SV True North

 After a week of hard sailing we arrived at North Minerva Reef.   Minerva Reef is a coral atol forming an almost complete circle of reef enclosing an approximately 2 mile wide lagoon.  The reef is just above water at low tide and is about 1 metre below water at high tide.  The reef provides good protection from the ocean swells but does not provide any wind protection. During our 5 day stay winds ranged from a low of 20+ knots to 49.5 knots.  The wind pushed large water flows over the windward side of the reef causing strong currents at the entrance passage on the leeward side. We were glad to get out of the large waves and take a rest for a while however the overcast and windy weather threatened to make the stay uneventful and boring.  This turned out not to be the case as we got together with several other yachties to participate in lots of activities and social events. On our first day we went snorkeling on the bow section of an old wreck.  The curr...

 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...

 It was finally time to head to civilisation and leave the islands behind for a few days.  We sailed the short distance to Russell where we could find good shelter from a forecast strong wind.  We dropped anchor outside a large mooring field filled with yachts.  That evening we took the dinghy into the Russell Yacht Club dock and had a very good roast pork dinner at the club.   The next day we headed over to the Russell town dock in the dinghy to see the picturesque town and then take a hike up to the flagpole above town.  The flagpole is a very famous site in New Zealand because it was built as a signal flag by the British but the Māori kept cutting it down because they were unhappy with their treatment by the British.  These events caused a long war between the Māori and British.  When peace finally came the Māori cut a large tree, carried it up the hill and replanted the flagpole symbolising the peace between the groups. A poinsettia in a garde...

 We had a very short passage from Paradise Bay to our next anchorage off Motuarohia Island.  This island has a very short hike up to some World War II lookout ruins and then continuing on to a lookout platform.  The other attraction is a saltwater tidal lagoon which has a snorkeling trail.  The lagoon was almost dry when we visited because it was low tide at that time. Andrew at the lookout viewing platform The view from the platform - the island in the background was our previous anchorage The trees were laden with mosses