Buried ship hauled out from sand 

It has taken three attempts and a bit of luck, but a popular Northland attraction has been hauled out of the sand 13 years after it was washed ashore.
 
The Belgium ketch, the Askoy Two, is a national icon which ended up buried in Northland's coastline but a rescue effort has salvaged the national treasure.

"Its been a tourist attraction and apparently word has got out about it and all the yachties come out to the Bay of Islands or Whangarei&everyone's wanting to come and see it now before it disappears," says Noel Hilliam, a shipwreck historian.

The Askoy Two is legendary in maritime circles - a once famous, luxury 20 metre ketch Belgium built in 1960.

She was a long way from home and seemed doomed to end her days on New Zealand shores 13 years ago, when a solo yachtsman on his way from the Bay of Islands to Nelson battled a 130 knot winds in a storm that washed up the Askoy to the Northland beach, burying her eight metres under the sand.

The salvage operation took four years, everyone crossing their fingers for this latest attempt.

"It was great to see that stern lift up out of the hole and the sea came in 10 minutes later," says Hilliam.

The last salvage effort along the stretch of the Tasman Sea was 28 years ago, a notorious coastline that has claimed 150 vessels.

"The ocean floor out here, the geography out there is just horrendous really," says Noel.

The restoration bill for the Askoy will be over two million dollars; an international fundraising effort.

"The keel is still good, because this boat was extremely strong built and we want to put him back in the sea, sailing but it may take three, four, five years I don't know," says Staf Wittevrongel from the Save the Askoy Foundation.

The vessel will remain on the beach until mid January and then will be shipped back to Europe for her repair.