Finally in early August we started to head south to Auckland and a date with friends to go to the All Black vs Waratahs match on September 5. We sailed passed Cape Brett with the sun shining and a light breeze.
Our first stop was Whangamumu harbour which has the remnants of an old whaling station and which is sheltered from all but north east winds and has excellent walking tracks. From there we dashed down to Tutukaka harbour. This time of year the lows come every 3 days and so it is a case of move when you can. Although Tutukaka was comfortable its quite developed which we found detracted from its charms. Fortunately we had a couple of days with light northerlies and were able to head out to the Hens and Chickens.
We stayed overnight at Starfish Bay which is simply stunning. Beautiful water clarity and lots of birds.
Our next stop was Kawaka Bay where we were confined to the boat in 30-40 knot SWers for 3 days. We were starting to get used these and Iolea and her anchor took them all in thier stride. From Kawaka the coastline meanders down to Whangaparoa Peninsular and the first signs of city living. The coast itself is pretty - dotted by islets and the Mahurangi Harbour and to top-off the day we were greeted by leaping dolphins in Waiau Bay.
The next morning we decided to check out Gulf Harbour Marina and anchored just outside the entrance. The staff there were very helpful and allowed us to use their laundry and showers as guests. As we were about to pull anchor in the afternoon a conga line of sailboats were towed into the marina after a days sail. They looked like ducklings.
We decided all this civilisation was too much and so headed out into Hauraki Gulf to Rakino island. Despite its close proximity to Auckland, there were only one or two other boats making overnight stays and we had a peaceful day at anchor.
Our final stop before heading into Auckland was Islington Bay just below Rangitoto Island which is a flattened volcano cone. The anchorage provided good shelter from all but south/SE winds but the easterly winds do roar over the top of Motutapu island which is almost denuded of forest. The photos are from the top of Rangitoto where we had a late breakfast one morning.