Week 3: Land Ho! Cook's Straight

24-Feb

0700

Ship’s Log: Sailing port tack broad reach under 4L and s.r. main, Wind NE F4 seas 6-8’, SOG 6.5 kts, c/o 190 PSC

Ship’s Position: 40°39.5’S 178°36.6’E, 90nm ExS of Cape Turnagain, Voyage: 806 nm

The world is in motion: pots and crashing and pans are clanging in the galley; mugs are clinking in their cabinet; tables are swinging on their gimbals; deep rumblings come from the science hold; and sailors stumble down the hallways. Today is Hayden’s day as assistance steward, and is a glorious day for lovers of food: bacon and coffeecake, tomato soup and grilled cheese, chicken and eggplant parmigiana. Also tackled the laundry mung today, which led me to realize that most of what we do here is spend time cooking and spend time cleaning.

Ice-cream for Charlotte’s birthday! A treat.

25-Feb

2300

Ship’s Log: Hove to (forced drifting) on a port tack under stays’ls and deep reefed main, wind SWxS F6, seas generally S’ly 6-10’, lookout posted aft

Ship’s Position: 42°38.3’S 177°9.7’E, 103nm SExS from Cape Palliser, North Island, Voyage: 991 nm

Weather forcasts predict a strong cold front heading our direction, winds above 35 kts predicted from the SW, with confused  seas from the NE from the high pressure system we have been riding south the last few days. We still press south towards the Chatham Rise to sample the confluence of subpolar and subtropical water masses meeting. At the end of morning watch we hove the ship to and struck the mains’l and went on the bowsprit to furl the jib and jib tops’l (JT). During afternoon class we put a double reef in the mains’l, to reduce its surface area. Woke up at 2230 for mid-watch to find gusty winds and huge swells rocking the ship. Life lines were up and we clung onto the rails to stay on the high side of the ship.

Sarianna Helen and Sarah setting a deep reef in the main

26-Feb

0300

Ship’s Log: HT on port tack under stays’ls and d.r. main, Wind SWxS F6 gusts to F7 (Gale Force), seas 6-8’

1300

Ship’s Log: Hove to under stays’ls and d.r. main, Wind SSW F6, seas SW’ly 8-12’, skies 6/8 Cu, 

Ship’s Position: 42°15.7’S 177°4.7’E, 89nm ESE of Cape Palliser, Voyage: 1016 nm

Gale force winds last night, reaching up to 41 kts! Also just before turn-over we passed 1000 nm on our trip log! Skipped the Sleep of Kings for blueberry pancakes (worth it). A little bruised from running into walls and poles that keep moving. At times like these I covet my jar of dirt. After the wind died a bit on our afternoon watch we prepared to get underway: set the jib and pass the stays’ls! We’re bound for the Chatham Rise and Wellington.

27-Feb

1900

Ship’s Log: Motor-sailing under stays'ls and d.r. main, steering 330 PSC, turning 1150 rpm, making 6.5 kts, Wind NW F4 seas E’ly 1-2’, 1/8 Ci skies

Ship’s Position: 41°51.5’S 174°40.5’E, 19nm ESE of Cape Cambell, Voyage: 1178 nm

After a sleepy dawn watch I crashed in my bunk in all my clothes. Awoke to sunny weather on deck, the wind has died a bit and seals were spotted off to port! Spotted land today, which we at first thought were clouds before realizing they were 8000’ mountains. Shipping traffic on the horizon as we approach Wellington. I suppose this is a good time to explain to non-New Zealanders the Tim-Tam-Slam: our favorite use of the airy and chocalaty Australian Tim-Tam cookie is to bite the two opposing corners off the rectangle and suck coffee through it, then eat it while it is drenched and all the chocolate inside has melted. We’ve been trying to see of the Twix-Fix will work back in the States.

Hayden on lookout on our approach to the South Island

28-Feb

0700

Ship’s Log: Hove to on a stbd tack under stays’ls, wind NNW F4, seas WNW 3’, skies 0/8

0702: Pass stays’ls, underway on a stbd tack, Main Engine online, course ordered 275 PSC, pitch to motoring, 0707: ME in gear, 1000 rpm ahead

Ship’s Position: 41°29.0’S 174°19.9’E, 9.5nm from White Bluffs, Voyage 1242 nm

Incliment weather in Cook’s Straight has forced us into port a day early. Today we are on the approach to an anchorage on the South Island, tucked away in the fjords of Queen Charlotte Sound. We entered channels of green forested hills and the bluegreen waters of Ngakuta Bay, Port Underwood. It was the perfect chance to have another Field Day at anchor, keeping Seamans sparkling and her woodwork shining. Harbor also meant the chance for a swim call, and the colder southern waters weren’t so bad when you jumped from the foredeck and bowsprit. Tonight we brought out the guitar and harmonica and sang in the cool summer evening. 

