Zozza

Yes, no Barrier on the way up it seems

“Sailing Sensitive Wife” - ‘SSW’ - luv it! We finally have some to rival the ‘SWMBO’ (She Who Must Be Obeyed) acronym the Pommie Sailors use sll the time… 😁

Giday Rg... firstly I am solo sailing, so can't rely on a crew to share overnight watches etc I would say my experience is 'low to medium'...i.e I have not been up and down the coast 20 years in a row like some of you on here...a handful of times - yes I want to head for Barrier (Port Fitzroy area) and then to Bay of Islands with a couple stops....from tomorrow I have to work for three days, then Im off for a month...the SWs' run out Friday evening and from Saturday all the wind models are showing building easterlies for days and days and days....my boat points "ok" for a 26 footer, but as

Easterlies for Africa for number of days from New Years eve....completely spun out my plans ....probably have to make my way to the Eastern Gulf and just work my way up and try make use of the Easterlies as best I can rather than fight them...the wind doesn't care about my or your grand sailing plans for the new year holidays -- ah well... such is life

Good one. May the SW last through till NY day

Hey Vivaldi, source?

Lets hope this is all gone by the 23rd!

Well Cameron, at the moment we seem to be getting one good day, like yesterday - glorious - followed by 5 or 6 days of rubbish....last summer was simply outstanding...so far this year it seems more like August than December - so boy oh boy, do I hope your theory is correct!

That part of Great Mercury red zoned for no anchoring....is that the part that Sir Michael Fay holds a New Years Eve BBQ on shore for whatever sailors show up?

Heck I had no idea NE winds could have such a dramatic effect on Taka Beach...spent a lot of time there as a youth 'Walking on the Beaches looking at the Peaches' as The Strangles song goes...

Well Psyche that summary backs up the ENE outlook. Also strange to see more cyclones predicted for NZ than the Easter Pacific Islands...

Of course, long range forecasts for the summer are just that, "long range and subject to change" - but all the models I am looking at are currently predicting a lot of NE, NNE My initial plan was wait for a SW around New Years and head for Barrier, than a E through to S to head further north, but if the winds are days on end from the N / NE quarter I don't want to get stuck for a week say, at Kawau on the Western side of the Gulf waiting for a window to head to Barrier.... maybe if the NE does dominate, head for Coromandel and work your way up via eastern side of the Gulf with the better

Blocking anchoring (unless you are prepared to jump through hoops) for that area of Mercury Island is particularly annoying. These idiots are not going to be able to control jack shyte - it will spread just through natural tidal movement - it's losing battle the ignoramus bunch of twats. Combine this with the idiots that run NRC, and this sort of music comes to mind:

Deeply embarrassing for the so called 'City of Sails'

...proof of anti-fouling if heading north? WTF? I just got hauled, washed, and returned - a bit of slime, a handful of tiny barnacles easily removed, the anti-foul holding up extremely well in the year since I antifouled boat a year ago...as it should I put four coats of the stuff on. I kept the haul out receipt of course. If that is not good enough for any Northland Nazi Council guys who want to approach me while I am anchored somewhere minding my own business up north this summer, then they can get stuffed.

Good stuff Psyche....I know guys like BP have paid their dues with the small boats over the years so what I am about to say has no relevance to the likes of him....but what the hell is wrong with people that they can't put up with a bit of discomfort (which the joys far outweigh) putting a Hub, Wifey, and three kiddies in a Raven 26 for 2 or 3 weeks over Xmas? Do you really need the 45 footer you use twice per year, then take up space in a Marina in an expensive berth..... something is seriously f__cked with the (no pun intended) 'psyche' of modern people. In my experience, without a bit of

Ha good man Winter. I reckon $1000 which is what I should have got, and did get, until the guy returned it with the issue you have now fixed. Maybe be prepared to lower to $750 if not much interest, but these Units have an excellent reputation and from my research show to be superior in all respect to the Simrads and the Raymarine tiller pilots. Good luck with the sale . Here is a video from James of 'Atom' the Pearson Triton fame - a double solo circumnavigator, who knows his stuff:

Warning: Rambling whinge-fest below - some will find some nuggets of truth, some will find areas of vehement disagreement with what I say, some will shout from the rooftops saying "Yes Yes Yes Zozza you nailed it" others will say "Zozza what a whole loada cr@p mate" - it;s all good. I played Rugby League against 17 stone teengage monsters from Mangere when I was a young man, so I am used to the hard knocks physically and a few words are water off a ducks back metaphorically, so if you want to give it badk to me- have at bro, because I am about to say a few things that need to be said: He

Don't they make large parts of bays off limits? Also If the filter like fanworm do, maybe fanworm farms around the Gulf to revive it not a bad thing either!

What's the problem with fanworm anyway? Is it the Mussel Farms that they destroy? If so, good.

Yet today, nice and warm and 10-12 knot breeze up here in Aucks NZ weather is just nuts. Hopefully all this cr@p earlier in the week has blown itself out, and we can look forward up to and including the Christmas sailing season....

Steve Pope, you are a bloody legend mate. I'm most probably going to find myself sailing to Northland over the holiday period to sail in the Junk Rig division of the Russell Tall Ships event. Getting hauled out for a wash and scrub soon, and will have my receipt for that ready in case one of these lot want to put me through the 3rd degree while I'm anchored somewhere minding my own business. Do say hello if you are in the area. Black hull, 26 feet : 'Pango' (Maori for the colour 'black')

Best decision I ever made in my 26 footer, was pull out the perfectly good diesel and replace with outboard, and I will be doing the same with the 28 footer I have recently got. I get heaps more storage, I get no smell of diesel that had infiltrated and embedded itself in every nook and cranny and took hours of airing out and cleaning to get rid of, and I get a faster boat with no propeller dragging like a bucket aft. But I set my boat up properly though with vented petrol lockers on deck, and I bought a spanking new outboard with extra long shaft, and low pitch elephant prop, i.e I didn't