New Blog Feature!

The observant reader of this blog may notice the addition of the picture of the two dolphins playing in Rutea's bow wake.  This is actually a link to our Picasa album where you can see other photos of our trip.  Just click on the picture.  At this point, I only have a small fraction of the pictures we have uploaded.  I'm working on it and I suggest you check it frequently.  Currently, the photos are from the time we left San Diego through our arrival at Hiva Oa in the Marquesas.  I sorted through over 500 photographs to come up with those that are uploaded.  I have another 2,000 photos to sort through.  Please let me know if the link doesn't work.

We are enjoying New Zealand very much.  The people we've met so far are very friendly even if they do talk funny.  Our friend, Bob, on the McGregor 65, Braveheart, bought a minivan today so he's invited us to go see the sights of the North Island tomorrow.  We haven't gotten too far from the boat since we arrived.  I'll take more pictures and try to get them uploaded as well.

Nuku'alofa to Opua

Tonga to New Zealand in seven days, ten hours! Breezed through immigration and customs and were carried by the current in to a slip in the Opua Marina. Made wonderful, new friends instantly on the docks (it takes a village to get a boat into a slip in these currents) and immediately began to settle into life in the village of Opua (pop 500).

I have always thought that New Zealand was a little too far to fly to for a vacation.... but who in their right mind would EVER sail here?

R of Rutea
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At 10/27/2011 9:00 PM (utc) Rutea's position was 34°45.21'S 174°29.04'E

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Day 7 - Tonga to New Zealand

With less than 50 miles to go to Opua, we're having one hell of a sail with Rutea holding pretty much to her hull speed. We've got everything up but the bed sheets and everything vanged down but my pants. It's cool out but there's lots of sunshine. We hope to arrive at the quarantine dock by 1630 local time. We can't see land yet as there's a haze to the west but we should be able to spot it by late morning.

It's been a fairy-tale passage. None of the harrowing conditions that we were promised - instead we got some great sailing in. We did have to motor for a couple of days but that helped keep the passage short. Our spirits are high and we're looking forward to lots of cold, refreshing beverages.

Thanks to everyone who emailed and thought of us. I know it helped. We'll post pictures and write more soon.
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At 10/27/2011 7:02 PM (utc) Rutea's position was 34°33.35'S 174°38.08'E

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Day 6 - Tonga to New Zealand

High-Latitude Sunset

 

Corie managed to connect to the email server in Niue, almost 1,100 miles away, using our single sideband radio but the connection is very slow. I'm actually writing this as we're in the sending and receiving process; I'm typing as fast as I can so please forgive any errors.
Even though the wind is very light and we're motoring, we're having a great time. The seas are flat calm and the sky is clear. It's fairly warm, about 66 and the humidity is low. Our excitement is building as the prospects of landfall draw near. In particular, I'm thinking about a cheeseburger with a very large, cold beer (we don't drink anything alcoholic when we're on a passage).
Even though Rutea's mechanical systems continue to perform well (except her refrigeration), her exterior is in bad need of a thorough scrubbing. Heavy layers of salt cover everything and the deck kind of crunches when you walk on it. I was thinking about stowing the trysail, our very heavy storm sail that's bent onto the mast so it's easy to deploy should we need it but I think as long as it's there it's insurance that we won't need it.
My friend, Norm, on Sarah Jean II, called me yesterday on the radio and told me of his calculations that if we increased our speed by one full knot, we would arrive in Opua in the late afternoon on Friday. "Good call," I said and we increased our engine's RPMs to 1,600. Norm called back a few hours later to tell us that the increase in RPMs had put additional pressure on Sarah Jean's rudder bearing, which had been giving them trouble, and he was forced to back down. He expects this to delay their arrival by a full day.
We should be arriving in Opua, New Zealand, about this time tomorrow. The weather forecast is for more light winds. I'll be able to write with more details tomorrow night.
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At 10/27/2011 12:56 AM (utc) Rutea's position was 32°41.94'S 176°00.79'E
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Day 5 in the Southern Ocean

