The McWilliam Family - Sailing Esprit

A Sailing Adventure

New October 11, 2009 We made it safe and sound to hot and humid Darwin! The earthquakes, tsunamis, and typhoons have all been north of Australia. We pray for the people who have been affected by these natural tragedies. We arrived here last week after a few days of cruising the northern coastline of the Northern Territory. While the bays were pretty, especially Coral Bay with its island that disappeared at each high tide, the anchorages were not the best. We moved on to Popham Bay for a couple of nights, as it is a good jumping off point for Cape Don and Dundas Strait. We left Popham Bay before sunrise using our GPS track to safely exit the reefs and sandy shoals. We rounded Cape Don with currents up to 4 knots bringing our boat speed up to 10 knots at times! The seas were flat calm and winds light so we motor sailed for the first part of the trip through the Van Diemen Gulf. We timed our entrance to the Clarence Strait perfectly with the tides - again seeing 8 to 9 knots! The strait was a bit tricky to navigate because the direction of the currents change as you pass the various islands and the islands didn't look anything like what we expected from the chart. All the islands are flat and have sand spits that extend off of them causing them to change appearance depending on the tide. When we came out the other side of the strait, the winds had picked up and were on the nose, and the seas were much rougher than when we entered the strait only an hour or so before! Although we changed course three times by over sixty degrees each, the wind stayed on the nose, no matter which course we were on so we still had to motor sail the last few hours. (Remember, if you want to know which direction the wind will be blowing from just ask the crew on Esprit which way they are headed!) We arrived in Fannie Bay, Darwin, at 8:30 PM where we dropped the hook and heaved a big sigh of relief while celebrating with our traditional beer and chips (soda for Jamie of course). That night it looked as though there were only two other boats anchored in the bay; it turned out there were actually quite a few boats anchored, however, they were anchored closer to shore in shallower depths than we can anchor in. Due to the up to eight meter tides here it appears that you are anchored a long way off shore at high tide or at night. One of the Darwin marinas had a problem a few years back with the Zebra Mussle that quickly multiplies and grows over everything, so all boats are required to be checked by Fisheries before entering a marina. We contacted Fisheries in the morning to see if we needed them to inspect our hull - fortunately, for a variety of reason, we did not require an inspection and were cleared to enter the marina where we had reserved a slip (the anchorages are not very good - either rolly or shallow and tidal). We fueled up that morning and changed anchorages to be closer to the marina which we were going to enter the next morning with the high tide. After anchoring we noticed that a car had rolled from the parking lot into the bay! Divers and rescue boats were on-site within minutes and were able to get the girl out of the car and get the car out of the bay. The next morning we navigated our way up stream to the entrance of the marina where we were guided by Keith, the lockmaster, into the lock. Darwin has such extreme tides (up to 8 meters) that the marinas all use locks to control the water level in the marinas. Some of the marinas along the northern Queensland coast could use locks too, to help with the depth problems they have, such as we experienced in Hinchinbrook Marina. Once through the lock, we docked Esprit safely into our slip. The marina is like a bowl surrounded by houses - unfortunately it can get a bit hot and stuffy because it is so closed in. We have been exploring Darwin some while getting our typical boat chores done as well. Yesterday after church we visited their Aviation Heritage Museum where they have a B-52 bomber on display as well as many other aircraft. Learning about their WWII history has been fascinating - there is so much we don't learn about in our history classes, that we are learning as we travel the Pacific. It is nice to read in Australian history about American pilots who went up into the air against incredible odds in order to defend Darwin/Australia against Japanese attacks. These pilots are treated as heroes with memorials built in their honor. As is typical throughout Australia, Darwin has several "markets" (swapmeets) with wonderful food vendors offering foods from Europe, Asia, and Australia. The Sunday market has great crepes, and the Thursday Sunset Market offers all varieties of asian and Indian foods. Of course, the markets also have arts and crafts booths.

October 6, 2009 Our first stop in Hinchinbrook Channel was at Haycock Island where we had some beautiful sunrises and sunsets. We also got eaten by sandflies. For those of you not familiar with these dreadful creatures, they are smaller than a grain of sand(walk right through window screens), bite worse than no-seeams and no-no's, the bite usually doesn't start itching for two days after you have been bit, and then will itch and stay swollen and red for at least a week! So on Tuesday we moved north to Scraggy Point. We tried to go up a side creek along the way that was supposed to have plenty of water depth for Esprit, but when the depth gauge read zero, we decided it would be better to "go hard astern" and back out into the main channel. There are ancient aboriginal fish traps made out of rock walls in the water near the shore at Scraggy Point. On Thursday we entered the Hinchinbrook Marina

at high tide and squeaked through the entrance channel with 2.2 feet under the keel! It's times like these that you want your water and fuel tanks almost empty! In our
berth we have only 0.7 meters at low tide and we need 2.2 meters (7 feet) to stay afloat, so at low tide Esprit is sitting in the mud -
"but it's really soft mud" according to the local knowledge. It's
like being back in Puntarenas Yacht Clup in Costa Rica! Chay finished
the varnishing, as he is now out of foam brushes - they really
do perform the best for varnish work - no bristle streaks. We've been taking care of business on the internet and plan to leave with the high tide on Thursday morning. The tides kept us here for a week waiting for a big enough tide during daylight to exit with! Jamie is enjoying it here because there is a pool and he can use his rip stick. The marina is part of a resort that is struggling to stay "alive" in today's market; they have recently lowered prices to attract yachts to the marina and buyers for their various properties. The town of Cardwell is about a 30 minute walk - it is a very small town out in the "bush" with not too much to offer except as a jumping off point for Hinchinbrook Island and channel. We attended Mass today - the priest said the Mass at warp speed (Jamie loved it!) and there were probably only about 20 people in attendance. The church itself is very small and simple.

We have discovered that the seagulls in Australia really do say "mine,
mine, mine", just like in "Finding Nemo"! It sounds pretty funny.

We arrived in Cairns after a few nights anchored at Fitzroy Island. We saw whales and dolphins along the way, and had a fish on the line which was apparently big since it broke the 40 pound test line even with a loose drag! Fitzroy Island is yet another example of an Eco-friendly Aussie resort gone belly-up. We did a short hike on the island in their "rain forest". In the narrow channel on our way into Cairns the Greenpeace ship "Esperanza" was on the way out, burning lots of diesel fuel and contributing to global warming after giving their employees a wonderful vacation in one of the most expensive resort areas in Australia! Cairns is very tropical - it is finally warm! - and is a clean, pretty, and alive town. It is clearly a tourist destination town with lots of things to do and see if you were on vacation. The Cairns festival is on-going so there is lots of activity including music each night right next to our berth in the marina! We will leave here tomorrow to continue our journey north - we stocked up on new charts (we had none from here north), provisions, and fuel. We won't be near a port again for several weeks so we had to stock up here.

After leaving Cairns we headed to Low Island where we were able to pick up a mooring for the night. The next morning we headed to Cooktown on the Endeavour River where Captain Cook spent 48 days repairing his ship "Endeavour" after coming aground on one of the reefs. On the way to Cooktown we caught
a large Albacore tuna that will keep us in fish for a while! Cooktown
is a very small fishing village which sits on the river front. The
anchorage area is very small and is considerably constrained by the
surrounding sand bars. At low tide slack we would turn sideways to
the current and get pushed by the wind onto the sand and go "bump, bump, bump". The first night at one in the morning it took us a while to figure out what was happening but we waited until 3 when it
stopped; the second time was during the day and we waited it out
again; the third time occurred at 1:30 the next morning and this time it sounded worse - the rudder was making a horrible sound as it banged against the sand bar! So, after two attempts to motor off the sand, only to get pushed back into the sand, we had enough. The channel was well lit, so at 3 AM we pulled up anchor and left for Lizard Island. Jamie slept through it all and didn't wake up until after 7 am! We had the best sail of the season on our passage to Lizard and arrived at 11:00 AM - just in time for our Sunday pancakes! We were exhausted from two nights of not much sleep so we cat napped in the afternoon, took a hike on the beach, and made an early night of it. Lizard Island is the first

truly good tropical cruising spot we've been to yet in Australia! Although the winds blow between 15 and 25 knots most of the time, the seas are almost calm in Watson's
Bay and the water is crystal clear and warm. Yesterday
morning we took a tour of the Lizard Island Research Station - it was extremely informative about the reef and we were able to find out about some good diving and snorkeling spots. In the afternoon we took advantage of crocodile free waters to clean the bottom - much easier than the last time we cleaned it, and with no sea sickness experienced by anyone. We spent happy hour on the beach with the other cruisers anchored in the bay. Besides diving and snorkeling, we plan to hike to Cook's lookout - this is where he discovered that there was a way out of the reef.

We hiked the hill to Cook's Lookout where we
enjoyed a 360 panorama view of the Great Barrier Reef and Australian coast line. This is where Captain James Cook climbed to see if there was a way out of the reef or if he would be "stuck" between the main land and the reef until the winds changed. Much to his relief he spotted the passes out of the reef! The funny thing is once he go out of the reef and in the open waters of the Coral Sea he thought it was too rough and came back inside the reef again further North! We had a couple of good snorkels and one dive at Lizard Island (Mermaid Bay) before taking advantage of a couple of days of very light winds to venture out to the outer reef. The first night we picked up a mooring at the "Cod Hole", at the north end of Ribbon Reef # 10, and dove with the large Potato Cod - Jamie & Katie were able to feed them some of the tuna we had caught while Chay took pictures. We were surprised to see how aggressive and quick they were and how mean they look! You
could tell they are used to divers feeding them. Jamie had is
secondary regulator start acting up, but smoothly transitioned to the
back-up octopus regulator before telling Chay he had a problem. Jamie is such an excellent, calm diver. The next morning, after a rolly night on the mooring, we moved over to Yonge reef (about 6 miles away) and anchored amongst the coral bommies in 50 feet of water. There was a coral bommy right behind Esprit which was perfect to dive - it went from 50 feet right to the surface and was like being in an aquarium! For you divers out there, we have finally reached 80-80-80 conditions (80 degrees air, 80 degrees water, and 80 feet visibility)! After the dive, we decided to head back to Lizard so that we could get ready for our passage north through the reef and around Cape York and on into Darwin. This passage will be very tricky as we navigate our way through very narrow passages in the reef and along the mainland via the shipping channel. We will have to be on extra good and accurate watch to make sure we stay in the channel and also to make sure we avoid the freighters we may pass or that may pass us. This will be particularly important at night. The currents can be quite strong at the top as we go through the Torres and Endeavor Straits, so we are trying to time our trip so that we round the top during a time when the currents against us (up to 6kts.) will be at their weakest. Other wise we will have a strong current against strong winds which makes for a very rough ride! It can get kind of tricky! We haven't done any overnighters all season so this will a dangerous change of pace for us. Very few Australians will even attempt a passage through these reefs at night!

Can't forget to mention that we celebrated Katie's birthday on Sunday the 6th with a caramel fudge cake - a nice relaxing day.

