Visiting some of the most spectacular and unspoiled scenery in the world on a sail boat is not for the inexperienced.

So when the crew of War Baby VIII set sail for the treacherous seas south of New Zealand they had every confidence in their captain Mr. Warren Brown.

And when the mast snapped in high seas, the vastly experienced Mr. Brown was certain they would all reach safety.

War Baby was dismasted off the East Cape of New Zealand's North Island, and the crew managed to find a haven before motoring 130 miles north.

"It was lucky we were dismasted where we were,'' recalled Mr. Brown. "The winds were around 30 knots anyway but it could have been worse.'' What Mr. Brown was referring to was the fact that the 61-foot sloop had just sailed from islands to the south of New Zealand in an area where "the wind blows all around the world''.

A lecturer on heavy weather sailing, Mr. Brown explained: "It is like Cape Horn. The wind builds up big seas because they are able to go round the world uninterrupted by land masses.

"If we had been there, 400 to 500 miles south of where we were dismasted we could have been in some difficulty. We certainly would not have had enough fuel.'' A sailing boat is a rare occurrence in those low latitudes around the Campbell Islands and the Auckland Islands.

Mr. Brown bought War Baby from media mogul Ted Turner 12 years ago.

Since then the boat has been nearer to the North Pole and the South Pole than all but one sailing vessel, the US-owned Northern Light .

The three month journey began when War Baby and its seven-man crew made its way to the Pacific, stopping at Easter Island and Pitcairn Island before it reached Auckland in New Zealand.

In January they set off down the east coast of New Zealand before crossing through the Cook Strait, between the two main islands.

Mr. Brown said: "The Cook Strait is like a wind tunnel, there have been some pretty serious disasters there over the years.'' The journey then took War Baby down the south island's west coast to Milford Sound, Doubtful Sound and Dusky Sound. They continued to Steward Island before sailing onto The Snares, a group of islands inhabited only by wildlife. During this time War Baby survived unscathed in heavy seas and winds up to 50 knots.

On the southern islands like The Snares, the Campbells and the Aucklands, there are few human inhabitants. The Campbells have a small meteorological station with five scientists.

"They do not have many visitors, particularly in sailing boats,'' said Mr.

Brown. "They said it was the first to visit for years.'' The lack of human contact makes the islands almost totally unspoiled thus providing a haven for thousands of seals, sea lions, penguins and other birds, like the albatross. Mr. Brown has brought back pictures of huge colonies of birds and seals.

"The trip was not really scientific but I have an ornithological interest, so seeing these birds ... being right in amongst them is quite exciting,'' he added.

"While we were off Steward Island we saw a group of five kiwis, the New Zealand national bird. Even some New Zealanders haven't seen a kiwi in the wild.'' On the trip Mr. Brown again took the opportunity to take other Bermudians with him, including Mr. Mark Whayman, one of many local people who have learned the art of sailing on board War Baby .

The crew motored the boat to Auckland, where it remained to receive a new, tougher mast.

In the meantime Mr. Brown flew home to Bermuda and is expecting to rejoin the boat later in the year. He intends to take it to Tonga and possibly Australia, although he has not ruled out a return to New Zealand.

WAY DOWN SOUTH -- War Baby sails close to one of the Snares, uninhabited islands off the southern tip of New Zealand.