385 miles to go and we are motor sailing! The southern ocean is flat and a deep, rich color of blue. The horizon looks miles away. The only thing we can see other than blue sky and blue ocean is the bright white sail of Sarah Jean II about three miles off of our beam. The temperature got down last night to 59 degrees! Haven't felt that cool since last December! It made for a wonderful night of sleeping and Corie had to wake me up for my watch! She generously allowed me an extra 15 minutes of sleep! The stars were brilliant and Jupiter cast a glow on the water. I can't believe we are having such benign weather! It is really unusual to have a ten day stretch where there are no "lows" in this part of the world! I don't even care about motoring for the next two days (even with diesel being about $8.00 per gallon)! I was just looking at the weather gribs and next week (just after we arrive) there are a series of lows that are coming across the Tasman Sea from Australia and there are lots of arrows on the gribs with little feathers in bright red and orange colors! We are hoping to arrive in Opua late Friday afternoon before the pubs close! The boats that left Tonga three days after we did are going to have some serious weather decisions to make. They can always stop in Minerva Reef and let the weather pass (hopefully to the south), but the reef is two feet under the surface of the ocean and only provides so much protection from the swells.

It is a real bummer not having a fridge! The freezer is not a big deal, but we were not able to make any meals ahead of leaving Tonga (except for brownies)so our mealtime has not been the high point of the day as it usually is on a passage! However today, since the seas are so flat, Corie said she would make pizza! Whatever we make we have to finish eating entirely or throw out the leftovers! I had to throw out (or rather overboard) a bunch of stuff yesterday- salsa, cream cheese (there was a bug inside the cardboard carton..... it had never been opened....) carrots, parsley, pesto, milk, hard boiled eggs and leftover salmon loaf! Fortunately we still have a bunch of apples (which we need to eat because we cannot take them into NZ- even though they are NZ apples!). Maybe I will make apple sauce or apple pie with whatever are left over! The first thing we are going to buy in NZ is a chilly box and ice until we decide what route to take for refrig repair!

We are spending our days reading YOUR emails, reading novels and of course, our NZ Travel Guides! We are very excited about doing some land travel, some tramping, visiting our Kiwi friends, watching rugby (go All Blacks!) and of course, sailing the islands! The Land of the Long White Cloud beckons and promises a whole new chapter in this amazing adventure.

Ta,
R of Rutea
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At 10/25/2011 6:52 PM (utc) Rutea's position was 29°37.45'S 178°09.20'E

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Day Four - Tonga to New Zealand

Someday I'll learn. It's bound to happen. But, maybe not. It's not that I'm really lazy or really stupid but I'm sometimes too optimistic. Last night before sunset, Corie asked me if I was going to furl the mizzen before dark (she was remembering a previous night when I had to furl it in 20 knots of wind at midnight). I said, no, I think it will be alright. She pursed her lips and said nothing. So last night I'm on watch and a target appears on the radar - we're out in the middle of nowhere and a target - a bright spot on the radar screen - could be another boat, a ship or an aberration. This target turned out to be the formation of a squall, a series of them. So I called Ruthie up from her sleep and I fought with the mizzen to lower and furl it. Good thing I had installed bright deck lights before we left San Diego as the night was pitch black. Even though I'm tethered onto the boat securely with a heavy harness, there's only our thin life lines between me and the sea that's rushing past at 11 feet per second. Add to that a wind that blowing at about 20 knots and seas that won't stay still for a second and it can be interesting. Once the mizzen was secure, I tucked a reef into the main. This quieted the boat down, Ruthie went back to sleep and I resumed my watch duties.

We're buddy-boating with Sarah Jean II, a boat owned by a couple we met in Mexico and of whom we're very fond. Beth and Norm's Saga 43 is a beautiful boat, very well equipped and they're both excellent sailors. With a water line slightly longer than Rutea's but only displacing about half of Rutea's weight, we're almost the exact same speed. We've been within a few miles of each other the entire trip. Crewing on this passage for them is their daughter's boyfriend, Kyle.

Our conditions are almost perfect. We're on a close reach with about 16 knots of southeast wind, the seas are about 1.5 to 2 meters, the outside temperature is 65 and the sky is mostly clear. Our speed over ground is averaging over 7 knots per hour and we've already shaved an entire day off our original ETA. We just past our half way mark. In the past 24 hours we covered 175 miles. The forecast for the rest of the trip is excellent. Our spirits are good and Rutea is doing great.

