This should be Happy Anniversary too (a little late). I was checking to see where we were last year for Easter and we were just starting our crossing of the Pacific. We had arrived at the Marquesis island of Hiva Oa the morning of April 17, 2010. Wow, we have covered a lot of the earth over the last 12 months. It's been amazing! So Happy Easter to everybody and thanks for following us.
Here we wait in Opua, tied to the dock (not in our boat budget for this month - eek!) waiting for the perfect weather to return so that we can head off to Fiji. Nobody is going to sympathize with this, but we are getting bored with the wait. Yes, I know our projected leave date was to be May 2 or 3, so why are we getting antsy so early? But guess what…. Mother Nature is planning to throw an Ocean storm on those dates lasting until around May 8th, so now do you get it?
We did rent a car for two days; we topped up our groceries (again! Man we eat a lot.) and hauled gasoline for the small boats, no gas at the dock here, and we intended to go to church for Easter Sunday. Guess we should have clued in when the priest on the phone sounded confused when we were asking for mass times.. we drove to the google map location provided and even had our handheld GPS unit to back us up, only to find a hospital at the intended address - we weren't lost, the church is! I hope God gives points for "it's the thought that counts". So instead of church, we toured some more of the North Island. It is always nice to see more countryside.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
April 19/11 More on the Weather
Oh Boy! The wind howled and then howled some more. Almost 36 knots in the anchorage and the waves built and broke and the water sprayed. Then… Bang! One of the ropes on the anchor bridle popped a strand and we have to make adjustments to keep the whole thing from fraying to bits. I guess 100 tons pulling on one 3/4" three strand rope is too much (anchor bridle is a rope yoke fitted to either side of the bow and then the anchor chain to keep the chain from banging from side to side). Yep! We guessed wrong about where to park. Rather than spend another night wondering if we are going to hit the rock wall behind us (and since we are now technically injured) we decide to haul up and head for Opua Harbour for protected waters. Well… and we thought things were hairy in the anchorage… we faced some 60 knot gusts and short, choppy seas about 3' height and walls of salt mist being blown from the surface water, all of this in the protected area of the Bay of Islands - crazy. But aside from getting the boat completely drenched in salt water we make it to Opua safely and manage to set anchor with only two tries (windy here too - but not so much).
Weather
Well even in Paradise (Oh sorry, we are still in Opito), you have to have a bit of bad weather and even as it is, it isn't really that bad. Just a day of 35 knot winds and pouring rain. We've got a good anchorage and we needed a day to just "bum" around anyway. Actually, I did some book work, we managed to find some free internet (shocking) and even here we need to do such mundane things.
Sunday arrives and brings the sun with it, so after breakfast we haul anchor and head to our next lovely place to be - Awaawaroa Bay on Moturua Island (see…it's a tough go here trying to say where we are). We've had to consider the direction of this bay's opening as the winds are to be switching direction and could bring uncomfortable conditions, hopefully the weather predictions are correct and we've chosen wisely. Of course there is a lovely walk (hike) here so I pack us a picnic lunch and we head off to "beach" the dingy and explore the hills and dales and beaches that this place has to offer. We are not disappointed. I have a large glass container on our galley (kitchen) counter that we are slowly filling with all of the beautiful shells that we find on our treks. Soon I'll need another container.
We've had some good news today, John - who crossed with us from Mexico to Marquesis last April, is able to join us for our trip to Fiji. The more hands on deck, the better.
Sunday arrives and brings the sun with it, so after breakfast we haul anchor and head to our next lovely place to be - Awaawaroa Bay on Moturua Island (see…it's a tough go here trying to say where we are). We've had to consider the direction of this bay's opening as the winds are to be switching direction and could bring uncomfortable conditions, hopefully the weather predictions are correct and we've chosen wisely. Of course there is a lovely walk (hike) here so I pack us a picnic lunch and we head off to "beach" the dingy and explore the hills and dales and beaches that this place has to offer. We are not disappointed. I have a large glass container on our galley (kitchen) counter that we are slowly filling with all of the beautiful shells that we find on our treks. Soon I'll need another container.
We've had some good news today, John - who crossed with us from Mexico to Marquesis last April, is able to join us for our trip to Fiji. The more hands on deck, the better.
