Going For A Walk: Moturua Island {Or We Really Need To Get Better At Labelling Photos}

There is a great 4.6 km loop walk you can do in the Moturua Island scenic reserve in the Bay of Islands. You can pick it up from four different beaches and it takes you through native forests, over open grassy areas and along ridges where you get stunning views of the neighboring islands. {By the way, this is probably one of my more informative "Going for a Walk" posts - when I reread it, I don't think I found even a single random tangent. Perhaps it is a sign of maturity. Or I'm just getting boring.}

We anchored in Waiwhapuku Bay, a fair weather anchorage on the northeastern side of the island. There were a lot folks on day trip charter boats while we were there. Lots of girls in bikinis and people on kayaks. And then there was us.

When you walk up from the beach, you run across the remnants of the old Army base on the island, which is why Waiwhapuku Bay is also known as Army Bay. During WWII, there were minefields throughout the Bay of Islands and Army Bay was the place where they controlled all the mines.

From Army Bay, you walk up to Hikurangi Pa on the headland. The Maori term pā often refers to hillside forts. The Maori built a pā on this part of the island because of the 360 degree views, so it only made sense that it was later turned into a defense observation post during the war.

If you go inside, it isn't all that exciting. I can't imagine being stuck inside peering through the opening and keeping an eye out for an invasion of the homeland.

From Hikurangi Pa, we headed down to Mangahawea Bay on the western side of the island. It is a nice, sandy beach which is home to oystercatchers and the endangered New Zealand dotterels. Oystercatchers are funny little birds with their red beaks and pink legs. They always seem so busy. Except for this lazy one lying down.

Here is what the bay looks like from above. Pretty little place. I think that is Roberton Island in the background. Also known as Motuarohia Island. That is a another pretty little place. Sadly, we didn't get back to it on this trip.

Next, you head over to Waipao Bay on the southwestern side of the island. This is one of those famous Captain Cook landed here kind of places. Just like cruisers, Captain Cook needed to top up his water supply from time to time. The Endeavour stopped here in 1769 and hung out for a week. It's a pretty island, so I can see why. 

I think this is Waipao Bay. We don't always do a great job labeling our photos. 

 

The next European to visit Waipao Bay was the French explorer Marion du Fresne in 1772. His group spent two months on the island where a forge and a hospital tent were set up (many of the sailors had scurvy). After his relationship with some of the Maori soured, he and some of his crew were killed while fishing on the mainland. Supposedly, the French buried their claim to all of New Zealand in a bottle somewhere along the stream near here.  

It's also possible this is a picture of Waipao Bay. If you've been there, can you let me know if either of these shots are from there? 

From Waipao Bay, you cut across the island through native forest to get over to Otupoho Bay on the eastern side. The southern part of the island is privately owned, so you can't meander over there. However, you can anchor in Awaawaroa Bay (or Pipi Bay) and enjoy the views. We did that a few years ago on one of our whistle stop charter boat trips in the Bay of Islands.

I'm pretty sure this is Otupoho Bay. Maybe.

And then from Otupoho Bay, you have a short meander back to the starting point - Waiwhapuku Bay. I'm 100% certain that this is a shot of that bay.

Walk on Tuesday, 4 March 2014

Sunrise & Sunset In New Zealand, For No Particular Reason

Islington Bay, Rangitoto & Motutapu Islands

Great Barrier Island

Westhaven Marina, Auckland

Te Kouma Harbour, Coromandel

Mahurangi Harbour

Peachgrove Bay, Great Mercury Island

Whangaroa Harbour

Great Anchorages In Europe - Pt 2

By way of background, I originally did a post on some of our favorite anchorages in New Zealand as part of the Monkey's Fist. Then, I figured that I should give Scott a chance to share some of his favorite anchorages in Europe - which you can read about here. He has quite a few of them, so this is the second installment.

But before we get into the photos and descriptions, I thought I would give you a little insight into what goes into writing up these posts.

It all starts with a typical conversation on our boat. I ask, "How was your day today?" The inevitable response from Scott is, "Fine."

After being married to Scott for over 20 years, I've learned that "fine" has many meanings. It can mean, "It was the best day ever! I got to go racing and we were first on the line! I had some beers with the guys and it was just great!!" 

