Boat Sabbatical Part 1: Hiking the North and South Island of New Zealand

Hiking up the Poulter River, Aurthur's Pass NP

In an effort to rid ourselves of “Boat Body” we bought our first car!  That sounds like an oxymoron but it’s an easier way to get between trailheads and campsites than hitching.  The plan was to tour New Zealand doing as many hikes (tramps) as possible along the way.  NZ parks are amazingly well endowed with hiking trails and its hut system is fantastic.  The huts are dotted literally everywhere (there’s over 1000) – a legacy of post war deer culling efforts, grazers, tramping and other outdoor pursuit clubs.  Hunters still remain a large user of huts off the main trails, but everyone seems to coexist ok on the surface.  We certainly give kudos to DOC (Dept of Conservation) who maintain the majority of the huts and campsites throughout the country.  For the use of the huts we bought a $92, 6 month pass which paid for itself over 4 times, while in between hikes the DOC campsites are free or a few dollars each.  So if your happy to camp and freshen up in the rivers, then these facilities certainly make travel affordable.  The huts range from basic 2-bunk Biv’s in the alpine to 30+ bunks with wood/coal stoves and gas cookers.  All come with mattresses.  So our tent has been replaced by a tarp for emergency use and even the thermarest has been left behind on occasion.

Our favourite campsite: above Speargrass Tarns, Nelson Lakes NP

Heidi has nearly turned into a hobbit though Stephen is far from Gandalf, though he thinks a cane may be necessary soon!  We are impressed with the greater number of female trail users – maybe even out numbering the guys – way to go Kiwi girls!

Sketching the skyline at Travers Saddle, Nelson Lakes NP

One of the older and more character huts, Tararua Forest Park

A summary of the walks that we did, for those who want to look up the locations, etc.

1. Cape Reinga Coastal Walkway          4 days  53km
2. Whirinaki Forest Park                         3 days  36km
3. Kaimanawa Forest Park (Umukarikari Ridge) 2 days 35km
4. Mt Egmont NP (Taranaki)                  5 days 47km
5. Tararua Forest Park                             6 days 70km
6. Kahurangi NP (Mt Arthur                 3 days 31km
7. Nelson Lakes NP Travers-Sabine Circuit  8 days  100km
8. Paparoa NP  Croesus Track                3 days 34km
9. Arthur’s Pass NP                                5 days 73m
10. Stewart Island (Rakiura NP) NW Circuit  12 days 142km

Our total distance hiked was 650km after adding several day hikes as well as these longer tramps.

Trails were well marked!

A few NZ Icons we’ve become aquainted with:

• Whittaker’s Chocolate – a 250g bar of 72% cocoa was consumed on average every 4 days of tramping
• Tramping – this verb means hiking or bushwalking in Canada and Australia respectively
• One-lane bridges – sure they exist in other countries, but here in NZ even the busy Hwy’s have some
• Orange triangle trail markers – it is feasible that they may even out number sheep here!
• Typical NZ tramping attire: shorts and gaiters (no matter what the weather!) – we think this has developed due to the local love of fording rivers
• Sandflies – similar to Canadian Blackflies and Scottish Midges (in a contest the NZ Sandflies would win!)

Minchin Saddle, Arthur's Pass NP

Fording Townsend Creek, Arthur's Pass NP

Landfall Opua, New Zealand

Highest point on Minerva Reef?

We finally had to tear ourselves away from Tonga, the hurricane season is approaching and we are getting excited about all the hiking we would like to do down south.  We had a dramatic first day at sea when a thunderstorm overtook us.  The torrential rain and wind was one thing, but I came a little unglued when I watched lightning strike about 200m behind the boat.  That’s close, too close!!!  The next three days were light sailing and we even had to motor to get into Minerva Reef.  This was an interesting stop.  Minerva is actually two reefs (north and south; we stopped at North Minerva) with the coral forming a ring like an atoll, but there’s no actual land.  Not a palm tree or even a shrub to be seen.  The reef makes for a protected anchorage, but without land in sight it feels like you’re anchored in the middle of the ocean.  At high tide when the seas are rough it gets a little bouncy, but still pleasant.  We had a few days to soak up the experience and walked on the reef at low tide as it dries out, with only the surge of the waves washing across the reef which is nearly half a mile wide. 

Heidi enjoying the easy sailing

We were not the only yacht holed up here, but all five boats left together as the weather “window” had opened.  The passage to New Zealand can be rough and has a notorious reputation, so there was lots of discussion and every GRIB file and weatherfax was analyzed by all of us novice forecasters.  For the very fast yachts it’s a little easier to decide when to leave, but for us small and slow craft, it can be dicey.  It isn’t the conditions as you depart that are the worry but the chance of a strong low pressure or frontal system as you get further south, where the storms pack more punch.  Well the weather gods were with us and we had a lovely passage!  In fact we had our spinnaker up for 2 days of light wind sailing.  It was the first passage where we sailed in sight of other boats the whole time (ie Narama kept up with bigger yachts!).  We enjoyed seeing dolphins and albatross again, in fact the wildlife increase the further south we sailed.

