Sunday, February 15, 2009

And then there was one!

We are now alone. There were two groups of scientists on the islands, but these two groups have now gone leaving us all alone.

After a day in waterfall inlet we decided the worst of the storm had passed and it was time to move on. We headed out into a four meter southerly swell and a 30 knot southerly breeze. The combination of the swell, rebounds from the cliffs, wind waves and a good head wind gave us a wild trip to Carnley Harbour. Falling off some of the wave crests left us suspended in the air, and this was in the cockpit the bow looking completely untenable. After and hour and a half and three miles we gained the relative
shelter of Carnley and could enjoy the scenery.

Carnley Harbour is actually a strait separating Auckland from Adam Island. In the upper reaches of the harbour are several fiords and bays. One of the highlights of this whole trip was our current destination. In 1864 the vessel Grafton was driven ashore and wrecked within Carnley Harbour. The five crew survived the wreck and spent a total of 20 months on the island before they were able to make a vessel, some of them sail to New Zealand to raise the alarm and arrange the rescue of the remainder.
In this time they built a small cottage on the island and scavenged to survive. We located the site of the wreck and were able to examine the frames, floors and remaining planking. Nearby was the site o the cottage where we found the fireplace stones still in some shape. There was also remains of the ships planking they used for floor boards (teak) and the spars they used for beams and corner posts. A testament to the quality of the timber used in the ships construction. Also evident was a n area
of the beach cleared of rocks so the boat could be pulled ashore and the rata forest around the hut for some distance was far newer growth than that 500m away, from the cutting of timber for the fire. Having read several accounts of their survival and the tasks they undertook in order to do so it was amazing to be stood looking at the site and seeing the remains.

Long after the wreck of the Grafton the Government decide to install castaway depots and boat sheds. These provided a shipwrecked mariner with various supplies, shelter and a boat. This would at least assist them as they awaited rescue. Many of the depots are still to be seen although no longer maintained. In order that these depots may be found by an unlucky seafarer a series of finger posts was erected. These finger posts were placed at many headlands an d consisted of a high post with a finger
shaped piece of timber fixed to the top pointing in the direction of the depot.

A coast watcher hut was located at Tagua Bay during the second world war. This was still visible although in poor condition. A more interesting was a cave near the beach that had evidence of habitation. This included a planked floor, a stove, discarded items and some barrels. This evidence of human endeavor on the island is quickly reclaimed by the bush. In many cases we landed and found no evidence of former activity.

Today we have moved to Western Harbour. Tori is at present scaling the 250 m tall cliffs to the Albatross colony. We are only able to go off the vessel one at a time. This means the person onboard minds the yacht (you wouldn't want to leave you boat in these places anyway) whilst the other person heads off and reports in on th vhf as they go. The handheld gps allows the 'walker' to report actual positions so should they have a problem we will know where to find them, or talk them over the problem.
We have picked all our landing sites so the dinghy can be pulled clear by one person and the walk is within a few hundred meters of the landing point. This does mean we may have to miss some places if conditions are not right.

The scenery at this southern end of the island is very dramatic. Sheer cliffs, rocky outcrops and wind, lots of wind. We usually collect rainwater for the tanks onboard. This has not proved that feasible here. Whilst there is plenty of rain it is normally too windy to rig our large tarp in which we collect water and pipe it to our tanks. Luckily we have just under one tonne of water so have plenty for a few months yet. Tori has just reported she has got to the top of the cliffs and is now walking
along to southwest cape.

Hope the warm weather continues for all in New Zealand, the weather cools for those in Australia and warms for those in Canada and the UK. Here we have day time highs of 10 to 12 degrees celcius, winds are westerly 25 to 30 knots, and it always rains!

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