Bay of Islands Cruise 2

Hi everyone,

Our second cruise from Opua took us to two islands in the Bay - Motuarohia and Moturua.  Initially however we borrowed a mooring just off the marina from local sv Sam.

Sunset in Awaawaroa Bay

Here's our track for the cruise...

Cruise 2 Itinerary

While on the mooring we did a few more boat jobs.  One was to install a new ScanStrut Rokk tablet holder.  It mounts very nicely and holds our iPad Minis securely.  Perfect for both navigating inshore using the Navionics Boating app and reading Kindle books at sea.  We also spliced eyes into the ends of our shore lines and repacked them in readily accessible locations.  One of the three 100m shore lines was split into several lengths for use as anchor trip lines.

Tablet holder installed under the dodger

Zen Again on the mooring off the marina

Bay of Islands Marina dinghy dock

After two nights on the mooring we headed out to Motuarohia Island.  Captain Cook anchored S of the island when he first visited the Bay of Islands.  We met Kiwi sv LaVida there.  The last time we'd met Rosco was in Linton Bay, Panama several years ago.  Also aboard LaVida were John and Glenda of sv Roulette.  They briefed us on cruising Fiordland and loaned us a set of South Island cruising guides.

Heading out from Opua

Penguin  off Motuarohia Island

That afternoon we all dinked ashore to walk to the top of the hill.  This is a very popular island with a well-maintained track.  Nice views.

Crew of LaVida, Roulette and Zen Again ashore

At Motuarohia Island we tried out our newly installed stern anchor.  It worked very well.  We found a few gotchas during the testing so feel ready for use 'in anger'.

The following day we moved on to Awaawaroa Bay on Moturua Island.  Initially we were outside the small bay but still well protected from the light to moderate W to N winds.  After a couple of nights we moved further into the bay itself when a gap opened up.  It's a lovely little bay with lots of birds in the trees plus dolphins, penguins, rays, fish and apparently sharks in the water.

LaVida came and went a couple of times during our four night stay.  And we met up with friends on Turkish sv Deriska who were here too.  We joined them in their dink to go around to the other side of the island to a track which circles the island.  Good exercise in great company.

Zen Again and Deriska

Dolphins passing by

On the track

Post-walk sundowner with sv Deriska crew

During our stay we did two long sessions cleaning Zen Again's hull.  The growth in the Bay of Islands Marina was pretty bad so it was good to clean her up.  The water was about 20C which starts to feel cold after a while!

Back in the marina on Tuesday we finally collected our DHL package from Perth.  It contained our warranty replacement Starlink Mini, 12 to 24V converters for the Mini and various computer accessories.  We had hoped to ship the package to French Poly or Tonga but the costs, including import duty, were excessive.  With our New Zealand TIE (Temporary Import Exemption) we can buy and import goods to NZ GST/duty free.

The package

Goodies!

The old Starlink Gen2 system was removed and the new Mini system installed in a few hours.  We re-used the mount on the goalpost.  The voltage converters were mounted in the navstation with the spare mounted ready for rapid connection.  We have redundant engine, solar and Starlink power controllers since they almost guarantee against even a single failure!

Mini mounted

12 to 24V Converters mounted

Navstation

Most evenings we enjoy a beer at the Opua Cruising Club.  Nice way to end the working day!

Rainbows from the Opua Cruising Club

Trust all's well where you are.

Bay of Islands Cruise 1

Hi everyone,

We spent a week exploring the eastern part of the Bay of Islands.  For parts of the week we were in company with FSC sv Halcyon Days II and OCC sv Wild Iris.  It was fun exploring the islands with them.

Hat Island

Below is our track.  We visited Marriott Island, Ataio Bay, Oke Bay, Deep Water Cove then Matauwhi Bay.  On our way to Ataio Bay we took a look at Waiwhapuku Bay on Moturua Island but moved on since the anchor was skating over rock.

Tracks from Opua to Opua

We spent our first night out anchored E of Marriott Island in 4m over thick mud  with sv Halcyon Days II nearby.  It rained for most of the evening and we filled our water tanks from the rain.  By morning the sky was clear.