Some passage stats:

North Minerva Reef to Opua New Zealand distance:  800 nm

Best 24 run for Narama:  126nm

Worst run: 106

Time sailed:  7 days

Engine hours:  14

Sail changes:  10

Exploring the tidepools of Minerva Reef

Snorkeling in Vava'u

We spent six weeks in Vava’u (Tonga) and loved it.  We were in the water snorkeling nearly everyday and managed to identify 158 species of fish (well Heidi did, Stephen has an aesthetic appreciation).  Rather than bore with a long species list we put together a slide show of underwater images.  The soundtrack is a recording of Humpback Whales singing that we managed to record on a flat calm day without any boat traffic around.  We thought it was fitting to give you, dear reader, the virtual experience as we did often hear humpbacks singing while we were underwater!

Regatta Vava'u

During our first week in Vava’u, Tonga we spent getting our feet on the ground and did a little exploring.  We found a lovely bakery in town (Neiafu), spent some time in the morning market for provisions, then we sailed out the harbour to explore a few of the islands.  We tucked into the lagoon of Hunga Island with one of the narrowest entrance channels we’ve been through.   We walked through the sleepy village and along a trail in the mango trees.  Then we sailed around into the bight of Nuapapu to snorkel the coral gardens. 

Our dramatic dingy-launch finish!

This was all the exploring we had time for before we sailed back into Neiafu Harbour for the beginning of Regatta Vava’u Festival.  We haven’t taken part in any sailing rally’s or festivals with Narama before.  This local festival is the brain child of a few cruisers who fell in love with Vava’u seven years ago when they were sailing across the Pacific and never sailed further.  It was the perfect combination of fun yacht racing, costume dance party in the full moon and lots of other siller events, so it suited us just fine.  The light winds meant that the racing didn’t get too dramatic.  We were happy that we didn’t embarrass ourselves and placed third in the first race which included boats up to 42 feet (ie should be much faster than our 33 feet!)  The final race back into the harbour included a dinghy launch with the finish line inside the pub!  The fact that we don’t have an engine on our dingy was a serious disadvantage, but it did not deter us.  Instead of flying ashore at 20 knots we launched our “dink” at the end of the dinghy dock while Narama was still underway, it was a dramatic finish!

At the end of the festival was another party to hand our some prizes.  There were prizes given for all sorts of things: best dressed boat, best costumes at the first party, participations in events and of course the races.  The trophies for the races were local carvings with the winning boat’s name and they were very smart.  We won a free dive trip for our participation in everything and also received a certificate made of the traditional Tapa cloth.  We think that the organizers did a great job and we certainly had fun!

Stephen had this hat commissioned

Suwarrow

Anchorage Island, Suwarrow Atoll

I shall attempt to describe our last port of call with the adjectives it deserves, but bear with me, for as I write we are sailing along under storm jib only with seas to match.

Swimming with Giant Manta!

Sooty Tern

Suwarrow is a small atoll several hundred miles from anywhere in the Cook Island group. The one main island (all of ½ a mile long) has a semi protected anchorage amongst a lot of coral heads that stick up about a metre off the bottom to snag your anchor chain. But given the right conditions (non reinforced trade winds) this is paradise. Two care takers look after the island for six months, being away for the cyclone season.  If you have read Tom Neale’s or Robert Frisbie’s books about the island you will understand why. The high point of the island is only about 10ft and exposed to the ocean swells. James and John are the two caretakers and hosts; keeping everyone in line and making them feel welcome.  The record 28 boats in the anchorage did not feel busy; it’s just one of those very relaxed places. We snorkeled most days on various reefs or with Manta rays, went lobster hunting on the reef on a moonlit night, enjoyed several potlucks ashore and did a reef walk out to Whale Island (full of nesting birds). The hard part was dragging ourselves away after nearly 2 weeks.  This we did and headed for Niue, but the strengthening high pressure below us sent winds we did not like beating into, so we bore off toward Tonga.  I leave you with a log entry by Heidi on the second last day of this leg ….. “Lie down on cabin floor for 10 min, catch my breath and settle my stomach.  Get up, go climb (bottom hatch board has been in for a few days) into the cockpit and look around. Check the course. Lie on floor, repeat. The end of each 4 hour watch seems like a major victory. The reward: a few hours sliding on your bed where you can’t lose your balance.”…… This trip we had our worst pooping to date that put nearly a foot deep of water in the cockpit, but for all the weather there was no upchucks.  A day at anchor Heidi still talks of sailing to Chile...... what a spirit or is it just a short memoryJ.   Such is the price we sometimes have to pay to visit paradise!

