Position: 35 44.61 S 174 21.00 E
At anchor Hatea River, Whangarei
Wind: WSW F3 gentle breeze
Sea state: rippled Swell: nil
Weather: overcast, mild
Day’s run: 12 nm

The forecast for the day was gentle WSW winds (ie a headwind), freshening in the afternoon. Preferring to sail against a gentle headwind rather than a fresh one, I got underway at 0710, sailing from anchor and out of ‘The Nook’ in three short tacks. We passed close by the beacon marking the entrance to ‘The Nook’, almost scraping the paint off it in order to avoid another very short tack. Once clear of The Nook’s entrance I could relax a little, but not much as Whangarei Harbour is a tidal estuary with extensive sand banks. The headwind and an ebbing tide made for some careful navigation and again I watched the GPS plotter and the depth sounder closely, tacking each time the sounding shallowed as we approached a sand bar.

I completed thirteen tacks in the three hours that it took us to get to Kioreroa Reach in the Hatea River leading into the town of Whangarei. I guess most people would have simply motored but I enjoy the sailing and the challenging navigation. I find it very satisfying to bring my old Sylph into harbour under sail, as well as feeling a little virtuous in avoiding burning more fossil fuel than absolutely necessary.

At 1042 I furled the jib, started the BRM and handed the main, manoeuvring in the shallows to find a spot among the other anchored craft, letting go the anchor in 2.9 meters of water over a mud bottom seven minutes later.

Unfortunately this is about as close to town as one can get if one wants to remain at anchor. From here it is a one kilometre row to the nearest dinghy dock and from there it is about a three kilometre walk into town. Given the distance I need to row, I will be working the tides, using the flood stream to row ashore and then the ebb to get back to the boat. Fortunately at the moment the tides work in my favour, with the tide turning at 1615. So, after lunch and a short rest, I might try to get ashore for a leg stretch.

All is well.