Erin's picture

 

Orion entering Havelock

Christmas 2020

Mackerel sky over Havelock

Scary mussels at Johnson Light

Chess players, Take In Bay

Thunder, lightning, and hail in Chance Bay

Hosing away a ton of ice

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Take In Bay (north) with Jack and Belinda (Sofia) on the south buoy. A mackerel sky might have been taken as a warning, "Mares' tails and mackerel scales make lofty ships to carry low sails", but we enjoyed good weather except for a dramatic thunderstorm shortly after we anchored for Boxing Day lunch in Chance Bay. In just ten minutes an estimated ton of ice collected on the deck. Logged 41.4 nm.

All Aboard!

 

They don't like it up 'em!

Great to have Brian Gallagher and his friend Mary on board the Orion for lunch in Havelock Marina.  Orion owes her second lease on life to Brian and his loyal crew who together did so much restoration work ten years ago. Not many of these small wooden trawlers from the 1960s have survived. Orion was built by Harold Saunders in 1962, converted and restored by Brian, and is now maintained by us. A lovely day spent telling each other short and tall stories. 

Launching in sunshine

Work done this time: small area of rot in the bottom plate of the bulwarks forward, timber replaced; one board in the bulwarks port side in way of wheelhouse door replaced; wheelhouse door rebuilt; rot in transom belting, timber replaced; all upper works prepared and painted; prop speed; metal stem band to protect stem and forefoot from flotsam damage; anti-fouling paint.

Mussel Festival

Callum, Nina, Johnny

Smart as paint

Job done

Moving to the ramp

Back in the water

Back on the berth, showing off

The purpose of painting a wooden boat is to protect her from the elements. But the wonderful spin-off is that she looks great too, and you feel great about her. Thanks to Lloyd and Roger at Sounds Shipwright Services, Orion is looking fantastic: cabin roof, deck, topsides, boot topping, and hull. There's a new mast too, seen here in the lowered position for coming out of the shed.

Getting trolleyed

Fine day

Pressure wash

Ready to roll

In the yard

In the shed

In New Zealand you can get all four seasons in a day. There is no good time of year - it's either too cold, too wet, too windy, or too hot. That we can get Orion into the shed at Sounds Shipwright Services right here in Havelock is a huge advantage. We're hoping, believing, that the paint job will be all the better for it. It means she's in the shade and out of the wind, so although she'll dry out it'll be nothing like last year when insanely hot sun beat down on her day after day.

Haul-out 2017

Havelock Slipway

Hauled out on the top of a 3.2 m tide. Sitting upright and well-supported. The paint has held up well, it's two-and-a-half years since she was painted at Salthouse. The hull was pretty clean, just a few mussels on the keel where the blocks were. Fitted an additional transducer on the port side just forward of the cooling water intake, this is so the Furuno mfd can be dedicated to display the depth the whole time, and to fish-finding. We have an upgrade kit for the bowthrust; beautifully engineered propellors replace the quite basic standard ones. We're going to follow the advice of the O brothers and the Chris McMullen article and leave the anodes off. The bottom paint is Carboline Sea-Barrier Copper Black and we used about 22 litres. It's an Altex product.

Big tides

The creek at Havelock marina

Saturday high water was predicted at 3.1 metres and low water at 0.4 metres. A high barometer 1030 mb likely pushed the water down that bit more. Sunday was more again with a range of 3 metres. On the flood tide, when the sill is covered that's when we know we have enough water to transit the channel.

Easter

Easter at Havelock

Big tides and the Pelorus River in flood meant timber floating everywhere. That, and a hundred and twenty odd trailers in the car parks caused us to stay in the harbour and do some painting. Looking pretty smart right now. Monday we moved onto the fueller and took 376 litres, so now we're topped right up the better to prevent condensation with the warm days and cool nights. Alison Rudduck stayed aboard a couple of nights, enjoying the slow pace of life aboard Orion.

Christmas 2015

Christmas tree in Orion's wheelhouse

Putanui West

Orion lying Putanui West buoy

Two glorious days and nights of calm, hot days. Just Sue, me, and the dog. Waved hello to some people on the second day, but really just had the place to ourselves. Went out on deck in the middle of the second night... the sea was like glass, a plane of obsidian black you couldn't see nor barely sense and in the firmament above Orion and the Southern Cross charting our position in time and space. Recommended R-n-R.  Amusingly, it looks like a party of three sitting on the aft deck, but it is just Sue sitting between the two aft bitts.

Pelorus River

Off Havelock Slipway

Sue drove around to the slipway in the car with Poppy, and took this picture while we were waiting for the yard to adjust the cradle. It was a big tide and it stood for an hour at least.

Oh, joy!

We got the news we'd be going back in the water Saturday. She went afloat no problem, and Joseph Griffiths had the wheel again for his knowledge of the narrow channel: "Don't look at your depth sounder, you're better not to know."

