SV True North

 I left Smokehouse Bay intending to sail to the Mokohinau Islands which Andrew and I had visited last year.  Unfortunately as I left Port Fitzroy I found there was a significant swell which would make anchoring at Mokohinau unsafe.  I was very close to the lovely cove we had recently hiked to so I decided to anchor there instead.  I knew there was another trail which started at Bradshaw Bay, went out the west peninsula and returned back along the top spine of the peninsula to the airstrip.  From the airstrip I could hike the trail we had walked a few days earlier back to Bradshaw Cove. I set out on the hike on a lovely crisp morning and quickly discovered that the West Trail was much harder and more rugged than the ones we had hiked a few days earlier. True North anchored in Bradshaw Bay seen at the start of the West Trail hike. The trail climbed fairly steadily through a dense forest of scrubby short trees.  It was quite dark under the canopy.  As I w...

 I made a very short passage from Kaiarara Bay to Smokehouse Bay.  On the way I passed a large square-rigged training ship the Spirit of New Zealand anchored just outside the anchorage. The Spirit of New Zealand  Smokehouse Bay was named for the old smokehouses which used to be there.  There were still two smokehouses along with cooking, cleaning, laundry and even bathing facilities on a property which a family had donated to the state.  The property is to be used by yachties visiting the anchorage and a trust was created to maintain the property.  In the late afternoon the anchorage filled up with powerboats and the sundowner crowd onshore was a bit rowdy.  The sailors socialised by inviting each other to their boats and I spent two evenings on other yachts and had guests over to True North one evening. Of course there were hiking trails nearby.  The first hike I did was from the beach at the smokehouses and went to the highest point in the area....

 I departed from Whangarēi headed for Great Barrier Island, about a 45 mile passage.  Unfortunately the wind died just after leaving the river so I diverted to spend a couple nights at the Hen and Chicks Islands waiting for more favourable wind.  After two nights, a light breeze in the right direction was forecast so I drifted out to Great Barrier taking all day to arrive at the closest anchorage Nagle Cove.  I anchored In the cove overnight and headed to Ungunu Bay near Port Fitzroy.  There was no good place to anchor in this bay because the shallow areas were full of moored boats and the rest of the bay is very deep.  I sailed around to Karohara Bay just south and had lots of room to anchor. The next day I took my paddle board to the beach and headed out for a hike to the top of Mt. Hobson or Hurakimatā in Māori.   True North moored off the beach A map of the area.  True North was moored in the bay south of the “you are here” spot on the map. I ...

 With very little wind, I decided to stay in the Limestone Island anchorage and go for a hike on the island.  Limestone Island was the site of a Portland Cement factory in the late 1800s to 1920s and the ruins of the factory are still evident. The remains of the Portland Cement plant. Note the goats in the shade under the trees. The Cement Plant Managers house ruins The hike around the island began at a dock by the old cement plant ruins and primarily ran around the shoreline.  Much of the walk was along the limestone beach shelf but at the south end of the island a series of short boardwalks cut across a swampy area.  While walking in the boardwalk area, I rounded a corner and spotted a Kiwi on the trail just in front of me.  It did not seem to have heard or seen me so I was able to get several photos of it before it realised I was there and it quickly disappeared into the grasses. A Kiwi in the wild at 2:30 in the afternoon.  So much for them only being a...