So now the Magic Carpet Ride lingered on the hard at Oyster Cove from December 20. 2005 to September 28. 2007. We went to Oz several times to do more work on the boat, but it seemed that everytime we left it for a few months it went backwards even further. So finally in May 2007 we gave it the big push and to quote Deb's newsletter again:

May is one of our down times so we headed for Australia with a plan to work on the boat. We spent a couple of weeks enjoyed catching up with family and friends and the rest of the time preparing the hull of the boat for repainting. After such a long time between visits the boat was starting to look very neglected. Gian did lots of welding and I got into removing rust and old paint. Not very romantic or restful holiday but it felt good to be starting to revive the Magic Carpet and breath some life into the old girl.

We had to return to New Zealand at the end of May as my father came for a visit and then as quoted:

Gian went back to Australia for another week in June to work on the boat, he took Pete with him to do some major welding. They repaired rusty spots, rebuilt the rudder, installed new hatch covers, wind generator and undercoated the hull.
June, July and August where busy working months with pruning vines, shearing sheep, fencing and road work.
In September we were off again to Australia with a plan to finish the boat off and get it ready to sail to New Zealand in October/ November after James and Sarahs wedding.
After a lot of hard work and help from friends and family She looked a picture, all freshly painted, we had Freddy and Francesco over for a short break staying on the boat with us they helped with all the painting. Gian built an inside steering station and installed an auto pilot and shortwave radio. He also removed all his tools from the galley and Michael McBay rebuilt the dinette. We put Magic Carpet Ride back in the water on 28 September. It felt wonderful sailing her away from the dry dock, she was a sail boat again.
We had a beautiful night moored at Nelson Bay and then sailed up the coast to Forster – Tuncurry.
The sail up was fantastic. We had a nice breeze behind us and we cruised at about 8 knots. As we came up to Seal Rocks we could see 2 whales breaching and playing just in front of our lighthouse. We lost the wind after that and had to motor sail the rest of the way. It was an amazing experience to see the coastline that I was so familiar with from the water, so beautiful.
Our arrival over the sand bar and into Forster waters was exciting. We arrived as the tide was running out and there was a bit of a standing wave in the channel. Both breakwalls were lined with Sunday tourists who gazed in amazement as we rocked and rolled through the waves. Gian did very well to hang onto the wheel as she pitched from side to side. Once through we both gave a huge sigh of relief, we made it, and there at the wharf where we were to tie up was my Mum and Dad to greet us.
What a great feeling to have our boat in my home town. For the next 3 weeks we spent a lot of time with my family.
Then we had a friend, Kai, from Waiheke come and join us to help us sail the boat back to NZ. We had to clear customs in Coffs Harbour, The wind blew NE everyday, not what we needed. We waited patiently for the wind to change to southerly but it just didn’t happen.
We left Forster on an afternoon with a strong North Easterly blowing, which we realized in the end was a mistake. We motored into the wind for a few hours but the wind was just getting stronger, the waves higher and it was very uncomfortable. I was feeling very seasick after a couple of hours and Gian and Kai also started to turn green. So we headed east and decided to turn the engine off and put up our storm jib and let the wind just take us while we got some sleep. We awoke to a quieter sea but found we were 15 to 20miles out to sea and had drifted south.
So it was back into it. We sailed for a while but as the wind dropped we decided to motor. We decided to stay in Port Macquarie overnight and finally arrived after dark. Gian did a great job bringing the boat over the bar but the marina was way down the channel and the marker bouys were not lit very well so Kai had to shine a torch to identify red or green as we inched our way down along the channel. Then we suddenly realised we weren’t moving. We had touched bottom on the sand bank. Quickly Gian instructed us to get on the low side and he revved the engine till we were free. Ahhhh! Then a few guys in a dinghy fishing called out to us to follow them as the channel was tricky and we were actually heading for some rocks. So we gladly followed them to the safety of the marina. We all had a nice warm shower and a great nights sleep.
Next morning we awoke early and got prepared to throw the lines. We untied and Gian put her in reverse we moved backward slowly the tide was forcing us toward the rocks so he put her back in forward and then to his horror realized we have no gears. Here we are heading for lots of expensive plastic boats with our big girl of steel and no control. Kai and I went into fending mode pushing her off the other boats. Other yachties living aboard at the marina came to our assistance and helped hold her and called the marina manager for assistance. He came with his dinghy and towed is to a mooring. AHHHH!!! Again!
Gian and Kai went down below and checked out what was happening with the gears, the universal joint bearing on the drive shaft had disintegrated. That was good news, not the gearbox. So that was fine Gian and Kai spent the next few days fixing it all up. I went up to Bellingen to spend a couple of days with James and Sarah and returned when we were ready to be underway again. Off we go again, the nor easter was still apparent so we motored all the way to Coffs. We had lots of whale sightings and dolphins playing around the boat as we headed north. We arrived in Coffs late afternoon and found a berth waiting for us. Now it was time to make final preparations, watch the weather and alert customs of our intended departure.