent a few days in Auckland. We docked in the largest city of New Zealand at Princess Wharf – a small harbour in the city center.

This unique berth was made available by the Spirit of Adventure Trust. They conduct 10-day sailing voyages with their tall ship, the Spirit of New Zealand, taking 40 young people on board. As they say, their mission is “to empower young New Zealanders to reach their full potential through the challenge of the sea.”

In Auckland, we completed the last tasks of our maintenance period and restocked the ship. On the final Sunday before our departure, we held an open ship event. After some initial hesitation from passersby, the day picked up nicely: we welcomed several hundred Kiwis on board for a tour. After leaving Auckland, we set some sails while still in the harbor. The first day of our journey turned out to be a lovely sailing day, with smooth winds at Force 3. In the evening, the wind died down, and we had to start the engine—only for the wind to pick up again in the middle of the night, allowing us to set the sails once more. The forecast indicates that the wind will increase in the coming days. We are currently sailing 110 nautical miles northwest of New Zealand in the Tasman Sea, with about 1,000 nautical miles to go to Australia!