KatieKat 2003 Cruise Chapter Three

Enough lazing about! We have a sailboat and sailboats are meant for traveling and not sitting around! It is autumn in New Zealand, and we decided to make the most of the remaining good weather and visit some of the attractions along New Zealand's North Island east coast.

8 April, 2003 -- Auckland

From Tutukaka we sailed down the coast, past Whangarei, to Whangaparaoa Peninsula situated a few miles north of Auckland but with a convenient daily commuter ferry connection. We stayed a few days, visited the city, and then did a sail-by (like a drive-by but in a boat) before proceeding to the outer Hauraki Gulf.

Hauraki Gulf Department of Conservation map.

Interesting rock formation as we pass Bream Head above Whangarei, still north of the area shown on the above map.

We pulled into the nice modern marina at Gulf Harbour where we had a great long-distance view of Auckland. That dark blue power yacht is registered in Florida but is flying the California flag. For a different perspective of this seemingly-peaceful place, click on the 180-degree view (can you spot KatieKat?).

Commuting by ferry is such a civilized way to travel! During this 45-minute ride one gets to have a cup of coffee and read the paper, with many of the passengers reading their books, snoozing, or preparing for the workday on their laptops. Sure beats driving in traffic!

Like I said before, lots of old cars still in daily use, many of them beautifully maintained. This Citroen struck my fancy.

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11 April, 2003 -- Auckland Sail-By

Time to get moving again. We sailed down to Auckland, anchored overnight in a nearby peaceful bay (Islington Bay between Rangitoto Island and Motutapu Island) and then took a KatieKat tour of the city by water.

Approaching Auckland, obligatory photos.

We sailed into the Viaduct Basin, headquarters for the America's Cup activities. Somewhat subdued now that the festivities are over.

Golden Gate Yacht Club, who woulda thunk?! Golden Gate Yacht Club, next to prestigious St. Francis Yacht Club at the San Francisco Marina, had always been a very gracious host for our Bay Area Multihull Association events. From what I understand, their teaming with Oracle was a win-win situation.

Proof that we were there - the America's Cup Viaduct Basin.

This is Virbac, a brand-new super high-tech monohull Vendee Globe racer to be singlehanded by Jean Pierre Dick. It was undergoing inversion tests in the Viaduct Basin (passed with flying colors). There were a number of tris in the basin as well (preparing to race?)

There were still many luxury yachts docked in the Basin - I didn't even bother asking what the per-night cost would have been for KatieKat.

The Sky Tower is Auckland's distinctive landmark.

An interesting cat and not a proa. Great to see experimental boats!

Now, I'm a great fan of an enclosed bridgedeck saloon - but this is carrying things too far on a sailboat: where's the cockpit?

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13 April, 2003 -- Great Barrier Island

Enough city life! After an overnight stay in Woody Bay on Rakino Island, we sailed across the Hauraki Gulf to Great Barrier Island.

We had an invigorating sail across, dodging a few squalls. The anchorage near Port Fitzroy was wonderfully secluded and peaceful.

With forecast 40-knot winds from colliding high-low pressure systems, we tried to sail down-island before the stuff hit us, but only made it part of the way to Tryphena and instead pulled into lovely Whangaparapara Harbour (it was getting bumpy). Happily, it was nice and calm inside the bay.

That's sleepy Kathy, oh so happy at getting up at the crack of dawn to zoom off down the coast. The first photo is looking aft through the southern entrance to Port Fitzroy, whereas the second photo is looking forward. Unseen, there's a nasty underwater rock in the middle that one has to avoid. Within a half-hour, these calm conditions turned ugly!

Anchoring in Whangaparapara. The third photo is the view out the bay, with the Coromandel Peninsula in the distance across the Gulf.

We're presently sitting in Whangaparapara being buffeted by those winds coming down the hillsides. If you read this anywhere close to the above date, it means that I was able to pedal ashore and get my acoustic modem to connect to the local payphone. At the slow speeds here on the island, the website upload probably took a couple of hours - if a bunch of photos are missing, it means I had to cut short the upload because (1) I was soaked and shivering, (2) my PowerBook battery was running low, (3) someone wanted to use the phone, or (4) I had to go to the bathroom.

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