Webb Chiles has posted links to a local Opua Photographer who has some fantastic images in and around Opua.
Monday, 12 September 2016
Saturday, 10 September 2016
September sailing ctd
Monday Sep 5th - Tue Sep 6th
Good to be back on dock to clean up and catch up with a few jobs... cleaned up a few more things and added them to the 'Land-based Residential Address' aka Storage Locker B6.
Into Paihia and a lovely Indian Curry and even time to open an account at the Paihia BNZ - still was in the system after 20 years - will help access funds here in Opua at the ATM.
Into KeriKeri and New World to replenish supplies.
Still waiting for the Golden Pole to be delivered and eventually Hirondelle II nicked off and headed to Paroa Bay in a strong southerly (which I might add was to become a constant theme)
No joy from the rigger so I too left the dock late afternoon and head-sailed down around Tapeka Pt and motor-sailed into Paroa just on dark...
Wed Sep 7th
Strong winds continued and we hunkered down for the day... a little reading, a little relaxing etc. etc.
A lovely settled spot tucked in to the southern most corner of Paroa Bay. Just the right spot to escape the SW prevailing - right near a gorgeous red-roofed cottage, complete with boat-house!
Cabin fever got to Fenton and we agreed to head off in the morning...
Thursday Sep 8th
Winds predicted to be 20-25 kts early, rising to 40 kts so we headed out with some alacrity with the aim of TePuna inlet - a great spot to shelter from strong winds...
As soon as we nosed outside the bay at 0730 hrs we could see whitecaps to the north and I decided discretion was the better part and rounded up to put a couple of reefs in the main...
Which proved prudent as I watched Hirondelle repeated rounding up in the gusts coming around Tapeka. As we approached the point we both eased sheets and shot across on a broad reach toward Black Rocks, looking for an easier passage toward Kerikeri inlet. Reefed sails and 7-8 kts all the way with Kalai managing the conditions well. Harndening up very close to the rocks we could see a wild stretch of water ahead as we tightened sheets and tacked our way up the harbour. By now it was 30-35 kts gusting 40 and first Hirindelle and then Kalai 'bailed' and cranked up the engine into the teeth of the gale. Even shortening the tow-line didn't prevent the inflatable from flipping 360 deg a couple of times as we bludgeoned our way up harbour and north into TePuna.
The crater proved untenable and we agreed to try Cowles Bay - a good choice as we tucked into the lee of the bay. Still some bullets over the hills but a safe anchorage and good holding. A quiet night...with some medicinal G&T applied internally! A necessary ablative to the rapid temperature drop late afternoon from 15 to 8 deg!
A message from the rigger about a certain Golden Pole decided me to get up early at 0530 and underway by 0600.... 7 deg and 25 kts of cold southerly means a cold looking selfie!
Butting into sharp chop and strong headwind at 5.5 kts the new engine performed impecably..
The wind stayed constant and southerly all the way back...holding back a tide that was supposed to have turned an hour and half before meant that the entry into the dock was tricky indeed, especially for the solo sailor. With too much way on reverse was called for in a hurry as the 25+ kts ensured that I was grateful for the bumper bar to help stop momentum on the pier as the bow slid up and then slowly back to a halt... meanwhile the stern waltzed left and I disappeared over the bow to try and reign in the wayward antics...
Nice to be back safely was an understatement indeed!
Friday 9th - Saturday 10th
News from Hirondelle as they too head for home - meanwhile a hot shower and nice Marina Cafe coffee restored order - as they say here it is: "Cold as!" with snow down south and wild weather across the country.
Good to be back on dock to clean up and catch up with a few jobs... cleaned up a few more things and added them to the 'Land-based Residential Address' aka Storage Locker B6.
Into Paihia and a lovely Indian Curry and even time to open an account at the Paihia BNZ - still was in the system after 20 years - will help access funds here in Opua at the ATM.
Into KeriKeri and New World to replenish supplies.
Still waiting for the Golden Pole to be delivered and eventually Hirondelle II nicked off and headed to Paroa Bay in a strong southerly (which I might add was to become a constant theme)
No joy from the rigger so I too left the dock late afternoon and head-sailed down around Tapeka Pt and motor-sailed into Paroa just on dark...