John (caretaker and all round great guy) and Heidi

Potluck dinner in the "clubhouse"

Suwarrow (Suvarov), Northern Cook Islands – Fish Species List

Manta - check out the cephalic fins!! (near the mouth)

After three months in French Polynesia our fish ID skills are improving. So we thought we would share a list of fish species for Suwarrow.  This in not a complete list as there’s always those that you don’t see well enough to ID, or you can’t remember everything that you see while snorkeling and our field guides don’t always have everything for this area.  This list does illustrate the wonderful diversity of species on the reef.  The ones marked with (*) were delicious!

Unidentified Dascyllus - any ideas out there??

Threadfin Butterflyfish	Chaetodon auriga
Redfin Butterflyfish	Chaetodon lunulatus
Teardrop Butterflyfish	Chaetodon unimaculatus
Raccoon Butterflyfish	Chaetodon lunula
Dotted Butterflyfish	Chaetodon semeion
Reticulated Butterflyfish	Chaetodon reticulatus
Speckled Butterflyfish	Chaetodon citrinellus
Saddled Butterflyfish	Chaetodon ephippium
Dot-and-Dash Butterflyfish	Chaetodon pelewensis
Pacific Double-Saddle Butterflyfish	Chaetodon ulietensis
Fourspot Butterflyfish	Chaetodon quadrimaculatus
Ornate Butterflyfish	Chaetodon ornatissimus
Pennant Bannerflyfish	Heniochus chrysostomus
Longnose Butterflyfish	Forcipiger flavissimus
Lemonpeel Angelfish	Centropyge flavissimus
Regal Angelfish	Pygoplites diacanthus
Orangeband Surgeonfish	Acanthurus olivaceus
Achilles Tang	Acanthurus achilles
Convict Surgeonfish	Acanthurus triosegus
Whitecheek Surgeonfish	Acanthurus nigricans
Pacific Sailfin Tang	Zebrasoma veliferum
Bluespine Unicornfish	Naso unicornis
Spotted Unicornfish	Naso brevirostris
Orangespine Unicornfish	Naso lituratus
Moorish Idol	Zanclus cornatus
Humbug Dascyllus	Dascyllus aruanus
Blue-green Chromis	Chromis viridis
Pacific Half-and-half Chromis	Chromis iomelas
Onespot Snapper	Lutjanus monostigma
Blue Damsel	Pomacentrus pavo
Black Snapper	Macolor niger
Bluefin Trevally	Caranx melampygus
Rainbow Runner	Elagatis bipinnulatus
Peacock Grouper	Cephalopholis argus
Coral Grouper*	Cephalopholis miniata
Greasy Grouper*	Epinephelus tauvina
Camouflage Grouper	Epinephelus polyphekadion
Arc-Eye Hawkfish	Paracirrhites arcatus
Bullethead Parrotfish	Chlorurus sordidus
Steephead Parrotfish	Chlorurus microrhinos
Bicolor Parrotfish	Cetoscarus bicolor
Pacific Longnose Parrotfish*	Hipposcarus longiceps
Red-breasted Wrasse	Cheilinus fasciatus
Bird Wrasse	Gomphosus varius
Sixbar Wrasse	Thalassoma hardwicke
Threespot Wrasse	Halichoeres trimaculatus
Checkerboard Wrasse	Halichoeres hortulanus
Redlip Cleaner Wrasse	Labroides rubrolabiatus
Bluestreak Cleaner Wrasse	Labroides dimidiatus
Bicolor Cleaner Wrasse	Labroides bicolor
Big-scale Soldierfish	Myripristis berndti
Spotfin Squirrelfish	Neoniphon sammara
Twotone Dartfish	Ptereleotris evides
Goldsaddle Goatfish	Parupeneus cyclostomus
Manybar Goatfish	Parupeneus multifascialis
Trumpetfish	Aulostromus chinensis
Cornetfish	Fistularia commersonii
Orange-lined Triggerfish	Balistapus undulatus
Picasso Triggerfish	Rhinecanthus aculeatus
Indian Toby	Canthigaster solandri
Mahi Mahi*	Coryphaena hippurus
Gray Reef Shark	Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos
Blacktip Reef Shark	Carcharhinus melanopterus
Whitetip Reef Shark	Triaendon obesus
Giant Manta	Manta birostris

Arc-Eye Hawkfish

Dot-and-Dash Butterflyfish