Well I think we can safely say that having back pain on a moving monohull is not a terribly cunning plan to start with. As even getting up and down the stairs, let alone to the loo in the night is eye poppingly sore. So it's definitely taken the edge of the pleasures of this once in a lifetime trip to the Bay of Islands.
Although in all honesty I've not found them that thrilling – this is one of the more well known ones, nice but no banana for me. Perhaps heresy to anyone with kiwi blood in their veins, but my very spoilt self def prefers turquoise water to green, and water with lovely snorkel-able marine life in it to water with silver fish but not a lot else.
Although on the one day we did get round to trying some fishing I – totally out of character – got several immediate bites and quickly brought up a rather nice red snapper – which was duly scoffed in panko crumbs with evening G&Ts. It doesn't perhaps fully represent the value equation of hiring rods for a week and buying frozen and rubber bait – I suspect it's the most expensive snapper we have ever eaten! But hey ho, I sat with my back to the rod as couldn't turn or sit facing the water – perhaps this should be my new fishing technique as H didn't even get a nibble..
H however is loving being back on the water and at the helm, especially as it is a rare treat to be permitted time on a 'proper' sailing boat rather than our more usual form of transport, a nice wide and waaaaay more comfy catamaran. Good to see him in his element..
And it has been more than nice to have some good time, just us two together. To have a think about the coming year and the time beyond, what we both want to try and achieve, how we want to spend whatever time there may be. Hopefully much, but you never want to get to the end and think 'bugger, I wish I'd done X instead of spending too much time on bloody Y'… Useful conversations that we somehow only partially have at home before rushing off to the next thing, so for that alone, this trip has been worth it.
And luckily I've discovered that booze definitely helps with the pain, so sod the fact that the packaging mostly says 'do not consume with alcohol' – they are definitely missing a very good trick as I feel the warm glow of the vodka/gin nestling in like a comfy bedfellow with Mr Diazepam and Mrs Tramadol among others. Its a veritable drugs orgy..
Today we headed over to one of the 'highlights' of the bays – to see the rock with the hole in it. Yes, many hours on choppy, rolly waters to see what was indeed – a big rock with a hole in it. There was a rumour of dolphins but I think they too are in the Caribbean with the catamarans… Hey ho, at least we saw loads in Kaikoura, although we were hoping that sailing along shouting 'dolphies! come and see us!' was surely a foolproof plan to call in a pod or two.
Two nights to go and I have sprung into action to try and access stronger drugs as I am a) running out of what I've got and b) determined to try and salvage something from this trip, particularly because our more action-type days are in the final weeks here – jet boating, speed kayaking and the helicopter glacier hike among others. My brother has brilliantly found a possible GP friend in NZ who may find me an equivalent in Queenstown where we will be long enough to see someone, or Prof is also on the case trying to get me a name to call.
If not, I'll be robbing a pharmacy, so keep your eyes on the news..
It has at least been mostly sunny-ish, if bloody windy except the night when a huge storm came and at 4am I was up, bent double, trying to close leaking windows and rescue sodden items from around the boat. H was oblivious as he has had to retire to the back cabin with his ear plugs due to my 'bison-like snoring' (I think this is a term of endearment?) and my difficulty getting up in the night anyway, looking like a giant cockroach stuck on its back, wiggling its limbs, not quite able to flip itself over.. Talking of which, just found a huge 'woodlouse' in my bedding – getting off here and back into a hotel with a nice clean big bed and a proper flushing loo os going to be a joy. Saturday soon! S x
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are you going to Russell? We had a fab meal in the evening there watching the sun go down….
x