Stilwell Bay - Onetahuti

We started our day off right by jumping ship to visit Lissa and Andrew onboard Cape Landing - espresso machine in tow! Nathan whipped up coffee for everyone, using the fresh straight-from-the-cow milk we picked up in Nelson. Vela was rather impressed with the cruising catamaran setup and is now "encouraging" Nathan to get a better paying job so it might open up this option in the future.

Afterwards we headed back to Starling to get a bit of work done before heading deeper into the Abel Tasman for some peace and quiet. I have to say there are a few things that have surprised me about the management of one of our most beautiful national parks... Ski lanes inside the national park, motor boats, jetskis and water taxis screaming around all over the place with no regard for the 5kt rules. I have to say I don't feel it showcases the beautiful nature of the Abel Tasman to overseas visitors in the way that it should...

So Nathan went for a quick dive to gather some mussels (thanks Lissa and Andrew for the hint!) then we headed for Onetahuti. Inside the Tonga Island marine reserve area we found a much more peaceful anchorage to enjoy, and we cooked up the mussels for a delicious lunch, especially enjoying the big fat orange ones.

We spent the afternoon relaxing, swimming, and taking a nice walk along the beach, leaving only footprints behind. We were absorbed by the beauty around us, with braided rivers being etched into the sand, music of the tiny waves breaking onto the beach, streams of bait fish no more than a meter into the water, and even a big stingray gliding past.Read more