Or it can mean, "We had a terrible start off the line. Bob fell in the water, but he's okay now. It was pouring down rain and I forgot my waterproofs so I got soaked. At the worst part of all is that when Bob fell in the water he was holding the beer and dropped them over the side."

Trying to find out what "fine" means is a little game I play with Scott. Sadly, he always wins.

I try things like, "Oh really? Tell me more." I usually get another response along the lines of "fine", something like, "It was okay."

Not wanting to be defeated, I try again, "What was fine about it?" I've done research. Using open ended questions is supposed to cause the floodgates of communication to come crashing open. And it works to an extent. I got a slightly longer response, "Oh, it could have been better, it could have been worse."

So you can imagine that when I asked him to tell me all about his favorite anchorages in Europe, it took some effort to get the details out of him. I might have possibly added a few things that he might not have said. See if you can figure out which parts.


1. Ustica, Italy 

One of the things Scott liked about Ustica was that is was off of the tourist track and it had that feel of what he imagines old Italy must have been like. Scott wanted to stay longer there, but the ferry wash made the anchorage too uncomfortable so he and the guys headed off for Sardinia.

2. Korcula, Croatia

Scott said he liked Korcula because it is a great medieval hilltop town located on an island. It also sticks out in his mind because he bought a great t-shirt there which says "Korcula" on it. It is the type of t-shirt that he loves so much that it is starting to get holes everywhere. But still totally fine to wear to a fancy restaurant or a wedding, because it says "Korcula" on it and everyone loves "Korcula". Why would you wear a perfectly nice t-shirt without holes all over it, when you can wear a "Korcula" t-shirt. Personally, I just think he wears that t-shirt to rub in the fact that he has been there and I haven't. Hopefully, the t-shirt doesn't accidentally fall overboard or get turned into rags.

3. Funchal, Madeira

Scott likes Funchal because he and a pal hired scooters and rode all over the island. Madeira is known for its amazing scenery and gorgeous flowers everywhere so getting around on scooter meant Scott got to check it all out. I think the part he liked the best was zipping around the windy roads, probably way too quickly. I've always wanted to go to Madeira so I'm incredibly jealous Scott has been there and I haven't. Thankfully, there is no souvenir t-shirt.

4. Gravellach Islands, Scotland

Scott's reason for having the Gravellach Islands as one of his favorites is because he went there with his dad. How sweet! The islands are known for their beehive huts and an early monastery. St Columba's mother is even reputed to be buried there. The islands are rarely visited so he was glad his dad got to experience a side of Scotland that most people don't get to see. He had a great time on this five day sail with his dad, where they also visited Iona and Tobermory, saw a whale, lots  basking sharks and a porpoise. Sounds like a great trip and great memories of time spent with his pop.

Going For The Worst Walk Ever {Or Trying To Get To Whangamumu}

We love going for walks and have a whole series of "Going for a Walk" posts of the places we've ambled, hiked, tramped, meandered and roamed around in. They've all been great adventures - except one. That's the time we tried to find the trail from Waipiro Bay to Whangamumu. It was possibly the worst walk we did all summer. It was a gloomy day, we were tired and we only had a vague idea of where the trail head was. We ended up giving up after about an hour and headed back to the boat. But we took pictures, so here they are. They're in black and white because that's the kind of day it was. 

We started off by parking the dinghy at the beach on the eastern side of Waipiro Bay and walked up the track to the main road.
 

This sign should have been a warning to us that this wasn't going to be a great walk. It was dirty and dusty and looked neglected. There are a bunch of houses on the hillside overlooking the bay which mostly look to be holiday homes. No one was around. And why would they be - it was a gloomy day. Sensible people stay indoors, have cocoa and play board games.

We walked along the main road in our quest to try to find the trail to Whangamumu. One of the problems with roads in remote areas is the distinct lack of sidewalks. So you take your chances walking along the side of the road, hoping and praying that you don't get knocked down by a car speeding along the road and zipping around the blind curves. I wasn't enjoying it.

