New Zealand Day 25 and 26

Yesterday was a busy day with the celebration of Judith's life, led by Varis and Wendy.  The occasion  was a major reason many of the US contingent traveled to NZ.  Varis was joined by 9 NZ relatives of Judith's along with the 8 of us from the US for a 3-hour sailing trip from the Aukland Harbour out to the Hauraki Bay.  The 50-foot sail boat was provided by Explore, and skippered by a captain with one mate, Naomi.  The weather was great, with a nice wind, and everyone who wanted to pilot the boat was given that opportunity.  Near where Judith learn to sail in the mid to late 1950's, Wendy, the one surviving sister, scattered Judith's ashes.  It was a quiet and dignified moment.

The sailing party - Varis, the locals - Wendy (Judith's sister), Christine, Beverley, Les, Margaret, Lesley, Peter, Cameron and William, and the US contingent - Jan, Leslie, Kathy, Betsy, Ron, Dennis, Mark, and me.

Pulling away.

Moving from the inner harbour to the outer harbour, under a drawbridge or what the locals call a viaduct.

An Explore sister boat, a former 12-meter America's Cup racer, raising its main sail.  Crewed by tourists.

The cranes at the container port of Auckland.

A historic lighthouse that originally had station crew living quarters.  Now it is automatic and powered by solar panels and batteries.

Underway with Cameron at the helm.

Auckland.

The scattering of ashes.

Varis with niece Christine.

"Traffic" in the harbour.

Coming back to port, we watched two new one-half sized NZ America's Cup boats, out on training runs.  

Up on the foils.

After the sailing trip, we headed back to the hotel.  Jan, Betsy, Ron and I walked home from the Devonport Ferry Station, which is accessed by a 12-minute ferry trip from Auckland.  The walk was 4 miles in distance, mostly beside the main road and with the traffic congestion, we kept up with the cars for part of the way.  We finally escaped via a side street and onto the beach for the last mile or so.  The very pleasant Emerald Inn is just uphill from the north end of the beach.

Varis continued the celebration by hosting a dinner at Aubergines, a restaurant that he and Judith had eaten in when staying in Takapuna and a couple of blocks from our hotel.  We sat at one long table and ordered dishes off the menu.  Lamb shank and baked snapper were the preferred choices for dinner.  Several bottles of wine were also consumed.  It was a grand affair and a fitting tribute to Varis' wife.

New day, the US gang (minus Varis and Mark), at Varis' urging, ferried from Devonport to Rangitoto Island, for a hike.  We walked 7.2 miles first along the southwestern shoreline, then east up to the summit, and then south back down to the ferry dock.  Rangitoto is a relatively new volcanic island, with a perfectly funnel-shaped crater with the rim (highpoint) at 850 feet of elevation.  The challenge was timing the hike - there is only one ferry going to the island (leaving at 10:15 am), and only 3 return ferries picking up passengers at 12:20, 2:20 and 3:30 pm.  We were able to complete the hike and exit the island at 2:20 pm.  There are no services, public facilities, stores, or anything but toilets on the island, so if one misses the last ferry, one is spending the night on the island, sleeping rough.  Mark remained with Varis and enjoyed the town of Devonport and local walks.

On the ferry.

Dropping off explorers (mostly young people).

Lava fields with Auckland in the far background.

The crater/summit.

View from the top looking toward a neighboring island.

The crater, though you have to imagine the funnel shape.

The highpoint.

An example of a lava flow at water level.

After finishing the hike, we caught the ferry back to Devonport, rode the bus back to Takapuna, and relaxed around the hotel's patio for happy hour.  The US contingent, plus Margaret and Les from Palmerston North, are all staying at the same hotel.  The eleven of us went for dinner to the Regatta Restaurant.