We departed Lizard Island as planned on Thursday morning
at sunrise. The latest weather report was calling for 15 to 20 knots
of wind, building to 20 to 25 max. We had no wind when we left, but after 8 hours of motoring the winds started to blow enough to sail. The Thursday evening weather report was a bit different than the previous one - now they were calling for the winds to build to 25 to 30 by Friday evening. By Friday morning's weather report the
meteorologists were calling for 25 to 30 knots of wind through Sunday and had issued a strong wind warning! Our first "night thing" on Thursday night turned out to be uneventful - moderate winds and seas and only one freighter early on. Jamie stood his first solo watch from 8 to 9 PM and then again from 5 to 6 AM giving Chay & Katie a little bit more sleep/rest time. Katie had a hard time waking Jamie
for the 5AM watch! On Friday the winds picked up some and the seas began to build. By Jamie's watch at 8PM we were consistently seeing
20 knots apparent (~25+ knots true) so Chay put a reef in the main
sail. The weather report called for 1.8 meter seas, but we were
definitely seeing double that! The winds continued to build to over
30 knots through the night. As we mentioned in a previous email, this passage through the inner reefs had many course changes, so when we were running with the wind behind us, it was a fairly comfortable
ride. However, when we changed course to where the winds were on our beam (side) or close hauled in front of us, the ride got rougher and wetter with green water over the boat. The second night we passed 5 freighters! One of them snuck up on Katie from behind, but fortunately its course took it into the a parallel shipping channel to
us and therefore took us out of harms way. Chay saw two freighters
slip streaming one behind the other coming at us in the pitch black,
and it took him a awhile to figure out that it wasn't a super huge
boat that wouldn't have fit through the channel! Although sometimes
less than a mile wide, the shipping channel is well marked with lights
along the way telling us where to change course, so when the light at Cape Grenville all of a sudden disappeared at a point where we had to make a 90 degree turn near midnight on a pitch black night our anxiety level went way up! This major course change at Cape Grenville took us from on the nose winds to winds from the stern - we were seeing 30 knot plus winds at this point! Chay got up from his 3 hour rest period and helped Katie navigate the course change successfully, while Jamie slept through it! By the next morning the winds were blowing 30 to 40 knot gale force winds with 10 ft (3 m) seas on what are commonly known as square waves due to the shallow depths. We thought the reefs would cut down the seas, but instead they made the seas much more confused when the winds piped up. This is the only morning that Jamie felt sea sick and could not complete his 5 to 6 AM watch (he was able to overcome the feeling without getting sick). Our planned course was to take the "short cut" through Albany Passage - a narrow passage at the northern tip of Cape York. We had planned this trip to make sure the currents though the pass would be in the same direction we were going and not the possible 6 knots against us and the wind. After 2.5 days of sailing, Esprit and her crew were 1 hour earlier then we had planned to be, and thus we were a bit worried about the current and what the winds might do, so were pleasantly surprised when the winds slowed down and the seas calmed. It was a very pretty transit through
the passage seeing lots of beaches and huge red magnetic ant hills,
and a nice respite from the roughness we were experiencing through the night. At the top we tacked west over Cape York into the Endeavour Strait - the winds were now blowing and gusting - we saw over 40 knots apparent(strong gale force) at one point but with the winds behind us and the short reach to shore it was not too bad. We then had to turn to port and close hauled to reach our destination and once again were taking green water over the boat from bow all the way back to the stern! We safely and happily anchored off Red Island at 3:30 PM - exactly the time we had planned! That doesn't happen too often. Last night we all slept hard - the best night's sleep in a while. Despite the howling winds, the Endeavour Strait seas weren't as rough as its reputation led us to believe they would be, and the passage through the inner reefs along the Queensland east coast was rougher than we expected! We are relieved to have that passage behind us, and are going to rest for a couple of days here before making the 700 mile passage across northern Australia. Although rough, it was exciting to make a passage again, putting Esprit and her crew to the test. We have realized that coastal cruising is not our preferred mode of cruising; while it's nice to be in civilization for a short period of time, we prefer the more remote locations and the time spent getting to them.

Most of the next leg is reef free, with a few shoaling areas to be
careful of at the beginning. As we approach Darwin we will have to
time the tides right again so that we can ride the flood for most of
the last 100 miles into Darwin. We plan to stop in the Northern
Territory before going past Cape Don so that we can time the tides
correctly. So now we will clean up Esprit - after all the green water
she took over the deck, she is covered in salt which is not good for
the bright work or the stainless steel.

It took us almost exactly 4 days to make the westward passage from Red Island to Port Essington (about 100 miles from Darwin) - we were able to sail wing & wing (main sail out to one side and foresail poled out to the other side) almost the entire trip with 20 to 25 knot winds out of due east, until the last few hours when the winds disappeared to almost nothing. We saw lots of dolphins, shooting stars, and caught another Albacore Tuna. The last pitch black night with no moon the winds just were not cooperating and we had to jibe several times to ensure that we were staying far enough off a couple shoal and reef areas. Changing sails in the middle of the night is always a challenge! To add to the challenge, the chart we were using for this passage is an old one - 1946, and it hasn't been updated with current satellite data. That's why we had to be conservative with our navigating. We have figured out that part of what we love most about cruising is the incredible feeling we have after Esprit and her crew meet the demands of a challenging passage.

We cruised this area of the Northern Territory - the Coburg
Peninsula - for a few days and then made the last 100 mile passage
through the Dundas Strait, Van Diemen Gulf and Clarence Strait into
Darwin - more passages with strong currents (up to 6 knots), so we
once again has to time it as best we could with the tides and winds and compromise on the best combination. The seas were calm and winds light so we motor sailed, sometimes hitting 10 knots when the currents were running at their peak. Fortunately we didnt encounter much counter current. When we cleared Clarence Strait it was as if we went through a time warp from calm

seas to rough seas within an hour or so.

August 16, 2009 While still in Horseshoe Bay, Jamie & Zachary (of BeBe) went fishing on Wednesday and caught a small
rock cod (we think). It was tan and covered with brown polka dots -
never seen one before; too small to keep so it was given back to the
sea. That evening the BeBe crew joined us on Esprit for "nibbles"
before they headed north the next morning. On Friday we took a hike to visit the WWII forts - we saw the gun emplacements, ammunition buildings, and command post, as well as lots of foundations for buildings long gone. This was manned by 155 men and women who were prepared to fight off the Japanese if they attacked Australia. Along the trail we were treated to a Koala sighting - we saw 3 of them in the Eucalyptus trees, one being a baby on its parents back! The baby kept looking around at the group of sightseers below while enjoying some eucalyptus leaves. We took the bus to the other side of island and hiked part of the way back. There are many abandoned construction projects in the marina area and prices are reduced by almost half for the lots and condos that are for sale. Yet more evidence of a declining economy and the effects of a socialist
government trying to partner with private industry. Magnetic Island,

or Maggie as the locals call it, is like a step back in time as far as
vacationing goes. The families and young folk just picnic on the
beach and rent water toys (kayaks, jet skis, hobie cats, etc). It is
very laid back!

We left Magnetic Island for Townsville Yacht Club Marina,
about 12 miles away. The seas were a bit sloppy, so the calmness of
the marina was welcome. We've washed down the boat (long overdue), explored the city by foot, done several loads of laundry (1 per day - you have to be the first load of the day or you might be in a long
queue, and you have to really watch the laundry to make sure someone else doesn't move it to a dirty spot - the marina is renovating and the laundry facility isn't the greatest but it works and the price is right), found some boat parts that we have been hunting for for months, went to see Harry Potter, and gotten a good start on the 8th grade school year. Today we attended Mass at the Sacred Heart Cathedral, a very beautiful red brick, recently renovated (2006) church. The Stations of the Cross were sculpted in USA in 1908 and are truly a sight to see. Unfortunately, our Yongala dive will have to wait; the dive company would not allow Jamie to dive the wreck (no one 16 or under). Diving in general, and this dive in particular, is one of those adventures we want to do as a family. So, we'll look for other diving opportunities. Jamie and the granddaughter of one of our fellow cruisers just launched the sailing dinghy to go fishing along the rock wall. We never know what each day will bring. We took a "bus tour" of the city, finished provisioning, laundry, and enjoyed Mass presided over by the Bishop. We also went to see the new Transformer movie - we highly recommend it. Chay finished up his varnishing for now - he'll continue when we find some more foam brushes (I think it was about this time last year that we were on the hunt for foam brushes too!). Jamie & Chay enjoyed a few afternoons
sailing in the sailing dinghy - Jamie is getting to be pretty
proficient at skippering! We had the folks on Elaine Marie over for
"nibbles" and enjoyed getting to know them - an Aussie boat we met at the Fourth of July party on the beach in Double Bay. They are from Melbourne and have some funny stories about the differences between the various Australian states.

We left Townsville as planned on Tuesday Aug 4th. After an 8 hour
trip with a mix of motoring in light winds in the morning and great
sailing in the afternoon, we dropped the hook at Little Pioneer Bay,
Orpheus Island in the Palm Island Group. Two manta rays joined us one day and swam around the boat for a while apparently enjoying whatever food was coming in with the tide. Despite a pretty strong current and a little bit of "seas", we managed to clean a good portion of the bottom of the boat; Chay and Jamie dove, while Katie snorkeled. Chay got sea sick while under water upside down under the boat while cleaning the bottom of Esprit. This may sound funny, but it is a common occurrence amongst cruisers who have to clean their bottoms in rocky/rolly anchorages. The bottom was developing a mini forest and was slowing Esprit way down and since we were headed for crocodile country we needed to do it then, rocky/rolly or not. Chay was able to get more of the teak varnished, while Jamie finished up another week of school and was looking forward to having a full weekend off. Saturday morning (8/8) we pulled up anchor and headed for Hinchinbrook channel. We timed our arrival with the rising/high tide since part of the entrance channel has 2 feet or less at low tide and we draw seven feet - we made it through, seeing 3 feet below our keel a few times. Esprit went much faster with her cleaner bottom. With Jamie's expert eyes we navigated ourselves through the wide, winding channel which runs between Hinchinbrook Island and the mainland. We anchored behind the small island of Haycock about a third of the way up the channel. It is like being on a jungle river ride ie. Disneyland or Tenacatita, Mexico, except instead of being in the dinghy, we are in Esprit! You
can hear the tropical birds talking, just like you hear in the old
Tarzan movies. This area is known to have "salties" (large salt water
crocodiles), so we are being extra careful. We took a dinghy ride up
a side creek, but didn't see any crocs basking in the sun. Chay &
Jamie are planning a fishing trip in the dinghy - the fishing is
supposed to be good here. They seem to have better luck fishing from the dinghy than trolling from Esprit so we'll see...It looks as if we are in for a spell of light winds (not enough to sail by), so we will hang out in the channel and it's many creeks for a while enjoying the pretty green "mountains" and tranquility of the channel while
attempting to avoid the crocs. We have to bring the dinghy up every
night, not due to possible theft as might be experienced in other
parts of the world, but because the aussie's share story's about the
croc's using inflatable dinghies as teething rings!! We moved north up the channel and anchored where the ancient aboriginal fish traps are amazing how they used to do things. One drawback of the channel is the number of teeny tiny sand flies (smaller than a grain of sand, can walk through window screens) that have a mean bite (worse than no-seeums and "no-nos" - the bite doesn't start itching for 2 days after you have been bit, and then itch and stay swollen for a week! We moved into the marina for a few days to check out the Cardwell area; Cardwell is a very small "bush" town with not much to offer except being so close to Hinchinbrook Island. We came into the marina with a high tide because they have a spot in the entrance channel that is only 0.5 meters a zero tide! Esprit sits in the mud in her berth at low tide because the marina has less than 2 meters throughout and we need 2.2 meters to be afloat!

July 17, 2009 After leaving Mackay we explored the Whitsundays. Our first night was at Goldsmith island where anchored overnight before moving onto Shaw Island.