We did have a few bright spots on our walk - like this cute little sleepout along the side of the road. It even had a name, "Beach Box". Clever Kiwis turn old trailers into places for friends and family to crash in. Much cheaper then building an extension onto your house. And much cuter. 

We came across a farm on our walk. Which really isn't like earth shattering news or anything. New Zealand is an agricultural based economy. There are farms everywhere. And sheep and cows. See the hills behind the farm? Whangamumu is somewhere over on the other side.

This was one of the cute cows on the farm. I think he looks adorable in black and white. Especially his ears.

And then we got to the mangroves at Parekura Bay. They were depressing. Usually mangroves are a thing to take delight in. But not on this particular day. This is when we decided to turn around and head back to the boat. You take the good with the bad. We didn't make it to Whangamumu, but at least we got to see that adorable cow.

Walk on Wednesday, 5 March 2014

Linked up with Bonnie, Kaelene, Sammy & Van for Travel Tuesday.

Shakedown Cruise Review: Cooking, Eating & Provisioning (Pt 2/2)

Background - When we decided to become full-time cruisers, rather than buy our "forever" boat and set off around the world, we took a different approach and moved aboard our "for now" boat in New Zealand for the 2013/14 season. We used it as an opportunity to do a shakedown cruise to discover what works and what doesn't for us in terms of the cruising lifestyle before we buy our next boat. This is the second in a series of posts on how it all went. 

Yep, it's time to talk some more about food and living on a sailboat. Last time, I shared the key things I learned - the next boat must have a fridge, cask/box wine tastes like ground up turnips mixed with Koolaid and I am on a personal mission to lift my cooking from the realms of adequate to something so tasty you would pay me $8.98 to make it for you. (By the way, $8.98 is the exact price of two bars of Whittaker's chocolate. I will invest your $8.98 wisely.) Today, it is all about provisioning. Because unless you do some shopping you've got nothing in the fridge to turn into a gourmet meal and you don't have any vino to wash it down with.

When I first started provisioning, I tried to channel my mother and be super duper organized about the whole thing. I made spreadsheets, I labeled my canned goods, I had lists and I made meal plans. None of this worked. Chaos ensued.

The spreadsheets seemed like a really good idea. I love spreadsheets. They used to form an integral part of my days at work, along with PowerPoint presentations. So, I thought I was really on to something when I discovered how popular they are with other cruisers - like Windtraveler, Nine of Cups,  Commuter Cruiser and The Boat Galley. I checked out what everyone else was doing and created my own before we moved onto the boat. It was awesome. My cans, bags of pasta and condiments were in control. And I was the one controlling them. I was positively giddy with the power I had - I was Queen of the Provisioning!

One teeny-tiny problem - computers need electricity to run. The fact that we didn't have a way to charge our computers on our boat kind of made the whole spreadsheet exercise useless. So I decided to embrace the way of the Luddite and started a list in a notebook. I wrote everything down that we had, where it was located, how many we had in stock and how many we had used. That was the theory anyway. It was boring. And I kept forgetting to keep the list up to date. And we never did use that jar of coconut oil.

I soon abandoned any pretense of inventorying our food supply and started using my notebook to write down the weather forecasts on the VHF.

Once I realized that there wasn't any point in writing down the weather forecasts - because they were always wrong - I just started using my notebook to doodle in. I love to doodle. I did it all the way through school, during boring meetings at work and during the weather forecasts. You would think I would be better at it by now. That's an octopus by the way. He's frowning because the lady on the VHF said that the winds were going to kick up.

But back to provisioning. To be honest, it probably wasn't a huge problem that I didn't have this too well organized. Our boat was only 26' so there weren't a lot of places for the cans and bags of pasta to hide from me. We basically kept our food in few places - cupboards underneath the stove and next to the stove, as well as underneath the v-berth. We kept things like onions, lemons and other bits and bobs in containers on a shelf which ran along the galley side of the boat. So, even though it was a real pain to get anything out when it came time to cook, I could always find what I was looking for.

But our next boat is definitely going to bigger than 26' which means more places to hide. And I'm sure we'll be cruising in places where we need to stock up much more systematically on food - either because it is too expensive to buy there (like the Bahamas) or because you're in the middle of an ocean where what you eat is what you've already got on the boat. 

