The weather fought us all the way into Whangarei Harbor. As we
approached on Saturday, 10/28, we made a tack and put the south east
wind on our beam. The rain got stronger and visibility closed in to the
point where we could only intermittently see Bream Head a mile to our
right and Hen and Chicken islands a couple of miles to our left. Mark
turned the boat into the wind and Todd and I took down the stays’l and
tied it to the deck. I hadn’t purchased detailed charts for New Zealand
for the chart plotter, so we used detailed charts on the iPad (in a
waterproof case, mounted at the helm) and the paper charts Peter had
delivered to the boat back in April. (This was the only time we used
paper charts on the whole journey). We followed the well-marked channel
into Whangarei harbor and were helped by a 2 knot current up the river
to the Marsden Cove marina entrance. We turned into the wind and current
and brought the triple reefed main down for the last time for a while.
The dredged channel to the marina was narrow but well-marked. The
customs dock was oriented into the 15-20 knot breeze, there were no
other boats tied up, so docking was easy. We were finally tied up at
1830 on Saturday, 10/29. We were well outside of customs working hours
and were told to expect them Sunday around noon. The customs dock is
gated from the rest of the marina, so we were restricted to the boat and
the customs dock

Despite being restricted to the customs dock, we were happy to be tied
up and not still at sea. The wind continued to build, as was forecast,
and the rain became heavy. Wind was expected to build over the next
couple of days to a steady 30 knots with gusts to 50 knots, so we opened
the beer we’d brought from Fiji and had dinner and all hands were
sleeping by “cruiser’s midnight”, 9 PM.

Sunday morning the wind and rain continued strong. We had breakfast and
Todd packed for departure while we waited for Customs and Biosecurity.
Mike from Biosecurity arrived first. We expected biosecurity to be
strict in New Zealand and they were. We’d eaten all the vegetables and
fruit except some ginger root, which he confiscated. He also took our
honey, which we’d purchased in Tonga and was actually honey syrup, and
not very good. A large Swiss flagged cat had arrived at the customs dock
after us, so Mike went to chat with them while Brittany from customs
came onto Rover. The customs clearance went smoothly.

The strong winds had a component of the wind vector pushing us onto the
dock, so we wouldn’t be able to get Rover off the dock. No boats were
expected until Tuesday, so Mike and Brittney allowed us to stay at the
customs dock until the winds abated. They opened the gate and Todd took
the opportunity to jump ship to connect with his wife and friends who
had a rental car and were planning a vacation in New Zealand before
heading to Australia. Before departure he got a couple of bottles of
wine for the boat. The Swiss tied the gate to the customs dock open, so
Grant took the opportunity to get some beer and a few groceries at the
marina store. This morning the gate is locked again, so we’re restricted
to the dock until we can move the boat.

In high winds we leave the wind instrument on and it records the peak
wind. We expected 50 knots overnight, with 30 knots today (Monday).
Current high score is 44.8 knots, but the winds have come down to around
20 knots with gusts to 30.

We have a berth reserved at Whangarei Town Marina. It’s about 9 miles
away, up a tidal river. Between us and the Town Marina there are a few
obstacles. First, we need to get off the dock and around the large
catamaran docked ahead of us. Second, we need to get to the fuel dock at
this marina, successfully dock, fill up and get off that dock. To
surmount the first two obstacles, the wind needs to drop into the teens,
and/or be in a favorable direction. Third, we need to negotiate the
river which is tidal, has a narrow channel and is dredged to one meter
(3 feet). Since Rover has a draft of six feet, we can negotiate the
river when the tide is 4 feet or greater and rising. We want a rising
tide so if we get stuck in the mud the rising tide will float us off.
The fourth obstacle is a bascule bridge (draw bridge) that only operates
from 9 am to 4 pm. The tidal and bridge windows combined meant we could
have left today between 5 am and 9 am, but the wind was still in the
30s, pinning us to the dock. Our next combined tide and bridge window is
tomorrow (Tuesday) between 6:15 am and 9 am. The wind is expected to
have abated by then, so we’re hoping for an early morning departure.

Grant and Mark are hoping to do some sightseeing in New Zealand before
their return to the US, and every day pinned to the dock is one less day
of sightseeing. They understand the weather limitations, but sitting at
the dock listening to the wind howl is frustrating for them. They’ve
agreed to help move the boat to Whangarei Marina, and I couldn’t do it
singlehanded, so I’m glad they’re staying aboard to help.

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