We stayed at Shaw Island for a few pleasant days. We met Patty & Keith on "Speranza", an Australian couple who have been cruising the Queensland Coast for several years; it is always nice to gain some local knowledge! They told us we should go for a hike to Garbage Beach to gather some of the round rocks, so we did. After securing the dinghy on the beach (and after shuffling through the
stingrays to get there) we followed the trail marked with washed up flip flops and other plastic trash tied in the trees! Garbage Beach is just that, a rocky beach with lots of washed up drift wood and plastic trash! The rocks however are very rounded from the surf and we kept a couple of very nice ones. Jamie & Chay went fishing giving Katie the perfect opportunity to wash and wax the interior floors. They eturned two proud fisherman with about a 5 foot Queenfish in the dinghy!!! These fish put up a great fight and towed Chay and Jamie in the dingy all over the bay before giving up. It was huge with big eyes. Chay fillet'd it - it's pretty good, not too fishy, a bit like chicken. It is a different fish than the Queenfish along the California/Mexican coast. We decided to move northward to check out an anchorage called Neck Bay which turned out not to be so great, so we continued on to Gap Beach on the northern side of Lindeman Island where we took a very nice hike up to the lookout at the top of the island. The next day we moved on to Whitsunday Island where we anchored at Whitehaven Beach. This beach is about 3 miles long and is fine, salt-like, white sand. This anchorage is very busy with bareboat charters and tourist boats. We strolled the beach and played in the sand dunes before returning to Esprit for an extremely rolly night of no sleep. The next day was Father's Day and we decided to move "around the corner" to Tongue Bay to get out of the swell and roll so Katie could make the celebratory waffles for breakfast. This anchorage was also very crowded and rolly, but not so bad that the affles couldn't be made. After enjoying breakfast in the cockpit (less roll effect felt), we moved on again to the next island north - Hook Island, where we are now anchored in a nice calm anchorage. The winds were right for a nice sail along the way, and a few seconds of excitement as we came through Hook Passage with 3 knots of current and got caught in an eddy - as the words to one of Jamie's favorite songs go, "we went round and round and round". Here in the anchorage, we are surrounded by high forested hills and get to hear the parrots squawking and flying. Quite pretty, much like Vancouver Island in B.C. Canada. We continue to see turtles and dolphins, but no whales yet. In Macona Inlet we
were pleased to be able to visit with Randy & Sherri on Procyon we crossed the Pacific with them, and had not seen them for 9 months!  After leaving Macona Inlet, we anchored at Airlie Beach for a couple of nights so we could provision and get propane (which is critical to that morning cup of coffee!). The marina couldn't fill our propane bottle, so we dinghy'd and walked to a gas station to get it filled there. We couldn't find the gas station the first day, so we did it all over again the next morning. Not easy carrying a propane bottle for all those miles. We even managed to squeeze in a load of laundry before moving on. The winds were predicted to be northerly for a couple of days so we moved to Refuge Bay in Nara Inlet (next door to Macona Inlet) on Hook Island which offers protection from winds all the way around - if it weren't for hearing the bareboat charter boats complaining about their awful nights with
the northerlies blowing, we wouldn't have even known that the wind was blowing. Most of the anchorages here offer protection from Southerly winds, so anchorages with northerly protection are at a premium. Nara Inlet is very pretty. We took a hike up to an archeological site with aboriginal cave drawings, and Chay & Jamie tried their hand at fishing but with no luck this time. They did spot a "salty" (crocodile) though! We thought they weren't supposed to be in the islands - only on shore of the mainland. We took advantage of "calm" and got some chores done too- Chay washed & waxed the starboard side of the hull and Katie polished the stainless topsides. After the northerlies finished blowing, we moved around to the north end of Hook Island and anchored in Butterfly Bay. Chay & Katie did a short refresher dive while Jamie snorkeled; Jamie's tank had leaked all its air out, so he snorkeled above us. Chay repaired Jamie's tank and refilled all the tanks for the dive we were planning for today. After pulling up the hook, and moving onto a mooring (we were too close to one of the moorings), we dinghy'd about 1 mile or so to Manta Ray Bay where we all dove the reef with fair-to-good visibility - lots and lots of corals both hard and soft, as well as fish. We saw a couple of huge fish - about 3 feet long - that looked similar to angel fish. This time we noticed a slight leak in Katie's regulator which Chay will try to repair. We are all glad to finally have gotten far enough north to where it is warm enough to snorkel and dive. We motor-sailed to Bait Reef - along the way we had dolphins swimming along-side, Katie spotted a whale, and the Australian Customs plane contacted us requesting our boat registration information and our destination. We were fortunate to be able to pick up a mooring at the reef (there are only 5 public
moorings) that we were even more fortunate to be able to stay on for two nights (there is a 2 hour limit when the area is busy). It is quite an amazing feeling to be moored in the middle of the ocean with no land around! The weather cooperated and we had 2 days of light wind and calm seas. Each mooring has it's own "huge" fish that comes with it! The first day we dove the Stepping Stones - it was a great dive, with lots of different kinds of corals and fish, except that we went further than expected down current and had to swim back to the dinghy against the current! Lesson learned! Needless to say we slept well that night! Chay refilled the tanks so we could dive the next day at Gary's Inlet/Lagoon. This was a fun dive, particularly for Jamie who was able to finally walk on the bottom of the ocean with no fins! He has such fun diving! His diving skills shone more than once during these 4 days of diving - thank you to GR8Diving! On the way back to Esprit from the dive site, we were able to get up close and personal with a sea turtle. It got so close one time, we weren't sure who was more startled - us or it! We had drinks &   "nibbles" with Rachel & Adam of Caballero, an Australian cruising couple that we first met a month or so ago in Island Head Creek. We had heard from some other Aussie's that there is an annual Fourth of July Party in Double Bay - just north of Airlie Beach/Whitsunday. We were also told that Americans are not allowed. So of course, when the winds picked up out at the reef we had a beautiful sail on Thursday to Double Bay where we hoisted an extra large American flag and signal flags spelling out July 4 up the mast. Sure enough - there is an annual get-together barbecue on the beach that has been going on for 30 years! It was started by Americans, but an Aussie couple kept up the tradition. This year the number of boats was down to 9 from 30-40! But we still had fun. We played a game of toss the thong (the flip-flop kind) and Jamie won (but only after the tie-breaker, of course!). At sunset Jamie entertained the crowed by doing his fire-stick on the beach before the party broke up. It is always fun to get know new people. What struck us was how familiar the folks looked and seemed to us - as if we had met them before - must be something common about cruisers. We left Double Bay for Gloucester Island where we anchored for a night and checked out the resorts on shore that we had read about in the cruising guides. They were a bit of a let down, but it was good to see another bit of Australian vacation culture. We moved on to Bowen where we were able to get onto a fore/aft mooring for a few days to sit out some stronger winds; they had offered us a pile berth (a space between two pilings that you tie off to bow and stern) but we had never done one and its a good thing we didn't try - when we checked it out by dinghy we discovered that we would have had to be able to steer Esprit sideways to get in between the third row of piles in from the channel. Although very well protected, the Bowen harbor is very simple and "old fashioned". We explored Bowen by foot - it is just a laid back town that is spread out with wide streets. Bowen was used as the set for the Movie "Australia" because it closely resembles Darwin during the 1930"s. They have several large wall murals painted throughout the town depicting the history of Bowen which were interesting to see.   Once the winds settled down we departed Bowen for Magnetic Bay with a one night stop at Cape Upstart (about half way) and then another stop at Cape Cleveland at sunset while fires raged on the cape. The next morning we did the last 10 miles to Horseshoe Bay at Magnetic Island. On each of these legs we saw numerous whales frolicking in the distance. When we were at Cape Upstart we met the American boat BeBe (over the radio); the day we left for Magnetic they were underway as well and were able to catch a Spanish Mackeral which they invited us to share with them for dinner the day we anchored in Horseshoe Bay. It was nice to get to know Bill & Judy (from Houston) and their 8 year old grandson Zachary. Judy fried up some yummy fish dipped in beer batter! This is only the second American boat we have met while cruising Australian waters. Jamie enjoyed playing with Zachary -
especially the time spent on the "DS". The winds turned out of the Northern sector yesterday giving us a "hobby horse" ride - Jamie slept in the cockpit for part of the night to minimize the feeling of sea sickness. We could watch the smaller boats hobby horse their bows right into the water! During the night the winds moved around back out of the south and although the winds were howling this morning, the sea is calmer. This week we plan to explore Magnetic Island and then next week when the tides are right with a high tide during daylight we will move over to Breakwater Marina in Townsville (just 10 miles away) and explore another Aussie city. We need a high tide because the entrance to the marina is only 0.5 meters at zero tide and we need at least 2.1 meters to not run aground. This is also where we plan to base our Yongala wreck dive from.

June 12, 2009 -

Greetings from the just north of the Tropic of Capricorn! When we first returned to Esprit, we noticed tiny eggs on the deck. One was broken with nothing in it, but the other brought forth a baby gecko! Since then we have had at least 3 baby geckos on board - great for bug abatement. We wonder were Momma gecko is, and if she is the gecko we brought on board a couple of years back!

We left Bundaberg on Friday the 15^th of May and had a nice motor sail to Lady Musgrave, one of the southern most reef/islands in the Great Barrier Reef. The reef & island were great. We walked around the island and joined a tour group so were able to hear about the history and wild life on the island. It differed a bit (more politically correct) from the stories we heard from the local old-timer fisherman. The tour guide didn't mention that there had been a turtle processing plant there at one time, or that the pass that you enter the reef through had been man made, rather than natural. We snorkeled one afternoon and were treated to a turtle sighting. It was just hanging over a hole in one of the reefs watching our every move! It never did move more than an inch the whole time we watched it!

While getting Esprit ready in Bundaberg, Chay noticed some "tearing" feelings around the area where he had minor surgery in March. It kept bothering him, so we made the decision at Lady Musgrave island to go back to port, this time to Gladstone, to have a doctor take a look. We found a very pleasant, professional, and thorough doctor who suggested an ultra sound but thought the stitches were tearing the muscle; the ultra sound confirmed this. He told Chay to take it easy and let it continue to heal. After three days in Gladstone, and many long, several mile, walks (our legs and feet were killing us!) to the doctor's office and stores, we were ready to leave once more to continue our cruise northward to warmer weather. As a side note, Dr. Rigby made a point of shaking Chay's hand and letting him know that although the Aussies make fun of Americans, we Americans really need to be thanked for all the good we do in the world. As an additional side note, this Doctor and the Aussies in general (they talk about it on all their radio stations) are mesmerized by the US Space Program and can't understand why it is no big deal to people in the US.

The Australians are very friendly and helpful. Just one example of this was when we were waiting at the Medical Imaging Center. An elderly woman came in for a test; when she was finished the reception staff inquired as to whether she was ok to drive home right then, or if she would like to wait and rest a spell. They offered here a "cuppa" (cup of tea) which they most pleasantly served with 2 bisquits (cookies). When was the last time you saw that happen in the states?!

After Gladstone we had a day sail to Cape Capricorn (named for being just north of the Tropic of Capricorn) where we anchored for the night and celebrated being back in the tropics! The anchorage had a lot of current, so we swung funny all night long; makes for not a good night sleep when you are worried about swinging into the other large boat that anchored rather close behind us. But no worries, we were up the next morning and on our way to Great Kepple Island. Our 4 hour trip started out with moderate winds and low seas, and ended with 30+ knots and boisterous seas! We (Chay at the helm) sailed through the narrow, shallow passage and into the bay where we would anchor. It was quite the adventure! When Katie brought down the sail and dropped the hook, she was concerned the winds were going to blow her glasses right off! Because of the high winds our anchor was well set, but we had also had to deal with the rolling swells that the high winds cause. It is kind of like being under way while at anchor.

We stayed at Great Keppel Island until Thursday morning, despite the rocky/rolly anchorage we were in. It would literally throw you out of bed at night! We took a couple of long walks on the island exploring what it had to offer. There is a small resort zone where we found some bread (yummy bread at that) and butter, as well as some ice cream. The resort area was kind of depressing - it was pretty much deserted and the largest resort was closed down. It could be a very nice little get-away, especially since it is only about 10 miles from the mainland. We had cell phone coverage so we stayed a day longer than we would have liked so that Chay could participate in a conference call for Criterium related business. We left at sunrise on Thursday and motor-sailed to Port Clinton where we decided not to stop, but rather continued on to Island Head Creek. Since we knew strong winds were coming over the weekend, we wanted to get to Island Head Creek which offers protection in all winds. It is a lovely anchorage - at high tide you would think we were anchored in the middle of a large lake; at low tide (14 ft. difference) when the shallow, broad banks are exposed, it is clear we are anchored in a creek. And, this anchorage is nice and calm we were actually able to sleep - something we were unable to do in the rolly anchorage at Great Keppel! We met some very friendly Australian cruisers on the beach; one of them said he is the Mayor of Island Head Creek - he has been coming there since the 1970's! and just loves it. In our brief visit with them, we were able to pick up some tips about crabbing, fishing, where to find oysters, and which anchorages are good.

Time for some fishing stories...fishing has been a challenge as we need to pay attention to what Marine Zone we are in; Australia tightly controls fishing in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Zone. We caught a couple of tuna/mackerals, but threw them back because we weren't sure what they were. Chay hit Jamie in the head with one of them when he landed it on deck! No damage done to Jamie or the fish (these are big, thick fish!). We decided to keep the one we caught on our approach to Island Head Creek (we had done some research to learn that they are mackerel and that their edibility is "good"). As Chay was reeling it =
in, he noticed that Jamie's fishing line on the other side of the boat had gotten tangled in his line. That's never happened before! So, with his hip on his pole to hold it steady against the lifeline, he & Jamie patiently untangled Jamie's line from his line (Katie was amazed at the patience the two of them showed). Then while Jamie carefully brought his tangled line in, Chay landed the fish on deck , bled it, and filet'd it, but not without getting a lot of fish blood on deck and himself. While he filet'd it, Katie hung over the deck to fill a bucket with salt water(all while sailing along at 7+kts) to clean the deck with. Good thing Katie was tethered off, she overfilled the bucket and had a small battle to get it and herself back up on deck! Finally everyone was safe on board in the cockpit and the fish was in the freezer...Always an adventure on board Esprit!! To continue our fishing stories...Yesterday Chay & Jamie went trolling in the dinghy and Jamie caught and landed his first ocean fish all on his own - it turned out to be a Wahoo! Was Jamie ever proud, and was it ever delicious for dinner!

When we were in Gladstone, the doctor Chay saw also took some biopsies of 3 skin spots on his forehead, which turned out to be benign. However, Katie had the pleasure of removing the sutures - that was a first! It was especially challenging because the stitches were tiny! Everything looked good when she was done, and she didn't hurt Chay too much. Jamie assisted with flashlight in hand and by helping figure out where the tiny knots/loops were located.

