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| New Zealand | |
| Fast facts | |
Full Name: New Zealand New Zealand's spectacularly beautiful landscape includes vast mountain chains, steaming volcanoes, sweeping coastlines, deeply indented fiords and lush rainforests. Comparable in size and/or shape to Great Britain, Colorado or Japan, New Zealand has a population of only 3.8 million - making it one of the world's least crowded countries. Sailing is very popular in New Zealand and Auckland is known as the City of Sails. There are many areas where there are moorings and marinas but the main areas and the only ones areas where visitors can easily charter are the Hauraki Gulf (Auckland), The Bay of Islands to the North and possibly within the Marlborough Sounds at the top of South Island. |
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| Climate | |
New Zealand sits squarely in the 'roaring forties' latitude, which means a prevailing and continual wind blows over the country from west to east; this can range from a gentle breeze in summer to a buffeting, roof-stripping gale in winter. The North Island and South Island, because of their different geological features, have two distinct patterns of rainfall: in the South Island, the Southern Alps act as a barrier for the moisture-laden winds from the Tasman Sea, creating a wet climate to the west of the mountains and a dry climate to the east; while the North Island's rainfall is more evenly distributed without a comparable geological feature such as the Alps. Temperatures are a few degrees cooler in the South Island, and both islands receive snow in winter. Winter falls in the months of June through August and summer from December through February. It is important to remember that New Zealand's climate is maritime, rather than continental, which means the weather can change with amazing rapidity and consequence. The busy tourist season falls in the warmer months between November and April, though ski resorts, such as Queenstown, are full during winter. |
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| Cruising notes | |
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Auckland: Known as 'The City of Sails', Auckland is said to have more yachts per head than any other place in the world! The base at Westhaven Marina, Central Auckland is an excellent charter start to more than 1500 square miles of some of the finest cruising in the world, with 76 islands to explore, over 200 sheltered anchorages and miles of beautiful coastline. The base is just over half an hour from the first of the islands of the gulf. The scenery is beautiful, the sailing good and the diving superb. The Bay of Islands (BoI) is much smaller but is one of the most beautiful areas to sail in New Zealand. It is ideal for the first time one charters as the inner area is very sheltered yet there are dozens of islands and safe bays to explore before even venturing out into the main part of the Bay of Islands, which is still relatively sheltered. |
To give a scale to the Bay of Islands, the detailed chart of the area (NZ5124) covers about 14 x 9 Nautical miles and the inner island studded part is about half that in each direction. On a short charter (3 or 4 days) or if you are relatively inexperienced you may be requested to keep to the Bay itself and it is normal to call up Russell Radio (Channel 63) if you leave and when you return. On longer charters and with suitable experience there is a big stretch of coast to explore including the Cavalli Islands (just possible as a day trip), on up to Whangaroa Harbour 30 Nm up the coast and Mangonui at about 40 Nm (depends on the Charter firm and boat). In the other direction the limits will almost certainly extend as far as Whangarei - half way to the Hauraki Gulf. Many charter firms operate from both the Gulf and the Bay and you may be covered for the whole trip on a longer charter. If you have a long charter it is possible to do the trip along the coast between the Bay of Islands and the Hauraki Gulf if the weather conditions are suitable. The two are separated by 2 degrees of latitude making it about a 150 Nm trip overall of which 120 Nm are unprotected Pacific coast. The closest equivalent in the UK would be from Southampton Water to Plymouth Sound or for non sailors it is the same distance as London to Cardiff. If you plan such a trip note that the section from Whangarei to Kawau Island is the most challenging (45 Nm) - a very long day and one without any bolt holes if the weather turns bad. Once North of Whangarei there are several good overnight moorings in harbors sheltered from almost every wind direction including on shore. |
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update June 10 |
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