The pool is open, and some relaxing on deck

1-March

1300

Ship’s Log: Motoring at 1200rpm, c/o 035 PSC, Winds NNE F3, seas 2’, clouds 2/8

Ship’s Position: 41°25.3’S 174°46.4’E, 1.75nm SWxW of Pencarrow Head, Voyage: 1303 nm

Woken from my Kingly Sleep to shouts of dolphin sightings! We all leaned over the rail to see them swimming and jumping in front of our bow. The South Island is behind is, for now, as Wellington becomes visible in the clouds across Cooks Straight. Morning class was disrupted by 11 dolphins swimming in formation, seeming to guide us into the harbor. All hands were mustered to General Quarters at 1440 upon our entrance of the harbor. We passed what looked like a Southern California landscape to see houses climbing the hills. I relieved Emily at the helm as we bustled around, getting dock lines and fenders ready. We soon realized that we were to dock right in the heart of the city waterfront. We were stood down at 1600, free to go ashore at last!

Dolphins and dolphin watchers, Cooks Straight

2-March

0000

Ship’s Log: Ship secure port side to Queens Wharf in position “2”. Dock watch set as per standing and night orders, Wind NNE F2

Ship’s Position: 41°17.1’S 174°46.8’E, Voyage 1312 nm

Today was our deck practical day, to see if we had in fact ‘learned the ropes’. We were tested on proper line handling, safety procedures, and sailing maneuvers. After class rented a pair of rollerblades and went on an adventure across  the Wellington waterfront. It was a blustery day (hence: Windy Wellington) but the sun was shining and the breeze was cool off the ocean. I ended up finding my fellow shipmates on foot in the city, then headed back to our floating home. Took the chance to go aloft today and hang out on the forem’st, seeing the city from above. Tonight the deck was full of music as we enjoyed the chance to get a normal sleep schedule. 

Mama Seamans at the center of everything, Wellington, and shipmates studying on deck

A day in the life...

What people think I do...What I actually do...

Life at sea was a challenging schedule to adjust to, but it came with many rewards and a level of simplicity and order that landlubbing lacks. I'll describe what it was like to go through the typical day aboard the Robert C. Seamans, and the crazy things that became normal for me! 

On Deck
Life aboard the RCS runs on a 24-hour clock: at any given point someone is sleeping (except for all-hands meetings), while others are standing watch over the ship and her crew. Military time was engrained in our heads to avoid confusion. We students were divided into 3 groups of 8, to be accompanied by a mate and assistant scientist: all together making up a watch. A typical day could run like this:

• 0300 - A watch relieves C watch
• 0700 - B watch relieves A watch
• 1300 - C watch relieves B watch
• 1430 - All-hands class, crew stands watch
• 1900 - A watch relieves C watch
• 2300 - B watch relieves A watch
• 0300 - C watch relieves B watch

And so on...

The fabulous C-watch

This was our schedule for the entire duration of the sailing voyage, and the only exception to this was during port-stops when students would stand dock, or anchor, watch in groups of two for an hour, between the hours of 2300 (11pm) and 0700. In some ways it made each day feel extra long and each week extremely blurred, but it also ensured we had plenty of Pacific sunrises, dark nights under the milky way, and hopefully sleep. The watch schedule ensured that each day we worked between 7 and 10 of any given 24 hours, and the remaining pigeon holes of time were spent sleeping, writing papers, sitting on deck, and socializing.

In the Galley

Helen, Conor, David, and Kyle helping in the galley

Of course, the one thing that kept everything running smoothly was coffee. No, food, I meant food, but yes also 24-hour coffee. In comes Lauren, our fantastic cook who showered us with birthday deserts and made our lives joyous and stuffed. Because the RCS housed 40 hungry souls, each meal was eaten in two seatings, with the oncoming watch and others (professors and crew) would eat first (0620, 1220, or 1820) and the relieved and lazy (inactive) watches would eat second (0700, 1300, 1900).

