Heading to the Coromandel Peninsula’s Rangipukea Island (Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand)

February 10, 2014

The large and looming Coromandel Peninsula isn’t typically on a Hauraki Gulf cruise itinerary. It actually sits 10 miles east of the island group, not so much a part of the Hauraki Gulf as it creates the Hauraki Gulf, blocking the easterly swells that, save for this peninsula, would turn the Gulf’s serene island anchorages into surf breaks.

At 50 miles long and 20 miles wide this peninsula is already large, but with its rugged, mountainous terrain, vast areas of wilderness forest, sparse population, and few roads, it has remote, frontier feeling. It’s somewhat off the beaten path for travelers by boat or car, the kind of place one visits if they live in New Zealand, but too out of the way for most international travelers doing a big New Zealand tour.

We’d briefly visited one anchorage on the peninsula in 2013, but that was near its outer end, for convenience while waiting for suitable tide and wind so we could round the peninsula. Now, I hoped we could visit the intriguing anchorages lower down on its west side.

I was concerned to see whitecaps on the water after we left Ponui Island, and even more concerned to hear the weather forecast had changed to overnight southwesterly winds, not great for this area of the Coromandel. Rich worried we’d made a mistake leaving Ponui Island, but I quickly checked my list and was relieved to see there was one place that would be suitable for this weather, an island a half mile off the Coromandel coast called Rangipukea. It was very close to another anchorage I hoped to visit and an easy change of plan for the night. (Below, an interactive map.)

It took about 2 ½ hours to make the crossing. The ocean was whitecappy and spitty, splashing our rain-washed boat with salt water. But it was also sunny, warm, and not very rough; so I couldn’t complain. Meanwhile as we got closer to the Coromandel Peninsula, I was again impressed by its rugged beauty and sheer size. Its headlands, shoreline and off-lying rock islets were big, blocky and boulderous, with tall mountains rising dramatically behind it all. Below, some photos (click to enlarge).

Rounding the north tip of Rangipukea Island brought us into quiet and calm conditions. This island wasn’t very big, yet it echoed the Coromandel’s big scale with large cliff and rock formations. Rugged slopes were dotted with pohutukawa trees and, surprisingly, cows. We noted a couple of small boats anchored in the shallow north bay but continued around the corner to the bigger bay at the southeast end.

Below, a panorama photo of the area…

As we rounded the corner into that bay we were surprised by what appeared: green grass hills sloped down to a surprisingly white beach scattered with large black rocks, while pohutukawa trees clung to the sandstone cliff headland. To find such strikingly beautiful anchorage  here was a delightful surprise.

Here’s a gallery with a few additional pictures…

After anchoring and taking some time to relax, we decided we should go walk on the beach. Up close, this beach had a lot of sea debris and driftwood, but it also had beautiful pastel blue and green water to go along with its white sand. We’d hoped to climb the grassy hill, but the presence of a couple of bulls changed our minds. We contented ourselves with a beach walk and climbing on a couple of the big black rocks. (Click any photo to enlarge.)

In all, this was truly a beautiful place, made more so when spots of sun peeked out from the cloudy sky, highlighting the colors of the sand and water. And always in the backdrop was the mountainous Coromandel, adding an element of drama to the view and making it feel different from the Hauraki Gulf islands.

As we took our dinghy back to the boat I turned and looked at the shore. It was late in the day but sunnier, and the water was becoming more green in the goldish light. This was the sort of spot where changing light could alter the feeling of the place.

Now, I was very glad for the southwest winds that caused us to stop here. Sometimes an inconvenient change of weather turns out to be a good thing. –Cyndi

 

Why Boat Projects Take So Long

October 29, 2020

“OK Cyndi, I’ll be done in five minutes. I just have to screw on this p-clip.”

Then it breaks. Then I have to run over to the marine store for more because all of my remaining clips are too small. Then I spend thirty minutes trying to get the petrified price tag off.

Two hours later, the five minute job is done! -Rich

Update: My friend Tom wrote with this:

“It’s known as being two hours into a thirty minute job.”

That cracked me up! Thanks Tom.

A Visit with the Ponui Donkeys (Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand)

February 10, 2014

Not surprisingly, this north-facing bay in the Chamberlain’s area was beautifully lit by the early morning sunlight. This bay seemed to be angled just right to have both beautiful sunrise and sunset scenery. Below, a couple of sunrise photos (click to enlarge any photos in the galleries below).

It was turning into another lovely day, and of course one’s initial inclination might be to stay put and enjoy it, to not rush off. In fact, many boaters (Rich) would do just that. But for those of us on a sightseeing mission (me), a nice day is a day to get busy—to walk, motor around in the dinghy, and often as not, to move to another anchorage. Looking at the big picture, I could see a weather system due to arrive in a few days, which meant now was a good time to move to the Coromandel Peninsula and visit some of its less protected anchorages. After explaining this to weary Rich, he agreed to head on this afternoon. After he looked at the weather for himself, suddenly he was the one most in a hurry to get going.

First, though, I wanted to take a dinghy ride in our anchorage. I not only wanted to see the beach but also have a final chance to spot the special donkeys here on this island.

Their story is similar to that of the famous Chincoteague ponies of Virginia and Maryland in the United States. About 200 years ago, domesticated donkeys had been left to go wild on Ponui Island. Over the years they adapted to this place and in doing so developed unique characteristics. They became light colored, almost white, and thick-bodied with rounded bellies. They are now a prized and rare breed, their bloodlines coveted as people on the mainland are sometimes allow to procure and breed these special animals.

I knew these donkeys were somewhere on Ponui, but it’s a big island and I had no idea where to look. I didn’t have high hopes of spotting one.

We set out in our dinghy and motored along the shoreline, not necessarily planning to make landfall. When Rich commented that there were little horses on shore, I whipped around and realized they were Ponui Donkeys! I told Rich to land pronto, anxious to get onshore before they wandered off. I needn’t have worried—it seems this is where they liked to hang out. (Years later, going through photos of our anchorage, I can see they were visible onshore here the day we arrived, we just didn’t think to look for them here!) Below, photos of the beach.

The donkeys were near the beach by a little outbuilding, and we walked carefully up to them, not wanting to spook them. They were neither skittish nor aggressive, but curious, and it seems they were used to getting handouts. One walked up to us and sniffed Rich’s hand, then another, then the two more came over. After a time, we had several donkeys with us, including a youngster. They sniffed our hands, touching their soft, velvety muzzles to them. What a joy it was to get to see, and touch, these beautiful animals. Below, some photos of the donkeys.

After a time the donkeys wandered down the beach, and we hopped back in our dinghy, going for a ride along the beach and down the headland. We ran across a man on a paddle board and excitedly told him about the donkeys. He seemed to have no idea what we were talking about but agreed to go check them out. I felt sorry that a lot of people probably come here and have no idea how special the “little horses” onshore are. What a shame. Here are more…

Back at the boat, we got ready and pulled our anchor. It was neat to head east and see the white beaches and shallow coves at the far northeast end of the island. Our next stop would be the Coromandel Peninsula. Below, a few photos of this area’s anchorages, too shallow for our boat.–Cyndi