Our next boat is also going to have a way to charge our computers so maybe I can go back to using a spreadsheet to keep track of everything. Or we could bring my mother along with us - she would never let her cans and bags of pasta take control. Her spreadsheets would be a work of art. One tiny problem - she doesn't really like the water. Hmm. Oh well, tune in again once we get our next boat and see how we end up doing. One thing for sure, I will never buy another can of mutton stew. It started out on the list and it ended up on the list. We never got desperate enough to open it up and eat it.

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What Do You Read On Your Boat?

Like most other folks, we keep a log on our boat which records important information like what time we dropped the hook and where, when we picked up the anchor and where we're heading to next, how many nautical miles we did during the day, notes on the weather etc. It also contains really unimportant stuff like what we ate and what books I read. Clearly, I place a certain priority on food and entertainment.

We had brought some books with us, but those quickly ran out and I found the best and cheapest (i.e., free) way to get new books was the book exchanges at marinas. Usually, you can find book exchanges in the laundry rooms. Which is handy, when you're trying to entertain yourself while your laundry spins around and around in the machines. They usually consist of a relatively small stack of books, so your pickings are slim.  The best book exchange I came across was up in Whangarei at the Town Basin Marina where they have an entire wall dedicated to their books. Unfortunately, I lot of the books are in languages I can't pronounce, let alone read, but there is still a vast selection of English language books.

When you don't have too much choice as to what you're going to read, you find yourself reading things you wouldn't normally check out of the library or buy. You know, the types of books that read like they're written in anticipation of being optioned and turned into a movie. As you read along, you can imagine in your head the hottest movie stars in Hollywood as the various characters, because you know that is exactly what the author was imagining when s/he wrote the book. Some of the books I picked up and read were stupid. Others were really enjoyable in a can't put you down even though I know how you are going to end way. I even caught Scott reading one of these types of books and he rarely reads fiction. He told me it was stupid, yet he kept reading it. 

So here is what I read on our boat this summer. Have you read any of these? If so, did you like them? And what do you read when you're out cruising and where do you get your books?

• Caribbean by James Michener (Great inspiration for when we get our next boat and go sailing there.)
• Alaska by James Michener (His books are great to read when you're traveling as they're long and take a while to get through, plus you feel like you're learning something. After reading this, I decided we needed to go sailing in Alaska.)
• Rascals in Paradise by James Michener (Inspiration to go sailing in the Pacific islands.)
• Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey (I loved this one!)
• Blindsight by Robin Cooke (The first of a few by him I read. He seems very popular in the book exchanges.)
• Marker by Robin Cooke (After reading this I've decided that I really don't want to get admitted to hospital, ever.)
• Catalyst Blue by Robert Baylus (I can't say that this was my favorite.)
• Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens (One of his I hadn't read before which I bought for $1 in Idaho last time I was there.) 
• Dakota Born by Debbie Macomber (I picked this one up because Scott is from North Dakota, it really didn't seem anything like how he described growing up there - no mention of lefse or lutefisk at all.)
• The Shadow in the North by Philip Pullman (This was the second in a trilogy, sadly the first and third weren't next to the washing machine.)
• Innocent Blood by PD James (Not what I expected, didn't seem like the other books of hers that I've read.)
• The Uplift War by David Brin (Another one that was in the middle of a series and I wish the other books had been next to the dryer as I enjoyed it.)
• The Parsifal Mosaic by Robert Ludlum (Boring, I possibly didn't finish this.)
• Explorers, Whalers & Tattooed Sailors Gordon & Sarah Ell, eds. (Really interesting collection of historical writings about the exploration and colonization of New Zealand.)
• Omerta by Mario Puzo (One of those I stayed up late to finish.)
• Twilight in Delhi by Ahmed Ali (Great book!)
• Hungry Hill by Daphne du Maurier (I was expecting something along the lines of her books that got turned into Hitchcock films. Definitely wasn't that, but very enjoyable nonetheless.)
• The Second Lady by Irving Wallace (Another one of those compulsive reads.)
• And some book whose title I didn't write down by the author of the Spenser novels

Going For A Walk: Auckland Botanic Gardens {Or The Monkey Giggled, As Only Monkeys Can}