Helm-star Hayden and Lauren, the cook

In between these always fantastic meals would be morning, afternoon, and midnight snack, ensuring we would never ever go hungry! Everyone got the chance to act as assistant steward for the day, helping Lauren perform the magic of the galley. It's easy to forget that all these meals were cooked while the ship rocks back and forth a few times per minute, sometimes up to 20 degrees each way. It's magic I say.

Clean, clean, clean, all day long
Arguably, cleaning was one of the most time-consuming tasks aboard the Seamans. It's an all day, every day, affair to keep her shipshape, taking participation from everybody. When at sea, it seems the dirt won't relent, which means that with no land there's only one place all that mung (dirt) is coming from...ew. Every beautiful morning after breakfast the exhausted dawn-watchers engage in the holy ritual of Dawn Cleanup (DC). Here we brandish our foxtails and dustpans, sponges and squeegees, and scrub every last inch of the sole (floor) from fore to aft. We squeegee the vile black dirt water from the sole, clean the heads (toilets), showers, and empty all the trash into the on-deck dumpster. And now it's only 8am! Having vanquished the mung, these warriors go off to sleep until class at 14:30.

Sienna very excited about cleaning

The next round of cleaning is happening on deck, with a sunrise deck wash, scrubbing the Seaman's beautiful wooden deck, rails, and deck-boxes. Special missions may include scrubbing of the doghouse (chart house) or lab rooftop. At any time of day, a valiant watcher is the designated dish washer, juggling 40 persons' plates, bowls and cups, all while the ship is rocking back and forth. They also have to tackle the pots and pans for cooking all that food! The galley gets special treatment, and every night after dinner a task-force of watchers cleans and sanitizes every surface, scrubs the griddle until it shines, takes the floor mats on deck to dry, and cleans the floor.

Laundry wherever it can fit

We say that a good sole cleaning is good for the soul. Every week or so though, the mung armies amass their forces in an epic battle with the residents of the RCS known as Field Day. I'm truly not exaggerating when I say that this event involves the cleaning of every square inch aboard our beautiful home. Floor, wall, and ceiling; cracks and crevices; even under the coffee machine... After our sermon on the mung eradicated from our holy abode, we often undertake a personal cleaning, involving shampoo and jumping into the ocean. Field Day always took place in port or at anchor, so the rare swim call was always welcome.

Free time!

Besides class at 14:30, watches, and trying to get a broken 6-7 hours of sleep over the day, the rest of the time was ours! Successful time management meant you got work done on papers and research, leaving time for socializing! Music was a favorite, with guitar, ukulele, and voice. You could find other shipmates basking in the sun, trying to exercise, or going aloft. There was never an absence of sea birds to watch swooping by, and the dolphins frequently disrupted class to bring us on deck.  During port stops, there was much do in terms of collecting data and interviews for our research, but so much more to do for activities!

That about sums up the day-to-day things going on aboard the Seamans. Every day brought new things, and over the trip we became super at all our tasks. Read on!

Week 2: Bay of Islands, bound for Wellington

17-Feb

0000

Ship’s Log: All secure at anchor in Tahpuke Bay, Russel, Bay of Islands, with 1.5 shot of chain to the port hook in 7m of water, 0.18nm from shore. Anchor watch set as per standing and night orders.

Ship’s Position: 35°16.4’S 174°7.1’E, Voyage: 187 nm

Anchor watch set tonight, only an hour per person, meaning more great sleep. Boarded small boats at 7:00 to catch the ferry from Russel to Pahia. Russel reminded my distinctly of a tropical Martha’s Vineyard. Traveled to the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, where New Zealand was officially founded, and saw a waka (canoe) almost as long as our ship! After discussing modern sentiments about the Treaty, we saw a performance of the Maori haka (war dance) and some contemporary song. Returned to Russel and hung out around the waterfront as sailors are wont to do.

Mama Seamans and all her glory and a modern built Maori waka

18-Feb

1900

Ship’s Log: C watch relieves B watch motorsailing on a port tack under stays’ls and shallow reefed main, steering 115 PSC, turning 1250 rpm, making 7.3 kts (woo!), Wind NExN F3, seas NExN 3-5;, Skies 1/8 Ac/Cu

Ship’s Position: 35°24.3’S 174°53.9’E, 8nm ExN of Poor Knights Islands, Voyage: 231 nm

Let Field Day begin! Today we embark on our battle against the evil mung with sponges and squeegees in hand. More than our daily Dawn Cleanup (the responsibility of that day’s morning watch), Field Day is the chance to clean every crevice; every vertical horizontal diagonal and upside down surface; every inch, of our home, to ward off the accumulation of a week’s dirt and grime. This was also the chance to bring out our music for the first time this trip and blast it over stereos. After a successful battle and a quick swim call, we hauled anchor and headed out to sea. C watch took the deck at 19:00, with clear skies: the milky way so clear above us, with Orion and the Southern Cross guiding our way to Wellington.

