Weather delay

TC Ita

The weather delay for TC Ita allowed a few extra days for boat prep & provisioning, and a valuable coastal sail up the coast to Opua. This gave the crew a chance to find their sea-legs - and check the efficacy of their wet-weather gear & sea-sickness pills!

Our original plan was to depart NZ on Mon, 14 Apr but Ita was due to hit the North Island on 16/17 Apr so we just had time to nip up to the Bay of Islands. Not much closer to Fiji (only 35 nm), but better than sitting in Whangarei getting bored in the rain. It's also traditional for us to wait for typhoons/cyclones to clear, just before we jump off on blue-water crossings!

Whangarei - Opua

Unfortunately - and here's the rub - the delay is going to cost us our visit to Tonga. We will no longer have time to explore those beautiful islands on this trip. Not cancelled, though, just delayed for another time. Instead we'll plan on a small detour (from the direct NZ-Fiji route) to Minerva Reef for a couple of days of snorkelling.

Leaving Whangarei was a bit of a wrench: the Town Basin marina there has definitely become our yachting home in NZ, and with all the boatyards, sail-makers, engineering facilities, shops, supermarkets, etc, etc right on your doorstep, has to be THE spot for cruisers to re-fit whilst in NZ. Or to leave your yacht whilst exploring NZ by car/van.

Our thanks, once again, go to marina managers Brian & Sharron, who helped make our many stays there so easy & enjoyable.

Whangarei Town Basin

We departed on the planned 14 Apr, routing via night-stops at Tutukaka marina (expensive, but worth it for the shelter from the strong NE'lies) and Paradise Bay. The trip up the coast was a wee bit cold, wet, windy & lumpy. Perfect, actually. Three of the crew very quickly succumbed, with a clear winner of the 'First Hurler Buys the Beer in Fiji' award.

Jib v's Genoa

Our new satphone had been delayed (lost, it seems, between Customs, NZ Post & Courier Post), arriving about an hour after we departed Whangarei. Sharron very quickly identified a way of sending it on to us at Tutukaka, and by 1700 we were alongside there, with the phone in our hands. Finally, after 3 weeks - what a relief!

Conditions required 2 reefs in the main and tested our new (re-conditioned) 120% Tapedrive jib - all good. Really notice the difference in drive when the wind drops, though, v's the 155% Genoa!

TC Ita wind

We backed into B-12 at Opua marina lunch-time Wed, 16 Apr so we'd be pointing into wind for TC Ita when it arrived, and started battening down the hatches. All dreadfully familiar: this was to be our third ex-TC in Opua in just 4 months! First in Dec 13 with the Wilsons, then TC Lusi in March with the Mallets & Mackinnons, now this!

Who needs to sail to the Pacific Islands to experience Tropical weather?