Exploring Queen Charlotte Sound

Date: 18/06/15 Position: Hitua Bay

We've spent the last week and a half exploring the many bays in Queen Charlotte Sound. Half the time has been spent hiding and sheltering from the strong winds. The other half has been spent MTB riding several sections of the Queen Charlotte Track (QC), checking out the small town of Picton and enjoying the rare days of sunshine.

After leaving Hitua Bay twelve days ago we first visited Waikawa Marina which has berths for 600 boats. We tied up alongside the floating fuel wharf and filled our water tanks, emptied our holding tank and Wayne went to check out the chandlery store. When we tried to fill up with fuel from the NPD bowser we encountered a problem as the NPD fuel company want to secure $1200 from your credit card even when you only need $100 dollars worth of diesel. Not having $1200 available on the card meant we couldn't fill up.

That afternoon we headed to the east arm of Double Cove to wait out the storm and gale force winds that blew for three days. We had the perfect spot, it was extremely protected from the wind and we were able to pick up a combined club mooring at the head of the bay which had a stern line to the shore to keep us snug in this tight little bay. There were many homes in Double Cove all with their own private jetty and boat shed.

We left this little all weather sanctuary last Thursday when conditions improved and thought we would try getting fuel at Picton. We had more success at the fuel wharf at Picton Marina. The fuel company they use is BPS and when you insert your credit card it asks you to enter the maximum amount you want to spend and cuts off if you reach that amount. A much better system. We also took advantage of being able to tie up alongside the town wharf at Picton where boats pay $1 an hour like a parking metre. After looking around the small township of Picton we headed across Queen Charlotte Sound to spend the night in Torea Bay.

Queen Charlotte Sound is alive with all manner of bird life. We have seen huge flocks of black and white fluttering shearwaters skimming along just above the surface. We have heard many but only seen a few little blue penguins. The shearwaters like the little blue penguins spend a lot of time sitting on the water with their bills and heads underwater as though looking out for a passing fish. We have noticed huge groups of shags gathering to feed in amongst the frenzy of bait balls along with diving terns and gannets. Twice we have seen a pod of about a dozen dolphins intent on fishing and several seals lolling about.

Thursday night was a sleepless night as we soon realised that the head of Torea Bay was a giant wind funnel. We left there early Friday morning and went to Peach Bay which is a smaller bay within Torea Bay. In Peach Bay we found slightly more shelter from the blustery winds, but still continued to be buffeted about by strong gusts. On Saturday morning the conditions turned out better than forecasted so we went back to the head of Torea Bay.

We were able to pick up a Marlborough Harbour mooring in the now less windy Torea Bay. From there we rode our bikes up to Torea Saddle where we joined the QC track and painfully climbed the Shamrock Ridge to enjoy the stunning views of both Queen Charlotte Sound to the south and Kenepuru Sound to the north. Along the way cheerful fantails would flutter and chirp around us, as if encouraging us to pedal on even though our lungs felt ready to explode. The zoom down on the switchbacks to Te Mahia Saddle was exhilarating. From the saddle we rode back along the road to Torea Bay making it a very satisfying circuit.

That afternoon we had a glorious sail in the afternoon sunshine from Torea Bay west to Mistletoe Bay in Onahau Bay. We picked up another mooring in here as we have been doing in most places, as it is often too deep to anchor. We are lucky as it is very quiet at this time of year and there are plenty of empty moorings about. The following morning we rode from Mistletoe Bay up to Te Mahia Saddle which we had reached the previous day. From the saddle we rode west along the fore shore road of Kenepuru Sound, up over the ridge and down through farmland to join the highway that runs between Nelson and Picton. After a short stint on the highway we turned off and rode to Anakiwa. Anakiwa is the start of the QC track. It was great MTB riding on the QC track between here and Te Mahia Saddle. The track was nicely undulating and followed the shoreline through mature beech forest. Being a Sunday we met several other walkers and riders on this section of track. It had been another rewarding circuit ride in glorious sunny weather.

On Monday morning we visited Picton once more for some fresh supplies and from there went on to Waikawa Marina where Wayne picked up some pre ordered stainless fittings from the chandlery. Wayne returned with Geoff the rigger who wished to check out our soft sail furling system and have a look at Ambler. Geoff has an aluminum 70s model IOR yacht made in the USA which he is currently doing a major refit on. After leaving Waikawa late Monday afternoon, we sailed to Endeavour Inlet which is in the outer area of Queen Charlotte Sound. The rain tried to play tag with us as we just kept in front of the rain showers and out of their grasp. We reached Bakers Bay, Endeavour Inlet just after dark and tied up alongside Siapako who were on the only mooring in the bay. Susie and Richard kindly invited us on board for dinner and we enjoyed a lovely evening in their company.

Tuesday was a glorious sunny, still day. We spent it drifting around Endeavour Inlet while Wayne serviced the starboard winch. A pod of dolphins, two of which had very distinctive dorsal fins, one having a white tip and the other missing the top half of it swam leisurely past us. Flocks of fluttering shearwaters flew around the bay from one bait ball to the next. In the afternoon we picked up a mooring in Camp Bay, Endeavour Inlet and spent the night in front of a fancy looking resort.

On Wednesday morning we woke to mist flowing down the valley into Camp Bay. We left early and headed up into Big Bay which is still within Endeavour Inlet. We found a spot to anchor in the lee of a small headland and took a stern line ashore. From here we carried our bikes up a scrubby, vine entangled slope to the QC track. We wanted to ride as much of the eastern end of the track as we could before the strong northerly wind developed. We managed to ride to the ridge between Endeavour Inlet and Resolution Bay before we could clearly see white caps forming down below us. Unfortunately we had to turn back as Ambler was only just protected in the lee of the headland, and Endeavour Inlet is known to be a huge wind funnel in strong northerlies. However we thoroughly enjoyed riding the 30km we had achieved and the track had provided a few challenging sections to test our skills. Getting the bikes back down to the dinghy wasn't much easier than getting them up. Once back on board we sailed out of Endeavour Inlet with the growing northerly behind us. After entering the main part of Queen Charlotte Sound we headed upstream for a short distance to Spencer Bay where we picked up a mooring for the night. Spencer Bay is a pretty, deep bay protected from the north by a pine clad hill.

This morning we woke early to wind gusts rattling the rigging. From the deck we could see the sea surface being whipped into the air in the channel nearby from the strong winds working around the headlands. After breakfast we left Spencer Bay and headed out into the blustery, white capped sound. The wind blew hard as we sailed under staysail to Hitua Bay. We are now enjoying our calm surroundings in our protected anchorage.

Tomorrow the wind is forecasted to reach 50 knots from the north and the following couple of days aren't looking too good either so we'll be back to boat jobs for a few days.

All is well on board. Kathy and Wayne

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