Do you have a list of places you wouldn't mind going to one day if the opportunity presented itself, but otherwise you don't make too much of an effort to get there? The Auckland Botanic Gardens has always been on that list for me. Someplace that I wanted to see, but because I don't have a car, it had seemed like too much of a bother to get there on the bus, so I never did. But finally the opportunity arose. We still had our rental car from our road trip down south and didn't have to return it until later that day so transportation wouldn't be an issue. Plus William and Kate were in town on their royal tour so it seemed like a really good idea to get out of town and avoid the mobs of people waving their flags and trying to get a good view of what cute outfit Kate had on that day. So what better plan than heading off to the Botanic Gardens and getting some Ethiopian for lunch. Sure, William and Kate got to race on the America's Cup boats, but I think our day was much better.

When we first started walking around, we saw this lady. She kind of reminded of us of Gustav Viegland's sculptures in Frogner Park in Oslo, Norway. It was pretty cool, so despite the overcast conditions, I was looking forward to exploring the rest of the gardens. 

Unfortunately, excitement quickly turned to disappointment and boredom. We probably came to visit the gardens at the wrong time of the year and there has been a drought so perhaps things weren't at their best. For some reason I had expected something different than large expanses of grass punctuated by some plantings. Having seen some other really great botanical gardens around the world, like the one in Singapore (must do if you're ever there!), I really needed to recalibrate my expectations. So, I started to think of the place as a park where kids and dogs can run around and play, that just happens to have some plants. That helped a little.

Things started to pick up when we saw a boat. So this is where old boats go to die - the Auckland Botanic Gardens.

And then this was really neat. It looks like the top of a pineapple to me. When you look closely, you see that it is made out of shovels.

Despite the shovel sculpture, I was still a bit bored and it kept threatening to rain so I suggested to Scott that we call it a day on the gardens and head over to the Ethiopian restaurant. He said no - we had driven all the way there and we should at least see a bit more. So we walked on and then we came across this neat archway with a garden growing on top. It intrigued us so we went in and am I ever glad we did because we discovered the Potter Children's Garden. It turns out the Prince of Wales opened up the garden in 2005, so we still had a touch of royal for our day.

It is such an interesting place, even if you aren't a kid. There is fun stuff everywhere - like this cute little frog. I asked Scott to take a picture of it. He didn't want to, but he did anyway. He thinks I should be the kind of camera assistant who just holds the bag and helps change the lenses. I think my role as camera assistant is to tell him what to take pictures of.

The kids love this display because every couple of minutes a spray of water comes down to keep the plants moist. I liked it too.

They have a desert section in the gardens so that you can see how plants adapt to those types of conditions. And of course, kids get to learn about death too. Some animals don't always make it in the desert, like this little critter here.

This kereu (native wood pigeon) likes to yell at people when they're walking around. Okay, yes, it isn't a real bird so maybe that yelling I heard was just in my head? I think it was trying to tell us to leave its giant egg alone. They have this cracked open egg that you can climb into and pretend to be hatching out of. There is a picture of me doing just that, but, let's face it, I'm not very photogenic and if you add a not very photogenic person to a giant egg, the resulting picture is something that is best not shared with the rest of the world.

I liked this monkey better. He doesn't yell at you, he says, "Welcome to my jungle. Come right in." And then he giggles as only a monkey can.

The "Mythological Maze of Maui" is the best part of the garden. It tells the story of how Maui turned into a kereru to find his parents. Littles and biggies can explore the maze (although only littles can fit into the secret tunnel) and look at these fantastic sculptures.

Here is one of them close up. Notice the traditional moko (tattoo) on the woman's chin.

And the final picture from our visit - proof that the moa is sill alive. Those folks that tell you the moa is extinct are just pulling your leg. But they're aren't many left. Join the "Moa Preservation Society" and together we can help bring the rest back from the dead. Scott and I are the founding members. For some reason, it hasn't really caught on yet. But with your help, that could all change. Annual membership is only $25 a year. A bargain. 

Walk took place on Friday, 11 April 2014

Linked up with Bonnie, Kaelene, Sammy & Van for Travel Tuesday.