{"id":201,"date":"2007-11-29T08:18:45","date_gmt":"2007-11-29T08:18:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sabbatical3.net\/blog\/2007\/11\/29\/last-days-in-opua-and-passage-to-whangarei\/"},"modified":"2025-10-01T16:55:54","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T16:55:54","slug":"last-days-in-opua-and-passage-to-whangarei","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sabbatical3.net\/blog\/?p=201","title":{"rendered":"Last days in Opua and passage to Whangarei"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n View from Urquhart Bay<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

We intended to leave Opua for Whangarei last Saturday, but
\nthe New Zealand weather was not cooperative. It was rainy and
\nsqually Saturday, so we planned to depart Sunday. The wind came
\nup too strong Sunday and Monday, so we deferred until Tuesday.
\nTuesday had gale force winds, so we sat tight. We learned
\ncaution from the experience of one boat that left Sunday morning
\nand returned four hours later, saying the seas were too rough.
\nAnd then our friends Ian and Catherine on Afriki left Monday
\nmorning and found that they needed to seek a sheltered anchorage
\nwithin hours.<\/p>\n

We left Wednesday(yesterday)about 11 am, after things calmed
\ndown after a night of high winds. It is about two hours to sail
\namong the islands of the Bay of Islands and out the Albert
\nChannel and finally come to the open sea. Conditions were not
\ntoo bad, so we headed southeast down the coast into a 15 knot
\nsoutheast wind. Big ocean tacks took gave us various
\nperspectives on the eastern coastline of the North Island. We
\nhad hoped to get as far as Whangaruru or even Tutukaka (names I
\nmention only because of their sound), but decided to pull into
\nWhangamumu. It is a bay at the bottom of a bowl of steep hills
\nwithout houses, and we were the only boat there. We were
\nsurprised to be the only ones in such a beautiful place. We
\nthought that Whangamumu would be more protected from the ocean
\nswell that Whangaruru, and today was forecast to be a better day
\nto sail — wind from the southwest, fair skies, slight seas —
\nso leaving the bulk of our trip south for today seemed reasonable.<\/p>\n

But you cannot count on weather forecasts in New Zealand.
\nThe swell came up just as the sun set on us in Whangamumu and
\nthe boat started to roll like crazy. It did not stop all night.
\nWe got up at 6:30 am to begin our trip south and the predicted
\nsouthwesterlies, fair skies, and smooth seas turned out to be
\neasterlies, lots of rain, and large swells. The easterlies
\nturned into light and variable wind, but rain showers and large
\nswells continued for the day. Nonetheless, we made it to our
\ndestination. We now are anchored in Urquhart’s Bay at the mouth
\nof the Whangarei River (South 35 degrees 50.5 minutes East 174
\ndegrees 31.9 minutes). This may be as far south as we will ever
\nget with Sabbatical III.<\/p>\n

We can only proceed up the river 14 miles to the town of
\nWhangarei on a rising tide. We will leave Urquhart’s Bay at 10
\nam tomorrow to arrive at Riverside Drive Marina for the 1 pm
\nhigh tide. That is where the boat will be hauled and stored out
\nof the water while we are back in the States. Our friends on
\nVera have been in Whangarei for two weeks and we are looking
\nforward to seeing them.<\/p>\n

The delay in Opua meant that we were there for my birthday.
\nBoth Risho Maru and Yara made me birthday cakes and we had a
\nvery nice birthday party on Sabbatical III. The extra days
\nallowed us to socialize more with all of our boat friends at
\nthis very pleasant marina. We cannot walk 50 meters without
\nrunning into a dozen people we know. A trip to the marina
\noffice or the chandlery can take an extra hour or two when one
\nstops to greet everyone you know on the way, and exchange
\nstories about recent and planned passages. Nonetheless, we spent
\nmost of every day getting Sabbatical III prepared for her
\nseason at rest. I pickled the watermaker and changed lots of
\nfilters and had the main sail repaired, while Laura cleaned and
\norganized. There is still a lot to do before we leave on
\nDecember 11. We are amazed to think that tomorrow’s short trip
\nup the Whangarei River is our last passage on Sabbatical III
\nuntil next May. We have not spent even a single night off of
\nSabbatical III for a whole year, and in spite of the recent cold
\nnights, think of her as our most comfortable home.\n<\/p>\n

M.<\/p>\n

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View from Urquhart Bay We intended to leave Opua for Whangarei last Saturday, but the New Zealand weather was not cooperative. It was rainy and squally Saturday, so we planned to depart Sunday. The wind came up too strong Sunday and Monday, so we deferred until Tuesday. Tuesday had gale force winds, so we sat … <\/p>\n

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