Logbooks:
NZ 2014 Part 1: Southland & Fiordland
'The Doubtful Sound Blues' and Dolphin Video Link
| Date: | May 22, 2014, 2:39 a.m. |
| Position: | 39 3.37 S, 174 2.63 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mqkMcClIOw&feature=youtu.be
I have finally had a chance to hack together the dolphin super pod footage from North Fiordland. Several hundred of mostly Dusky dolphins and a few Commons travelled with us for about an hour as we sailed off the coast between Bligh Sound and Milford. A couple of days later a smaller number, maybe only 300, of Duskys (and a few porpoising seals) joined us for the sunset as we left the Fiordland and headed past the glaciers of the West coast. I did not think nature could get any more beautiful but then the full moon rose over the glaciers, which were still blushing purple and pink from the recently set sun, and made a rainbow out of a light shower that skirted us, otherworldly.
I have used "The Doubtful Sound Blues" as a soundtrack - written, performed and recorded in Doubtful Sound a couple of weeks earlier by the talented Bongus Bobus (AKA Rich). It recounts the adventures of some characters we met on the fizz boat 'Bounty Hunter'...
15 May 0530UTC 40:39S/172:16E
| Date: | May 15, 2014, 5:52 a.m. |
| Position: | 40 39.00 S, 172 16.00 E |
The SW winds last night didn't last very long and we were back to motoring through glass all day today. Its unbelievable that we would have 3 days of dead-calm on this stretch. Looks like we'll have this most of tonight and tomorrow across the Cook Strait too. We tried sailing today on about 8 knots of wind and were making progress at about 4kts before the wind dropped to nothing. We are currently west of Cape Farewell and heading for New Plymouth where we will have to refuel, the weather has been very pleasant but also very expensive on the diesel. We probably have enough fuel on board to get around to Opua but it would be getting a little too close for comfort... just in case we need to motor for another 3 days!
14 May 0500UTC 42:19S/170:40E
| Date: | May 14, 2014, 7:21 a.m. |
| Position: | 42 19.00 S, 170 40.00 E |
Currently 24nm WNW of Greymouth. Motored for most of the day due light winds again as per yesterday. The wind came up from the SW just about 1 hour ago. We currently have 20kts of SW wind and we are running with a poled-out reefed genoa only making about 5.5kts heading 025T. Caught a ~10kg albacore about 1 hour ago when we put the sail out but then brought in the lines because it is too hard to slow the boat and bring them in with a poled-out rig. Then about 15 minutes ago I saw a bluefin the size of a small dolphin jump out of the water about 100m off our stern... I think that was the one that was set out for me :-(
13 May 0530UTC 43:59S/168:19E
| Date: | May 13, 2014, 5:58 a.m. |
| Position: | 43 59.00 S, 168 19.00 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Sunset here at 1730. We are currently about 2.5nm NW of Cascade Point just west of Jackson Head. Currently heading 065T at around 6kts planning to keep around 3nm off the coast on account of the good weather. We have motored all day after leaving the mouth of Milford at around 0930 this morning. The forecast SW 25kts did not happen and we motored along all day in northerly 3kts or so. The wind swung around to SW 8kts this afternoon for about 1 hour but it wasn't enough to justify putting the sails up. We just came across the same "super-pod" of Dusky dolphins that we encountered the other day and followed us from Bligh Sound to Poison Bay. There must be several hundred to around 500 in the pod. Trolling all day with three lures but still no luck on the fishing for tuna. Tomorrow we should be passing over the Hokitika trench which is famous for tuna so fingers-crossed! I've heard that a lot of the locals here get to Hokitika then they turn around, cause that's what it's all about... apparently.
Moored in Deep Water Basin, Milford Sound
| Date: | May 10, 2014, 10 a.m. |
| Position: | 44 40.95 S, 167 55.07 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Picked up a mooring in Deep Water Basin.
Anchored in Bligh Sound
| Date: | May 9, 2014, 10 a.m. |
| Position: | 44 51.88 S, 167 30.55 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Anchored in Bligh Sound
Anchored at Alice Falls, George Sound
| Date: | May 8, 2014, 10 a.m. |
| Position: | 44 58.63 S, 167 26.42 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Anchored at Alice Falls, George Sound
Anchored at Catherine Island, Charles Sound
| Date: | May 6, 2014, 6 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 7.98 S, 167 8.29 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Anchored at Catherine Island, Charles Sound
Anchored at Deas Cove
| Date: | May 6, 2014, 4 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 11.71 S, 166 58.49 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Picked up water at the Blanket Bay Hotel on the way past.