Wed Sep 7th
Strong winds continued and we hunkered down for the day... a little reading, a little relaxing etc. etc.
A lovely settled spot tucked in to the southern most corner of Paroa Bay. Just the right spot to escape the SW prevailing - right near a gorgeous red-roofed cottage, complete with boat-house!Cabin fever got to Fenton and we agreed to head off in the morning...
Thursday Sep 8th
Winds predicted to be 20-25 kts early, rising to 40 kts so we headed out with some alacrity with the aim of TePuna inlet - a great spot to shelter from strong winds...
As soon as we nosed outside the bay at 0730 hrs we could see whitecaps to the north and I decided discretion was the better part and rounded up to put a couple of reefs in the main...
Which proved prudent as I watched Hirondelle repeated rounding up in the gusts coming around Tapeka. As we approached the point we both eased sheets and shot across on a broad reach toward Black Rocks, looking for an easier passage toward Kerikeri inlet. Reefed sails and 7-8 kts all the way with Kalai managing the conditions well. Harndening up very close to the rocks we could see a wild stretch of water ahead as we tightened sheets and tacked our way up the harbour. By now it was 30-35 kts gusting 40 and first Hirindelle and then Kalai 'bailed' and cranked up the engine into the teeth of the gale. Even shortening the tow-line didn't prevent the inflatable from flipping 360 deg a couple of times as we bludgeoned our way up harbour and north into TePuna.
The crater proved untenable and we agreed to try Cowles Bay - a good choice as we tucked into the lee of the bay. Still some bullets over the hills but a safe anchorage and good holding. A quiet night...with some medicinal G&T applied internally! A necessary ablative to the rapid temperature drop late afternoon from 15 to 8 deg!
Butting into sharp chop and strong headwind at 5.5 kts the new engine performed impecably..
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| Early morning and motoring home into 25 kts of cold southerly |
The wind stayed constant and southerly all the way back...holding back a tide that was supposed to have turned an hour and half before meant that the entry into the dock was tricky indeed, especially for the solo sailor. With too much way on reverse was called for in a hurry as the 25+ kts ensured that I was grateful for the bumper bar to help stop momentum on the pier as the bow slid up and then slowly back to a halt... meanwhile the stern waltzed left and I disappeared over the bow to try and reign in the wayward antics...
Nice to be back safely was an understatement indeed!
Friday 9th - Saturday 10th
News from Hirondelle as they too head for home - meanwhile a hot shower and nice Marina Cafe coffee restored order - as they say here it is: "Cold as!" with snow down south and wild weather across the country.
September sailing
Tuesday August 30th
- Easy flight in front row, though just dozed off and on
- Collected bag and through Customs with no hassles (Home baking OK!)
- On shuttle and into town by 6:10, breakfast at Maccas
- Coffee at 0710 then onto Mana Bus (about a dozen passengers) and for the first time in living memory we by-passed Takapuna depot and Albany, first stop at Warkworth.
- A showery day that improved the further north we went. A 15 min stop in Whangarei and we still were at Opua hill before 11 am!
- An easy walk down the hill and onto E-pier once more.
- Fenton and Jim already ensconced and pleasantries exchanged.
- Kalai looked pretty good, bottom still clean and not too much mould.
- Unpacked, collected mail and then off to KeriKeri to provision with the prospect of some fine conditions for the rest of the week. Got enough food for a week or so and then back to dock.
- Arranged to look at the Marina's storage lockers and decided to rent a small (3.5 m3) one for six months to free up some space on the boat. Nice and secure inside a building with an alarm system and my new padlock!
Wednesday August
31st
Away early at 0800 and motored out towards Tapeka in light winds. After some discussion we decided to head south in the light NW winds predicted rather than try for Whangaroa. Raised sail before Paihia and eased out past the point before tacking in light airs around the north end of Moturua and then a long board out towards Cape Brett then squeezed through inside Piercy before having to motor-sail clear as the wind shifted and head us. Soon after dropped sail and motored down to Whangamumu with the lightest of Northerlies and a slight Easterly swell. Anchored about 400m off the shore and settled down for the night.
