Voyage with Jack

Orion steaming along in Pelorus Sound 2025

A special trip with Jack on board, visiting from the UK. Nina joined too. Seven days on board, five of them out and about in Pelorus Sound. Mixed weather. 96nm.

Only mild exaggeration

Severe gale warning in Cook

Tranquil at Raetihi

Easter 2024

Complete mastery

Went on board Good Friday and sailed on the Saturday morning. Carried the tide to Tawero then punched the ebb up Tawhitinui Reach to Hallam Cove. Families holidaying in the baches. The south easter doesn't get in there unless it's strong.  The breeze died away to nothing overnight and Easter Sunday was the best day, calm, and warm at times. Fished at Bird Island but slim pickings. Sue caught two fat cod off the rocks in Homestead Bay, and did an amazing filleting job; she really has mastered the art. On the Monday we carried the tide all the way back into Havelock; systems all worked, 77nm in all.

 

March 6 cruise

 

Kauauroa Bay at sunset

Māori Bay, Port Ligar

Mussel barge, Forsyth Island

New Year 2022

 

Sam, Dylan, Sue, Nina

Sailed New Year's Eve at 1630 for the anchorage in Chance Bay. Much revelry aboard Orion with fabulous food by Nina, festoon lights, loud music thank you Sue, and a few bevvies. Next day moved north to Kauauroa Bay, stopping by Yncyca Bay to admire Manoa and to wish Leon and Michelle HNY. Swimming and fishing in K-Bay. Next day up early for Bird Island and some reliable cod fishing. Spotted Tyros underway. That night eating the cod in Hallam Cove. Lots of shearwaters, few or no penguins, no dolphins, heaps of rays including babies. Last night in Long Bay on the Kenepuru. Grape Escape came by in the morning and we went in late morning in company with Kerenia. Calm, hot weather throughout. Logged 104 nm. 

Countdown to midnight

Countdown to midnight

Sam, Nina, and a codfish

Dark arts

New Year 2021

Nina on watch, Outer Sounds

Dolphins at Post Office Point

Gardner in full song

This year's New Year cruise defined by the best dolphin experience ever.  A large pod of what we think were common dolphin approached on our starboard bow, passed under the boat, and surfaced on our port quarter. Fortunately, Nina was quick to grab her phone and capture the clip above. Fishing was good. We've got a thing about only catching what we'll eat, and so we put one kahawai and four fat cod in the fridge. Overnighted in: Kauauroa Bay, Ngawhakawhiti, and Chance Bay. Logged 72.2 nm.

Waitangi

'Octopus in net' by Nina

Getting underway

Poppy goes kayaking

Collab BBQ

Sailed 07:50 on Waitangi morning, Nina putting in the trip report with her shiny new VHF operator licence. Congratulations, Nina! Rendezvous with Weta in Stafford Bay, sheltering from strong gusts in the Outer Sounds. 17:00 pleasant in Stafford but with fresh SE winds forecast departed for Chance Bay, our companions in need of a good sleep. Friday departed Chance Bay for Bird Island fishing. 20:00 in Māori Bay (Port Ligar) in company with Seas the Day. Oops! Caught an octopus and quickly returned him to the sea. Next day, Saturday, fishing in Fishing Bay - go figure - then departed Māori Bay for Chance Bay and agreed meet up with Weta. Sunday in Take-In Bay and Poppy went kayaking; in the evening a most congenial collaborative bbq (pictured above). Back in Havelock 11:25 on the Monday and greeted by Janice and Norma, lunch in the Slip Inn. Steamed 114 nautical miles. 

Hallam Cove

Hallam Cove

Fishing at Bird Island (three nice cod from our favourite mark) then on to Hallam Cove via the Apuau channel. A quiet day at Hallam Cove, then next day made our way south via the Cookie Monster (drew a blank) Brightlands Bay (drew another blank) and the Meat-and-Two-Veg (where Sue caught one fat cod) to anchor in Long Bay for the night. A total of 91 nm.

Christmas 2019

Off Richmond

At anchor, Ketu Bay

Callum and Nina

Exchanging Christmas presents

Inflatable banana thing

Callum with four good cod

Anchor party

Callum joined us late morning in Havelock and we sailed at 1615 for Ketu. Oh, the long days of summer! Anchored in Ketu. Beautiful weather over the whole Christmas week and not too hot either. Exchanged presents with Grape Escape on Christmas morning. Visited World's End and Chance Bay, Callum caught gurnard, and we all caught cod down by Bird Island. Saw dolphins, penguins, shearwaters, and gannets. A total of 85.5 nm. 

