Here is a summary of our 1200nm passage between Opua in Northland New Zealand and Southport in Queensland Australia. We sailed alone in a wide range of conditions. During the first two days we had light winds. Then we 'rode' the N side of a large high pressure system for a week or so which gave us 20-30+ knot SE-E winds. The final few days gave us light NE winds before a weak southerly buster blew us home.
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| Tasman Sea |
Here are the usual plots...
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| Track |
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| Arrival at Southport YC Quarantine Dock |
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| Graphs |
Here are the vital stats for the passage…
• Distances/Speeds
• Route Distance = 1160 nm
• Logged Distance = 1231 nm
• GPS Distance = 1311 nm
• Duration = 11 days 5 hours 25 minutes
• Average speed = 4.6 kt
• Minimum boat speed = 2.5 kt
• Maximum boat speed = 6.5 kt with surges to 10 knots on waves
• Weather
• Minimum wind speed = 2 kt
• Average wind speed = 20 knots
• Maximum wind speed = 30 with gusts to 38
• Apparent wind angle range = 50 to 150
• Seas 1-3 m
• Swell 1-4 m from multiple directions
• Cloud varying from 1/8 to 8/8
• 3/4 to full moon to 1/2
• Engine
• Total = 50 hours
• Driving = 50 hours
• Charging = 0 hours
• Failures
• One wing-mounted solar panel ejected from its frame by a greenie
• Stars
• The boat - as always
• Storm staysail
• WindPilot vane gear in the breeze
The Tasman Sea (aka "the ditch") has a bad reputation. We found it similar to the Indian Ocean due to the strong following winds from the SE and cross-swell from the S. This led to a corkscrew motion and occasional violent green-water side-swipes. ie Solid lumps of water across the boat, one of which ejected a solar panel from its frame.
The weather was as expected. We waited patiently for a large High to ridge in to the Tasman. That wait lasted nearly a month. It was worth the wait. We rode the High's light S winds up to North Cape and past the Three Kings Islands. The wind then backed SE and built over several days, eventually reaching 25G35+ from the ENE. As the High moved out of the Tasman winds became light NE. This is when most of our motoring took place.
As we approached the coast the currents became stronger. Battling them in the left-over sea and swell was difficult. We don't have the weight or engine power to punch through this kind of slop. Our boat speed was similar to the currents which were all over the place in rotating gyres. Eventually the forecast weak southerly buster arrived.
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| Currents Matter! |
Overall it was a typical passage in the 'variables'. Variable winds with occasional showers, but no big thunderstorms. Cross-swells made the cockpit somewhere to go only for specific tasks. We kept watch in the companionway under the dodger. Kazi the WindPilot vane gear steered most of the way.
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| In the Bay of Islands Marina |
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| Departing the Bay of Islands |
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| NNW along the New Zealand coast |
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| Swell building |
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| Storm staysail & trisail-sized main in 20G30 |
We spent three days with the main down, sailing with either storm staysail or triple-furled yankee only. We were still doing 5+ knots. This was when the High was S of us and the winds ESE-ENE.
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| Storm staysail only in 25G35+ |
One interesting interlude was navigating through a wide area full of fishing vessels. Mostly Australian and Cook Islands registered. We could see them on MarineTraffic but their positions weren't updating frequently. As we came into onboard AIS range we could identify boats and buoys. As the screenshot below shows one boat shot their nets across our bow. You can see several buoys on their deck awaiting deployment. We called them on VHF and they assured us we could safely sail between the buoys, the nets being at least 15m deep.
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| Fishing vessel shooting AIS-buoyed nets |
Highlights of the passage were sitting back and watching Zen Again eat up the miles. She's pretty quick and loves surging down swells. The WindPilot managed the surges very well.
We saw lots of wildlife near the Three Kings Islands - a whale and prolific bird life. Elsewhere we regularly saw albatross which I could happily watch all day. The sun rises and sets were amazing. With a full moon we rarely lost visibility of the horizon, often through thin stratus cloud, The main stars and the planets were clearly visible on the nights without cloud.
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| Occasional showers |
We used our SSB to report in to Gulf Harbour Radio daily. Propagation was excellent throughout the passage. We also spoke with several amateur operators at much longer ranges.
Seeing the coast of Australia from Zen Again for the first time since 2015, and the coast of Queensland for the first time since 2011 was fantastic. This passage marked the completion of our circumnavigation. We crossed our path at the Gold Coast Seaway after almost exactly 15 years.
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| Land Ho! |
Clearing in to Australia was straight-forward. Customs were waiting for us at the Q dock. Biosecurity visited us the next morning. We used Dazmac as our re-import agent. This cost about $1000 but eased the process and we had no import duty or GST to pay.
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| Zen Again at Southport YC's Q dock |
We spent our first week back in Australia cleaning the boat, buying a car, swapping WA to QLD driver licences, registering Zen Again in QLD, changing to an Australian insurer, finding a live aboard berth, looking at tiny home builders, and preparing to start a new job tomorrow. Super busy!
Next we'll post a summary of our circumnavigation. Might be a week or two away.
Trust all's well where you are!
