New Zealand - Pacific Crossing Notes: A Sailor's Guide to the Coconut Milk Run - page 337

Cruising Grounds: the Bay of Islands
After months devoted to long blue water passages, sailors delight in New Zealand's rich
cruising grounds, starting with the Bay of Islands. There, a smattering of uninhabited is-
lands offer anchorages for every wind direction - not to mention pristine beaches, hiking
trails, and a hurricane hole or two. You'll awake each day to emerald views and exotic bird
calls, like the wavering, gong-like call of the tui. Most - but not all - dangers to navigation
in the Bay of Islands are marked and the tidal range is a mere five feet. For us, the area
summons memories of swimming, hiking, and dolphin spotting.
Each island is unique, yet part of the singular tapestry of the bay, and all offer excellent
walking tracks. One of our favorite spots is undulating Urupukapuka with its numerous
trails, duck blind, and Maori Pa (fortified hilltop village). Motorua offers a different per-
spective from a World War II lookout bunker on its heights. The sandy beach at Oke Bay is
a real treat, as are any of the trails that crisscross the peninsula there. Mainland Russell is
one of the oldest settlements in New Zealand, and worth the discomfort of anchoring in the
busy harbor. Across the bay, historic Waitangi is another must-see, though access is diffi-
cult from the water. To reach sights like Waitangi or to go shopping in Paihia, we'd usually
anchor off the beach in Paihia (if conditions were settled) or anchored more securely in
Opua, then hitched a ride into town.
Whenever a northerly gale piped up, we'd drop anchor in muddy Orokawa Bay. And when
the weather settled again, we could set a course for Roberton Island, a thin strip of land
nearly trisected by tidal lagoons. If conditions are very settled, Waewaetorea is another nice
option, thanks to its pleasant beach and the hilltop views.
Still, the Bay of Islands is much smaller than its reputation suggests. Although there are
dozens of lovely anchorages, the prime destinations boil down to a handful of islands and
mainland bays, none of which are more than fifteen miles from each other. Two weeks is
plenty of time for a laid-back circuit of the bay. More is better, but many sailors get itchy
feet once they exceed the six-week mark.
That's when it's time to check the continuous VHF weather forecast and head farther
afield. We quickly learned to take forecasts with an extra grain of salt: with no land mass to
buffer the island nation from the Antarctic, weather is notoriously unpredictable. On the
other hand, we found David Thatcher's cruising guides (including a section on weather)
spot-on throughout our stay in New Zealand.