More Funny Names - Beautiful Places
So we are anchored in Paradise Bay (easy enough name) on Urupukapuka Island - Gottcha! Since it is a work day for Abbie, Glen and I head into shore on our own, there is a supposed to be a beautiful walk on this island. Well our fitness level has now spiked to a "9" ("1" being the best) so we huff and puff our way up the steep inclines that lead us to fabulous "look outs" and hang on to branches (I do so I don't fall) on the declines down to the cozy beaches. It proves to be a steady walk of 2 hours to circumnavigate the island. We meet a couple who live in nearby Russell, that are just over to this island especially for the walk, and chat to them for a bit while we catch our breath and admire the panorama surrounding us. Lush green hills, plopped into azure blue water with tiny white dots (sailboats) snuggled into all of the protected bays that are lined by golden sand beaches. It's a "Stunner" as the "Kiwis" would say. We have been told that we can have dinner out at a small resort in the adjacent bay - Otehei Bay - so after our walk we motor over there to make a reservation (as they may not have food otherwise). Woohoo, we get to go out for "Fush 'n Chups" tonight. We love the accents here. So now it is evening and we all pile into the dingy to go out, but take a moment to ask a few simple questions of some folks that have "buddy-buoyed" their two boat together in the bay. Now we have an invitation for drinks when we get back from dinner. Long story short, it was a very nice night talking to some new boating friends.
There are literally 100's of little coves and bays in this single small area that one can set as a destination, so in the spirit of boating, we set off the next day for another "fab" spot with another sandy beach and another lovely walk. This one on Roberton Island (second name - Motuarohia Island), bay un-named, is unique in that it is a thin strip of sand between two hills. On the seaward side of the strip of sand are a few large rocks to break the ocean swell and we are anchored on the sandy side. The evenings are calm and moon lit and with the high tide, the thin strip of sand almost submerges to give the impression of an infinity pool to the ocean. Surreal.
We try our hand (or rod) at fishing for a couple of day, but the little stinkers just eat our bait and we have to let them go - because they are just "little". But our new boat friends make our day by dropping off a massive King Fish that they just snagged on their way to their next anchorage. They've been living on board in this Bay of Islands area since September and they are Kiwis so they should know how to catch fish here and we are thankful that they know how, because now we have fish!
The town of Russell is just a short boat ride from where we are parked, so one day we head in to do a bit of shopping and have lunch. This is also an opportunity to pick up the "sure to catch fish" lures and gadgets that we will need to feed ourselves, by living off of the ocean. Our next day out fishing still nets us a big "Zero".
Fine! We need to move on anyway and make our way over to Opito Bay which is on the main North Island and our mission here is to take the dingy and head into Kerikeri for a day of shopping. It is a long, winding channel with seriously low clearance, but going slow and paying attention to the markers (yes I know that’s what we are supposed to do anyway) it is a fun trip of exploration. We were in Kerikeri last spring - it is fall now - it is a cute little town with a bunch of early history attached to it and some good stores for groceries and other shopping. On our way back to the big boat we get a wave from a Canadian flagged catamaran, Bella Via. We met these people back in Tonga, so we spent the afternoon catching up with them on their New Zealand experiences. Most of the cruising boats from last season will be slowly collecting here in the Bay of Islands in wait for the perfect crossing weather to Fiji, so we will be having many such meeting in the weeks to come.
There are literally 100's of little coves and bays in this single small area that one can set as a destination, so in the spirit of boating, we set off the next day for another "fab" spot with another sandy beach and another lovely walk. This one on Roberton Island (second name - Motuarohia Island), bay un-named, is unique in that it is a thin strip of sand between two hills. On the seaward side of the strip of sand are a few large rocks to break the ocean swell and we are anchored on the sandy side. The evenings are calm and moon lit and with the high tide, the thin strip of sand almost submerges to give the impression of an infinity pool to the ocean. Surreal.
We try our hand (or rod) at fishing for a couple of day, but the little stinkers just eat our bait and we have to let them go - because they are just "little". But our new boat friends make our day by dropping off a massive King Fish that they just snagged on their way to their next anchorage. They've been living on board in this Bay of Islands area since September and they are Kiwis so they should know how to catch fish here and we are thankful that they know how, because now we have fish!
The town of Russell is just a short boat ride from where we are parked, so one day we head in to do a bit of shopping and have lunch. This is also an opportunity to pick up the "sure to catch fish" lures and gadgets that we will need to feed ourselves, by living off of the ocean. Our next day out fishing still nets us a big "Zero".