Thursday September 1st
- Still light early as we headed back out through the narrow entrance and headed south. We'd had a little roll that night with a slight easterly swell getting through. An easy run down the coast with Fenton hugging the shore line. We were joined by a pod of four dolphins who proceeded to stay with me for half an hour...
...later a fine tacking duel was had as we sped around the entrance to Whangaruru harbour and then came hard on the nose as we poked northward into this fine protected harbour, anchoring just to the west of the island near the head of the harbour... a quiet night.
Jim in the really little boat! 
Friday September 2ndA leisurely start to another fine day and we motored south out of the entrance as the breeze kicked in and I decided to break out the Gennaker and headed east off-shore to take advantage of a building NW. Back toward the coast Elizabeth reef was clearly visible at low tide and then I gybed away again and headed SE, dowsing the big sail as the wind built and we rocketed on a broad reach into Tutakaka harbour doing 7-8 kts. D14 and D20 were waiting for us as was a shower and a visit from B and R. Raewyn and Steve joined us for tea at the Pizzeria and we slept soundly in a calm berth.Saturday September 3rd
A
shallow front brought some showers overnight and we got away early
hoping to get north before the wimd shifted from the SW. Changing
conditions meant a frustrating trip back up the coast with the wind
shifting and then dying before strengthening again as we tried to get
to Mimiwhangata. Fairly exposed I wasn't too happy about
overnighting there and so we agreed to head back up to the head of
Whangaruru for the night, anchoring off the 'Green house' in calm
conditions.
Sunday September 4th motored out in deceptively calm conditions... on a cloudy morning... and just kept on motoring for three hours into a stiff northerly that was predicted to be 25 – 35kts. Through the gap and the wind died completely the north side of Brett. Slowly the breeze filled in and we reached across to Albert Channel and into Urupukapuka (known as 'poo-emergency' Bay – for good reason! I decided to try and fix the blocked toilet which had slowed froma slow empty to a complete stop the day before. Fenton 'volunteered' as Sanitary advisor and lived to regret the day as he became ankle deep in shite – unable to stop the “too much pressure” from the newly freed contents of the fermented header tank...
Needless to say we were keen to get back to dock and after a bail and sponge clean up of the offending load we headed off under headsails tight reaching in 15-20 knots of NW all the way back to harbour...
Lady Jane - a Hartley 32 on our mooring
Wednesday, 6 July 2016
More photos
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| Nanny standing nice and straight! |
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| Heading back into the water under the watchful eye of James... |
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| 'Stingray Bay' last night... |
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| Clean machine |
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| Ancient Pohutukawa |
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Urupukapuka Bay |
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| Nice place to play! |
Sailed, motored, satisfied
A day and a half was all that was left after the maintenance schedule, but too nice an opportunity to waste.
In short:
Left 1330 hrs Tue after splashing back in 0830 and motored to Tapeka point then gently sailed into Waipiro (Stingray Bay) for the night. Quiet as!
Off early today and sailed to Urupukapuka Bay, went ashore (to get phone coverage!), Polished the stainless and did a few other jobs then sailed off the anchor and headed out towards Brett in a light NE breeze. Turned around 1t 1500 hrs, breeze dropped so motor sailed toward Tapeka where the breeze kicked in again for a delightful sail up the estuary to arrive back in the marina 1815 hrs just on dark. Engine performed admirably, though still has a few vibrations at certain revs - may be the nature of things! Easy to pick a 'spot' where it smooths out and chugs along.
All in all a good shake-down cruise with a very slippery mistress courtesy of the shiny topsides and new bottom paint. I'll post some more pics later... time for dinner!
Monday, 4 July 2016
Re-propped, Re-aligned and Resigned to wait...
A warmer night with temps barely dipping below double figures but still the early starts with a rattle below before 8 am signifying the arrival of Marty from JB's to re-fit the cutlass bearing and drill a larger hole for the new inlet valve. Reassuring to see the hull is nearly 25mm thick along the centre - and solid fibreglass with no filler or foam! Bit of fiddling to get the new brass cutlass bearing in and then discover that the engine alignment was 'out', perhaps causing some of our alignment issues. All good by lunchtime and I was able to re-coat the prop and shaft with "Prop-One" - an alternative to the more expensive and patently useless "Prop-Speed" which became the barnacles 'food-of-choice' this past summer... we shall see!