When we left Island Head Creek, we had winds and tides fighting each other in brisk winds. Katie lost the shackle pin for the main halyard, and then after retrieving it off the deck (where she noted one of our geckos), she lost the halyard!! Not a good thing. Chay had to climb on the dodger and boom to unwind it from the stays. Once everything was under control we headed to Middle Percy Island. We timed our visit here just right good winds to sail by and then light winds while we were anchored for a few days. We visited Cathryn, the lease holder, and got to see the old homestead which was built in the early 1900s. She had many stories to tell! Jamie enjoyed feeding her pet goats and playing with her two dogs. That evening we had a barbecue on the beach at the A-frame and Jamie entertained the small group of islanders and cruisers with his firestick! He did an awesome job. The A-frame is a cruisers hangout and a must stop for cruisers so they can "hang their sign" in the A-frame; there were some boats that literally came in, dropped the hook, visited the A-frame, and then left the anchorage. The next morning we were going to pull up anchor to move on, the anchor windlass quit working; we dropped the hook back down and Chay went to work fixing it. He diagnosed the problem and was able to get it working again. At the same time, the generator stopped runningafter many hours of troubleshooting Chay noticed a loose wire hidden in the generators control box once that was put back on, it was up and running again. The following morning we moved on at 3:00 in the morning because the winds had switched around putting us onto a lee shore with only 2 feet below our keel and 2 hours to go before low tide! We arrived at Digby Island after a very slow trip with the tides and winds against us. It is not unusual to have 2 to 3 knots of current with you or against you in this part of the world as the tides ebb & flood. Good planning is essential to assure the flows are with you and not against the wind, which makes for huge seas. The anchorage was quite tidal and we pulled up over the anchor which made bringing up the anchor the next morning a little trickier. We had a wonderful sail to Mackay where we were going into the marina so that we could fuel up, provision, do laundry and sit out a couple of days of high winds. On our final approach into the marina harbour we wound our way through a maze of "motor vessels", otherwise known as freighters, which were at anchor outside the port. Jamie counted 44 freighters waiting to be loaded. It was nice to see that at least some countries have exports!

We are now at the southern end of the Whitsunday Islands so we will begin exploring these islands over the next week. We are more than ready to get further north where the temperatures will be warmer. It has been quite chilly the last few days but good sleeping temperatures.

May 7, 2009 -

Since our last update we snuck in a visit to Chay's mom. Jamie had fun playing with Grandmas dog tigger (he really wants a dog!). We brought home strawberry plants from Grandma's garden and planted them outside our front door - we'll see if they do as well as the carrot plants. Chay & Jamie then went on their annual fishing/camping trip. This year they went to Beaver Dam State park (about 4-5 hours north of Las Vegas); they were treated to a beautiful snowfall upon their arrival! Jamie learned how to chop wood, as well as how to shoot a bb gun. Not many fish were caught, but memories were made. A few days after they returned home, we left for Australia (April 15^th).

Hard to believe we've been here in Bundaberg almost 3 weeks already. Chay & Jamie finished the work on Esprit's bottom including some fiberglass repair and bottom paint touch-up. We got the sails back on without blowing out of the hard stand and gently splashed back into the water a little over a week ago. Oh, it is so nice to be back on the water again. We've been busy getting Esprit ready to cruise - the biggest challenge was getting the electrical transformer installed and wired to allow us to use Australian power. Between West Marine & Chay, it is now working properly.

Jamie has been enjoying playing with his mate Henry in their fort in the sand/dirt pile down the road from the marina. If not there, they are skateboarding/rip-sticking around the marina. Jamie turned 12 on May 1st - we took him & Henry go-karting; Jamie has a new love in go-kart racing! Henry & his family joined us for pizza and cake that evening. Summer school began May 4^th and, although it isn't Jamie's favorite activity, he's getting in the routine again and doing well; this is just the warm up for 8^th grade which will begin after the 4^th of July holiday.

On the weekends we have rented a "rent a wreck" and have been able to not only grocery shop, but have been able to attend church on Sunday morning (7AM!) and then have gone to the large open market at the Shalom Catholic High School where they have wonderful fresh produce. Bundaberg has multitudes of farms which grow all sorts of fruit and veggies in addition to the ever present sugar cane. So, slowly but surely we are getting Esprit's galley well stocked.

We were treated to a kangaroo sighting one Sunday morning - apparently they hang out at the Heads right in our "back yard".

Since our arrival, the Australian's have celebrated two public holidays - ANZAC day (similar to our Memorial Day) and Labour Day. ANZAC day is taken very seriously - most everything was closed - and the church's have special services and the people march in honor of their veterans. It started after the Great War (WWI), but now honors all veterans. The other refreshing thing here is that most stores also close on Sundays.

One draw back so far are the mosquitoes and sand flies! If not careful, you can start to look like you've come down with a case of the chicken pox - especially if you scratch! Needless to say, we are taking extra precautions.

Our plan right now is to stay here through Mother's Day, then head out, weather beholdin, to cruise to Lady Musgrave Island as our first stop as we work our way up the reef.

March 15, 2009 - Time sure does fly! We had a calm, quiet Thanksgiving at our cabin in Big Bear....we enjoyed family time as we decorated both the Big Bear and Boulder City houses for Christmas...once again we (as Criterium-McWilliam Engineers) participated in the Boulder City Christmas Parade of Lights with the Porsche decked out in lights and Jamie sitting through the sun roof throwing candy canes to the kids....We took our granddaughters Trinity (6) & Tasha (3) on the Santa Train Ride here in Boulder City....Tasha loved the trains, but wasnt too sure about Santa!...Our Criterium family joined us for our annual Christmas party....Nueva Vida (our cruising friends from Vancouver Island, Canada) were able to visit for a few days.... it was great to spend time with them....Amy & Beau and their two daughters joined us for Christmas dinner....Tasha just loves running the trains with Grandpa and Trinity loves playing with Uncle Jamie....Chay & Jamie were treated to a night at the UFC fights with Amy & Beau quite the experience!...off to Buffalo for our 16^th wedding anniversary.....it was coooolllllldddddd!!!!..but great to spend time with Katie's mom and brother and his family..Katie's niece Sarah joined us for ice skating at the outdoor rink in downtown Buffalo and had a great time... it even snowed lightly, adding to our wintertime experience....Katie's mom threw a surprise party for our anniversary so we were able to see most of Katie's Buffalo family including aunts, uncles, and cousins galore which was a really good time....We had a pleasant visit with Chay's mom and sister at the end of January....Jamie competed in the National Black Belt tournament in Los Angeles bringing home a first & third....since Jamie was studying about the Catholic missions in California as part of his history class, we visited the Mission San Juan Capistrano with Chay's mom - truly a peaceful bit of history.....Valentine's Day was spent in Vancouver Island, British Columbia with our friends Nueva Vida on their boat.....snow and ice on the docks!!...Jamie was able to share his taekwondo competition experience with Arlene, Nathan & Tyler .....he took two firsts!....We once again had a great time visiting with this wonderful family....Jamie got certified for scuba diving - his instructor said Jamie could be his dive buddy any day!...Chay & Katie took a wreck diving class so now we can all enjoy the adventure even more!...we've been busy with annual doctors appointments as we prepare to return to Esprit....Trinity & Tasha enjoyed a couple of sleep-overs with Big Daddy, Grandma & Uncle Jamie....Jamie successfully tested for his 2^nd degree black belt which included knowing all of his lower rank material and breaking 4 boards....Katie moved from purple belt to blue belt but not before successfully breaking her first board (and getting a very bruised arm).....Jamie completed 7th grade and is now an 11 year old 8^th grader... he and Katie are enjoying their school break.....Jamie ended his tournament year at Spring Nationals here in Las Vegas with a first in weapons and second in forms....Katie walked in the "March for Life" to raise funds (she raised over $1,000!!!) for First Choice Pregnancy Services, a pro-life Christian clinic in Las Vegas....All of this is in addition to tending to our business... Chay has taught many continuing education classes for Realtors and continues to do inspections....We head back to Esprit in April for a season of cruising the Great Barrier Reef and other wonders of Australias eastern coast....

December 1, 2008...Well, here we are back in Boulder City, NV. Since we last wrote we enjoyed the very French city of Noumea including attending Mass at the Cathedral, visiting the Aquarium and New Caledonia and Maritime Museums, and of course consuming too many croissants especially the chocolate ones! Jamie had his McDonalds fix and was able to spend some more time with his friends on Bauvier and Wakalele. The anchorage was the race course for the New Caledonia yacht clubs weekly "beer can races" this made for some exciting moments as the racing boats maneuvered through and around those of us at anchor. We all enjoyed one last traditional Friday night pizza night on Esprit before going our separate ways. Wakalele returned to New Zealand to start a new life as innkeepers of a ski lodge and Bauvier followed us by a week to Australia where they were headed to Sydney for the holidays with cruising friends they met on their 2006 crossing. Our trip to Australia was a good one and we celebrated our land fall in Bundaberg with our traditional beer and chips, but only after clearing customs and quarantine which proved to be straight forward. They didnt take our buttered microwave popcorn as we had feared they might guess we didnt need to eat 3 bags before customs arrived! We saved the champagne to share with our friends on Bauvier who arrived a week after we did. Our time in Bundaberg was short but fun it is a delightful city much bigger than we thought. We took in the Shalom High School Market (swap meet), attended church, and did some sight seeing of the surrounding area. Jamie made a new friend, Henry, and along with the boys on Bauvier spent hours "just playing." Everyone is extremely friendly and helpful and everything is cheaper than in New Zealand or the islands. When we werent playing tourist we were preparing Esprit to be left on the hard for a few months while we traveled back to the states for the holidays. We cleared the decks and took everything down on the outside including sails, dodger, cockpit enclosure, surfboard, etcThe haul out went smoothly and the yard did an extremely professional job of putting Esprit in the cradle. Hauling out is always a nerve racking experience especially for Chay who has to do the maneuvering of Esprit while Katie makes sure we stay off the pylons. We missed Jamies on-board assistance this time since he was on shore photographing the haul-out process rather than helping us on board. Then we began our long trip back to the states3 nights in a motel in Bundaberg since we couldnt stay on Esprit in dry storagea shuttle bus trip to Hervey Bayan airplane trip to Sydney1 night in a motel in Sydney2 flights home from Sydney to Las Vegaswe think making a passage is easier! Since we arrived home in Boulder City on October 28^th we have celebrated Halloween and taken a trip to the mountains of Big Bear, CA where it unexpectedly snowed and Katie & Jamie had to push the car up the hill!! Jamie is continuing his home schooling, attending youth group at church, and is getting back into his Karate routine. Chay and Katie are busy marketing our business to keep it going through these down times and now we are getting the house ready for Christmas and the holidays. We spent the Thanksgiving Holiday in Big Bear and are looking forward to spending time with family and friends, including the crew from Nueva Vida, over the Holidays.

New - October 19, 2008 - almost exactly five years after embarking on our adventure from San Diego with the 2003 Baja Ha Ha we have completed our crossing of the Pacific Ocean!! We arrived safe & sound on October 14th after a 5 day downwind sail into Bundaberg, Australia. This most recent passage marks the successful completion of our crossing of the Pacific Ocean with over 20,000 nautical miles under our belt - from San Diego, through Mexico, Central America, Ecuador, Galapagos, Marquesas (four islands), Tuomotus (two atolls), Tahiti/Moorea/Raiatea/Tahaa/Bora Bora, Tonga (all three island groups) , New Zealand, Fiji (seven different islands), Vanuatu (three islands), New Caledonia (four islands), to Australia. During our 5 years of cruising the Pacific we have sailed the Sea of Cortez, Gulf of Tehuanapec, Gulf of Panama, Tasman Sea, Koro Sea, and Coral Sea. Esprit has more than demonstrated her sea worthiness as she took us through the spectrum of sea and weather conditions - from becalmed flat seas en-route to the Galapagos from Ecuador, to boisterous, confused, washing machine-like seas with 45 knots of wind en-route to and from New Zealand. The adventure has had unexpected surprises, many boat repairs, some disappointments, but overall it has been an experience of a lifetime and an education for Jamie unlike no other. We have made many new friends from all around the world and are looking forward to exploring more oceans and new places, as well as to
meeting new folks as we continue our adventure.

