Setting off around the world!

[Mark F]

Congratulations to you and Ava!

 

[Tin Kicker]

Congratulations to you two!

 

[p.gazibara]

After a month in the Bay of Islands, I now understand why so many regard this place as sailing Paradise. It has the nooks and crannies of the Puget Sound. Hundreds of small beautiful anchorages and first world groceries. The wind is more on par with the Bay Area... there is always wind!

I picked up a a temp job at Seapower, the marine do it all company in Opua. The team is great, and I fit right in. What I have learned so far - diesels keep technicians working - most vessels do not use proper heat shrink wire terminals - I like kiwi boats.

It looks like we will be sticking around here for a while.

Happy Holidays!

-P

 

[gadangit]

most vessels do not use proper heat shrink wire terminals -

-P

Don't just dangle that one out there... Do tell. And show!
Happy Holidays to you, well done on your adventure so far.
Chris

 

[p.gazibara]

Cinderella finally left the BOI and arrived in Auckland! Ava had to stay and work, so a friend and I sailed her down on the front edge of a system. The flat seas that were forecast turned out not to be the case, but we had a great sail south and got in before the storm.

We are currently in Gulf Harbor and plan to stay around Auckland through the winter.

Very excited to cruise the Hauraki Gulf!

-P

 

[nquigley]

I'm sure you'll get over to the Coromandel peninsula. There are some great bays on the Gulf side to drop the pick.
You can circumnavigate Rangi and Waiheke in a day, and you'll also have fun just sailing around the inner harbor (harbour) - even up past the bridge and the famous old Chelsea Sugar Works. I don't know how far you can get up there now - used to be poorly dredged and shallow at low tide. Of course, Kawau Island and Mansion House are a must.

 

[p.gazibara]

Spent half the day yesterday sailing over to Rakino Island and back. About 10nm from our anchorage in Gulf Harbor, 20nm overall.



A friend who wanted to learn to sail joined us for what was a rather bouncy ride. The last low that passed over left quite a sea state, and as soon as we got out of the shelter from the peninsula, we we plunging along in 2m seas.

Fortunately, it was a reach and in about an hour we were in protected waters again and anchored in West Bay.



We had lunch and chatted away until the rain showers past. Then we hauled anchor and headed back.

It was a close reach on the way back, but we managed to keep the decks dry and the crew from loosing lunch.

High on my project list is an electric windlass...

-p

 

[p.gazibara]

A friend lent us their mooring up one of the rivers here while he goes cruising for a couple months. He has a Spencer 65 schooner, the piles are 80’ apart. Cinderella looks tiny between the piles.

I just accepted a job with Navico, software testing for Lowrance, Simrad, and B&G. Hopefully this means Cinderella will finally get fancy new instruments after we lost all the KVH kit to one wave our first night offshore.

Needless to say, the trip “around the world” has come to a stop for a while. New Zealand is great, and COVID has changed what cruising is like. I’m thinking it will be a good five years before borders open back up fully.



For now, we will be exploring New Zealand’s coast and probably spend most of our time in the Hauraki Gulf.

-p

 

[p.gazibara]

Don't just dangle that one out there... Do tell. And show!
Happy Holidays to you, well done on your adventure so far.
Chris

Lol, I firmly believe that electronics need every bit of anti-corrosion help they can get. Especially in a salt water environment. I always use wire terminations that are of the heat shrink variety. First crimped for a good mechanical connection, then heated so the cover melts over the termination and seals it with glue. They cost more, but you don’t have to do them twice.

-p

 

[Mark F]

Hey Pajo,

Congrats on the job, sounds interesting.

>High on my project list is an electric windlass...

Have you seen the Uma episode with the 48 volt windlass install. A company (I forget which) built a 48 volt windlass for them to test with the intention of producing them for the 48 volt EP crowd.

 

[Mark F]

48 volt windlass stuff starts at about :17.