Back on track... engine sorted
| Date: | May 4, 2014, 12:53 p.m. |
| Position: | 45 27.71 S, 167 9.19 E |
We are back on track and mobile again! Mike and Jeremy from Manapouri Motors and Te Anau Automotive (respectively) were able to come out within 24 hours of our return to Deep Cove in Doubtful Sound and took away with them the main coolant heat exchanger and the engine oil cooler and the starter motor.
While those parts were getting sorted I was invited out to go bluefin tuna fishing with Billy who is the caretaker for the hostel here on his boat the "Waimea". We trolled for tuna between pulling cray pots for 4 days at the mouth of Thompson sound. I was quite impressed to see that the bluefin tuna were jumping all around us inside the sound. They come right up to about 2 or 3 miles in to Thompson sound. They were jumping all around us but unfortunately we were not able to get one to take our lure. Another boat trolling nearby us was able to pick up two 35kg southern bluefin tunas in about 30 minutes though!
When I came back Mike and Jeremy had the parts ready and came back out to the boat to install them and give the motor a final look over and service. They overhauled the starter motor completely and replaced the start solenoid so the starter is much more torquey now. They also cleaned out the heat exchangers and the main coolant heat exchanger was very heavily calcified which has probably been like that since we bought the boat.
The engine now runs like a swiss watch. Very reliable starting and has a beautiful sound to it. Mike and Jeremy were very impressed when they heard it fire up and hum along sweetly.
We had our first snowfall the other day on the tops of the mountains and, although beautiful, it was a stark reminder that we have to get out of here before winter really kicks in. We are also suffering from the condensation and it would be good to get somewhere warmer and dryer to dry the boat out and go for a swim!
The plan at this stage is to leave tomorrow and head up to Deas Cove and wait for a good weather window to start working our way up to Milford. It looks like we can probably make it half way to Milford (maybe George Sound) on Tuesday and then motor the rest of the way into the wind on Wednesday. It looks like there is a nice series of highs coming early next week so it would be good to be in Milford by then to catch the fresh south-westerlies all the way up to Cape Reinga.
The plan at this stage is to head up to Cape Reinga as quickly as possible and then work our way down to Opua and get the boat ready to head off to Fiji within the next month to 6-weeks. Fingers crossed we can get a weather window!
Engine problems off Caswell Sound
| Date: | April 15, 2014, 2 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 27.71 S, 167 9.19 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We have had a pretty interesting past 24 hours. We are currently in Doubtful Sound and the engine is out of action. All is well will us and the boat is otherwise all good.
We were heading out of Caswell Sound north towards Milford and we ended up losing the engine and couldn't get it started again. It appears that the fresh water heat exchanger has possibly failed catastrophically and the engine may have cooked itself (even though we stopped the engine as soon as the hot water alarm came on). We have a mechanic arranged to come out from Manapouri. Its not going to be cheap but we don't have many options at this point.
When the engine failed we ended up deciding that it was best to head back to Deep Cove, Doubtful Sound where we knew some of the charter operators and, more importantly, we knew the sound well which gave us a chance of navigating in under sail.
The wind was blowing easterly and funneling out of the sounds was quite strong, but the worst of it was that it was extremely gusty. The wind would shift from between dead-calm at points between the sounds to around 40-50 knots at the mouth of the sounds. The situation being stuck offshore in those conditions was not a good one however fortunately we had Meri Leask on the radio and the local charter and heli operators knew our situation and we could have been out of there within minutes if we needed to be.
We ended up keeping calm though and managed to make it back to the entrance to Doubtful Sound, it took us 24 hours to cover the 14 miles or so. Probably the most challenging sailing we'll ever have to do. We ended up taking shelter offshore behind Secretary Island just north of the entrance to Doubtful Sound and just mulled around there all night reaching back and forth and keeping ourselves in a position which gave us as many options as possible to sail away in the event of a change of conditions. The plan was to wait for the wind shift to the north which would have given us an opportunity to sail into the sound but that would have been another 36-48 hours. Fortunately however a local charter operator generously offered to come out and gave us a tow in the morning.
All is well with us now in Doubtful and we'll hopefully have a mechanic out here this week.
