December 26, 1998-Boxing Day Cruise

A day on Auckland's busy harbor, Kiwis are boating crazy

Boxing Day: The Day after Christmas. The kids are out of school, summer is coming, the family festivities have all happened, so it's time for...a boating get away!

We joined the crowds and untied the dock lines ourselves. After all we just couldn't sit there and watch the marina empty out, which it literally did. We knew it would be crowded on the water but we needed to go sailing, the day was beautiful, and when everyone was heading out, we just couldn't resist.

Auckland harbor was like the Oklahoma Land Rush. Sailboats sailing, sailboats motoring, powerboats speeding, wind surfers, rowers, charter ferry boats, every floating thing you can imagine, all heading out. Out to the Hauraki Gulf and it's lovely cruising grounds. The only people who stayed in were the America's Cup boats. They took thier holiday away from the water. Not a one was to be seen.

We sailed. It was a beat, a nice one, and we crossed tacks with some boats for a couple of hours, and then we stopped at the first "destination" outside of Auckland.

Drunken Bay.

What a name. Amanda told us about it, having been one of her family's frequent stops. She said it could get crowded. We thought that the Kiwis would be heading farther a field, but Amanda was right. It is crowded. We arrived at 4:00 PM and it was pretty full, maybe a hundred boats. We found a hole and anchored, worrying a little about maybe being too close. Not to worry mate, plenty of room. Seven more boats anchored inside of the spot I thought was just barely big enough for us. And maybe 100 more boats arrived in the harbor total after we anchored. I don't know where the drunks are tonight, but they aren't evidently in Drunken Bay. This place, crowded as it is, is quiet, it seems like mostly families.

I remember however one occasion in Turtle Bay, Baja, when some Canadian yachts gave us on WINGS a big lecture for anchoring too close, at 100 yards. Those guys would have never believed that 25 feet is about the correct distance here in New Zealand, on Boxing Day.

I also remember one anchorage in the Channel Islands, Fry's Harbor I think. It had room for about eight boats, with minimum swinging room, and before the afternoon was ended, there were 37 boats there, all anchored bow and stern to keep them from touching. Somehow I never guessed that Los Angelinos and Kiwis would have something in common.

It's all a matter of supply and demand.

We still haven't warmed up yet in New Zealand. Sometimes the sun is warm but the air is still cool. On the sail over here we both got stiff necks from sailing in a cold wind. (That plus the tension of sailing in a crowd in waters we didn't know, where the depths are fairly shallow, like 25 feet!) So we got here, put the boat away, and came down stairs to get warm. Meanwhile our neighbors donned swim trunks and went in. Boy, these Kiwis are a hardy bunch. Maybe they are more than hardy; maybe they are a little crazy.

Maybe we just got our blood thinned out by two years in the tropics.

So this is Boxing Day:. Anchored in a pretty harbor called Drunken Bay with a couple hundred Kiwi boating families. It could be worse. We heard from person who just flew in from Seattle that it is snowing in the Pacific Northwest.

At least it is not snowing.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Auckland