Midnight Escape to Slipper Island

By midnight we'd had enough. The easterly we had seen forecast wasn't coming through and we were experiencing a 2m easterly swell and a building Southwesterly chop, leaving us with nowhere to hide at Mayor Island. So we pulled the anchor up and pointed our bow to the Northeast and Slipper Island.

We were able to make good time with just the big headsail out reaching and a bit of assistance from the engine. As we got closer to the east coast of the Coromandel, the chop eased and we had very pleasant (if cold) conditions. It took about 4 hours to get across to Slipper Island, but once we got in we had a decent anchorage and were able to get some sleep.

The easterly swell prevailed for the next couple of days, so we hid as best we could from it, although it was still quite rolly. Nathan spent most of Wednesday hibernating while Vela got some work done to help pay the bills. A couple of small snapper were caught, so nothing too exciting, but we did have a few cool clouds and a nice sunset to look at!Read more