Hove-to off Secretary Island
| Date: | April 14, 2014, 10 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 13.66 S, 166 51.57 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After a tough day of sailing in very heavy easterly winds we got to the entrance of Thompson Sound too late to attempt to sail-in or get a tow-in. We advised Meri that we would just heave-to in the lee of Secretary Island for the night.
Anchored in Caswell Sound
| Date: | April 13, 2014, 11 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 2.52 S, 167 17.53 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
The guide book notes that this anchorage is an "all-weather" anchorage, however it is very exposed to the south. By the time we got here to anchor however it was too late to back-track to Charles Sound or move on to George Sound.
Anchored in Deas Cove
| Date: | April 11, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 11.71 S, 166 58.49 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Anchored in Deas Cove for our last-night here before heading further north to Charles and Caswell Sound.
Anchored at Gaer Arm
| Date: | April 11, 2014, midnight |
| Position: | 45 18.91 S, 167 10.90 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Came back here to explore the Camelot River which is a must-see apparently.
Anchored in Precipice Cove
| Date: | April 10, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 15.93 S, 167 8.39 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Came back to Precipice Cove for the night because it knocks a few miles off and is a good all-weather anchorage.
Moored in Blanket Bay
| Date: | April 8, 2014, 11:43 p.m. |
| Position: | 45 18.02 S, 166 58.63 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Took a mooring in Blankey Bay. A terrible choice as there was about 10-15kts of easterly blowing straight into the bay.
Anchored in Deep Cove
| Date: | April 7, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 27.75 S, 167 9.85 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Spent a few days hanging out with Billy and Wilma here in Deep Cove.
Anchored in Crooked Arm (Haulashore Cove)
| Date: | April 6, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 25.30 S, 166 55.31 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
The weather was so good that we managed to sail all the way down to Haulashore Cove in Crooked Arm. When we woke up the next morning the mist burning off the the glassy reflection of the water created probably our best photo-shot of Fiordland.
Anchored at Precipice Cove
| Date: | April 5, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 15.18 S, 167 9.92 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Anchored for the night at Precipice Cove as the weather was going to be a bit bad and Precipice is the best all-weather anchorage in the area.
Anchored at Dagg Sound
| Date: | April 4, 2014, 10 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 25.87 S, 166 54.27 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Anchored at a spectacularly beautiful spot. We went ashore and tried to do a walk through to Crooked Arm on the other side of the valley but we managed to lose the trail and get horribly lost.
Anchored at Stevens Cove
| Date: | April 2, 2014, 9 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 36.07 S, 166 40.49 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After sticking our head out into the Tasman to see if we could make it north to Doubtful we decided to abort mission and headed back to Stevens Cove. We'll probably have to wait it out here a few days before making the jump up to Doubtful.
Anchored at Second Cove
| Date: | March 31, 2014, 9 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 33.16 S, 166 48.35 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Motored down to Second Cove for the night. The weather is forecast to turn a little worse (and from the north) over the next few days so we'll probably have to stay here in Breaksea Sound before we can make it up to Doubtful Sound.
Anchored at beach along Vancouver Arm
| Date: | March 30, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 30.21 S, 166 58.25 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Beautiful calm conditions and a very picturesque anchorage. We met some hunters who were camped on the beach.
Anchored at the entrance to Wet Jacket Arm
| Date: | March 29, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 39.60 S, 166 44.17 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We anchored here behind a small island for the night after a perfect day of weather and sailing.
Anchored at the Eastern End of Cooper Island
| Date: | March 28, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 43.85 S, 166 52.54 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We moved around from Supper Cove to the Eastern end of Cooper Island to knock a few miles off our journey up the Acheron Passage tomorrow.
Anchored in Supper Cove
| Date: | March 27, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 42.27 S, 166 56.78 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
The motor down Dusky Sound was absolutely spectacular. The conditions were completely glassy and there was just a slight misty rain falling. We followed the southern coastline and went through Nine Fathoms Point which had a pretty impressive waterfall. We did a brief drive-by Shark Cove to see if anchoring there was suitable but ended up settling for Supper Cove where we went ashore to the DOCS hut to see if anyone was there but it was empty.
Anchored in Pickersgill Harbour
| Date: | March 26, 2014, 1 p.m. |
| Position: | 45 47.74 S, 166 34.48 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Same place where Captain Cook brought the ship "Resolution" for repairs after his journey south from South Africa to try to find the southern land. They spent 3 months here making repairs and refreshing themselves. It is an amazing anchorage and really only fits one boat/ship.