Fine! We need to move on anyway and make our way over to Opito Bay which is on the main North Island and our mission here is to take the dingy and head into Kerikeri for a day of shopping. It is a long, winding channel with seriously low clearance, but going slow and paying attention to the markers (yes I know that’s what we are supposed to do anyway) it is a fun trip of exploration. We were in Kerikeri last spring - it is fall now - it is a cute little town with a bunch of early history attached to it and some good stores for groceries and other shopping. On our way back to the big boat we get a wave from a Canadian flagged catamaran, Bella Via. We met these people back in Tonga, so we spent the afternoon catching up with them on their New Zealand experiences. Most of the cruising boats from last season will be slowly collecting here in the Bay of Islands in wait for the perfect crossing weather to Fiji, so we will be having many such meeting in the weeks to come.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Hanging on the Anchor
There are two cruising sail boats in here with us, "Curious", Steven and Trish from
The next day Glen and I head in to shore for a walk up to a lighthouse on the Bay's point. It turned out to be a great walk with fantastic views from the final vantage point. You can only do the whole walk during low tide as there is a small channel of water that divides the light house rock from the main shore.
Here is one of the nice things about traveling. We are finishing off the dishes after dinner and there is a banging on the hull. I look out to see two young fellows in a motor boat. "Would you like some crayfish?"
"Absolutely, how much do you want for them?"
"Nothing, we saw your flag earlier on our way out and would like to say Welcome to
"All right! Thank you very much."
The fellows had been out diving to catch the crayfish and had a big basket full, they gave us three good sized ones, bid us goodbye and motored off into the dark. Ooooh goodie, we will eat well tomorrow.
In the morning we head out for a 5 hour run up the coast, (not us, the boat) now we are in the
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
East Coast New Zealand
Well we are back in New Zealand. Our first week, which is the last week of March, is spent finalizing all of the provisioning of the boat for our extended cruise to Fiji, on or about May 1. Provisioning is best done here in Auckland as there is of course everything we need right here. Our new boat girl Abbie is with us now so we are all getting used to this change of lifestyle.
Finally we untie from the dock at Viaduct for the last time and head out. We are going to explore the small islands and anchorages along the east coast of the north island of NZ on our way back to Port Opua where we will take on fuel and our final groceries (including more lovely NZ wine) and then wait for our weather window to cross to Fiji. Our first anchorage out is at Kawau Island in Mansion House Bay. Oh it is so nice to be out and about again. We drop (not really, we put it down) the rubber dingy and head into shore where the mansion house is, but it doesn't open until noon so in the two hours that we have to kill, we decide to do one of the islands scenic walks to the old coper mines. An hour later, we are on the beach at our destination, hopping over the rocks and exploring. I don't hop so well anymore it seems, or at least I'm not as agile as I once was - whatever. Long story short, I slide down a short slope and manage to poke a hole in my head. Now we have an hours walk back with me holding my new souvenir of NZ. The general consensus between Glen and Abbie was that stitches were needed. Luckily there is a ferry to the main land from here and off we go. It just reinforced how very important it is to be careful out here on the water, as health care is not all that available. Four stitches later and I'm good to go. We never did get to see the mansion house. The next morning, we up anchor and head out to Great Barrier Island, not to be confused with Great Barrier Reef which is in Australia. We anchor in Port Fitzroy which is beautifully protected. There is a tiny collection of facilities at the small dock and we enjoy a drink at the local pub. This is a rather large island and we do a nice walk to a waterfall one day and rent a car and tour around the next day, having lunch at one of the little cafes in the south. It is pretty quiet now, this being fall here and most of the tourists have moved on. We also try our hand at fishing here. The main fish to go for is snapper, similar only in name to our B.C. snapper. Glen and I fish for a couple of hours, baiting the hook and setting it back down and pulling up a four inch snapper, releasing it and doing the process again. But persistence pays off and finally we land a big guy that will provide dinner for the three of us.
Today, we are traveling back to the main land (north Island) and will end up just north of Whangarei in a small bay. The winds are blowing 25 knots and the water is pretty choppy, the temp is 16 degrees C. New Zealand is on daylight saving time too, so we had to leave early to be able to arrive before dark.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)