ships-log

Kiwiriki Bay, Port Fitzroy, Great Barrier (Aotea) Island, NZ

Monday, 23 March 2026, 2240 UTC | 36 11.9s 175 21.0e | Log 10,602

Roam at anchor in Kiwiriki Bay. Photo: Christine Mitchell, Sugar Shack

All is well. We are snuggled into a nice spot in Kiwiriki Bay within the larger Port Fitzroy area of Great Barrier Island. We had a short sail up the island’s west side in brisk 20-25 knot southeasterlies under reefed main and the solent. We ran our “chicken rig” where we fly the solent wing and wing using the spinnaker guy to hold it to weather. Daggers at 1/3.

Running with the “chicken rig:” reefed main with the solent flown to weather using the spinnaker guy.

This was the first time sailing the boat with our new cockpit enclosure fully closed. Our design idea was to make it possible to seal off the cockpit while still leaving room in the back to operate the winches and sail controls. It works as designed!

We’re anchored next to our sister ship, Sugar Shack. Matt and Christine have been out sailing her for almost a decade. They have been invaluable mentors for us. It’s nice to be anchored together for the first time.

Sister ships. *Roam* and *Sugar Shack* anchored together for the first time.

Chaos and Fundango are anchored around the corner. We are all here in preparation for a big storm on Thursday. If the wind is as expected, we’ll be in good shape here. For now, it’s sporadic drizzle while we putter around the boat, catching up on work and other projects.

Today's satellite image. Tomorrow's forecast. You can see the deep low generating all the havoc over New Zealand. Source: Windy.com

We got in a great hike in the Glenfern Sanctuary with the crews of all four boats. And, we found a small grocery store on the way back.

Hiking the Glenfern Sanctuary Loop Track. L-R: Matt (*Sugar Shack*), Karen (*Chaos*), Joanne (*Fundango*), Pam, Christine (*Sugar Shack*), Mark (*Chaos*), Scott (*Fundango*).

It’s a beautiful spot to weather the storm.

Departed: 23 March 2026, 1947 UTC

Generator: 906 | Port: 1463 | Starboard: 1463 | Barometer: 1030mb^