Departing Opua

Sunrise at Marriott Island

Marriott Island with sv Halcyon Days on the left

We had a good motor/sail N then E to Ataio Bay where Halcyon Days II also joined us.  That afternoon they gave us a ride ashore in their dink and we walked to the SSW side of the island to a small bar/cafe.  Spectacular scenery.

Sailing to Ataio Bay

With sv Halcyon Days II in Ataio Bay

Ashore with Halcyon Days II

Ascending

Big Tree!

Kiwi sheep with a view

We spent only one night at Ataio Bay since the wind was backing from N to W.  We sailed to Oke Bay in company with sv Halcyon Days II, passing between Hat Island and the off-lying rocks.  Later in the afternoon sv Wild Iris joined us and we had a great sundowner on her with all six crew.

Sailing to Oke Bay...

...in company with sv Halcyon Days II

Joined by sv Wild Iris in Oke Bay

We spent two nights in Oke Bay.  It was quite rolly from the N swell but we were anchored in 5m over deep sand.  We waited there until the wind went around to the E which made Deep Water Cove viable.

We scored 'pole position' in Deep Water Cove, in 8m over sand close to shore.  We dinked ashore to walk up the hill but didn't go all the way to Cape Brett.

Zen Again at Deep Water Cove

Ashore at Deep Water Cove

View over Deep Water Cove

We spent two nights at Deep Water Cove with Halcyon Days II, Wild Iris and several other boats.  It's a very pretty spot.  I got started assembling our stern anchor rode, connecting our new 100m-long 14mm 8-braid nylon line to the 15m of 10mm chain chopped off our bow anchor chain.  The assembly lives in a large bag.

Assembling the stern anchor rode

Stern anchor rode stowed

From Deep Water Cove we sailed to Matauwhi Bay just S of Russell, the first capital of New Zealand.  The sail was initially very rolly in a N swell and light NE breeze.  Once we gybed S the ride improved.  On arrival we anchored in 4m over mud.  Wild Iris joined us there.  We refilled our water tanks from the rain that evening.

The following day we dinked ashore with Wild Iris to the Russell Boating Club's dinghy dock.  From there we walked in to Russell.  We spent the morning in the museum which has many interesting exhibits.  The feature is a miniature replica of HMS Endeavour which was actually sailed before going into the museum.  We think it had a crew of three - one handling each mast - with only their heads and shoulders above deck.

Russell Boating Club

Russell

Sailing 1/5 scale HMS Endeavour 

Big Maori war canoes

From the museum we walked into the town centre and had fish'n'chips for lunch on the waterfront.  We then walked up to Flagstaff Hill and down again to the famous Duke of Marlborough hotel on the waterfront.  Great place with excellent beer.

Fush'n'Chups

Exploring around Russell with sv Wild Iris

On Flagstaff Hill

The Duke of Marlborough hotel

In the bar

Sampling the beer

We stayed in Matauwhi Bay for three nights then had a quick motor to Opua.  We timed our arrival at the Bay of Islands Marina for low tide and berthed Zen Again stern-to.  We needed to be stern-to to work on the stern anchor mount.

Testing the bread-maker

Since arriving back in the marina we've been busy fitting the stern anchor.  A custom s/s bracket mounts to the shaped plywood 'pad' previously used by the retired hydro-generator.  We moved the roller assembly from port to starboard quarter.  While dismounted we refurbished it with new rollers fabricated, like the s/s bracket, by local business FishEye Fabrication.  They did a great job.

Stern anchor fitted

The anchor is our original 16kg Manson Supreme which we up-sized to 20kg (and 10mm chain) last year.  It was stowed deep in the forepeak but is now ready for use again.  The assembly is clear of the WindPilot vane gear and its control lines.  The anchor's roll-bar has 1" hose fitted over it to protect the transom.  Hopefully it will prove useful.

We expect to head back out into the Bay of Islands in a few days.  This time we'll probably explore the W side of the Bay.  Looking forward to it.  Perhaps we'll test the stern anchor.

Trust all's well where you are.