End of summer cruise

The Ninepins on a nice day

Ketu Bay 4am

Reading our fish book

Very sharp knife

 Heading home

We got away on the Friday and made it to Ketu no problem. Goofed around on the Saturday and caught a couple of fat cod right there in the bay. In the wee small hours we were totally surrounded by fish, you could see them because of the phosphorescence. A seal was nearby. On the Sunday caught another good cod in the bay, then we went out to Ninepin rock just for a tiki tour and Sue took some photos that she missed last time. Awesome weather, but the days are getting shorter now heralding the end of summer. Stafford for lunch on the way back, and Putanui for tea, then back on the berth by 8 pm. Steamed 65 nautical miles.

New Year cruise

Shore leave

Nan and Gary swam each day

The Lytton Water and a nor'wester sky

Nan and Gary joined us for a short New Year cruise. The days were very hot, but the fresh NW breeze made it all bearable. The first afternoon - Sunday - we went up to the top of Nydia to look at the Lodge on the Track. Nan and Gary plan to walk the track. Then we went into Chance Bay and dropped anchor for the night. There were fish and birds and it felt unusually alive. New Year's eve we went and fished over Richmond Reef and scored four good cod. We went over to Yellow Cliffs in Waitata Bay for lunch, a fresh breeze kept us cool.  Later we made our way back to Richmond and picked up the Pohuenui Buoy for the night. We caught a gurnard, which is always the plan. The cod, filleted by Sue and cut into inch-long pieces, fried in FogDog g.f. breadcrumbs, complemented the scampi tails we had bought at Guytens. We had a bottle of Veuve Cliquot, and Nan and Gary brought a bottle of Moet - worse things happen at sea. We loafed around at Richmond in the morning and then steamed for home in the afternoon, all fast by 1640 having covered 63 nm in all. 

Gum Emperor moth
Found on deck after we got in

                                                    

Three somethings wine

Orion at Richmond Bay

Sue and Sandy

Kahawai

At Richmond Sandy caught a beautiful Kahawai, a great specimen. Her tackle was a Shimano Kid Stix 341 (lime green) with a 3/0 jig head and plastic squid skirt. We were careful to bleed the fish. Next day, at Yncyca, we cooked it whole in the oven. We stuffed the cavity with herbs, especially with mint, and put late harvest wine and an orange and some fish stock all in foil around the fish. Cooked for 25 minutes at mark 9. It was very nice to eat, and an easy way to deal with the bones.

It's hard not to catch cod, and of course they have to go back until December 20th. We extract the hook as gently as we can and return them to the water with the net and mostly they swim away fine.

Heard goats at Stafford, but didn't see them. Saw a black billy goat at Richmond.

Stafford the first night, then Richmond the second. Yncyca was a lunchtime stop on the third day. Very hot weather with light winds and a sea breeze in the afternoons. A total of 51.3 miles.

Labour day

Sunrise from Stafford Bay

We might have gone further, but a fresh NW breeze turned into the best part of a gale. So we parked up in Stafford Bay in company with two small sailboats rafted up on the other buoy. Stafford offers excellent shelter in NW winds. Fishing was slow and our one good specimen was a cod, so he had to go back; the season opens on December 20th. Two reported maritime incidents, both a result of the strong winds and rough seas, endorsed our decision. However, holiday Monday especially was a beautiful day. On the way in, for old time sake, we dropped in to Putanui west to wait for the tide.  We berthed at Havelock in the late afternoon having steamed just 32 miles. The trip had a nice feel to it; relaxed and satisfying.

Christmas 2017

Mohitos!

A = Ketu Bay, Snug Cove, Xmas Day
B = Ketu Bay, Onion, Boxing Day

A fine day in Ketu Bay if you exclude
the rain, the cloud, and the wind

Good fishing

Pusser's Rum decanter

Xmas shenanigans

(spot the dog)

Poppy opening her presents from Pinot and Sam

C = Ngawhakawhiti anchorage, Wednesday, Thursday

Orion in Ngawhakawhiti Bay

Namaste dropped anchor nearby

D = Hallam Cove, Friday

Grape Escape in Hallam Cove

We were on board for ten nights, from Thursday, December 21st to Saturday, December 30th and went back to Picton on New Year's Eve. We spent four nights in Snug Cove (Friday - Monday). Grape Escape came alongside Christmas morning and we had breakfast together. We moved to Onion on Boxing Day when the forecast suggested it was going around south-easterly. Wednesday we avoided cabin fever by steaming down to Tennyson Inlet where we caught up with Dion and Sarah on Nightingale. We were at anchor in the southern arm of Ngawhakawhiti Bay for two nights and then steamed to Hallam Cove where we met up again with Grape Escape. The trip was defined by the south-easterly breeze and generally changeable weather. We logged 89 nm.