Made it to Whangarei

We had a great sail down the coast from the Bay of Islands to the
entrance to Whangarei Harbor with blue skies and sunshine all the way
down. What a treat that was!!!! After having sailed the s/v Vera,
Sidewinder was a dream to sail; she is so smooth and balanced. YAY!
We arrived around 7PM and as we turned the corner to head into the
well marked channel, huge majestic rock formations nestled among
brilliant green hills and magical red-blossom Paroukawa trees
beckoned us to anchor in a beautiful bay to our starboard side, along
with quite a few other boats. We had no idea it would be so awesome.
The early evening light was spectacular as the sun went down and, once
again, we enjoyed a quiet, peaceful night. 
This morning we took Worm into shore and did a great hike around the point; it was so much like
the ranch during springtime and then like looking down on 9th Street
Beach on a wonderful glassy morning with clear blue-green water
washing over rocks and kelpbeds. What a special time we had and it
even inspired us to dive into the water when we got back to
Sidewinder. Finally we have had a glimpse of the specialness of summer
in New Zealand, but by noon, the wind was up and the clouds were
moving in on us. We headed up the river to Whangarei and are now tied
up to the guest dock for the night; tomorrow we move to a pile
mooring, a very inexpensive way to stay here. We spent the late
afternoon and evening with Steve and Darusha (Scream) and look forward
to spending a few more days with them before they leave for Christmas
with family in Auckland. Brandy and Mark are bringing our car down to
Whangarei on Saturday and I will be busy getting my stuff ready to
come home. Seems like the time is flying and I certainly hope to slow
it down a bit, so I can relish each moment with a focused relaxed
state of being.
May the warm love and spirit of Christmas open your hearts, minds,
and souls to the sweet joy life can bring to all and may we all
strive, with compassion, to bring peace and kindness to all living
creatures on this precious planet.  Love to all and thank you for
being part of our lives!  Merry Christmas!       Suzi and David