Yesterday we had a great sail from Te Kouma Harbour on the Coromandel Peninsula to Wairahi Bay in Port Fitzroy on Great Barrier Island. It was a 44nm passage in a 10-20 knot ENE-E wind. Nice and flat in the lee of the peninsula and 1.5m seas in the Colville Channel.
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| Approaching Great Barrier Island |
Here are the usual screenshots...
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| Track |
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| Arrival |
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| Graphs |
We spent four nights in Squadron Bay in Te Kouma Harbour. Tis a very nice spot. We spent three afternoons thoroughly cleaning the hull. Visibility in the water was at least 2m.
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| Evening light in Squadron Bay |
The passage up the peninsula to Cape Colville was very pleasant in an 8G12 knot breeze on the beam. In Colville Channel the wind was more ENE and 15G20. The seas were a little lumpy but Zen Again powered across comfortably. It was a close reach due to a W tidal current.
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| Te Kouma Harbour astern |
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| Passing Coromandel Harbour |
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| North along the peninsula |
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| Passing Cape Colville |
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| Into Colville Channel with Channel Island ahead |
As we crossed the Colville Channel the Kiwi sail training ship Spirit of New Zealand was sailing parallel to us a couple of miles away. She reminded us of WA's STS Leeuwin - a pretty sight. She had anchored in Te Kouma Harbour one night while we were there.
We entered Port Fitzroy through Man'o'War Channel. The channel has a narrow 'neck' which is about 50m wide. Happily there was only a little current against us and from there it was a short motor to Wairahi Bay where we anchored.
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| In Man'o'War Channel |
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| Approaching the 'neck' |
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| Anchored in Wairahi Bay |
We had another piece published in this month's Yachting Monthly. This one's relatively long and describes how we've kept Zen Again ocean-ready over the years.
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| Ocean Ready |
We've finally given up on our South Island ambitions. Only two boats in Island Cruising's South Island Rally have made it to Fiordland so far. Both started in South Island. Popular cruiser's web site Noonsite said recently:
"New Zealand: Unsettled Summer Weather
Unusually warm ocean temperatures around and NE of New Zealand have contributed to a run of unsettled summer weather, helping passing low-pressure systems deliver frequent heavy rain and strong winds. National climate outlooks from NIWA note that warm seas combined with weak La Niña conditions have helped sustain a humid northeast airflow and repeated rain-bearing systems affecting the country. For sailors and offshore cruisers, this has translated into fewer stable weather windows, making cruising around the country tricky this summer."
So we've now turned northwards. We'll sail from Great Barrier Island towards the Bay of Islands via Whangarei.
We've also decided - for the time being at least - to forego our SouthWest Pacific cruise this year. Instead we hope to sail direct to Australia. This will complete our circumnavigation and allow us to return to work. If we don't secure work we'll cruise Queensland over the winter. Hopefully a weather window will come along!
We expect to spend this week exploring Port Fitzroy. Like Whangaroa Harbour the port provides all-round protection with many anchorages. It has no marina but does have a small village with a store and a few cafes/pubs. Most of the island is a nature reserve.
Trust all's well where you are.