Thanks again for all the supportive emails. They mean a lot.
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At 10/24/2011 10:32 PM (utc) Rutea's position was 27°39.53'S 179°26.47'E

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Day 3 - Tonga to New Zealand

It was a rather uncomfortable night with Rutea heeled at about an 18 degree angle until early this morning when the wind finally backed some. Even though I was off watch, I couldn't sleep and so I adjusted the sails which made it more comfortable. The the wind began to build which put a bone in Big Ol' Ruttea's teeth and she began to pull like a team of mules. The exciting upshot of this was that the Time-to-Destination field on our chartplotter began to actually show numbers. Previously, we had too long to go for the counter to work and once it became less than 100 hours, the space that only had dashes now had real, tangible numbers. Of course, gradually the wind lightened and the dashes returned, leaving us to wonder if we were ever going to get there. But our 24-hour distance was 156 miles which isn't too bad for a big old boat, although we did motor for about 6 hours yesterday when our speed dropped to less than 5 knot per hour.

Bob McDavitt, our weather router, writes a weekly weather forecast for the western South Pacific and New Zealand area - he calls them 'Bobgrams'. They're pretty generic but most of the cruisers in this area count on them. There's always a section on travel between Figi/New Caledonia/Tonga and New Zealand and this week he talks about how the going is good right now but to not try to arrive this weekend. We should arrive by Friday.

I don't think we've turned the iPod off since we left. It really helps the time to pass on the night watches. We've talked to some people who watch movies when they're on watch.

We could hit our halfway point tomorrow.

Our spirits remain good and we're grateful for the emails that we've received from our families and friends. Please keep them coming.
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At 10/24/2011 12:57 AM (utc) Rutea's position was 25°30.28'S 179°04.56'W

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Day Two En Route to New Zealand

Yesterday started out with the remnants of the seas left over from the big high pressure that had built to 5 meters. It left the ocean pretty sloppy but there was a decent southeast wind and we started out making good time. Often our first day on a passage is tenuous and though we had taken anti-nausea drugs, none of us had an abundance of energy. Gradually the seas flattened somewhat, day faded into night and I started my first watch of the trip at 2030 hours.

The wind had been pretty consistent at about 15 knots and even though we were fairly close-hauled, we were still making 6+ knots per hour. At around 2300 hours the wind began to veer more to the south and built slightly. I waited until Corie came on watch at 0000 and then I furled the mizzen but it left me in a quandary as to whether I should tuck a reef in the main. Enjoying the progress we were making a little too much, we left the main at it's full hoist. The rest of the night passed uneventfully. This morning the temperature outside was 64 degrees - the coldest we've seen since last December.

Our weather router has us making a substantial course change at around midnight tonight but we're thinking that we might start it earlier. It will put us even harder on the wind and it's not forecast to back until Tuesday. Ugh. Oh, well, we're tough.

Thanks for reading our blog, boring though it maybe. I'll get some pictures posted once we get to New Zealand and then you'll have to read the whole thing over again!
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At 10/22/2011 7:08 PM (utc) Rutea's position was 22°39.89'S 177°19.02'W

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It's 0600

Saturday morning and the anchor is up! We be sailin'
to New Zealand! Go All Blacks!!

R of Rutea
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At 10/21/2011 5:23 PM (utc) Rutea's position was 21°06.86'S 175°11.35'W

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Uoleva to Ha'afeva to Kelefesia

 Kelefesia Island

We had spent a few nights anchored off of Uoleva Island in the western Ha'apai Group. The snorkeling was great and in the same anchorage were some of our closest friends. Beth and Norm on Sarah Jean II were kind enough to host dinner for all of us so we could celebrate Yuka's thirtieth birthday and say good bye as some boats were staying and some were moving on. We were in the latter group.

 Leopard Shark

You would think that we'd be accustom to saying good-bye to people by now as we do it so often. We meet people on other cruising boats, become close friends and then part ways - often to never see each other again. But saying good-bye to the people on Merkava - Mark and Yuka - and Archetuethis - Christine and Jared - was just a little more poignant as we had become good friends with them when we were still in Mexico.