Anchored in Earshell Cove
| Date: | March 26, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 43.63 S, 166 35.45 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After a drive-by tour of Facile Harbour we concluded our little day-tour of the northern part of Dusky Sound we anchored here for the night in a nice little cove tucked-up into the island at the entrance. The next day we did a drive-by tour of the basin.
Anchored in Cormorant Cove for the morning
| Date: | March 26, 2014, 2 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 41.18 S, 166 33.55 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We motored up to Cormorant Cove in calm conditions and did some fishing in the morning. The first stop in our little day-tour of the northern parts of Dusky Sound.
Dusky Sound 22-23rd March
| Date: | March 23, 2014, 8:02 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 45.87 S, 166 31.35 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
Dusky Sound deservedly has a reputation for being the most beautiful of the sounds. As we entered we detoured around some of the many small islands to have a go at catching dinner. After Wal & Mary's generous meal of delicious Venison we'd had our red meat for the week and were keen again for fish. Before we could even get our lines wet we chanced across a couple of young fisherman with a good haul, who promptly tossed a large butterfish and a small* cray on board! The wind was coming up enough to make fishing from the yacht awkward in the small channels so we headed for Luncheon Cove to anchor and launch the dingy instead. It is a narrow and spectacular entry to the cove which I completely missed as I was chasing the still very much alive butterfish and a cranky crayfish around the galley! We launched the dingy but got sidetracked from the fishing by the stunning scenery and some very small and terribly cute seal pups. Larger ones were keeping an eye on us but we were surprised how close to us the little ones were allowed to come. In the evening the bigger guys noisily invaded the cove and started to take far too much interest in the dingy. We had left it in the water as we couldn't raise it with the stern line out but in the end we had to half raise it as they were quite determined to play with it, even with us in it. Finally they found a school of fish and we became the second most interesting thing in the cove. It was a glassy night and very pretty to watch the bioluminescence light them up as they chased dinner around the boat. *Small meaning only a meal for 2 It is a bit blowy today so we have been catching up with everything as we hang out in Luncheon Cove. I launched my Kayak and went for a paddle outside the cove to see how bad it was and barely made it back in, decided instead to go ashore and tramp around the island. Incidentally the site of NZ's first European style house and boat. I think I would choose this spot too if I had first pick. I caught a Tarakihi which we have it on good authority makes great sashimi! Mark has been knocking off some consulting work but I am hoping a nicer day tomorrow might entice him in for a quick dive, I think I found some Paua whilst paddling.
Chalky's Inlet 18-22nd March
| Date: | March 22, 2014, 2 a.m. |
As we heading into North Port anchorage the radio lit up with the Takapu, a charter fishing, diving, hunting vessel who had been a great help to us with local knowledge over the air previously. They again assisted us with some local insight and we arranged a catch up the next morning as it was going to be rough and wet so we were all planning a quiet day in the anchorage. The third day in Chalky's we set off up Edwardson Sound to anchor far inland at Lake Cove. It was a glorious blue-sky day and the torrential rainfall from the night before had all the waterfalls thundering down from the granite peaks. We took a short but rough and steep hike up to see Lake Cadman and the Cora Lynn falls stained with tannin. It's like living in a postcard on days like that. As the evening descended a powerboat, Stella Maris, turned up at the anchorage. The couple onboard joined us for a drink. We are very much enjoying the Southland hospitality, the traditional greeting appears to involve a bone crunching handshake with the right hand and the handing over of some freshly caught crays or venison loin, fish etc. with the left. We have been truly spoilt and everything is supersized and supertasty down here!
Mark decided to stop giving his hooks away to the Barracuda at Lake Cove and we headed back down to the inlet entrance the next morning. We were in two minds as to whether or not to head to Dusky Sound that day as we were really enjoying the area. As we headed up the Western passage we came across 'The Breaker' a peeling left handed wave that looker almost rideable. When Takapu confirmed this was the best surf break in the area, we promptly turned around to wait for the low tide. Mark was hoping this would bring in a bit more swell and make it well worth jumping into the 14.8 degree water. No such luck, so the next morning we took off to dodge craypots and round West Cape to get to Dusky Sound.