October 2008 � Since we last wrote, we checked out of Fiji. After walking around Lautoka a bit and spending a restful night in Momi Bay, we departed for Vanuatu Monday morning August 26^th. We had an uneventful, quick, 3 day sail to Tanna. However, we couldn�t slow Esprit down, so we arrived at 1:00 AM! Due to the numerous reefs at the entrance, we hove to outside Port Resolution and waited for daybreak to head into the anchorage. We were excited to find our friends on Jade anchored inside whom we hadn�t seen for over 2 years!!! The highlight of Tanna is the volcano which is quite active � we were able to visit it one late afternoon/evening and witness its awesome power � smoke, flaming boulders spewing out, and lots of loud, rumbling noise as we stood on the lip of the crater! It was quite the incredible experience. On Monday we, along with the crew of 7 other boats, took a �taxi� to Lenakel to check in. It was quite the ride in the back of a four wheel drive pick-up truck through rough jungle, mountainous barren/ashen desert, and coastal terrain. We only got stuck once! We made several stops to complete the check-in process, did some shopping at the fresh produce market, and had a nice lunch at a small local restaurant, and then made the three hour return trip to the anchorage. We took several walks through the village, visited the small, but informative museum, and explored the beach, including the wreck of a sailboat that didn�t make it through the reefs during a storm. The anchorage got very rolly due to a large ocean swell caused by a huge 1049 high pressure system south of us, so we headed north to the next island in Vanuatu, Erromango, where we anchored in Dillon�s Bay which was protected from the swell and quite calm. We went ashore and greeted the chief who welcomed us to his village. The village is in a very pretty river valley that we took a hike along and got to see the locals doing laundry and taking a dip in the fresh water. Chay helped one of the local men troubleshoot/repair is solar panel charging system. They are given technology to use, but aren�t given the training they need to operate and maintain it. We sailed from there to the busy, city port of Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu. We spent the first few days (including Katie�s birthday) anchored around the corner at Hideaway Island before obtaining a mooring at the marina. Port Vila is a bustling town with a European feel to it. Jamie enjoyed spending time with several �kid boats� and making new friends from Belgium, New Zealand, and Australia. Unfortunately, we had to say our farewells to Jade who are working their way north to Japan and home to Hong Kong! We decided to join a rally to New Caledonia because it was going to the beautiful, atoll/lagoon of Ouvea in the Loyalty Islands where a special check-in had been arranged. As this was one of the main islands we wanted to visit, it was a pretty easy decision to make. The only drawback was that check-in was for Monday, Sept 15^th, which meant leaving on Saturday during a very squally, wet weather window. We saw 35 knots of wind on the nose much of the way, and blew out (shredded) our genoa foresail about 4 hours out of Ouvea! Everyone in the fleet (35 boats) said it was one of the worst passages they had ever had! Ouvea was just as beautiful as everyone had described it! We enjoyed a Kanak feast (local New Caledonian), a tour of the island that unfortunately was a bit of a bust, but a good way to get to know the other cruisers, and a barbecue on the beach with several of the other �kid boats�. Several local children joined us which made it all the more special. A few of the girls took a liking to Baden, on Chaotic Harmony, and Jamie � uh-oh! The boys were quite embarrassed and wanted nothing to do with it. Our next stop was the Island of Lifou where we anchored with 5 other boats from the rally. We were able to catch a ride to the town of We to do some provisioning, get some money, and see the small marina where several cruisers stop. The kind man who drove us was a Swiss teacher who was on sabbatical doing research on integration of Kanaks into the French schools. At Jamie�s suggestion, we enjoyed a dinghy raft up lunch with 4 other boats, all from New Zealand, who had never done that kind of dinghy pot-luck event before! It was fun to pass on a cruising tradition. We were anxious to catch up with our friends on Bauvier, so we did an overnight trade winds on the nose passage (23 hours) to the Isles de Pins at the southern end of New Caledonia. However, when pulling up anchor in Lifou our windlass broke so Chay & Katie had to bring the anchor up by hand with Jamie at the helm. We were greeted by Bauvier who hosted a wonderful extended happy hour on their boat, where we, along with the family on Wakalele, were able to share stories and catch up, and the children enjoyed playing together. Of course before we could enjoy that gathering we had to anchor by hand which turned out to be extra difficult because the chain was all tangled in the anchor locker after our rough ride south � so with Jamie at the helm again, Katie in the anchor locker below deck, and Chay on deck feeding the chain out we finally set the anchor! Jamie is getting to be such a great skipper, able to easily maneuver a 33,000 lb. boat in tight quarters! Needless to say Chay spent the next two days fixing the windlass! During the rest of our stay in Isle de Pins we enjoyed crepes and coffee on Wakalele, a barbecue on the beach, pizza night on Esprit with Bauvier and Wakalele, and a torrential rainstorm which of course hit at night with high winds! We also took several hikes around the island exploring the old prison ruins (where French political dissidents were sent in the late 1800�s) and trying to find the path to the top of the �mountain� (we never did find it). Jamie enjoyed playing on the beach � especially in the tree that they could climb in and build �houses�. We are now anchored in Noumea, the capital of New Caledonia, where we arrived yesterday after a beautiful sail! We broke the trip up into two parts from Isle de Pins � the first night we anchored in a very muddy, but fairly calm, anchorage that was full of flies! We closed the hatches and stayed below decks! We are preparing for our passage to Australia with the usual long list of things to do before leaving on that 800 mile passage. We are already watching the weather and trying to time the next high pressure system (hopefully not too high) that comes across from OZ.�.Next time we write will be from Bundaberg, Australia�

August 23, 2008. We arrived back in Fiji on July 7^th and left Savusavu on the 14^th for our Fijian adventureour first stop was the Cousteau anchorage just a few miles from Savusavu where we cleaned the bottom of Esprit and did some snorkeling before heading out for a day passage to Makongai. We had a boisterous trip to Makongai and caught a Mahi Mahi en routewhile the winds continued to howl we explored Makongai and its bay. By land we hiked the ruins of the leper colony (kind of eery) and the hills of the island. By sea we snorkeled and enjoyed seeing the giant clams. We moved on to Levuka the original capital of Fiji where we enjoyed 2 days of walking around and provisioning before moving on to Kandavu and the Astrolabe ReefLevuka was quaint it looked like an old western town.our passage to Ono in the Astrolabe Reef was an overnighter and turned out to be a quick, crazy ride . We were glad to set the hook in the nice calm western anchorage of Ono island. Here we were greeted by the acting chief and his family. We enjoyed a hike with the chief and had him and his wife on board for a little bit of fishing and dinner. With the weather about to change, we moved to the anchorage at the north end of Ono where we truly enjoyed the Fijian welcome. One of the families treated us to a wonderful Fijian dinner in their home. Our last stop in this island group was Daku bay on the Island of Kandavu where we visited the village and were invited to participate in the celebration of the chiefs 70^th birthday what a special experience. Katie joined the women cooking while Chay & Jamie joined the mens kava ringChay sat up front with the chief during the mealall in all our Fijian village experiences were awesome the Fijian people are very friendly and gracious! Next stop on this leg of our trip was the Bengga lagoon and the island of Yanuca where we enjoyed the hospitality of Sharon at her resort and were able to do two great dives. The first dive was on a wreck at 70 feet and the second was on coral pinnacles we all enjoyed these dives tremendously! After a few days here we moved to Natandola before the winds picked up at Yanuca (the anchor was just sitting on the bottom and was not going to do much good in stronger winds) . Natandola was windy but fairly calm with some rolling As Jamie said, "it kind of felt like we were underway while standing still". After two nights we woke up and Chay said, "lets go to Musket Cove". We stayed in Musket Cove for 2 weeks where we enjoyed some snorkeling with the biggest variety of colorful fish we have seen yet, completed boat chores,, (replaced the steering cable which was in very bad condition lucky we made it through the reefs) school, did laps in the pool, and enjoyed great cruiser barbecues each evening. We left Musket Cove on the 21^st and headed to Port Denerau which turned out not to be a great anchorage (we dragged anchor along with a number of other boats) so we moved out around the corner in the Bay just off the Nadi International Airport where the holding is very good. We provisioned yesterday and will do some more today. We plan to check out on Monday for Vanuatu and leave on Tuesday if the weather holds.

July 1, 2008 -

Bula! Since we last wrote we have updated the website (www.sailingesprit.com), checked-out of New Zealand, crossed the Tasman Sea/South Pacific, and are now safe &sound on a mooring ball in Savusavu, Fiji. We enjoyed our stay in New Zealand primarily because of many of the nice people we met. We will miss them.

We watched the weather everyday and determined it was best to go on Monday, May 5th, rather than wait a week for a "better" window. The thought of yet another rainy, cold week in NZ just didn't compare to the thoughts of the warm, drizzly, tropics. It was so chilly in NZ that it "rained" inside the boat from all the condensation! We left NZ on Monday morning May 5th to rough seas and squally weather. Unfortunately, Chay & Jamie both came down with sea sickness which we quickly remedied with Phenergan suppositories (they work miracles!). We had a huge low pressure system coming behind us from the south that we knew we had to beat by getting as far north as we could as fast as we could so we would not get caught in 30 to 45 knots on the nose. As noted earlier - the properly installed prop definitely came in handy! We motor sailed for a few days and just when we thought we clear of the front, it caught us! The angels were watching however, as the winds settled to 23-24 knots and the seas stopped rolling just long enough for Chay to put in the second reef! Then we noticed two things that were not good - strong gas fumes and water flowing from the stern down into the bilge, both which caused great concern! We quickly tore apart the stern bedroom to find the source all while being bounced around as if in a washing machine - the water source was from a leaking/overflowing lazarette/locker storage area on the stern that proceeded to overflow into Chay's clothes cubby, our shoe locker, and 3 other storage areas! The gas was from the dinghy engine gasoline jerry jugs which were stored in the leaking locker. Fortunately we were able to air the boat out of the nasty fumes before anything worse transpired. Then when that was all "settled" the front caught us and we had a couple of hours of 35-45 knot winds and rain on the beam instead of the nose (our strategy worked!). We took lots of green water over the deck and were very glad to have our new dodger/cockpit enclosure to keep most (not all) of it out. After the front passed the seas began to calm and we had a pleasant sail into Fiji. Our friends on Quantum Leap caught us and we each photographed the other before Quantum Leap passed on ahead of us (she is a 51 foot catamaran that can go faster than us). The only other thing we saw was a 50 gallon drum floating along nearby - good thing we didn't hit it. The air was finally warm and we put the sweatshirts, gloves, and hats away - it was shorts and t-shirts time again, yeah!!! At Katie's request, Chay made bagels on Mother's Day (not so easy on a rocking boat)- Jamie beaded Katie a beautiful eye glass holder (the kind that keeps the glasses from falling off). We arrived in Savusavu, Fiji on Monday, May 12th at noon - almost exactly 7 days after leaving NZ. As Chay so aptly stated - it was like we had died and gone to heaven. It is wonderful to be cruising again!!! The anchorage and weather remind us a lot of being in Bahia del Sol, El Salvador! Tonight we will attend a seminar put on by the local cruising "guru" where we will find out all the great anchorages to go to enjoy the wonders of Fiji.

After checking in on Tuesday the 13th, most of our time was spent doing boat chores like sealing the chain plates, repairing/modifying the lazarette drains to drain much! better, polishing the stainless, etc. Jamie has switched to summer school which means he is only doing math and science; he'll resume his normal school year in mid-July. He was given a broken down 2hp dinghy engine in Opua which he has successfully repaired, with Dad's help, despite the fact that it was in the lazarette underwater for a week! He mounted it on his sailing dinghy and is like a boy with his first car! He has also launched his inflatable kayak that Santa brought him so we have quite the fleet floating behind Esprit. He is anxiously awaiting the arrival of Bauvier (the Belgian boat with 2 boys his age) so they can go exploring. The town is small but has the basics-it really comes to life on Saturday morning when the market is going strong. We were a bit disappointed in the market's fresh produce selection - all the stalls have the same selection. We will go again this week to buy the kava root to give as sevusevu to the chiefs of the villages where we will anchor. A proper sevusevu will break down all barriers between you and the locals and they will provide assistance willingly; however, if you don't do sevusevu with the locals, they will probably ask you to leave their anchorage. We must have the chief's permission to anchor off their village as well as to visit their village.

Sunday is very much a day of rest for the Fijians so we are trying to follow the local custom as well. The only problem is it is sunny today with no rain so we are getting a few jobs done that can only be done when it is not raining. We roasted a chicken and had our friends John & Linda from Hawkeye over - they are the folks we buddy boated with for several months in 2006 when we crossed the south Pacific. It was great to spend time with them again.

Katie went shopping with Dorothy (from Bauvier) and bought Chay and Jamie their sulus to wear when we enter the local villages to request permission from the chief to anchor in front of their village. Sulus are traditional Fijian wrap around skirts - Chay got black and Jamie grey. Katie also bought herself one, but hers is just a very colorful rectangular piece of fabric that she will wrap around her shorts to cover her legs. We all must dress modestly in the villages which means no legs or shoulders exposed for Katie, and no hats or sunglasses for Chay and Jamie! Fortunately if you explain you are wearing the hat for medical reasons they will say ok and you won't offend them. On Friday night we attended a wonderful BBQ put on by the local businesses as a fund raiser for the Optimist sailing club for the local kids. It was delicious. Jamie then joined the local children for sailing on Saturday but there was not enough wind so they had a paddling race! He also played rugby with them. It is fun to see him engage in the local activities. Last night a local guitar band played around a yangona bowl at the yacht club. We enjoyed their music while having the local "Inferno" pizza. Jamie was befriended by an older Fijian gentleman who had the band play a farewell song for us; he also said for us to contact him when we get back into Savusavu after our 2 week anchorage adventure and that he would take Jamie night snorkeling! Today we enjoyed a game of Dread Pirate, Chay repaired the dinghy engine water pump, and we will probably hunker down and watch a movie (we have bought several "copies" here for just $2.50 each).

