Bountiful Bluff

The first twelve hours of our passage to Bluff was not easy. It was revoltingly rolly due to a three metre swell from the south west and a very light headwind. Although we had the mainsail up it gave very little stability to the motion of the boat and it had rained consistently all night. At dawn we entered Foveaux Strait and finally got some relief from the swell. A light south westerly change came through and we were able to sail with the mainsail and a poled headsail. Snatches of Stewart Island could be seen to our south as the rain clouds cleared with the south westerly change. The motion improved greatly and we saw small groups of Fulmar Prion's skirting across the tops of the waves. These small birds are a lovely, light bluish grey and when their wings are expanded you can see a W across their back and wings marked by darker coloured feathers. A friendly fishing boat came close by to wave hello as he was dropping fish traps marked by large orange buoys.  Albatrosses were trailing close behind the fishing boat looking out sharply for any fish scraps thrown overboard. They are normally silent birds but when they start bickering about food they make a very sharp, ear piercing quack. Soon the wind lightened so we set the asymmetric spinnaker to keep us moving along. The outline of the land on the horizon began to take more shape and definition as the weather improved and the greyness of dawn faded. We were constantly being inspected by passing albatrosses as they did circuits around Ambler. We were excited to see another new bird species, a Cape Petrel. They have mottled black and white feathers and were lovely to watch as they gracefully swooped over the waves.

As we sailed closer to Bluff Harbour we contacted Bluff Harbour Control to check for shipping movements as Bluff is a busy port. We then called Meri from Bluff Fisherman's Radio who came down to the harbour and welcomed us in and directed us to tie up adjacent to the ferry wharf. She took our lines as we came alongside. It was great to meet this well renowned lady and finally put a face to her voice. Meri's warmth and generosity has since been mirrored in so many helpful and kind people that we have met here in Bluff. At every turn people have been keen to show an interest in what we are doing and their genuine hospitality has been overwhelming.

We spent a day in Invercargill which is a regional town 27km inland from Bluff. There we bought fresh supplies and reconnected with  civilisation.  Bluff is a small, friendly town with many old buildings, small sea food processing plants and is a vibrant regional shipping port. The port includes shipping to and from foreign destinations. Bluff Hill at 265m overlooks the township and has MTB and walking tracks on its scrub covered hillside.

All is well on board. Kathy and Wayne