 

[nquigley]

Hey Pajo,

Congrats on the job, sounds interesting.

>High on my project list is an electric windlass...

Have you seen the Uma episode with the 48 volt windlass install. A company (I forget which) built a 48 volt windlass for them to test with the intention of producing them for the 48 volt EP crowd.

I seem to recall that Uma installed a Maxwell windlass - it's an NZ company. I installed one of their 12V windlasses (RC-8-6) last year. You can also see a recent episode of the 'Adventures of an old Seadog' YT channel (about 3 back in the series?) - Barry also installed a Maxwell windlass (he's actually in NZ now).

 

[p.gazibara]

I seem to recall that Uma installed a Maxwell windlass - it's an NZ company. I installed one of their 12V windlasses (RC-8-6) last year. You can also see a recent episode of the 'Adventures of an old Seadog' YT channel (about 3 back in the series?) - Barry also installed a Maxwell windlass (he's actually in NZ now).

Barry landed in Opua a day or two after us I believe. I *think* he was in Minerva Reef with us waiting for the window to sail North. We crossed paths a few times.

I actually went to Maxwell and had a nice long chat with the head of sales here. I also toured their facility and installed several windlasses on boats when I was working as an electrician. I can say that Maxwell was some of the most quality gear I have seen to do the job. I intend to go that route with a 48v version… if we don’t trade in Cinderella first.

 

[p.gazibara]

It’s been a while since I updated on our trip. We kept Cinderella up the Waitemata where she sat on a mooring near Blue Chip, the only other E35 in NZ I believe. We used Cinderella for a few weekend trips, but being 5nm up river with nearly 3m tides it was rare that the weather/tides lined up. I used the boat more for Navico AP testing than anything, Cinderella is the first electric test vessel for Navico.

I recently found a fully remote role, so out of Auckland we go! The inflation/interest rate hike has made it to NZ and Aucklanders are becoming very stressed. Time to head out!

Last weekend a good friend and I sailed the 67nm trip up to Whangarei from Gulf Harbor marina. We were in Gulf Habor for a few weeks to help a good friend launch his 40’ steel Ganley he just finished. What a cool experience!



I found out on the sail North that my mate was a NZ laser national champion at age 14! Perfect crew for a light wind windward sail. Though compared to his Farr 1020, Cinderella is heavy and slow . The extra weight really worked to our advantage punching through the 2m swell in the Jellico and Tiri channels. His Farr 1020 would have stopped dead in the light wind every time it punched a wave.

I was hoping for a 12ish hour trip, but of course when we rounded points, the wind always seemed to wrap and move onto the nose. We ended up sailing 100.3nm in 22 hrs.



55 tacks later and we saw every condition but wind aft of the beam and rain.







16nm upriver we went! Farthest upriver we have ever gone. And she got quite narrow. We hauled out for insurance survey at Dockland 5 in Whangarei. Great crew, highly recommend if you are ever in the area and in need of yard space.


It has been 3 years since Cinderella was last hauled. Bottom paint stilled looked okay. That is what 5 coats of anti foul gets you. Will probably haul again in 6 months or so to anti-foul again. This was the first travel lift we have used that had scales that could register below 10tons. We learned that Cinderella fully loaded with cruising gear is 8tons. I know she was just north of 5tons before I put an interior in her and added the cruising gear.

Cinderella got a fair few compliments from the surveyor/yard crew. “Looks like a great sea boat” was probably my favorite. They valued her at $48,000NZ. We will see what she fetches when we get ready for that. Hopefully we can find an aspiring young sailor/couple that want to grab the batton from here and carry on the rest of the way around. She would be the first solar powered electric yacht to go around the world I believe, take that Jimmy Cornell and your million dollar Outremer that couldn’t make the azores before calling it! Our crew didn’t demand hot showers every night and we never tried to motor through a high .

We are now in the town basin marina staying aboard until we sort housing/a bigger boat.