One thing we keep hearing about cruising Fiji is that there are three kinds of cruisers - those that have hit a reef, those that will hit a reef, and those that are lying about already having hit a reef. Keep reading to find out which category Esprit falls into....we did finally get our charts on Sunday (5/26) evening so we left Savusavu on Monday morning for Fawn Harbour in tandem with Bauvier. We had a boisterous sail, but made good time. We carefully maneuvered our way through the reefs into the harbour, only to come to a gentle sudden stop - we were aground. The water was very muddy so visibility was poor. Chay with a little help from the wind was able to get us off the mud/reef and back to deeper waters where we dropped the hook for the night. The next day we left Fawn Harbour for Viani Bay where we had some up close and personal looks at the reef, but this time we were able to back up in time and work our way back around to the mooring balls that local Jack Fisher has put in for cruisers to use. We successfully hooked up to the mooring ball and settled in. Chay went snorkeling to check the bottom for damage from the previous day's time aground. The rudder was cracked at the bottom and the keel (with its brand new bottom paint!) was scratched up pretty good. Chay was able to repair the rudder (only after 2 days of hunting for the underwater epoxy and fiberglass repair kit - good thing we weren't sinking!). Chay, Katie, & Jamie did a check out dive to check the two moorings - all looked fine. We have done some snorkeling on our own, as well as having Jack take us out to a site out of the bay a little bit. He really knows these waters well! We spotted a giant clam which Chay brought up and gave to Jack - Jack was very pleased as this would be a good dinner for him & his family. Jack is a wonderful host and offers many services - he picks up our trash, his wife does laundry, and he will take you snorkeling, diving, or hiking for a minimal fee per person. He also brought us some fresh fruit & vegies and a local dish which was "different" but pretty good. We have traded yangona (kava) and a dive bag in return for the services and goodies he provides. He got permission for the boys to attend the local school Jamie, Thibaut, and Olivier (both from Bauvier) really enjoyed it and made new friends - one in particular, Henry, is Jack's grandson. The only setback was that Jamie cut his foot; he is healing quickly. When Jack took us snorkeling we saw lots of colorful fish and coral - it makes us look forward to our diving tomorrow even more than we already were. On Sunday we went to church - Methodist we believe - the singing was typically good harmonization and was done by mostly children! The service was in Fijian except for a couple of Bible verses but the congregation made us feel very welcome.

We enjoyed two awesom dives on the Rainbow Reef "the ledge" and "coral gardens". The colors of the soft corals and fish were unbelievable! The dive master/guide from Dolphin Bay Divers we had was great. After our day of diving we headed back to Savusavu to prepare to fly home to the states for 4 weeks for Jamies World Championship Karate tournament. Although Jamie didnt bring home a medal from Top 10, he did take a 3^rd in weapons and a 2^nd in forms when he competed in the World Tournament in the "big boy" ring (he moved up both rank and age not an easy thing to do). We are very proud of him.

We return to Fiji on July 7^th and will continue cruising through Fiji, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and onward to Australia by October. Watch for our updates.

May 5, 2008 - After a year in the states working, homeschooling and Jamie's karate, we are back on Esprit. The last month has been spent getting her ready to cruise again - lots of maintenance and repairs to "clean-up" the work we had done over the last year and a half in New Zealand. We spent a day in Auckland touring and provisioning. We had lunch at the revolving restaurant at the top of the Sky Tower where we watched the courageous bunjee jumpers jump from a thousand feet up! We are currently in Opua (where we entered NZ in Nov 2006) preparing to leave for Fiji (hopefully tomorrow). Jamie turned 11 on Thursday and had a splendid day playing hooky from school with his new Belgian mates on Bauvier. We hauled out here to reset the pitch on the prop so that we can go the proper speed - the upcoming passage may require motoring to "beat" the lows. All of us on Esprit are ready for warm weather again - it is fall here in NZ and the temperatures are dropping - especially when the rainstorms blow through (which is frequent). So hopefully, we are off to Fiji - Bula Bula!!!!

July 21, 2007 - More New Zealand pictures posted as life on land continues with Jamie earning his First Degree Black Belt, continuing to compete in Karate tournaments, finishing his first quarter of 5th grade Seton homeschool, Chay & Katie keeping busy with Criterium-McWilliam Engineers, etc....

June 6, 2007 - To Bluff & Back!! Since we last wrote we have had a great adventure cruising New Zealand by land in a Maui campervan (motorhome). We spent 3 weeks touring the north and south islands a big hurrah to Chay who did all the driving because Katie didnt want to try shifting a diesel truck with her left hand. As it turns out the gear shifting was a bug in Chays bonnet it liked to slip into reverse when it wanted instead of second! Jamie loved life in the motorhome especially checking out almost all of the Top10 Holiday Parks in New Zealand he particularly liked the ones with jumping balloons or trampolines. We on the other hand liked the well maintained/clean facilities which all but one or two were. Our first stop was Lake Taupo where we enjoyed the hot pools and New Zealand Pizza Hut (a bit different than ours), as well as the McDonalds with a World War II DC3 airplane to dine in! We moved on to the Napier/Hastings region where we enjoyed the Art Deco architecture and the tour of the Church Road Vineyard and winery, which was owned by the McWilliam Winery company (Australian) for several years! Quickly we continued our trek south as the south end of the south island was our main destination and we had many kilometers ahead of us. We visited Wellington where we walked the town, visited Parliament while in session (no different than our house or senate when in session) and took the cable car up the hill for a great view of the harbor. Wellington is a very "government" town. After purchasing seasickness pills, we took the Ferry across the Cook Strait to Picton on the south island the crossing was calm and we watched a movie in the ferry cinema for most of the trip. Our first stop on the south island was Kaikura known for being the home of many whales. We opted not to take a whale watching trip (we knew they were most likely heading north to Tonga where its warm) but walked around the very touristy seaside town. We attended church on Sunday morning before continuing south to Christchurch where we visited the historical museum and walked the beautiful gardens in addition to touring the International Antarctic Center a very interactive museum which let us experience an antartic gale and included a ride on a Hagglund Machine which is the mode of transport in the Antarctic (it is the actual jumping off base for New Zealand, USA, and Italys exploration of Antarctica). We continued down the east coast to Dunedin where we toured the Cadbury chocolate factory (yummmyyy!!) and took the Taieri Gorge train trip which was a fun and beautiful trip in vintage 1920 train cars! Before heading to Invercargill we visited the Larnach Castle a gorgeous mansion overlooking the well protected Dunedin harbour. The countryside from Christchurch to Dunedin is just gorgeous and the towns along the way charming. This was our favourite part of New Zealand. Next stop Invercargill and Bluff the southernmost points on the south island (47 degrees 30 minutes south). There we enjoyed the famous Bluff oysters and seeing the motorbikes actually built and used by Burt Munro of "The Worlds Fastest Indian" fame (a great movie if you havent seen it). Now it was time to head north along the wet, oops I mean west, coast to Te Anau where we stopped and took a coach/cruise of Milford Sound (giving Chay a well deserved break from driving) which is actually a fjord (glacier cut rather than river cut as a Sound is). It was a chilly, drizzly day but it was an interesting tour. Fjords werent enough cold for us so we journeyed northward to Franz Joseph Glacier via Queenstown (where we made a quick stop to take the gondola ride up the mountain and ride the luge which unfortunately was closed due to wind). We took a guided tour/hike up the terminal/leading edge of the glacier way cool! (no pun intended). The glaciers in New Zealand are unusual because they are in a temperate climate! Enough cold for us, time to head north to catch the ferry back to the north island! We stopped in Nelson and Picton along the way both are typical seaside ports/towns. The crossing back to Wellington was a bit windier than the southern crossing, but not bad. We watched "Wild Hogs" in the ferry cinema a fun movie. This time we drove back to Auckland via the west coast the roads are not as easy to drive as those on the south island are. Upon our return to Gulf Harbour Marina we found Esprit looking like shed never sail again! The engine was completely out, the interior was all covered over in paper and plastic while the ports and combing were being replaced, and the bottom was almost done (just waiting for the right weather/dew point). It looks like shell be on the hard for a while, but thats ok her bottom will stay nice and clean! As our cruising friend Jim, from S/V Aurora wrote "Sounds like youve just about jacked up the mast light and built a new boat underneath!" We managed to squeeze in Pirates of the Caribeaan III and Spiderman 3 in between inventorying the accessible parts of the boat, picking up various pieces and parts that we had out for servicing, putting the storage shed in order, and otherwise getting Esprit ready to leave again for several months. Before leaving we will enjoy a Lebanese dinner at Olgas house (a wonderful New Zealand lady whom we met in Hawaii and it turns out goes to the Catholic church we go to here in NZ). Oh, and by the way, the results came in while we were touring NZ - Jamie Triple Crowned (forms, sparring, and weapons) as Nevada State Champ in Karate!

May 2007 � We write once again from New Zealand�.the last we wrote we were getting ready for Christmas in New Zealand�.Both Chay�s & Katie�s Moms came to visit for the holidays as well as Chay�s sister, niece & nephew. We spent Christmas on the boat (and at the hotel nearby where our guests were staying) and then headed south to Rotorua where we enjoyed a week of playing tourist and visiting with family. Christmas in New Zealand was definitely different, but one we will always remember. January found us heading back to Boulder City to take care of our business and replenish the cruising kitty � or at least Esprit�s maintenance/repair kitty! We quickly fell back into the craziness of life on land. Jamie finished up his Calvert 4^th grade program in February, just in time to enjoy a wonderful �holiday� with our good friends on Nueva Vida. We picked them up in Newport Beach (they are working their way home to Canada) for a crazy adventure that took us to Big Bear, Hoover Dam, and the Las Vegas Strip. Our office manager Amy (our youngest daughter) gave her notice shortly after we returned home � after almost 6 years of working for us she made the big decision to pursue her life long dream of a career with Metro police department! Katie has been working double duty with the business & home schooling Jamie with a new curriculum for 5^th grade � we switched to Seton (a Catholic home study program). The new program is a big change and much more rigorous than Calvert was � both teacher and student are adjusting well (we think!). Chay has been very busy doing inspections and training two new engineers � in addition to joining Katie in marketing endeavors. The four months really flew by as we traveled the country (and Canada) with Jamie so that he could compete in karate tournaments � we are waiting with baited breadth for the final standings to post for Nevada State Champion! He has worked extremely hard both in his competition and regular training � he will test for black belt on June 18^th. The tournaments are tiring, but fun � we meet lots of great people and Jamie makes friends with his competitors from around the country. We flew back to New Zealand on May 6^th to check on Esprit and do some traveling in the motor home we rented. Esprit is out on the hard getting a new bottom, new varnish, and new ports. Once she is back in the water, the riggers will re-rig her with her new rigging. In addition to this work, Chay has taken apart the engine and sent the head out for repair (she still burns oil?!) Needless to say, unfortunately we won�t be enjoying this cruising season, but hope to head north again next year (2008). We will enjoy the next 3 weeks of land cruising the south island in the motor home � Jamie just loves the motor home! Stay tuned for those adventures when we return�..

December 20, 2006 � Auckland, New Zealand. It seems odd to have achieved our goal of sailing to New Zealand after anticipating it for so long, but more on that later�.when we last wrote, we were in the Vava�u Group of Tonga. Jamie and Chay scuba dove Mariner�s Cave and had a ball�Jamie is absolutely in love with scuba diving!....it was too deep to anchor Esprit so Katie handled Esprit just offshore of the cave entrance dropping Chay & Jamie off the stern ladder in their scuba gear and practicing her maneuvering skills. Mariner�s cave has an under water entrance that opens up above water once inside. Every time the swell comes in the air pressure builds and you have to pop your ears, then when the swell goes down a fog forms in the cave. After completing the necessary oil changes and rigging checks, as well as provisioning, we buddy�d up with �Diva�, a 62 ft DeerFoot, (German/Brazilian family with 3 boys) and moved south to the Haapai Group. The anchorages in this group are beautiful, but are not as well protected as those we explored in the Vava�u Group. We celebrated Halloween at our second stop�the boys dressed up and went trick or treating by dinghy to the other boats in the anchorage and then we all had a wonderful time on Diva afterward. We snorkeled and dove one afternoon exploring underwater caves and a wreck which was �way cool�. The first hurricane of the season occurred in October just north and west of us (earlier than the traditional hurricane season), which was a strong signal that it was time to get ready for making the passage to New Zealand. So, we stopped at one more anchorage where we rocked and rolled all night - the guide books weren�t very clear about which side of the island to be on during which weather conditions and we obviously chose the wrong side! But, we dinghy�d to the island and did some beachcombing while the boys had a ball playing on yet another shipwreck! This group of islands has many submerged reefs which are only evident from the waves breaking on them which makes navigating a bit tricky! One night of rocking and rolling was enough for us so we headed to Nuku�alofa, the capital of Tonga where we would fuel up and check out of the country. We anchored at Pangai Motu, a small island just off the town and used its restaurant/resort�s shuttle to go into town. Jamie enjoyed seeing his friends on O�hanakai again � cruising is a continual series of hello�s and goodbyes. We scheduled our fueling time and rafted up to Diva at the fuel dock the morning we were planning to leave. Making the decision to leave is a tricky one because the passage to New Zealand is one of the most treacherous stretches of ocean one can cross due to the continual movement of weather fronts across the area. We thought we had picked a good window, but it ended up being lots of wind (up to 35 knots) on the nose, and a few days of 15 foot breaking seas. Chay picked up some kind of respiratory flu bug before we left so was extremely under the weather for the first 5 days of our 7 day passage. Katie learned she could make most of the necessary sail changes on her own without having to wake Chay up � giving her a great boost in her confidence. Our weather router sent us on a route that we couldn�t hold and we ended up heading too far east so Chay made the command decision to forego the weather router�s advice and go with common sense � we headed west into the center of high where we found relief for about 36 hours before the winds picked back up (on the nose of course!) and seas got short and choppy. Esprit would bounce on the waves, go airborne for a few seconds, and then �BOOM�, she would crash down � it sounded awful but she held up fine! We came into Opua, New Zealand on November 13^th at 11:30 PM � 7� days after leaving Tonga. Landfall never felt so good! It felt great to have accomplished our goal of crossing the South Pacific from Ecuador to New Zealand � a goal we had been working towards for 3 years! It was worth the effort! After clearing into the country the next morning we moved into a slip in the marina � this was the first time we had been in a slip in almost 3 years! Opua is a charming little port town where the people are extremely friendly. Jamie attended the local school for 3 days and really enjoyed the experience. We cleaned up Esprit, visited the quaint town of Russell just across the bay from Opua, and prepared ourselves for our last passage of the season down to Gulf Harbour Marina in the Hauraki Bay (30 miles north of Auckland). After a very cold overnight trip with decent winds we pulled into our slip in Gulf Harbour Marina which will be Esprit�s �home� for a while. The weather has been less than �fine� most of the time�they keep telling us summer is coming � we�re not holding our breath. We have settled into marina life�have purchased a �klunker� car to get us around�have moved a lot of our cruising stuff into storage�decorated the boat for Christmas�done lots of boat chores (when weather permitted)�home schooled Jamie�explored the area � New Zealand is a beautiful country with green rolling hills�we will fly back to the states in January for a few months to get things in order there and try to make the big decision of what to do next in our cruising life�stay tuned!