Unfortunately the painting meant that I couldn't 'splash' back into the water until tomorrow - best to make sure it is properly dry.Lovely afternoon and decided to walk over to the Marina and retrieve 'Karuna' the tender for a row on a windless estuary. Checked the mooring out - lots of slime! and then rowed back to the hardstand, lifted the dinghy out and hoisted it onto the deck.
The plan is to get back in the water tomorrow and keep going out into the Bay overnight, with a NE predicted Wed afternoon to blow me home... clean up Thursday (rain and 35 kts) and up early Friday morning for the 0815 bus south...
The Marina extension is on track with new berths being ready before the end of the year...lots of mud and sludge as the excavate and deepen, dumping the excess into the reclaimed hard area.
Saturday, 2 July 2016
Hauled, Blasted, Scraped, Sanded, Polished and Painted!
Friday 1st July
Friday dawned cool and clear as I prepared to haul my Beloved from the security of her berth to the hard climes of hardstand...
Low tide at 1030 and still waiting for the Canny to arrive from Jaffa Land. 1100hrs and we needed to be there, so Greg and Judy jumped on board and very competently we manoeuvred our way into the waiting arms of the travel lift. Out of the boat and onto the dock while the 'boys' waterblasted the bottom. Not much slime but literally hundreds of baby barnacles meant a re-think as to the way to proceed. It looked very much like the warmer water temps had produced a bumper crop of attached marine cretins. Unfortunately each one leaves a calcium remains when detached, and the only way to get that off is to scrape and sand... Disappointingly, even the prop with its fancy coating was coated with the tenacious little blighters!
So... we decided to bite the bullet and re-antifoul now rather than in six months as intended. We were not Robinson Crusoe on this one either so we were told.
As you can see - the spotted disease had infected everywhere - right down to the bottom of the keel, which is usually relatively clear
After a couple of hours of very slow scraping and wet-sanding, the yard boss wandered over and asked if I knew the new regulations forbade the nefarious practice of wet-sanding and I was required to only use a vacuum sander - conveniently they could supply one at a nominal fee of $60 for the afternoon (+ 10 sanding pads @ $2.50 each!)
Meanwhile JB Marine turned up to suss out the prop/drive-shaft rattle and it looks very much like the culprit may be a worn cutlass bearing in the strut could be causing the problem. A new bearing is planned to be fitted Monday, meanwhile...
By now it was 1445 hrs on a Friday afternoon and the yard would be closing at 1645hrs (and re-open Monday). With little choice remaining we, with some alacrity, took up the offer and worked like little trojans for two hours flat out scraping and sanding until at 1644hrs we declared the spotted menace defeated!
A wamish shower and some warmer curry meant an early night for the intrepid duo...
Saturday was another day...
Saturday July 2nd
...which dawned cold and misty, about 3 deg outside and a little warmer inside as the blessed heater kicked in!
Onto the next task as we waited for the temp to rise sufficiently to at least allow paint to flow rather than glug, we set to cleaning and then waxing and polishig the topsides, a three stage process that took us through until mid-afternoon as we acid-washed, machine and hand-rubbed the white bits. A huge improvement!
By mid-afternoon the sun had warmed things sufficiently to allow us to mask and begin the rapid application of two coats of anti-foul. an hour and a half later the tin was empty and two lovely black coats were on!
Clean up and a long hot shower followed by a quick trip to Paihia Countdown then back to the Club by 1830 hrs for the Mid-Winter Christmas Dinner with mulled wine, ham, pork, roasted veges etc. We met Phil and Kelly, ex-Brits in their early 50's who had had enough of the Auckland rat-race and recently moved to Opua with their 40' yacht. Had a nice evening chatting but by 2030 we were flagging and the Canny is long asleep back on board as I finish this epistle and head that way myself with the Coalition having its 'noses in front!@
Thursday, 30 June 2016
Winter Wonderings...