 Yuka's 30th Birthday Party

Regardless, on the following morning at a decent hour, Sarah Jean II and Rutea pulled up our anchors and sailed seventeen miles to the west to the island of Ha'afeva. Coral dotted the sandy bottom and it made me anxious as it's very common for an anchor chain to get wrapped around a coral head, preventing the boat from retrieving its anchor - you never really know until you try to leave. The cool thing about the anchorage at Ha'afeva is that there's a wrecked Korean fishing vessel that met its demise on a reef near by. Since our dinghy is easy to deploy, we picked up Beth and Norm and the five of us snorkeled around the wreck and the reef responsible for sinking the ship. It was very interesting and at the same time a grim reminder of what can happen out there.

G

Group Snorkel Trip

 

This morning we got up at 0-dark-thirty, pulled up the anchor (it came up easy!) and continued to make our way south. Dawn broke to a sky that was heavily overcast but the wind was light so I hoisted the main sail up full. We were motor-sailing along and I was checking in to the Southern Cross Net (8161 KHz at 1830 UTC) when out of the blue twenty knots of wind from the northeast hit us. I scrambled up to the main mast and quickly tucked a reef in. Ruthie and I unfurled the genoa and cut the engine. Our course was close enough to the wind that Rutea was heeled over hard, her new portlights under water most of the time. The seas quickly built and the rain started to fall. Rutea's bow would rise up and over a wave, sending a geyser of water skyward as it landed. Gravity would take control of the geyser of water and with the wind's assistance, deposit it all over the deck and cabin. This went on for most of the morning.
Shortly after noon, we approached our destination of Kelefesia Island, the most southerly of the Ha'apai Group. This island is out in the middle of nowhere. Our two guide books differed on the dangers when approaching the anchorage and the charts mentioned 'Blind Rollers' surrounding the entrance. The wind was still honking and we were even discussing skipping Kelefesia altogether as it was sounding a little dicey but we pressed on. Our collective pulses quickened as we powered into the narrow gap between the reefs on either side where it seemed like waves were breaking all around us.
Once the anchor was down and set we took stock of our surroundings. The palm tree-topped cliffs met a wide, sandy beach which faded into the perfectly clear water. The water gradually changed from clear to pale blue to aquamarine. Before we entered the anchorage, I was skeptical that it would suffer from swells entering as they were breaking so close to the entrance. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I found the motion in the anchorage to be better than tolerable. No other boats were there - just Sarah Jean II and us - no other people were on the island, either. There's a small fish camp on the east side but it was deserted.

G

Giant Clam Shell

 

It didn't take us long to get into our snorkel gear and check out the reefs that we had just sailed past. Unfortunately, much of the coral was dead and the snorkeling was pretty uninteresting. We did, though, walk ashore where we found many giant clam shells - the ones that are almost two feet across. Since we follow the Sierra Club's rule: 'Take only pictures; leave only footprints', we left all the shells on shore.
All of us were a little troubled that we almost skipped Kelefesia Island as it's a remote gem - just the idyllic, deserted South Pacific island that so many dream of and rarely find. We leave tomorrow morning for Tongatapu, the capital of Tonga.
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At 10/15/2011 6:26 AM (utc) Rutea's position was 20°30.13'S 174°44.45'W
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Vava'u Group to Ha'apai Group in the Kingdom of Tonga

