Egregious navigation
Our first night out from Bora Bora was thoroughly miserable – an uncomfortable reach under double-reefed main and staysail across very sloppy seas in 18-25 knots of gusty wind. It was too much for our…
Category Archives: Tahiti to Sydney
Surgery at sea
After 3 weeks my coral cut has finally healed and with great relief Melanie has put away the surgical knife. She was sharpening it in anticipation of the through-ankle amputation.She is very relieved. So far…
And yet
…and yet there is always tomorrow. Today we have been romping along at 8.5 knots with a steady, fresh ESE breeze of 20-25 knots, with two headsails and Mr Aries steering superbly. Grey, grey skies,…
Beveridge Reef
Who was Beveridge? I knew one curmudgeonly paediatrician by that name but this South Pacific jewel, our destination, is not named after him. We must research this. The charts show Beveridge Reef as a useless…
Niue
A fast windy downwind sail saw us doubling the southern point of Niue soon after dawn. A long flat silhouette, with jagged cliffs and spectacular blowholes. The world’s 235th largest nation with a population of…
Trade wind sailing
For the last 4,000 miles Tainui has loped along effortlessly in these extraordinarily constant SE winds. With either twin poled headsails or a reefed main and one pole the sailing has been effortless, our bow…
Age does weary…
…and the years do condemn. My crew are truly excellent travelling companions and competent crew. Jochen is thoughtful, considerate, assiduous and very funny. Melanie cooks well in any weather, is quite at ease on deck…
Ah, Tonga
I cannot believe it has been 36 years since I last sailed into Neiafu. I have disappointingly little recollection of the town, although the broad smiles, the laughter of schoolchildren, the warm welcome and the…
Yin and yang
In Vava’u, perfect 4 part harmonies raised the vault of the church and brought tears to my eyes. The congregation, dressed to the nines, waved rattan fans while children played between the pews. I wondered…
Departure and arrival
Departure means the beginning of unknown adventure. It is exciting and always tinged with a modicum of apprehension. Some sailors, Like Tony Gooch, like just being at sea best of all. For me, ocean passages…
Noumea
Captain Cook named New Caledonia. At sunset, motoring through Canal Woodin from Baie du Prony I could see the resemblance to Old Caledonia – rolling hills in soft olive green, grey and lilac. What can…
Last Ocean
We leave this morning on what promises to be Tainui’s last ocean passage for a while. Over the last twelve years she has visited 51 countries. She has served us well and has never complained.…
Contrasts
Yesterday we were becalmed on a flat glassy sea, 100 miles out from the south Queensland coast. Perfect for the 6 hour repair job on the Jabsco salt water pump without which we were engineless.…
For the technically minded
For the technically minded, here is an account of our latest engine issue. Faced with sudden overheating we found that there was no salt water flow. Having checked the inlet and strainer for obstruction, we…
Home at last
Yesterday’s headwinds increased spectacularly after sunset. By 9pm we were hove to under deep reefed main with 40-45 knots of westerly over the deck. Not too uncomfortable, but a big ask for our poor mainsail.…
What next?
What next? 40 years old, and after 12 years at sea, any cruising yacht will require a major refit. Tainui is no exception. In Sydney she will be given a new engine (John Deere, probably),…
The opera isn’t over…
As they say, the opera is not over until the type 2 diabetic soprano sings. Tainui is at present caught up in the Australian Quarantine Service bureaucratic quagmire in Southport. There are 300 species of…
Quarantine and termites
Australian quarantine clearance for yachts is no light-hearted matter. For rather opaque reasons the federal government department (AQIS) deemed Tainui “suspicious”. AQIS was worried about termites aboard, apparently because of the boat’s age, her lengthy…
Denouement
Re denouements, conclusions, epilogues and things, I have found myself reluctant to pen this blog. Posting to this website has become such an ingrained habit that I don’t know how to stop. More importantly, I can’t…
Irish Pete
I have found an excellent mechanic here on the Gold Coast – “Irish Pete”, as he is known. He has taken control of our engine issues for us. He knows boats intimately and he’s fast,…
Back to Russia
We flew to Moscow, ostensibly to spruik our book. For me Russia is becoming less unfamiliar territory now. The more so given my new, rudimentary understanding of Cyrillic. Conquering my fear of the sprawling…
Miss Perfect returns
After a 7 month absence, Little Miss Perfect has returned to Tainui. I had been anxious, and with good reason. Her eagle eye rapidly found the flaws in my strenuous preparation for her arrival – she…
Pottering south
Iluka then Camden Haven river bars were crossed without incident, but we had to wait between sets to enter the latter. In strong onshore winds with ebb tide these river bars can be fearsome, but…
A Bone in her Teeth
With a bone in her teeth Tainui roared down the coast from Camden Haven in 35 knots of wind. Maxine was overjoyed and even the elderly skipper was a bit chuffed. A 9 knot average…
One from Jeff
Last night, at the Royal Australian Naval Sailing Association, I attended friend and sailor John Vallentine’s launch of his new book, “Sailing Through Russia — From the Arctic to the Black Sea”. It is a great read…
Absquatulation
…now there’s a word! In preparation for it, Lucy and I took Miss Perfect down to Tasmania to ogle at the eccentricities of MONA and visit Port Arthur before she (Miss Perfect) fled back to…
St Petersburg
It is good to be back in St Petersburg. Here there is little of the bling and those camel-vulva lip augmentations which are so common in Moscow. People are more open and friendly and the…
Pushkin and Mayakovsky
In St Petersburg we had a rare treat. Over an extended lunch in her kitchen Larisa’s lovely mother recited Pushkin for us. Then her grandson joined in for some Mayakovsky. The video clips are too…
Another high latitude hermit
Our paths first crossed in Svalbard and tonight, after a lengthy internet interview we dined with veteran yachtsman Nikolai Litau. He’s one of those sailors who make (or is it “makes”?) you realise how unimportant your…
The Chekhov Institute
Our Tainui Volga presentation at the Chekhov Institute attracted a full house. We spoke informally, in English, with slides. Giving these lectures it is always a challenge deciding what your audience wants to hear and,…
Lord Tennyson
Back in Sydney After deep and pathetically indulgent exploration of my navel I am not at all happy about casting aside Tainui, my wonderful sailing companion over the last 15 years. What will the sale…
Tainui has been sold!
…I didn’t think I’d ever write that. It feels strange and more than a little unpleasant. But that’s my burden. Such rich memories. As Fitzgerald said, “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back…
There’s no ocean here
Here I am in Moscow, yet again miles from the sea! Last time here it was -26 deg C, but now the days are long, sunny and warm. Fur coats are stashed and bling things strut,…
Septuagenerianism again
Halfway between Noumea and Brisbane last year, my wonderful crew Ian and Jochen brought out a bottle of fine wine to celebrate my 70th birthday in Tainui. 2 months later, when I mentioned this celebration back…