Whangaroa. Whoa!

Say aaahhhh…

Known for its fjord-like bays and excellent protection, Whangaroa sounded like a good place to explore while we chipped away at additional projects.

And indeed it was. When the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Cook arrived in New Zealand accompanied by strong winds and torrential rains, we were tucked snugly into a small cove between steep cliffs.

Once the weather passed, we enjoyed the terrific scenery, freshly caught fish, and a marvelous hike up the Duke’s Nose—that is, to the top of a high granite formation so named for its aristocratic profile.

Several pre-departure (from NZ) tasks were postponed because, as so often happens in Boat World, new tasks cropped up. We got hit by a large wave en route to Whangaroa; when we arrived at our first anchorage, unlashed the dinghy and turned it over—the floor was gone!

How the large aluminum contraption managed to wash overboard is hard to imagine, but it did. MacGyver--er, Art—cobbled together a makeshift floor out of a spare window and miscellaneous boards we had with us, so at least we could safely take the dinghy to shore.

While hiking, we encountered a couple of women trapping possums. Their stories—about possums, and about life in rural New Zealand—were both fascinating and hilarious. Imagine the Mud Run: 7k through rough terrain in, of course, mud. Whoa! Participants wear wet suits and rugby shoes; it’s supposedly “great fun, as long as you don’t break your ankle”. It’s also popular; the woman on the left was pleased to have finished #150 out of 800 contestants. Where can we sign up?

Parts of the climb up the Duke's Nose were steep enough
to require hauling ourselves up rock faces hanging onto embedded chains.
Whoa!!

Picnic on the Nose (punsters, have at it)

Views from the top were fantastic! 

Views from the anchorages weren’t bad, either. 

Up a creek with two paddles, for a picnic at water level

Most of our week in Whangaroa Harbor was spent among rugged and secluded coves, but we enjoyed checking out the settlement of Whangaroa. The area is famous for its fishing, so of course we stopped by the Sport Fishing Club.

Art checking out some of the winning
fishing competition entries

And here's the largest Pacific bluefin tuna ever caught by an angler.
Whoa!!!

Another terrific hike, this one on a stopover from Whangaroa back to the Bay of Islands. Considering we didn’t have much time to spend exploring New Zealand this year, we sure made the most of the time we had!

Soon we’ll be clearing out of beautiful but chilly NZ and heading to beautiful and warm Vanuatu, a journey that we expect to take 8-10 days. In case you’re interested, here’s the list we use for our last few days prior to departure:

And last but not least, a HUGE THANK YOU to heroes Paul & Chris from S/V Georgia!

When cruisers or visitors arrive from the US, it’s common for them to transport items hard to find elsewhere. Usually the items aren’t large; think Starbucks coffee or small parts. Fortunately for us, cruising buddies Paul & Chris’s offer to bring something we needed ended up with them flying back to NZ with a rolled up aluminum dinghy floor. Whoa...another saga ending well (with a shiny new floor photo to come).

Tart Up Your Tinny

Say what?

Back in New Zealand, we were once again enthralled by Whangarei. What could be better than a place where in the morning one can visit a nut-and-bolt guru capable of finding anything one can possibly need in stainless steel—a guru worthy of reverence in Boat World—and in the afternoon wander through an exhibit of collaborative art created on site? And what could be better than a country where one of the menu options on a major marine supply store’s website reads Tart Up Your Tinny?

It turns out that phrase is a typically NZ (read: cheeky) way of saying “Fix Up Your Boat”. Since we’d just returned from a lengthy vacation in the US, our NZ time had to be spent on boat work—so here’s what we did to tart up our tinny.


We couldn’t even get to Whangarei until we replaced the V-drive, the transmission part that broke on our passage from New Caledonia to New Zealand.

We flew back from Seattle with a new V-drive
and carefully hoisted it onto the boat,

only to discover it was the wrong part.
Right part number, wrong part.

After feeling utterly devastated—a replacement would have taken several weeks to arrive—Art worked some magic. (Maybe his middle name is Merlin, not Earl.) He dismantled both V-drives, mixed & matched big metal pieces, and ended up with a functional part that fit our transmission. Voila! We had forward, we had reverse, we had a way to move from Russell to Whangarei!

And once there:

A wild night in Tonga damaged our bow roller (for the anchor).
Art had jury-rigged a system that worked the rest of the season

but a welded repair made it good as new.

What kind of toy is that?!

Art’s going up the mast to replace the anemometer (wind gauge), blown out by that same Tongan windstorm.

Now this...

can look like this
(very useful!)

The lights weren’t on, so was anybody home?

Corrosion behind the engine instrument panel meant learning new wiring tricks.

A day off! We walked across the river (okay, on a bridge) and enjoyed several hours of South Pacific food, music and dance. A good reminder of why we’re out here…

If living on a boat is akin to camping, being “on the hard” (hauled out of the water) is akin to being in a tree house. Schlepping everything up & down a ladder, no running water (all gray water on a boat drains straight out), no fridge (ours is salt-water cooled): no wonder we pushed to get the haulout maintenance done in a record 6 days.

Might as well make some of the work fun: we checked out the outboard engine overhaul by taking some sailing buddies on a short dinghy trip up the river for a picnic.

Pied shags

Paul and Chris from S/V Georgia

And after all the maintenance and repairs, we actually got to make some improvements!

Compared to last season's setup,

beefier solar panel supports made them
stronger and more versatile

New deck hardware organized the additional lines we had installed last season

Several projects required two people, one inside and one outside the boat (refer to previous mention of nuts and bolts). Nancie’s time not turning wrenches was spent with computers.

Having to wipe the computer’s hard drive clean in the States meant it no longer talked to the Pactor modem + SSB radio, our source for weather while at sea, or linked to a GPS receiver for a backup navigation system. Many thanks to Paul on S/V Georgia and Keith on S/V Sadiqi, computer guys in their former lives; with their advice I was finally able to sort out the maze.

Day 1: Surely I can figure this out

Day 2: Curses, stumped again

Day 3: Wrong skill set.
Playing the violin does not transfer
to tasks like this

Day 4: No pressure, but we can't sail
until I figure this out

Day 5: Houston, we have contact!

Other fun and games:

• Adding a VHF radio in the cockpit, more convenient than the one at the navigation station down below
• Fixing damage from last November’s gale, adjusting the wind steering system and replacing a couple of snapped lines
• Continuing the battle against overhead water finding its way inside the boat, including detaching the windlass so we could seal under as well as around it
• Getting charts and customs forms for Vanuatu and New Caledonia, this season’s destinations

etc. etc. etc.

Yes indeed, we’d tarted up our tinny.

There is always more that can be done on a boat, but we’d worked hard for two solid months. The projects requiring access to parts and supplies were completed; it was time to leave Whangarei and put the boat through a sea trial. As eager as we were to trade a dock for anchorages, however, we knew we would miss the camaraderie at Riverside Drive Marina. Sharing, commiserating, and assisting make for a meaningful community. Until next year!

Playing violin and ukulele duets at the weekly Sunday evening potluck
(thanks to Keith for the photo)