October 15, 2006 � we are still enjoying the Vava�u Group of Tonga and its many anchorages. It has been a challenge getting in and out of a couple of the anchorages due to coral reefs, but with careful conning on sunny days we managed with no problems. The first anchorage we went to was �16� � the Moorings charter company has numbered all the anchorages and published a nice laminated chart showing them all. Without this chart and numbering system it would be difficult to talk about where to go as the names of the anchorages are very difficult to pronounce � mostly all vowels. At �16� we enjoyed snorkeling the �Coral Garden� with our friends on Lawur and then Chay dove the outside edge of the reef there with Robert on Lawur. The most stunning thing we saw was bright blue star fish. We enjoyed a bonfire on the beach with an almost full moon � very pretty! One day as the weather turned rainy, we were swarmed with boats coming into the anchorage all at once. The charter boats (vs cruisers) were coming in full speed to beat out the cruisers who were approaching a bit more cautiously � had to make sure they got a good spot! We guess you sail a bit differently when it�s not your boat. We wanted to experience a Tongan Feast so we moved over to �11� on Saturday morning. The Tongan Feast was excellent � it started out with a small craft fair, then we moved onto the Kava Tent where we enjoyed the music and tasted the Kava. Even Jamie tried the Kava which tastes like muddy water and has a numbing effect on your mouth, similar to Novacaine. We understand that if you drink enough of it your arms and legs will also go numb; none of us found out whether that part was true or not. They then brought out the feast served on mats woven from palms. All the food was local � fish, pork, lamb, crab, fruits (lots of watermelon here), etc�. and all was served in some sort of natural bowl, such as heart of palm, banana leaves, coconuts, etc. Many of the meats were wrapped in spinach before being baked in the fire pit. We all sat on the ground on woven mats � there were about 20 of us � and ate with our fingers! No utensils here! Fortunately they did bring out a bowl of water at the end so we could wash our very sticky hands. We took a hike the next day just to see what the island looks like on the interior � very simple jungle with scattered homes. Our next passage to �30� was a bit tricky but we maneuvered through the reefs and anchored safely behind the motu where we had a pasta potluck/bonfire with 5 other family boats � a great way to get new pasta recipes! We explored a cave with a brackish water pool at the bottom of it (the kids and big boys all swam), and took a hike to the other side (a whole 10 minutes) to see what the island looks like on the ocean side. It has very steep limestone cliffs which reminded us of northern California. The weather was supposed to turn bad so we headed back to Neiafu (the main anchorage) and picked up a mooring ball. We�ve spent the last few days provisioning, extending our visa, and running various other errands in the rain! The highlight was on Friday when they held the first annual Governor�s Cup Regatta � the King and Prince of Tonga were here so this event was put on for them. The Prince watched the race from the Mermaid restaurant and attended the awards festivities. He ate all by himself at a special table � the life of Royalty!? Chay and Jamie raced in the dinghy race in our sailing dinghy � they came in 4^th or 5^th , but the smiles on their faces showed how much fun they had! Jamie won a copy of the new Jimmy Buffet CD and Chay won two tickets to the movies � they show movies at the hotel here on Thursday and Sunday nights, so we will go tonight. Jamie has been rowing his dinghy around quite a bit � even tried fishing from it today but found rowing and fishing in a head wind was not the greatest. He�ll wait to try that again until a calmer day. Chay dove on the SS Clan McWilliam wreck this afternoon and we went whale watching yesterday � saw two whales breach, but did not get to swim with them. We then went to Mariner�s Cave and Swallow�s cave. Chay was the only one who successfully dove Mariner�s and they took the boat into Swallow�s so we all got to swim and play in Swallow�s. We plan to start working our way south through the Haapai Group to Tongatapu (where the capital city is) in a week or so and hope to leave for New Zealand, weather permitting, the first week of November to take advantage of the full moon.

New Sept 14, 2006.we are in Tonga now, but before arriving here we have been enjoying the islands of Moorea, Raiatea, and Tahaa for the last 3 weeks. While in Moorea we anchored in Cooks Bay and took some hikes from there as well as attending mass on Sunday where we once again enjoyed the singing! Cooks Bay is surrounded by mountains and is very calm it felt like we were on a mountain lake, rather that an ocean bay. We treated ourselves to a very nice French dinner where we had a water side table and were able to watch the Rays feed at night it turned out to be a very fun family time! After a few days there we move over one bay to the north Oponohu where we anchored in 15 feet of perfectly clear water and were able to enjoy snorkeling the highlight was snorkeling with the Sting Rays. One of them even gave Chay a hug in anticipation of getting fed the sardines we brought along. After here we did an 18 hour overnight passage to Raiatea where we were going to be hauled out in order to put our new depth sounder in. The haul out went smoothly and we went back in the water and started exploring the islands. We hooked up with another family boat named Lawur they have two boys just Jamies age. We buddy boated with them for a couple of weeks, enjoying their company. After Raiatea and Tahaa we left for Bora Bora where we anchored in a beautiful anchorage and Jamie & Chay were able to scuba dive. Jamie enjoyed making a sand castle 20 feet down! The last time we were in Bora Bora was our honeymoon 13 years ago. We revisited the Hotel Bora Bora and Bloody Marys Restaurant and celebrated Katies birthday with lunch and dinner respectfully. With the next weather window, we headed to Tonga where we arrived yesterday after 9 days at sea. It was a great passage. We are excited to start exploring these islands which are full of caves to snorkel/dive in and it is whale season!

August 6, 2006 � we�ve come a long way and had lots of adventures since we last wrote�we left the Marquesas and had a great passage to the Tuamotus � the wind was perfect for Esprit to sail her best. Although nervous about entering our first atoll, the entry through the pass at Kauehi went smoothly; however, our buddy friends on Hawkeye were a few hours behind us got stuck in a squall right before approaching the pass and then their engine quit. We helped them anchor under sail and then enjoyed the next 3 weeks on the hook enjoying snorkeling, participating in the local church (beautiful singing), barbecue on the beach with other cruisers, and meeting the locals and international set of cruisers; many from the Scandinavian countries! We visited a pearl farm and learned how black pearls are made � fascinating! Once Hawkeye received the parts to repair their engine, Chay assisted in the repairs, and then we were underway to Fakarava. We arrived at the north anchorage of Fakarava on Bastille Day (July 14^th) and were able to enjoy some of the local festivities � dancing, spear throwing, and basket/hat weaving with palm fronds, as well as some snorkeling. The water at the pass was so clear we could see down 90 feet � it was breathtaking. After a few days, we took a leisurely sail down the 30 mile lagoon to the south pass anchorage which was idyllic! We did a drift snorkel through the pass � WOW! This pass was even more breathtaking than the north pass! Visibility was 100 feet and the bottom looked like a blanket of coral. Mark the local dive instructor took us all on drift scuba dive through the pass � we went down to over 40 feet and saw black tip white tip and grey sharks, as well as all sorts of tropical fish big and small. Jamie loved it! This was his first dive this deep! We continued to snorkel almost every day � the sea life was incredible. Annabel, the owner of the resort at the pass, put on two great dinners for us and then invited us for breakfast one morning as well! We didn�t want to leave, but our visa time was running short so we sadly departed for Papeete where we safely arrived after a two day sailing passage. Again, winds were fair until we rounded the point on our approach to Papeete harbor � then the winds picked up to 30 knots and we were sailing 9.5 knots! The fastest we have ever gone. Katie had the challenge of bringing down the main sail in 30 knots of wind (gale force) � quite the adventure! After clearing through the pass and down the channel past the airport runway we dropped the hook in between Maeva Beach and Marina Taina. We have spent most of time walking around Papeete in search for pieces and parts for the boat, as well as for provisions. As is typical with cruising, we were partially successful in our quest for parts, but provisioning was successful. The weather has been cool and rainy a lot of the time. Last Friday, Chay and Jamie donned their foul weather gear to assist another boat calling for help on the radio during gale force winds (again!) and driving rain � the boat had drug anchor and was hitting another boat�Chay and Jamie got into our little dinghy to rescue them! Chay said Jamie was the ultimate seaman�He was really proud of him�We are now waiting for one more FedEx shipment to be released from customs and for our visa extensions. Then we will get more fuel and move on to explore the other Society Islands.

June 13, 2006�wow have we come a long way since our last update! We made the passage from the Galapagos Islands to Fatu Hiva, Marquesas Islands (approximately 3000 miles) in 24 days�some say this was the milk run � Jamie aptly named it the milk shake run! We experienced everything from no wind, washing machine seas, squalls, too much wind, and wind that couldn�t make up its mind during the first two weeks, to fairly steady trade winds and a good run during the last week or so. We hove-to for about 18 hours so Chay could recover from sea sickness and then hove-to again to fix the auto-pilot (a necessity for long passages)� Esprit underwent more sail changes in those 24 days than she had during the last 2 � years of cruising! Katie learned how to cook with a gimbaled stove and how to prevent pancake batter from flying from port to starboard � we never gimbaled the stove in those 2 � years of cruising � says something for the seas we experienced. Fishing was not so great underway � Chay & Jamie hooked two dorado at the same time and both managed to get away � one even took the hook & lure! Jamie learned how to take our navigation readings and got a lot of experience at the wheel � he is a good skipper! Our landfall in Fatu Hiva was breathtaking and a great relief � the passage was over � we had done it! Now it all seems so long ago and almost like a dream. We have spent the last 5 weeks buddy boating with John & Linda on Hawkeye exploring our way through 5 of the Marquesan Islands � each beautiful in its own way. The snorkeling has improved the further west we�ve come and Jamie & Chay even did some scuba diving! Chay is teaching Jamie how to scuba dive � Jamie loves it! The Marquesan people are very friendly and helpful � they have even taught us how to say hello, goodbye and thank you in Marquesan. Katie has had lots of practice speaking French; although a bit rusty it has come back to her bit by bit. We�ve seen so many things it would take forever to describe them, but here are just a few of the things we�ve seen and done�.hiked to a waterfall through the very, very green jungle and swam in the pool�traded life jackets and cassette tape players for Marquesan tikis and masks as well as for fruit and fish�hand laundry under the water faucets on the wharfs�watch the locals carve their beautiful bowls and tikis�.anchored in many different kinds of anchorages�discovered a washer on deck (not a good thing to find) which turned out to be from the top of fore-stay where it connects to and holds up the mast!...Chay went up the mast and fixed it and checked/secured all the other connections along the way!...had exciting dinghy landings (the swell is incredible here and doesn�t mix well with concrete wharfs)�saw the awesome volcanic spires that inspired the tiki legends�experienced the colorful and incredible Marquesan dancing�saw the beauty contest and crowning of Miss Oa Pou�dragged anchor in a tight anchorage during a squall that some say reached 40 knots�.spent a week in the calmest anchorage in the Marquesas where we repaired our Genoa sail, snorkeled, hiked an hour and half to get bread and have lunch in one of the few restaurants in the islands�hung tight where we are writing you from as some weather fronts pass us by bringing high winds/gusts and rolly anchorages�dragged anchor again and bumped another boat (no damage done � phew)�.experienced the beautiful Marquesan harmonized singing at mass on Sunday�.provisioned�and started 4^th grade! As we roll back and forth on the hook in Nuka Hiva, we wait for the weather to improve to make our next big passage to the Tuamotus (500 miles)..we are hearing that since this is a La Nina year the weather is going to be a lot rougher than normal with higher trade winds, more storms, and bigger seas�

April 12, 2006. It is great to be cruising again. We are in the Galapagos Islands preparing to depart for the Marquesas in a day or two . We departed the states on March 5, 2006 for Bahia de Caraquez, Ecuador where Esprit was waiting for us in great condition. On St. Patrick�s Day we left for the Galapagos with the evening tide. The 5 day passage was smooth and uneventful except for the fleet of fishing boats we passed (very carefully) the first night out. Unfortunately we had very little wind and were only able to sail about 12 hours. Our first landfall was Isla San Cristobal where we spent 9 days doing boat chores as well as some snorkeling with sea lions and in land touring to see the volcano and turtle preserve. Isla Floreana (Santa Maria) was our next stop in the islands � we sailed the whole way � what a treat! We anchored in Post Office Bay where the pirates and whalers would leave mail to be picked up by those that came behind them that were headed home. We were able to visit the mail barrel and lava tube here, as well hike a bit to see the flamingos in the lagoon; a short hike to a white sand beach let us see sea turtles and our first penguins! This anchorage was full of turtles as well as a hammerhead shark that Jamie spotted swimming around the boat! Next we headed for Isla Isabela where we are now � here we saw our first Mustard Rays. There are also penguins here that swim around the boats and of course Blue Footed Boobies! Their blue feet don�t look real! This island is a bit less developed and you really get a feel for the �real Galapagos�. We dinghy�d into a �reef� of lava rock and hiked around � we saw thousands of marine iguanas and several white tip sharks. Our next adventure was a pick-up truck, horseback ride, and hike up to the Volcan Sierra Negra and Volcan Chico. The former last erupted 5 months ago and the crater (6 miles across) was still steaming! It was an awesome sight. Our hike to Volcan Chico was like a step back to pre-historic times or a walk on the moon! The contrast between the green jungle on the windward side and the stark volcanic landscape on the leeward side of the island was incredible. Jamie enjoyed the horseback ride the best � he loved the challenge of making his horse go fast! A group of us cruisers took a boat tour to Cabo Rosa � a beautiful site of old lava tunnels with water all around them. We saw lots of rays and sea turtles and were able to snorkel through the lava tunnels! The ride through the breakers in and out, as well the maneuvering through the labrynth of lava, was an impressive show of Henri�s navigational and piloting skills! As we enjoy life on the hook, we will finish preparing Esprit in the next few days and then head west on the 3000 mile trip to the Marquesas � the adventure continues!

NEW July 30, 2005 - Buenos from Boulder City, Nevada....unfortunately, here we are landlubbers again...we came home to get the parts for the engine, which Chay will rebuild when we go back to Ecuador in September....it's been very hot here (117 F!)...we are back to work taking advantage of our home time to fill up the cruising kitty for our third attempt at puddle jumping next spring...let's hope that the third time will be the charm!...Jamie has jumped right back into karate and is working hard to meet his goal of being a State Champ!...he has already done one tournament and will do another August 20th...so far he is ranked 2nd in forms and weapons, and fourth in sparring...Jamie & Katie are also getting a head start on the 3rd grade home school program so that when we "jump" in March 2006, he'll be able to be on "summer vacation" before starting 4th grade....Chay & Jamie are fishing in Utah this weekend, and we will spend some time in the mountains of Big Bear, California, working on our cabin there...both nice respits from the heat!...Stay tuned for continued updates of our land adventures.....

June 27, 2005 - Buenos Dias from Bahia de Caraquez...yes, we are still here in Ecuador...when we returned, we found an engine that would only go �clunk�...somehow we got salt water in the engine and froze it up...after two weeks we finally got it to at least turn over by hand so Chay could get to the bolts he needed to get to remove the engine head...we are in need of new pistons, which are easiest and best able to get in the states, so we are headed home...but in the mean time, Chay broke a finger which is finally on the mend, we have done a lot of odd jobs on the boat which should only improve its performance, and we took an inland trip with our friends on Nueva Vida (SEE PHOTOS)...we decided to name the trip �In quest of a real cup of coffee�...apparently very few ecuadorians know how to make a brewed cup of coffee, but are great at making instant!...in addition to coffee, we also found that if we had hot water we were in luck, and if the hostal had a TV we were in fat city!...there were 7 of us travelling, 4 adultos and 3 ninos. We had a ball! We rode 15 buses in as many days, but some days we were relaxing, and others we were rushing from bus to bus to bus! We visisted Salinas high up in the Andes where we visited many co-op factories including a soccer ball factory, and a chocolate factory! We all slept in the same room that night and had very little hot water...we slept in flannels with 7 blankets! From there we went to Banos where we hiked, did a 20km bike ride in the mountains seeing lots of waterfalls, relaxed in a hot spring pool, and yes, found real coffee...from there we went to Riobamba where we caught the train south...we rode on top of the freight cars...the highlight was throwing lollipops to the locals children and playing Indiana Jones to go to the bathroom!...After an unsuccessful trip to a famous Ecuadorean Incan ruin, we continued south to Cuenca where we spent 4 days exploring the charming colonial town, hunting for panama hats which are actually made here in Ecuador, checking out the beautiful churches, and enjoyed time winding down before heading back to Bahia...in Guayaquil we managed to find movie theatere with Star Wars III in english, so of course didn�t miss that opportunity!...oh, let�s not forget that Jamie & Katie have now learned how to drive the dinghy! Jamie is a natural! Now we are getting Esprit ready for our return to the states...

April 14, 2005 - we write this from Boulder City, where we are back in the "swing" of things...taxes are done...Jamie has been very busy with Karate - he will compete in two tournaments before we return to the boat ..Chay & Katie are busy working - refilling the cruising kitty...it's turning warmer here now....but the allergies are killing all three of us...we can't wait to get back to Esprit...PHOTOS HAVE BEEN UPDATED

March 31, 2005 - wow, we've come a long way since we last wrote...we "slowly" cruised our way through Panama enjoying snorkeling and scuba diving at the islands...we met a great local in Bahia Honda who had his wife bake bread for us, brought us fresh fruit, and made us tortoise shell jewelry...Jamie got to surf in Benao, and got to watch his new friends (ages 6 & 9) participate in the Panama National Surf contest!...we caught up with our good friends Nueva Vida and Otter in the Perlas Islands and then spent time with them in Panama City...Jamie got to swim in the anchorage and "skurfed" behind the dinghy while Chay drove (rode the boogie board on a tow line)...we spent most of our time in Panama City getting ready for our longest passage yet to Ecuador...but we did squeeze in a visit to the Miraflores locks at the canal and visited the ruins of old Panama...we left Panama on Monday March 21st at 4AM and arrived in Ecuador on Friday around 3:00 PM after 108 hours of motor sailing!!...we celebrated our equator crossing at 9:00 AM with champagne (most of which was poured into the ocean for King Neptune)...Jamie dressed up as King Neptune...so now we are officially shellbacks (and tradition says we should get turtle tattoos)...we are now at anchor on a mooring in Bahia de Caraquez which is a beautiful bay!...

February 20, 2005 - We finally found an internet connection that would let us update the site...we are in Golfito, Costa Rica getting ready to leave for Panama tomorrow morning bright and early at 4AM...we have been back down south for almost a month now...the first few days were spent touring the Volcano Arenal and Monteverde areas which was just beautiful...the ride down to Puntarenas and the Costa Rica Yacht Club was very very buuummmpy....Esprit was glad to see us, however we had to wait 2 weeks for the tide to be high enough to launch her back into the water....after a new bottom paint job, new varnish, a good waxing and polishing, and of course all the maintenance and new installations Chay did Esprit did great back in the water..we departed and had a great sail down to Herradura where we anchored and provisioned with some American meat including our corned beef for St. Patrick's day...then we did an overnight passage to Bahia Drake where we anchored and did a jungle tour...we saw monkeys, deer, raccoons, sloths, toucans and other colorful birds, lizards, leaf ants, and lots of green...the boat ride to and from the jungle site was great as they took us really close to shore amongst the rocks and caves - Jamie thinks Drake's treasure was buried there...we had Valentine's dinner at a very nice restaurant...we motor sailed out to Isla Cano and did a very short dive/snorkel...a good dry run for Katie who hadn't dove in a year and a half...we then went back to Drake and got ready to continue on...we headed next to Golfito where we are now...it is a very pretty, lush, jungly bay....we have pretty much kicked back here getting ready to go to Panama....

December 2, 2004 - here I sit at my desk in Boulder City back to the routine of land life...burrr, it is cold here...we returned on November 21st and by Tuesday morning were in 3 feet of snow at Big Bear, CA, where we spent a quiet Thanksgiving...we did some skiing, sledding, and snowman making in addition to eating too much...see photo gallery and Jamie's page...Esprit was put safely onto the hard (without us) on Friday, November 26th....now we can sleep better!...Jamie is back in the swing of things with Karate and piano and school....we will be in the Boulder City Christmas Parade on Saturday - Jamie will hand out candy canes through the sun roof of the Porsche which will be all lit up!....now we just need to finish shopping and decorating...

November 19, 2004 - We exited Bahia del Sol smoothly and headed to Gulfo de Fonseca where we anchored a night with Nueva Vida before heading into Amapala, Honduras an old shipping port which is now abandoned and appears to be a �bedroom community� now. We checked in and out and left the next morning for Nicaruaga where we hooked up again with our friends on Nueva Vida...we spend a few days in the marina at Puesta del Sol before moving on to Costa Rica...we visited the Nicaraguan town near the marina and did some shopping after enjoying lunch at a �local� restaurant...upon our departure from Puesta, the winds picked up and we sailed for the first time in months! It was wonderful...our first stop in Costa Rica was Bahia St. Elena , a picturesque, calm anchorage we had all to ourselves...here we explored and went snorkeling for a few days before moving on to Playa del Coco where we checked into Costa Rica...we moved quickly down the coast, stopping one night in Bahia Carrillo, a very rolly anchorage...we left very early the next morning for Bahia Ballena in the Gulfo de Nicoyo...we spent a week at Los Suenos visiting with Las Vegas friends Dave and Anita, as well as driving to San Jose to vote (an accident detoured us on the back roads an extra 50 miles!)...Jamie & Chay took surfing lessons in Jaco - one of the top surf spots in the world! Jamie loves it!...we now have a surfboard on board Esprit...the next week was spent exploring the islands in the Gulfo de Nicoya - all very beautiful...we experienced 34 knot winds and high seas during one 3 hour passage!...at Isla Muertos we took a horseback trail ride through the local countryside, and rivers beds, which ended at a double cascading waterfall where Jamie & Chay mustered up the courage to swim!...the last week has been in Puntarenas at the Costa Rica Yacht Club where we are waiting to be hauled out into dry dock...they finally got equipment fixed and tried to take us out today, but we were too late and missed the high tide! We will try again tomorrow...just a bit on the frustrating side...our next adventure will be going home to Boulder City....

October 12, 2004 - we have been back on Esprit for almost a week now and have gotten a lot of getting ready work accomplished - the refrigerator and freezer appear to be working again, the sails have been rigged, which gave us a lot of room back again inside, the generator is working, the teak has been varnished, the bottom cleaned, the chain is almost cleaned and ready to be raised...today we are provisioning, tomorrow we will fuel up, and then we will wait for the boca (river entrance) to calm down enough to exit through the breakers...

October 2, 2004 - Wow, it's been too long....we've done a lot since we last updated...toured ruins around San Salvador and visited the anthropological museum - all very enlightening and educational...got the boat ready to leave for a few months which entailed taking down all sails, putting dingies on deck, vinegar washing the interior to fend off mold & mildew, and shutting down refrigeration amongst many other things...bid farewell to friends...flew home to Boulder City...went back to work...Jamie went back to piano lessons, swimming, and started Karate which he absolutely loves...went to Big Bear we visited with cruising friends "Dulcinea"...bought back our original "big red house" cabin and sold our "little green cabin" ...went to Buffalo, NY for Katie's annual family reunion...visited Niagra Falls and rode on Maid of the Mist and had Buffalo's original Anchor Bar chicken wings at the Anchor Bar...visited "Kemah" cruising friends in Reno...flew back to Esprit for a couple of weeks before Jamie started second grade...uh-oh - no refrigeration! again!...came back to the states and worked some more to build up the kitty to cruise some more...Jamie got his orange belt in Karate...flew to Colorado Springs for Criterium conference (that's our business) and visited with our daughter Becky and her family...now we are getting ready to fly back to Esprit and get her ready to move on down to Honduras, Nicaruaga, & Costa Rica....we can't wait!!!