Category Archives: Locations

Places around the world

Waterfalls: Paranui falls to Whangarei Falls

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In between our boat projects we take a lovely walk between two beautiful waterfalls.  We start at the AH Reed Memorial Kauri Park where we encounter the Paranui Waterfall.

This is a relatively short walk (3 miles and 1hr20min return).  The path is very easy to follow and fairly easy.

A great website with lovely photos can be found here.

The best spot to see the Paranui Falls is from the lookout (across the gorge from the parking lot).  This 23 meter tall waterfall is surrounded by lush vegetation.

You descend about 100 stairs to get to the main trail which is absolutely lovely. 

AH Reed Park has several well maintained bridges and paths ranging from dirt, stone and cement).

All of the paths run along the Waikoromiko River.

After about 40 minutes we reached the Otuihau Whangarei Waterfall.  These falls are 26.3 meters high and cascade over basalt cliffs.

This was a large, gushing waterfall leading to a big lagoon.  

This was such a beautiful waterfall that I took photos from every direction. 

We walked to the top of the falls (top right photo), bottom, left and right side of the falls. 

On the way back, we cross the famous Canopy Bridge which surrounds New Zealand’s majestic Kauri Trees. 

New Zealand honors and protects these massive trees which are up to 500 years old.

Even though it is a short walk it is absolutely one of my favorites!  

Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual live events.  We visited these two waterfalls in early December 2025.

Find Paranui Waterfalls on No Foreign Land and find the Whangarei Falls on No Foreign Land.

We haul out Sugar Shack at Norsand Boatyard in our last blog post.

Hauling out at Norsand Boatyard

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A return to New Zealand means a return to the boatyard.  We have a lot of upgrades, repairs, and general maintenance to do at Norsand Boatyard.

The slipway team with Kevin and Shane handle our haul out with expertise and professionalism!

We arrived in NZ with an exceptionally clean bottom (hull) when we arrived 18 days ago.  However, we spent those 18 days up river tied to a dock with warm, stagnant water.  These conditions are perfect for growing barnacles on our nice clean boat.

The good news: the yard pressure washed the boat immediately after haul out.  Matt and I (mostly Matt) spent days scraping the barnacle feet off the hulls so we could see where we needed to touch up the Coppercoat.   We do plan to burnish the bottom before we splash.

We have so many projects to accomplish in a short amount of time.  We have had to hire several different contractors in addition to the experts at Norsand.

Contractor Projects

  • Repair: Port fresh water tank needs to be repainted
  • Repair: Bottom of hull needs to be repaired due to reef scratches
  • Repair: Port rudder arm attachment needs to be replaced
  • Repair Canvas: Genoa bolt rope, aft shade, dinghy chaps, helm seat, 2-window shades, 3-back rests
  • Maintenance: Saildrives need to be serviced, gear oil changed, seals near props changed
  • Maintenance: Props need to be services, cleaned, and slightly adjusted
  • Maintenance: Paint crossbeam and martingale
  • Maintenance: Re-varnish (2) princess seats, (2) handrails, (4) swim steps
  • Maintenance: Burnish bottom of the boat
  • Maintenance: Paint saildrives and props with Prop Speed
  • Maintenance: Apply vinyl to rudder entry 
  • Upgrade: New window covers
  • Upgrade: New Solar Arch
  • Upgrade: New Solar Panels
  • Upgrade: New (2) Air Conditioning units
  • Upgrade: New Helm station extensions to fit new chart plotters
  • Upgrade: New Raymarine Mounts to fit gauge on helm
  • Upgrade: New rain flashing for the 4 large windows

Matt and Christine’s Projects

  • Paint (2) bow peak lockers (scrape, sand, clean, paint)
  • Clean stainless chain and re-mark 10m sections
  • Replace large zincs
  • Add freon to refrigerator and defrost freezer
  • Deep clean oven and stove
  • Paint security camera and cockpit clutch
  • Replace stickers on daggerboards
  • Sew: New helm covers, rail protectors, princess seat covers, cover for backrest
  • Polish all exterior and interior stainless
  • Clean and oil all exterior (hatch covers, sugar scoops) and interior (floors, walls, cabinets, tables) teak
  • Deep clean or re-organize entire boat
  • Prepare for insurance survey

The Plan

Our goal is to be out of the yard in 45 days but more likely it will be 90 days.  However, Norsand will close the yard for nearly 3 weeks during our haul out. 

Matt and I will focus on the contractor work for the first 5 weeks. We will work on our smaller projects in between our project management and overseeing of projects.

When Norsand closes we will focus on our larger projects.

We worked in the Norsand boatyard from 10 November 2025 – 12 January 2026.

Find Norsand Boatyard on No Foreign Land.

Check out the quirky things to do in Whangarei.

Happy Hermosa Beach, CA

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I needed a boat break in the midst of all the boat work.  So, I headed to Hermosa Beach, California to visit my family during the Christmas break.  It was a very short trip but well worth the miles!

Both of my nephews were home for the holidays so we had lots of family time. We enjoyed many walks along the coast, strand, green belt, and beach.  

When the sun is out it is not just pretty but gorgeous!

We took another walk along the coast near the Point Vicente Lighthouse which is reported to be haunted by a lone female spirit.

We passed by an information center that told us about the gray whale migration and gave us stamps.  And a beautiful peacock was roaming the streets on our way home.

My sister’s dog Luke is part shepherd and husky and requires several walks a day. So, we visited lots of fun little parks.

Cameron’s 22nd Bday

Cameron turned 22 on 29 December!  We celebrated him all day and took him to play Top Golf in the evening.  Can’t say that I was any good at it, but it sure was fun!

My trip was super short so I was only able to see one friend…Deborah.  We went to a new restaurant called Tiki Kai which was so cute!  It had marvelous decor and atmosphere.  The food was excellent but ridiculously expensive for small portions of food.

Kimberly’s Bday

My sister’s birthday was on New Year’s Day!  We celebrated her all day long too. We started out by watching the Rose Parade which was rained upon (only 10th time in 150 years). 

Since it was raining, we decided to go see Song Sung Blue (movie) but it was such a sad movie.  It had great acting, a good story line, fabulous music, and overall aa great movie — but super sad.  Then off to dinner at Tin Roof Bistro. 

Featured Image: Cole, Kimberly, Troy, me, Cameron

I go through moments where I really miss land life and my family.  These moments are coming more frequently.  Unfortunately, we are sailing further and further away making these trips really difficult.  But I will keep flying back to stay grounded and fill my cup up! 

Our blog posts run 4-6 weeks behind actual live events. I was in Hermosa Beach the last week of December 2025.

Don’t miss all the quirky things to do in Whangarei – check out our last blog post.