It was hard to believe that we had arrived in Vava'u on September 5th and more than a month later we were still there. Truly one of the great cruising grounds that we've visited as it had many of the things that we treasure - spectacular beauty, pristine anchorages, an active cruising community, decent restaurants, internet access (albeit extremely slow), beautiful clear water and tolerable day time temperatures. It was hard to leave.
Regardless, this morning at 0300 we untied from our mooring in Neiafu harbor and made our way to sea. The wind was freshening and shortly after leaving the main entrance we cut the engine and picked up the course to Ha'apai, about 60 miles due south. The conditions couldn't have been better - the waxing moon, two days from being full, gave us near-daytime visibility. With the wind on a close reach at about 17 knots, Rutea frequently hit hull speed and that was with a single reef tucked in the main. The seas were very slight with only a wind chop. As dawn arrived, we were well out of the lee of Hunga Island and the chop increased. Ruthie and Corie had taken Stugeron, our preferred medication for sea sickness, prophylactically but I didn't. I got sea sick. After five weeks in the flat, protected waters of the Vava'u Group, my inner ear was no longer capable of sorting out the motion. I did take a Zofran that our son, Ian, prescribed for us and it worked remarkably well though it did make me quite drowsy.
The Ha'apai Group consists of 61 islands many of which are unpopulated. Our first stop was at an open roadstead that serves as a pretty decent anchorage off of Ha'ano Island. We had to drop the hook in over 50' of water but we were able to find a good sand bottom with few coral heads. Ruthie and Corie did some snorkeling that they said was fantastic while I tried to sleep off my drug-induced stupor.
We only plan to stay here for about five days but there's a BFH (Big Fat High pressure area) approaching that's going to reinforce the trade winds into the 30-knot range before the end of the week. That might just force us to sit tight until the BFH breaks down. Since we have about another 100 miles to go until we get to Tongatapu (where we go to officially check out of Tonga and fuel/provision for the run to New Zealand), we'd like to have that passage not be a challenge.
Last night we watched Australia play South Africa in the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup. The World Cup happens every four years and South Africa has won it several times. In a very tough game, Australia came away with an upset victory. We have become converts to rugby. North American football seems so boring after watching rugby. For example, in rugby, the clock almost never stops. There are two forty-minute periods. In last night's game, an injured player was being attended to by the team's medical staff but he was lying right near where his teammate was attempting to kick for a penalty. The penalty kick proceeded anyway, the clock running the whole time. Since the clock runs almost continuously, there are no commercial breaks - only at half time. The rules are pretty simple and though the terminology is different, it's a very exciting game. There's still a few games left for this World Cup. Check it out.
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At 10/10/2011 6:55 AM (utc) Rutea's position was 19°40.31'S 174°17.44'W
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Decisions, Decisions . . .

We're having a tough time. It's getting close to the time when we should be leaving the Vava'u Group and continuing south. The days tick by and cyclone season keeps getting closer - it officially starts on November 1st but it's very rare to have one that early in the season. We've contracted with a highly respected weather router in New Zealand to prepare as safe a passage from Tonga to New Zealand as possible. At first I told him that we'd be ready to go anytime after October 1. Then I emailed him back and said anytime after October 15.

Now I've learned that there's an organized rally from Tonga to New Zealand departing Tonga the first five days of November (it doesn't start on a specific day due to weather considerations). It kind of sounds like fun to travel with a group of boats and it's something that we've never done. There's already quite a good-sized fleet underway and so far their conditions have been very good. We're monitoring them quite closely.

The next group of islands south are called the Ha'apai Group and many cruisers don't stop there as there are few protected anchorages and the passages between islands are strewn with coral reefs. Some people say the diving and snorkeling there is almost as good as the Tuamotus but that's hard for us to believe. The Tuamotus were nothing short of mind-boggling.

South of the Ha'apai Group is Tongatapu or 'Tonga' to the locals. It has the largest population in all of Tonga and provisioning there would give us a much better selection. On the other hand, boats are strongly advised to have rat guards on their lines before they tie up to the wharf to get fuel. Apparently, rats will make a beeline for ships lines to make their way on board - rat guards are like big pie tins that you fix to your dock lines and the rats can't get past them.

There is the possibility of sailing straight from Vava'u to New Zealand. We like it here. Over 40 protected anchorages. Lots of other cruising boats. Great diving/snorkeling (today we beached the dinghy on the north side of the beach on Vaka'eitu and hiked across the island to the south shore where we found a deserted beach about a quarter-mile long. We donned our masks/snorkels/fins and swam out over the shallow reef. Out about 100 yards from shore, the reef dropped straight down giving us the feeling of free falling. The cliff formed by the reef was splashed with beautiful coral and thousands of brightly colored tropical fish were darting this way and that. Large underwater ravines in the coral wind their way towards shore providing excellent places to explore. The visibility had to be in excess of 80 feet.). On the other hand, the provisioning is lousy and expensive. And visiting Tongatapu puts us about 120 miles closer to New Zealand.

For the last few days Corie has been the invited guest aboard a beautiful 80' motorsailer. The owner is a former Hollywood film producer. He has four crew members, some of who are close to Corie's age. It's been a good break for all of us to have some time apart even though we get along remarkably well.

We're going to head back to the main port of Neiafu tomorrow to study the weather closely. There might be a front moving through next week and I think I'd prefer to wait it out here than in Ha'apai.

Rutea and all of us are doing great. How are you doing?

Nofo a.
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At 10/6/2011 5:38 AM (utc) Rutea's position was 18°43.24'S 174°06.09'W

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