Magnificent Marlborough Sounds
Friday 7 February
We made it! Finally in the Marlborough Sounds. A long, but very pleasant cruise north, we came into the Tory Channel about 7.15pm, the tide was against us coming in, but Geoff, having told me to batten down a few hatches, and especially secure all the bottles in the bar, expertly guided us in on a beautiful late summer’s evening. Passed by a couple of Interislander ferries, we anchored in peaceful Eerie Bay and marvelled at the quiet, both engines turned off and no neighbours or noise except for the birdsong!!!
Saturday 8 February
Allelujah! I can hear cicadas for the first time in a long time, and we can now spread the butter which was making a lot of holes in the bread further south! We’ve spruced up the boat, Geoff has cleaned all the windows to ensure we get maximum views from inside as well, and now we are cruising down the Tory Channel and into Queen Charlotte Sound. First stop the Bay of Many Coves, it’s all about moorings, not anchoring here, which means me lying down on the the bow of the boat head squeezed through the lifelines, leaning over with the boat hook in one hand and shouting back instructions to Geoff to where to manoeuvre the boat so it goes over the mooring buoy and as it passes underneath, hopefully hooked up by me! Phew, I managed it, then Geoff came up to hang onto the buoy whilst I got the rope through it and then we could pull it up for me to get the bridle through it and the shackled secured. Bit of a job as they are bloody heavy, it’s much easier for me doing the anchor, the buoys seem to have very thick ropes on them here which makes it difficult to get our bridle through it. Anyway, job done and we celebrated with an aperitif of Aperol for Geoff and a Prosecco for me in the sunshine. Then in search of lunch, it was into the dinghy to the aptly named Bay of Many Coves Hotel for a delightful platter and a chilled white wine to celebrate all our efforts!
My lovely friend Pieter has a house in the Sounds in Lochmara Bay. Frustratingly, she is in Auckland this week and we are here! However, her husband Peter, together with her son Soren and delightful granddaughter Sloane, are in the Sounds, so we cruised in to their Bay and yes….another mooring buoy job to undertake, and boom, I didn’t miss it, that’s two out of two! Well done Ro! Peter came out in the dinghy to meet us, and we had a lovely hour together on Salanjo and enjoyed hearing about the beautiful house he has built here and we arranged to get together to have brunch with him, Soren and Sloane in the morning
Sunday 9 February
They picked us up in their dinghy and we motored across the bay to Lochmara Lodge, a lovely resort with no road access, hopped out and went and ordered ourselves a very tasty breakfast. Geoff was very keen to have a look at Peter’s boat Martinique, a traditional masthead sloop, which was anchored just near us in the Bay, so we stopped off on the way back and had a tour. Geoff, absolutely loved it. Peter has lovingly restored it and it is quite something. Next was a wander around their home with it’s stunning views of the bay. What a place to come and relax, and rejuvenate, after city life!
And then it was back to Salanjo to continue our tour of these delightfully scenic Sounds. Unfortunately, during the time we had been in the bay, the boat had gone around in a few circles along with the rope which was now totally twisted around the mooring buoy. Nothing for it, Geoff had to don his togs, grab a snorkel and flippers and dive in to sort it out. We cruised in and out of a few more bays before finding a lovely, secluded spot in Kumutoto Bay where thankfully I was able to abandon my boat hook and just put an anchor down!!! We had such a lovely evening, tasty dinner sitting outside in the balmy evening – a far cry from a few of those shivering nights in Stewart Island!
Monday 10 February
We’re in Endeavour Inlet today, moored in front of Furneaux Lodge, an iconic historic homestead with its backdrop of native forest and lush rolling lawns. For many generations of successive Maori tribes, Punaruawhiti/Endeavour Inlet was contested for its rich resources – argillite flakes and Pounamu. The Marlborough Antimony Company was also formed here in the 1870’s to mine stibnite and other minerals. Stibnite is a silvery-white metallic element which was smelted on site to make antimony which is used in the manufacture of tin alloy and in coloured glazes and glassware. This mine was New Zealand’s largest antimony producer with a total of 3,700 tonnes and there was a little township for the 100 men and their families who worked here which included the tramway connection to the processing plant, a wharf, a school and a post office.