Wed 29th June
Ahh.. the red-eye from Oz doesn't get any more romantic as the years go by! School of Ministry the past two days with Dr Paul Fiddes from Brexit-Land and then giving a presentation last night meant I was pretty tired and looking forward to a few days in the promised land.
At least I managed to snag an exit-row seat with plenty of leg-room. Still, sleep is an over-rated expectation for us late-night travellers on Jet-Connect. An enthusiastic tail-wind saw us landing in a wet, dark Auckland morning at 0440 local time (0240 body time). First time I've ever cleared customs being the only person in the queue!
An early morning strong flat white at 0510 from the coffee cart and then the shuttle into the city to meet little-bro Roger Dodger for breakfast at the Ferry building. Good to catch up and share some yarns of life and managing the inexorable ageing process... He and Ryoko are off to Japan again in August for a month...
On the Naked Bus at 0730 (run now by Mana) with only half a dozen passengers and a quiet run north in steady rain. The lady bus driver turns around at Paihia after a 30 min break and drives back to Auckland - long day I reckon! Opua hill by 1115 and a quiet walk downhill with new 'brolly and 22 kg bag saw me on the boat by 1145. Kalai looked pretty good, little bit of mould and growth on the hull but not too bad.
Unpacked, laid in a few supplies from the General Store then showered and crashed into bed around 2015 - to sleep for 11 hours straight!
Thur 30th June 2016
Awoke to the not-so-gentle sound of the barge 100m away driving 40ft tanalised piles into the mud for the Marina extension to the south. Work is progressing well on the additional 175 berths due to be completed within 12 months. Should provide some extra protection for us from both tide-flow and southerly wind.
Feeling a little more human this morning and after some wonderful NZ honey and toast ventured forth to check arrangements were in place for the haul-out tomorrow (Fri).
Glued up carpet, fitted mat and general tidying up.
A couple of packages at the Marina had arrived with some more winter-warm gear and were most welcome. A showery, cool day with a southerly arriving and promising a low of 3 deg tomorrow night. Forecast for fine weather the next couple of days should help us get the work done we have planned. Brian arrives in the morning and we lift out at 1030.
Meanwhile, met some new neighbours three doors down on a Farr 9.2. Just arrived up from Wellington were Greg and Judy, ex-Brits and escapees from Windy Wellington to the Winter-less North! So, brewed some very fine Ethiopian coffee and had a yarn for an hour or so. They've bought a house in Paihia and are keen to join our newly formed 'Ex-pats Cruising Race Division' - a highly sought out and closely monitored group only open to Yachts under 9.5m crewed by Old-Farts. Watch out Fenton, Judy was the women's race champion in Wellington!
Night-night!
Ahh.. the red-eye from Oz doesn't get any more romantic as the years go by! School of Ministry the past two days with Dr Paul Fiddes from Brexit-Land and then giving a presentation last night meant I was pretty tired and looking forward to a few days in the promised land.At least I managed to snag an exit-row seat with plenty of leg-room. Still, sleep is an over-rated expectation for us late-night travellers on Jet-Connect. An enthusiastic tail-wind saw us landing in a wet, dark Auckland morning at 0440 local time (0240 body time). First time I've ever cleared customs being the only person in the queue!
An early morning strong flat white at 0510 from the coffee cart and then the shuttle into the city to meet little-bro Roger Dodger for breakfast at the Ferry building. Good to catch up and share some yarns of life and managing the inexorable ageing process... He and Ryoko are off to Japan again in August for a month...
On the Naked Bus at 0730 (run now by Mana) with only half a dozen passengers and a quiet run north in steady rain. The lady bus driver turns around at Paihia after a 30 min break and drives back to Auckland - long day I reckon! Opua hill by 1115 and a quiet walk downhill with new 'brolly and 22 kg bag saw me on the boat by 1145. Kalai looked pretty good, little bit of mould and growth on the hull but not too bad.
Unpacked, laid in a few supplies from the General Store then showered and crashed into bed around 2015 - to sleep for 11 hours straight!
