Whangarei, New Zealand

In case any one was worried we did not even feel the earthqhake that struck Christchurch in the south island. The news from down there is pretty dire and it will take them a long time to recover from this double blow.
We are getting ready to go back to San Diego on Saturday where we will spend the next month. It was good to get back aboard Callisto after our two weeks of wandering the North Island. One of the high points of the trip was our visit to White Island which is a an active volcano about 30 miles offshore. You can only get there by boat and the photos below do not do the place justice. It used to be a sulphur mine in the early 1900's until the volcano erupted and killed most of the miners. Lots of steam and sulphur emerging from fissures in the rock. We were issued hard hats and respirators which we needed due to the acid laden steam. The water at the bottom of the crater is said to have a pH of less than one and will disolve your shoes in rapid time.
White Island was a special place and on the way back to Whakatane we saw many dolphins and humpback whales.
Next stop was Rotorua home of redwood and larch forests and numerous mud pools and spas. The lake itself looked full of rainbow trout but unfortunately all the fishing guides were all booked up so I didn't get to try my luck with a fly rod. We also saw Lake Taupo which was quite touristy but very beautiful.
From there, we travelled up the Coromandel Peninsula but, unfortunately, the weather did not comply and we were not able to see much of the spectacular scenery due to rain and fog.
We ended the trip in Auckland and met some friends from the yacht Delos and we spent a pleasant evening reminiscing about out Pacific experiences.

North Island, New Zealand

Lake Rotorua

Lake Taupo

Huka Falls

Redwood forest, Rotorua

More redwoods up to 200 feet tall

Approaching White island

Mud pots, White island

Sulphur deposits, White island

Steam and sulphur, White island

The Admiral and I in protective gear with high pressure corrosive steam emitting from the bowels of the earth

Steam

Brown trout

New Zealand's pristine wilderness

checking my blackberry, New Zealand style

Whakatane, New Zealand

We are about a week into our road trip of the North island of New Zealand. We have been living out of suitcases for the past month and I'm looking forward to staying in one place for a little while.
Ann and I have travelled thousands of miles since leaving San Diego for London on January 12th.
After our London trip, I spent a few days on the boat and went down to Auckland to meet the Admiral and we took a look around New Zealand's largest city before taking the train to the capital, Wellington.
The train took almost 12 hours and was a very good way to look at the center of the country. The weather was a little overcast but we were able to see the varied landscapes of the the North.
We spent 2 days in Wellington and unfortunately the weather was windy, cold and wet which precluded any outdoor activities. Wellington was a wonderfully set out city, quite reminiscent of San Diego with a vibrant down town area. We visited the Te Papa National Museum which was excellent and it traced the history and natural history of New Zealand and the South Pacific and we had an excellent overview of all the places we have visited over the past year. On seeing all the exhibits, we had seen many of the places and people depicted which had special meaning for us.
From windy Wellington, we went up the East coast of the North Island to Napier, the Art Deco Capital of New Zealand.
Following a massive earthquake in in 1931 the entire town was rebuilt in Art Deco style and has preserved in that state ever since.
From there, it was on to Gisbourne where Captain Cook first landed in New Zealand in the 1760's. Again the weather was rainy and the town itself quite uninteresting, so we took off to Whakatane in the Bay of Plenty.
Whakatane is a small fishing and beach town and we took a boat trip to White Island which is an active volcano. The trip was fascinating and a full reprt and photos will be posted in a day or two.
The weather today is perfect and we are off to Rotorua and Lake Taupo.

Masonic Hotel Napier
Fountain on the beach in Napier

Bed and Breakfast in Napier

Art Deco Rothman Building, Napier

Movie theater, Napier

More Art Deco, Napier

Waterfall , Napier

Queen's Wharf in windy Wellington

Maori carvings in the Te Papa Museum, Wellington

Train ride to the south

Bucolic splendor of central North Island

Camden Lock, London

The London skyline from Primrose Hill on a wintery afternoon

San Diego sunset from our apartment

Auckland, New Zealand

The Admiral and I are in Auckland doing the tourist thing. I was up to Whangarei for a few days to check on Callisto and she seems to be laying in her berth at the Riverside Drive Marina without problem. She needs a good clean again but none worse for wear.
We have spent two days in Auckland and we leave tomorrow for Wellington by train and then will drive slowly back to Auckland and see all the sights of the North Island of New Zealand.
We should be back in Whangarei by the 20 th of February to await the Amel riggers who are going to do some mast work on Callisto.
Photos to follow if internet permits

San Diego, CA

I'm back in San Diego watching the US Navy move billion dollar aircraft carriers about from the patio.. We had a great trip to London and saw lots of family and old friends from my medical school days. The weather wasn't too brilliant but at least there wasn't any snow and it wasn't too freezing cold.
I'm leaving for New Zealand again today and we will probably tour the north island during February.
Will post again when I get there and some photos from England

San Diego CA

We have had a pleasant, lazy time in sunny southern California and now it's off to London tomorrow to see the family and some old friends. I never did get the statistics of our last year's cruise done but I will over the next couple of months.

San Diego

It has been a very busy month back in mostly sunny San Diego. We have spent time re-aquainting ourselves with family and friends and doing the usual chores associated with life ashore. We had four out of the five offspring with us for Thanksgiving, an unusual but enjoyable event and we then spent a weekend in Boise, Idaho to visit with Josette and attend the last Broncho game of the season. The whole town is Bronco mad and despite freezing weather and snow, thousands of fans showed up to watch their team annihilate the competition.

We also went to the Coachella Valley to visit some old friends and do the doctor , dentist , lab work thing.

The past week has been quite rainy and cool but it's Christamas Eve today and we have clear, blue skies again with temperatures in the mid sixties. Too bad for the rest of the country and Northern Europe who are having a tough time of things.

I am working on an overview of the past year and also some statistics and I will hopefully get this done by the end of this year and certainly before we go to London in the New Year.

We wish all of you Seasons greetings and all the best for the New Year.

Fuel transfer rendezvous with Pedlar
Land Ho, Whangarei, New Zealand
Whangarei Falls
North Island, New Zealand
Bay of Islands, New Zealand

Bored bonobos, San Diego Zoo
Panda bear, San Diego Zoo

Thanksgiving, San Diego

Broncho game, Boise State University ID. Josette (front and center, as usual) and the dance team
Josette