We definitely need to do a bit of walking and exercise after so much time on the boat, and where better than the Queen Charlotte Track with its gorgeous coastal views and incredible native bush. So after a morning coffee in the Lodge we headed out to the Track. I hasten to add that we didn’t walk all of it, given it’s 73.5 kms long! Along the way we saw the Puhikereru Rimu Tree - in this photo below, it is one of the largest and oldest rimu trees in New Zealand with a canopy span of 30 metres and a diameter of 2.04 metres. It is estimated to be over 1,000 years old – and it is very impressive, certainly too fat to hug!
Back to the boat for a lovely relaxing afternoon, before getting ready for dinner at the Lodge. It was a beautiful, warm night and we chose a table on the balcony of the veranda with a view of the fountain, the bell and the landscaped gardens stretching to the water’s edge, with Salanjo peeking through the trees and delicious cuisine. You’ll then be amazed when I tell you that for an hour, a guy in a noisy quad bike towing a trailer went back and forwards from the wharf in front of us with sacks of building supplies – at least 30 times – yes, you read that correctly! There appears to be no track behind the Lodge – you’d have thought this would have been a given when it was built. Not only that, just near the main Lodge, and in front of many of the villas, are two buildings, the nearest to the water in the whole development, one housing the laundry, storage and Lodge supplies, and the other accommodation for hikers with an attached toilet block, complete with big white figures of a women and a man on each door! What an eyesore! You could see the toilet block from the decks of the lovely villas behind. What are these guys thinking!!!! These two buildings could have been turned into the two best villas in the place and the only two, given their position, on the water’s edge. I couldn’t get over it, how could you spoil such a beautiful spot. The architect has a lot to answer for.
Tuesday 11 February
As I’ve said before….the best laid plans….we were supposed to be heading to Nelson today to meet up with Sharon and Louise who are joining us there tomorrow. Geoff was looking at weather apps last night and it’s a no go. Roaring red on the app which indicates strong winds, so it is a definite no, given we need to go out into Cook Strait; it won’t be happening today! Also, we have to go through French Pass and can only do this at certain times due to the tides, so now we have to wait and see what happens. With a day up our sleeve we can get some jobs done – instead of the original plan of doing a supermarket shop when we arrive in Nelson – we’ll do it today in Picton!
We backtracked a bit and cruised towards Picton, and pulled into Waikawa Marina to refuel. Bloody hell, what a mission, fenders down ropes at the ready, but annoyingly, the Pilot boat was tied up to the diesel pump that had the best access, so we came into the other one, refuelled the port tank and then found that the pump nozzle wouldn’t reach the starboard tank! Grrr!. Nothing for it, but to untie all the ropes and switch them, and all the fenders, to the other side and turn the boat around to fill the starboard tank. The good news is that there was water there too, so we took the opportunity to fill up both water tanks and hose the boat down, all in all it took over an hour, but hey, it’s a grey day and good to get these jobs done. Now we’re cruising into Picton Marina for the supermarket shop! I’ve got my list ready and the shopping bags out!
What a spot to anchor in – bang in the middle of the bay with the Interislander ferries as a backdrop! As soon as that anchor was down, we were off and running. The dinghy was tied to the wharf and I headed straight to Four Square whilst Geoff went off in search of a liquor shop to top up on bar supplies. By the time I filled the trolley and was at the checkout, Geoff came in with his box of goodies, and we were hightailing it with the two trolleys back to the wharf. Geoff took the shopping back to the boat whilst I returned the trolleys. Picton is a pretty little town, but we really didn’t have the time to browse, plus it was 5.15pm and most of the shops had shut. So that was the Picton box ticked off. Now we’re cruising towards Cook Strait to find a sheltered bay to anchor in before our early start to Nelson tomorrow morning.