Anchored at Blind Entrance (Southport)
| Date: | March 21, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 59.26 S, 166 32.47 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After motoring down from Lake Cove we stuck our head out into the Tasman sea but decided it was a bit too late and rough to start a passage up to Dusky Sound. So we motored back through Blind Entrance and dropped our anchor in the crystal clear water over beautiful sand at South Port.
There is a fantastic surf-break off Breaker Point. But it is very cold and sharky so I didn't really feel up for tackling it alone.
Anchored in Lake Cove
| Date: | March 20, 2014, 8 a.m. |
| Position: | 45 51.93 S, 166 42.27 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We motored up to Lake Cove and anchored for the night. We met up with the Stella Maris there.
Anchored in North Port
| Date: | March 18, 2014, 2 p.m. |
| Position: | 45 58.32 S, 166 35.42 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After our visit to Cuttle Cove we decided we still had some daylight left so we tried sticking our head out to broke-adrift passage and seeing how it was. At first it was OK so we kept going but then the wind came up from the north a bit and the combination of this with the confluence of tides flowing out of both Preservation and Chalkies caused a terrible sea-state to form. When we left the conditions were calm enough that I thought we'd just tow the dinghy which was a mistake. We nearly had our own dinghy break-adrift in broke adrift passage! Now we know why it was named as such.
Preservation Inlet 15-18th March
| Date: | March 18, 2014, 8 a.m. |
We departed Half Moon Bay, Stewart Island at sunset on the 15th March after a pub meal at the South Sea Hotel (most Southerly pub in NZ) at Oban with all the fisherman and trampers. We had beautiful conditions and an almost full moon. The overnight sail would have us arriving at Puysegur Point at the entry to Preservation Inlet at 1030 the next morning. We could have spent another month at Stewart Island but could not resist a rare Easterly due to the cyclone up in the North. So while the rest of the country North and East of us copped a licking, we had a lovely evening and arrived as planned (albeit under motor the whole way due to light variable winds). Preservation Inlet has a wealth of historical sites including mines, whaling and sealing stations and the lighthouse at the point which was our first call. The morning was still very calm but was expected to deteriorate later that day, so we took the opportunity to drop anchor at Otago Retreat at the mouth of the inlet and walk the track up to the lighthouse and ruins. It is a very pretty and easy track, a bit longer than we expected but it meanders through a range of environments. The birds are everywhere and can be quite bold and there is plenty of evidence of deer. The infamous Fiordland Sandflies only started to pester us up at the lighthouse when we stopped to enjoy the view so we did not linger long. We got back under way and as we crossed the sandbar the water erupted with hundreds of huge bottlenose dolphins, it was a spectacular welcome to the Fiordlands. Neither of us had ever seen so many at once and several of them came to play with our bow wave.
We made our way around to Isthmus Sound as it seemed to be the best anchorage for the blow we were expecting to come in that evening. A beautiful base and tucked in with a stern line, very comfortable. You can see grains of sand 16m below the boat. Mark threw a line in the water to fetch us a Blue Cod for dinner, one of the nicest eating fish we've ever tasted and remarkably easy to catch in these parts. The next day we took it pretty easy, it was a wet day and Mark is still trying to shake that nasty cold. We did try a little exploring out to some of the mine sites but there is little left of them these days. We explored Isthmus sound the next morning and found the track to the brick chimney but it fell down just last year, as we found out when we visited Kisbee lodge in the late morning. The private lodge is usually only occupied by the caretakers, whom we had tea with. It is an impressive setup that can sleep 40 but is expensive to run in such a remote location. We were thinking of heading to Weka Island but there were a couple of boats in there already so we headed to Cuttle Cove instead. We went to shore to see the location of the whaling station which took less time than expected. As it was barely mid afternoon and it is light until after 2000hrs, we decided to use a break in the weather to dash around the 1nm headland into Chalky's inlet. Broke-= adrift passage is very choppy and the fisherman have a few choice nicknames for it but we managed it OK with the dingy in tow.
Anchored off Cuttle Cove
| Date: | March 18, 2014, 6 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 3.93 S, 166 39.48 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After our visit to Kisbee Lodge we headed over to Cuttle Cove to try to find the remains of the old whaling station. We found a few pieces of debris that looked like it was from more recent visitors but the remains of the whaling station appeared to be no more.
Anchored off Kisbee Lodge for the morning
| Date: | March 18, 2014, 4 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 6.55 S, 166 42.80 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We headed down to Kisbee Lodge for the morning to meet up with the caretakers. Kisbee Lodge is a private estate but has full-time caretakers there on a rotation.
