Kawau Island to Rangitoto Island

Hi everyone,

Yesterday we had a fantastic sail from Bon Accord Harbour on Kawau Island to Islington Bay between Rangitoto and Motutapu Islands.  A 30nm passage in a 20G25+ SW wind.  Again we sailed in company with OCC sv Thestral.

Auckland Ho!

Here are the usual screenshots...

Track

Arrival

Graphs

The initial part of the passage was SSE towards Huaroa Point.  This was a nice easy close reach.  As we approached the point Thestral suggested we head for Islington Bay instead of Waikalabubu Bay on the NE tip of Motutapu Island.  This was a challenge since it'd be hard on the wind.

sv Thestral astern

Reaching S towards Huaroa Point

Hardening up at Huaroa Point

Needless to say we took up the challenge.  We laid the island but Thestral bailed and went the other way around.  Tim needs to get his forestay tension sorted.  Zen Again loved the challenge and we all had a great time.  The skipper hand-steered all the way as any "Captain Araldite" naturally should.

Close-hauled with 1 reef (& double-furled yankee)

Rangitoto Beacon on island's W end

Auckland astern

With sv Thestral in Islington Bay

There were about ten boats in Islington Bay.  There's room for many more and the holding is good in 3-6m over mud.  The only seas penetrating the bay were wash from high speed ferries going between Auckland and Waiheke Island.

Quiet morning in Islington Bay

We spent only one night in Islington Bay.  It's a nice spot but having buddy-boated from Marsden Cove to this Bay with sv Thestral they are heading in to Auckland and we'll head east.

Trust all's well where you are!

Omaha Cove to Kawau Island

Hi everyone,

On Tuesday we sailed from Omaha Cove to Bon Accord Harbour on Kawau Island.  Twas a very pleasant 13nm downwind sail in a nice 15G20 NNW-NW breeze.  OCC sv Thestral accompanied us.

Kawau Boating Club and RNZYS Annexe at Bon Accord

Here are the usual screenshots...

Track

Arrival

Graphs

It was a lovely sail from Takatu Point onwards when we got out of the seas into flat water.  We zigzagged around a couple of shoals then continued broad reaching SW.  We gybed into Bon Accord Harbour, only only motoring the last few hundred metres to anchor.

Departing Omaha Cove with sv Thestral

Approaching Takatu Point

Approaching Kawati Point on Kawau Island

Sailing into Bon Accord Harbour

On Wednesday we went ashore with single-handing Tim from sv Threstral and walked to the top of the nearby hill.  We left the dinghy at the RNZYS annexe's dock since both it and the Boating Club's dinghy dock have "Private" notices.  It's a nice walk on a good path.  Lots of ferns under the trees.

RNZYS Annexe

Dinghy Dock

Into the forest

View over the harbour

Selfie!

Remains of 19th century smelter

A beer at the Kawau Boating Club

The anchorage in Bon Accord Harbour is open to the W.  During Wednesday a SW wind came in, only 10-15 knots, which made the harbour uncomfortable at anchor.  Seas of nearly 1m penetrated the harbour.  We slept in the saloon that night.  But in the right weather it's a lovely spot with good tucker ashore at the Boating Club.

Marsden Cove to Omaha Cove

Hi everyone,

Yesterday we had a great sail, beam reaching in a 15G30+ WSW wind to Omaha Cove.  We mostly sailed with one reef in our small main, reefing down further during squalls, and with 2-3 furls in the yankee.  Several rain squalls came through with gusts to 35 knots.  It was fun to push Zen Again a little during a 30nm day sail with winds blowing off the shore.

Bye bye Whangarei Harbour

We had spent four nights back at Marsden Cove, mainly to wait out bad weather.  A deep low pressure system passed by and is now battering the east coast.  Its rain filled our tanks nicely and the wind made us happy to be 'tucked up' in a nice marina.  We met up with the recently returned crew of UK sv Island Kea II.  We met them in Shelter Bay, Panama last year and sailed across the South Pacific a little ahead of them.  We 'earned' a free lunch by updating their OpenCPN charts for the South-West Pacific.  Twas great to catch up with them.

Here are the usual screenshots...

Track

Arrival

Graphs

We sailed in company with OCC sv Thestral, a North Wind 435.  We sailed together through the Tonga Ha'api group last year.  She made up 1nm on us during this passage.

Approaching Rodney Head

Afternoon light in Omaha Cove

With OCC sv Thestral

Omaha Cove is a nice little anchorage, well suited to W winds.  We anchored in 8m, just outside the moored boats.  We slept well last night.  Today we'll be continuing S in lighter winds.

Morning light in Omaha Cove

Trust all's well where you are!