Thur 30th June 2016
Awoke to the not-so-gentle sound of the barge 100m away driving 40ft tanalised piles into the mud for the Marina extension to the south. Work is progressing well on the additional 175 berths due to be completed within 12 months. Should provide some extra protection for us from both tide-flow and southerly wind.
Feeling a little more human this morning and after some wonderful NZ honey and toast ventured forth to check arrangements were in place for the haul-out tomorrow (Fri).
Glued up carpet, fitted mat and general tidying up.
A couple of packages at the Marina had arrived with some more winter-warm gear and were most welcome. A showery, cool day with a southerly arriving and promising a low of 3 deg tomorrow night. Forecast for fine weather the next couple of days should help us get the work done we have planned. Brian arrives in the morning and we lift out at 1030.
Meanwhile, met some new neighbours three doors down on a Farr 9.2. Just arrived up from Wellington were Greg and Judy, ex-Brits and escapees from Windy Wellington to the Winter-less North! So, brewed some very fine Ethiopian coffee and had a yarn for an hour or so. They've bought a house in Paihia and are keen to join our newly formed 'Ex-pats Cruising Race Division' - a highly sought out and closely monitored group only open to Yachts under 9.5m crewed by Old-Farts. Watch out Fenton, Judy was the women's race champion in Wellington!
Night-night!
Monday, 25 April 2016
From Cape to Crater
Wednesday April 20th
Misty drizzle again this morning meant a relaxed start to the day. Water temps still close to 19deg and warm days in the mid-20's...
We motored gently out of Dick's Bay and at the agreed point sails were hoisted into a very light (2-3kt) headwind. The zephyr gradually built as we both headed north to catch the stronger apparent wind on the other side of the bay. many tacks later and Kalai again had eked out a lead as we hardened up to clear Hat island to starboard and out past Hope reef into a messy sea. A NE swell combined with the dying SE'ly meant some uncomfortable sailing with not quite enough air to keep sails filled. Eventually we bailed and motored the rest of the way around Urupukapuka island into Intico Bay for a swim and sustenance.
A leisurely cockpit lunch ensued with Hirondelle II easily winning the luncheon stakes with cold chicken, various cheeses and accoutrements on display...
An afternoon breeze filled in so we decided to make the most of it and weighed anchor (having been rafted up) having decided that the afternoon leg would terminate at Crater Bay, leaving Motuterakihi island to port...
Again the wind lightened and under the "no-Extra's" rule the Gennaker was unavailable so I was forced to lay an indirect course zig-zagging NW while the spinnaker pole-equipped Hirondelle went directly toward the mark 'flat-off' the wind. Consequently Kalai found herself in the unusual chasing position at Motuterakihi isalnd and desperately trying to sail a direct course to the Te Puna inlet - which at one stage had the skipper hanging off the rails trying to keep the genoa 'win-and-wing' with the mainsail while 'Bru' steered the helm.
Still trailing by several hundred metres at Poraenui point with less than 2km to sail to the finish I decided to take a punt and took a wide berth around the point while the leaders stayed close inshore to sail the more direct route. It did appear that there were a few more "cat's paws" on the water a few hundred metres out from the shore so I stayed wide and in the lightest of airs picked up some significant 'lifts' which saw me gliding past the now stalled Hirondellians - from which direction there appeared to be some wailing and gnashing of teeth - and then gently 'hardened up' to float into Crater (Wharengaere) Bay with 50m to spare!We anchored in the eastern corner, next to a launch belonging to John, the hero of the 1994 documentary Pacific Rescue (http://www.bluesuit.co.nz/1994.htm)
...In June of 1994 a dangerous "bomb" storm caught dozens of cruising sailors by surprise as they voyaged north from New Zealand. This is the true story of how nine yachts struggled to survive the hurricane-like conditions. Boats were battered by fierce winds and capsized by seas towering well over 50 feet high. Equipment was ripped loose, and water penetrated every weak point. Masts collapsed, rudders broke, and sailors lost steering control when they needed it most. The crews coped as best they could with injury, fear, exhaustion, and illness. Their electronic calls for help were picked up by satellites and radio operators, who initiated a massive air and sea search. This is the story of heroic rescues, human endurance, and tragic loss.
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