Anchored in Isthmus Sound
| Date: | March 16, 2014, noon |
| Position: | 46 3.11 S, 166 41.14 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After our walk to Puysegur Point lighthouse we headed up past Kisbee Lodge to what appeared to be the best anchorage in the area at Isthmus Sound.
Anchored at Otago's Retreat in the morning
| Date: | March 16, 2014, 2 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 8.23 S, 166 37.74 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
After leaving Oban at about 7pm we had a perfect night motor-sailing in calm conditions and 15-knot Easterlies we rounded Puysegur Point at 10am. The conditions were just too good to be true so we dropped the anchor in Otago's retreat and walked out to Puysegur Point lighthouse which is rarely possible due to the conditions.
Leaving Oban for Preservation Inlet
| Date: | March 14, 2014, 7 p.m. |
| Position: | 46 53.45 S, 168 9.31 E |
After a few perfect days in Oban we are preparing to leave tonight for the first of the fiords: Preservation Inlet. The cyclone that has ravaged Vanuatu is moving south across New Zealand tonight and will bring some rare easterly winds to Foveax Straight. Although we would have liked to spend longer in Stewart Island, the opportunity to sail to Fiordland on moderate easterly winds seems too good to pass up so we are taking it.
After spending a few days in Bluff we came across to Stewart Island. We intended to stay originally at Golden Bay for the first night as the advice we recieved from Meri was that the main harbour (Halfmoon Bay) was very crowded with moorings. We immediately found out that most of the bays around Oban are over-crowded with moorings and its difficult to find space to drop a pick anywhere. We couldn't fit in Golden or Thule Bay so we went across the 1nm to anchor the first night at Sydney Cove at Ulva Island. This turned out to be a great choice as we were able to do all the walks on Ulva Island which were fantastic. After that we moved around to Glory Bay for a night and then on to Sailors Rest which is a fantastic tiny anchorage.
Yesterday we moved back to Golden Bay and were able to find space to drop a pick this time. We then walked over the hill to Oban. Oban is a great little town and the four-square supermarket is right on the waterfront. After surveying halfmoon bay from the beach we figured that we could find a spot to fit on anchor so we went back and got the boat and brought it around to halfmoon bay. We did have to have two attempts at anchoring after the first left us swinging out in the "no anchorage" area... it really is a very crowded harbour! We ended up settling for an anchorage which is uncomfortably close to some rocks just to the north-east of the main wharf.
I am now desperately trying to finish a couple of simulations so that we can pocket some money and keep the clients at bay while we are in Fiordland. All going well we will go back to the South Sea Hotel for another excellent meal before heading off tonight to arrive at Preservation Inlet tomorrow morning.
Anchored in Halfmoon Bay
| Date: | March 14, 2014, 6 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 53.72 S, 168 7.98 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We were originally hesitant to go to Halfmoon Bay because all the locals had told us that there were so many moorings that it wasn't even worth trying to get in there which is why we anchored in Golden Bay and walked over. However the convenience of bringing the dinghy right up to the four-square market in Halfmoon Bay is just too great.
After motored around we found that the moorings were not as bad as everyone had made out. We managed to find an anchorage off the end of the jetty and uncomfortably close to some rocks. But it was ok and we had a nice pub-dinner at the South Sea Hotel.
Anchored in Golden Bay for the morning
| Date: | March 14, 2014, midnight |
| Position: | 46 54.34 S, 168 7.07 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
The wind had abated and turned so we moved around to Golden Bay to re-try anchoring where we first arrived. We anchored there but it was very exposed to the south. We went ashore and walked over to the town of Oban. After checking out Halfmoon Bay we decided it would be easier to pick up groceries from the four-square market if we could just dinghy right up to it. So we walked back again and brought Tuuletar around into Halfmoon Bay.
Anchored in Sailors Rest
| Date: | March 13, 2014, 4 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 58.25 S, 168 8.76 E |
| Track to here: | Download |
We moved around to Sailors Rest which is a beautiful little cove. On the charts it is not properly rendered however once you go through the very narrow entrance there is just enough room to turn around and tie stern-to. Went fishing for blue-cod off the western headland in the dinghy and caught several but none of size.
