On Shore in Napier!

Rachel Clausen, B-Watch, Salisbury University

After a restful night sleep at anchor my watch (B) and I arose at 0600 to a delicious breakfast of pancakes, bacon, and kiwi and to start to steer the boat into port! It was a pretty short drive as we anchored only about an hour and half trip away from where we were in port. It was an absolutely gorgeous morning and the ride over was super peaceful. On watch we mostly started to cover the sails to protect them from the sun as we won’t be using them for a couple of days.

When we got closer to the port the more experienced crew took over the steering of the boat and we got armed with fenders to keep the boat from hitting the dock. We also passed by a giant cruise ship and it was super funny to see all the cruise-goers out on their balcony taking pictures of us coming in. I was super, super impressed with how smooth the crew was able to turn and dock a huge sailboat. I’m not sure how they did it but it was so peaceful that people below didn’t even know we docked!

Once secured to the port, we had to start to suit the boat up for staying there for the next couple of days. For Jessie and I that meant chafe gear, and a lot of it. We probably spent an hour just tying chafe gear around our ropes so that they wouldn’t get worn out. After the boat was all secured, we had a great lunch and prepared to go ashore! We had to take shuttle buses out of the port (because apparently wherever we docked is pretty secure and strict about their rules). Once out of the port, we walked 15 minutes to the town of Napier which was super cute!

We got ice cream (which is pretty much the only thing our galley can’t provide) and then went shopping. It was super warm out which made looking at the Christmas decorations they had up all over town really strange. I got a few clothes that are not really functional for boat life but super cute (sorry Mom, I just love to shop) and also we stopped for fries because, why not?

After my long day it was really nice to go back to the boat and unwind. I read for a little before dinner and then cleaned out my bunk after. It really is amazing how much dirt can collect in just a few short weeks. Tomorrow morning during our free-time my main mission is to do some laundry so I can have clean socks, pants, and shirts so I won’t smell quite as bad.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and are having a peaceful start to the holiday shopping season! Hi Mom, Dad, Sara, Emily, K.C., Bubbe and KD. Enjoy the snow!

See you soon,

Rachel Clausen, B-Watch, Salisbury University