The former Whangarei-based tug boat Waitangi is currently chugging its way to Vanuatu on a new lease of life.
Two men who worked on the sturdy little vessel when she was still owned by the Northland Harbour Board are among the crew of 10 who set off from Port Nikau on a chilly, wind-whipped Thursday afternoon. They are Marty Wedding, a former ship's engineer and the skipper on the delivery trip to Port Vila, and Clint Laurence.
Five of the crew on board are from New Zealand and five are from Vanuatu.
Now renamed Kokiri, the Waitangi was purchased by Tuna Fishing Vanuatu Co Ltd in July. The company's owners, Vanuatu opposition MP and former cabinet member Chris Emelee and his wife, Northland-born Maryann Emelee, were among a small group farewelling the crew as they left Whangarei on the 2380km voyage expected to take six days.