Anchored in Little Glory Bay
| Date: | March 12, 2014, 4 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 58.27 S, 168 9.37 E |
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After breakfast with Andre and two crew from the Munetra we had a lovely sail in light northerly winds around to Little Glory Bay. We anchored at the western end of the bay. That afternoon and the next morning we took a dinghy ride to the jetty at the eastern end of the bay and explored the walking track and tried unsuccessfully to see a Kiwi. The walking trail opens to a nice beach on the eastern side of the isthmus.
Anchored in Sydney Cove, Ulva Island
| Date: | March 11, 2014, 4 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 55.64 S, 168 8.10 E |
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We had a boisterous sail across the Foveaux Strait this morning with a fresh 30-35 knots of SW wind. Fortunately it was only a short trip and as we approached the shelter in the lee of Stewart Island it was quite pleasant.
We followed the north-coast of Pattersons Inlet around as I was wanting to anchor in Golden Bay in the shelter amongst the Faith Hope and Charity Group of Islands (46 54.3327 S, 168 06.7215 E) but there were simply too many moorings to drop and anchor in there and Golden Bay itself was too exposed to the SW winds. As the sun was setting we made a last-ditch effort to motor across to Sydney Cove at Ulva Island in the middle of Pattersons Inlet. Sydney Cove is a small cove but we were anchored in the lee of the island and the conditions were very pleasant.
Anchored with us was the little boat Munetra with the captain Andre Kinzler and 4 (four!) crew on a little 7m boat. Two of the crew were sleeping ashore in a tent and we ended up having Andre and two others over for dinner. The two crew slept on our boat for the night for comfort while Andre had the Munetra to himself. They stayed on for breakfast the next morning.
After breakfast on the morning of the 12th I went over to see the Munetra as Andre was very proud of his new purchase. He was new to sailing and his enthusiasm seemed to cloud his better judgement. I was surprised that they had attempted to make Fiordland in Munetra. We talked a lot about weather, communication and safety systems that should be upgraded before trying again. Little did I know that I would be the last person to see the Munetra before it was lost with Andre and two young girls just 3/4 weeks later...
Bluff, eating oysters with steak-knives
| Date: | March 10, 2014, 9 a.m. |
| Position: | 46 35.78 S, 168 20.09 E |
We have been recuperating in the overwhelmingly friendly fishing town of Bluff. Mark is sniffling through his flue whilst fiddling away with the broken fore spar spinnaker pole end. We cleared customs quickly on Saturday night, the guys were lovely and were waiting at the birth to help us tie on. The bio-securities officer declared himself a big fan of my mother after I admitted that she had helped me organise the larder and briefed me on what I could/could not bring in. We tied up at 2030 and were in the pub not long after 2100!
We met Linda and her team behind the bar of the Eagle Hotel, enjoyed a pint of the local Speights and a triple stack toasted sandwich that was a revelation. I will never look at the humble toastie quite the same way again. We even managed to bribe Linda for the recipe which she created for her late fisherman husband.
Then sleep, sweet, unbroken 8 hours of sleep….
The next morning we really enjoyed stretching our legs as we explored the town and took up some of the local advice we'd received at the pub the night before, sniffing out the best blue cod, seafood chowder and the famous Bluff Oysters. We have had some terrific oysters so far, Bateman's Bay, Barilla but these really do earn their reputation and yes you need a steak knife. Back at the Eagle that evening we met some of the NZ Navy Sailors from the Wellington which is tied up nearby. She is looking like a beat up tin can after spending 48hours in 16m swells and the sailors had some stomach turning stories. We were originally going to depart Hobart in that weather system, many thanks to Bob McDavitt for advising otherwise! We also met Lyn & Spider of Takaroa who do adventure cruises of the Fiordlands so we are now armed with a ton of local knowledge and are really looking forward to getting up there.
This morning the weather was even more glorious than yesterday and all the fishing boats have headed out. I popped back to the pub in the morning as they have very kindly let me use their laundry facilities! But todays big highlight was having the legendary 'voice of Bluff' onboard for a coffee. We were finally able to put a face to the voice of Meri Leask who runs Bluff fisherman's radio (and has done for over 30 years) and who maintained a nightly sked with us as we crossed from Hobart. She also went way above and beyond co-ordinating with customs for our arrival and arranging a berth for us for several nights which we have just discovered will cost us a bottle of rum. Bargain!
If Mark is feeling well enough we will take on a bit of fuel and head to Stuart Island tomorrow, or the next day, or whenever, really enjoying chilling out in friendly little Bluff...