-p

 

[nquigley]

Thanks for that great write-up - very homesick now after seeing your plotted course - my youth stomping grounds!

I'm retiring in Nov. Then finishing prepping the boat and plan to head to the Bahamas for ~Apr-Jun. After hurricane season, the plan is to head in the direction of Panama. If I'm confident in myself and the boat that that time, I'll push on for the stretch goal - S. Pac in ~Mar-May 2025 and on (home) to NZ after that. I'll keep you posted.

 

[Mark F]

Thanks for filling us in on the recent adventures. Cinderella looks great. Any thoughts on the type of new boat? Please keep us up to date on your next moves!

 

[p.gazibara]

Thanks for filling us in on the recent adventures. Cinderella looks great. Any thoughts on the type of new boat? Please keep us up to date on your next moves!

We have looked at quite a few boats in our quest. Hard to find something we can trust as much as Cinderella to be honest. We checked out a Liberty 458, a Farr 1220, Whitby 42, 42' Pelin GOP Cat, Shatki Haka 13m, and a Spencer 44/1330. All of the boats we have seen have been driven hard and put away wet, with refit bills far exceeding asking. The Pelin cat even lost steering on the sea trial. But that is what we can afford, so not to shocking.

Ava has fallen in love with center cockpit ketches, I am facinated with the maneuverability under sail a split rig brings. Backing a ketch out of a slip/anchorage, etc. Still need to sort how I'm going to fit enough solar on a ketch to make the thing off grid and electric though.

We really liked the Whitby 42, Ted Brewer really fit a lot of comfort into an affordable 42' hull, and they have nice lines. There is a fin keel version, North Cape 43? for sale in Panama that could be very interesting. I have messaged the broker, but we can't afford the asking right now.

The Spencers (Canadian boats not the kiwi designer) are also high on the list. There in one that need lots of love in Savannah, GA that might just have our name on it, though I would prefer something in sail away condition, with a blown engine waiting for an electric drive refit. Not sure I want to sign up for another full blown refit, but it may not be up to me in the end. We know a cruising family from Tonga that is considering letting go of their Spencer 44 that is currently in Tonga (much closer and ready to sail). They were the family that inspired us to raise a family aboard, so it would be an honor to take over the helm from them.

But I have this other side that likes boats that go fast and are driven easily.... There is a 50' Farr down in Wellington that I keep watching the price slip down on. Don't know how much family participation there would be with a 50' racing mainsail though.

If anyone is aware of a boat that might work for us, feel free to send it over. My new job is fully remote, so we can fly anywhere for the right boat if need be. The family stateside is pulling for the Spencer in Savannah because she would require us to sit tight in the states for a few years before we could get her in a condition to cast off again. I prefer sailing to refitting, so we will see.

A freind here in Whangarei joked about trading down from their Omega 54 (baltic hull finished in Greece for the charter maket). They are looking to sell her, but the refit bill to get her to "for sale" shape is a bit daunting for them. They are moving ashore but still want a boat, and they like the idea of an electric yacht.

We also have a good friend we buddy boated with who just made it to Malaysia, he is on the hunt for a boat for us as well.

Who knows!

Cheers,

-p

 

[Loren Beach]

But I have this other side that likes boats that go fast and are driven easily.

If you were shopping on the West Coast, I would advise looking at a Cascade 42. Robert Smith design, and hull is all roving. Mostly built out in the 70's, and most were owner finished. Many have crossed oceans.
Happy hunting!
Or, you might find an Ericson 46 to restore, like one of our site members did- and then took it cruising.

 

[nquigley]

Any good boats worth looking at on the east coast of Aus? Or languishing up in the Islands?

 

[p.gazibara]

Any good boats worth looking at on the east coast of Aus? Or languishing up in the Islands?

Lots of boat languishing in the islands, lol. Question is, which one is worth the hassle! We have friends up there with feelers out.