Joseph on the wheel

Oh, joy! We have been afloat for 48 hours now, and the pump has yet to go off. I looked - no water, wow! All this was, it was a butt joint and Alan (shipwright) couldn't say whether it was a nail hole or the caulking in the butt itself that was letting water in. Anyway he replaced two nails with silicon bronze screws, and caulked the joint, and it's tight. As is the weepy transducer, all dry now. Also fixed the wee bump on the stem (long delay shifting gears when you have a Gardner idling at only 420 rpm married to a Twin Disc reduction gearbox, more bumps likely in the future) and sharpened up the boot topping (thank you Wayne). Also followed the 'O' Bros advice to reduce the zinc and bonded the remaining anode to the aft bearing housing, thanks to Joseph for your work on this. In a very good space right now.

Brief haulout

Hauled at Havelock Slipway

We have hauled out to do a few minor jobs: inspect the hull after the delivery trip; fix a few minor leaks; reduce the zincs. Joseph Griffiths went on the wheel, negotiated the narrow channel, and put her on the cradle. Took a couple of goes to get the cradle right, but then she sat very nicely. 

Creature comforts

Bunks made up in the fore end

Pictures of Tangaroa and Amazon

Cabin lamp and picture of WT28

Sue has been busy painting in the fore end, and making up the bunks, which just makes the whole thing look really inviting. The cabin lamp is not wired yet, but we'll find a nice warm LED if we can, and there are two more brass lamps to go in the corners and light the table. We're keeping the CCFLs Brian originally fitted because they're nicely installed and if not particularly moody, they're useful when you want to see what you're doing. The engine room has gained some LEDs too which has reduced the load should we be stopped and fixing something in there while away from shore power.

Engine room LEDs

Sue on board Orion

At last we've been finding the time to do some jobs, and it feels really good: fixing the leak in the big fridge heat exchanger; painting in the fore end; changing the bulbs in the engine room for LEDs; drawing off a fuel sample from both tanks; remaking the electrical connections to the bilge pumps; finding the leak; hanging up the cabin lamp; re-purposing the galley locker to store enough food for the longer missions we plan; understanding the water tanks; replacing the Jabsco fresh water filter; working out how to stow and launch the dinghy; and getting Poppy used to her life jacket ready for when she needs trips to the shore for you know what.

Poppy hopeful

Poppy analog mission

We're planning to haul out at Havelock Slipway for a few days at the end of the month, do a number of small jobs we missed up in Greenhithe.

Paradise Bay

Ade and Janice

Janice and Helen

Joe catches his first fish ever

Passing a mussel barge in the channel

Entering Havelock

Departed Havelock dead LW (neaps) to see just where the mud is. Local skipper Pat Copp with us, advising. 7 POB {Sue, Steve, Pat, Helen, Janice, Adrienne, and some random German guy} 1 DOB {Poppy}. Anchored in Paradise Bay. Back on the berth about 6pm. Stayed aboard.

Inaugural cruise

Poppy on watch

Bex, Ryan, Pat, Steve

Sue and Ryan

Our inaugural trip out of Havelock Marina. We stayed on board on the Friday night and it was windy with things rattling and ropes creaking. Day started 20 knots from North West easing and 4/8 cover clearing. Departed at 10:00 6POB {Sue, Stephen, Bex, Ryan, Pat, Colin} 1DOB {Poppy}. Poppy's first trick as ship's dog. Local skipper Pat Copp engaged as pilot to show us the channel. 11:30 On a CC Buoy south side of Putanui Point. 12:00 Off Raetihi, Kenepuru Sound. 13:30 On the fuel jetty Havelock, took 600 litres. 14:40 Back on berth H8 port side to. Popped some fizz to celebrate our first trip out. Had some sunshine and sat around on deck before packing up. Day ended with 25 knots from SW, 8/8 low cloud, spots of rain.

Arrival Havelock

Orion arrived Havelock

Handed over all shipshape

After a not uneventful voyage from Napier (they towed a yacht that could not start her engine in a dead calm but a bobbly sea from Cape Palliser to Queen Charlotte Sound), and after spending a quiet night in Mahau Sound, Orion and her crew berthed on H8 in Havelock Marina. This is expected to be Orion's home at least for the foreseeable future.

Wanting to show our appreciation beyond just paying the fee and expenses we gave presents of a beautiful decanter of Nelson's Blood to Skipper John Burns and a bottle of Jura "Superstition" single malt to chief mate Peter Browne. 

John Skipper Burns

Peter Browne

Today we have parted the best of friends as they boarded the Bluebridge ferry for home. The weather window that finally got Orion down here is already sliding shut. The barometer is trending down, it's raining, and by Monday a big southerly swell is forecast up both coasts of New Zealand.