Swim call and our busy sailors motoring out of Bay of Islands

19-Feb

2300

Ship’s Log: Sailing on a broad reach, port tack, under four lowers w/a shallow reefed (s.r.), prevented main, steering 110 PSC, making 4.2 kts, wind NxW F4, seas ENE 2-4’. Nav lights illuminated.

Ship’s Position: 36°44.6’S 176°43.2’E, 32nm ENE of the Alderman Islands, Voyage: 359 nm

Realizing how much time we spend each day just in the process of cleaning. Deck wash today: I discovered how much dirt is hiding even in the railings. Sightings of albatross today, the wind was low today, but picked up to a fine sailing breeze by nightfall. Tonight we found the celestial G with our mate Sara, and constellations like Tauros, Leo, and Gemini. The neuston tow over the side was glowing with bioluminescence as we hauled it aboard. 

An introduction to the daily watch schedule: Dawn Watch (0300-0700), Morning Watch (0700-1300), Afternoon Watch (1300-1900), Evening Watch (1900-2300), Mid Watch (2300-0300). 3 watch groups rotate through the five watches, keeping the schedule fresh.

Sunrise over the Pacific

20-Feb

1300

Ship’s Log: Sailing on a close reach, stbd tack under 4 lowers w/a s.r. main and jib tops’l. Steering 160 PSC making 4.0 kts, wind W’ly

Ship’s Position: 37°12.5’S 177°6.9’E, 19nm N of White Island, Bay of Plenty, Voyage: 411 nm

Learned today that we are taking a detour on our journey around the North Island to Whakaari (White Island), New Zealand’s most active volcano! We saw steam spewing from the Island from afar, and it grew on the horizon over the day. Spent the afternoon in engineering learning about the support systems aboard the ship, like the main engine, watermakers, generators, and refrigeration systems. Watched the sun set behind White Island, giving a great view into the crater.

White Island over the stbd quarter and sunset behind the steam cloud

21-Feb

1900

Ship’s Log: Sailing under all fore & aft sails w/a s.r. main, wind N’ly F3, seas NxE 3-5’, steering 040 PSC, making 2.3 kts

Ship’s Position: 36°37.9’S 178°45.8’E, 65nm N of East Cape, Voyage: 540 nm

Dawn Watch day: means Dawn Cleanup and Galley Cleanup tonight. Went aloft today! Climbing the ratlines and shrouds up the form’st. Just training today, so we scurried down again. Evening watch tonight, struck the fisherman stays’l and jib tops’l and double gybed for science. A late-night hydrocast attracted squid to our deck lights. Figured out how to get underway by ourselves! Steering by Hadar and Rigel Cantares: the pointers to the Southern Cross. 

An introduction to the daily cleaning schedule: Dawn watch, Dawn Cleanup of ship, incl. soles (floors), heads, showers; Morning watch, deck scrub; Evening watch, Galley Cleanup

Water over the portholes and labbies hard at work

22-Feb

2300

Ship’s Log: Sailing on a port tack under four lowers (4L) and a shallow reefed, prevented main, steering 175 PSC, making 6.4 kts, Wind NExE F4 ousting F5, seas NE’ly 4-6’, Skies 2/8 Cu

Ship’s Position: 37°59.1’S 179°33.6’E, 51 nm ESE of East Cape, Voyage: 630 nm

23-Feb

1300

Ship’s Log: Sailing on a broad reach, port tack under 4L and s.r. main, Steering 175 PSC, making 7.5 kts, Wind ExN F5, seas E’ly 5-7’

Ship’s Position: 39°7.3’S 179°19.7’E, 62nm E of Table Cape, Mahia Peninsula, Voyage: 702 nm

I enjoyed my Sleep of Kings (the luxurious time to sleep after mid watch until afternoon class). Making almost 8 kts under sail! Got to dump the food trash today: a truly enlightening experience. People working out or doing crosswords for entertainment.

A key to all this SEA lingo (weather, sailing, and more!)

As you've been reading about all my adventures at sea thus far, I'm sure you've come across a whole lot of lingo that we the students had to pick up fairly quickly to adjust to life aboard the Robert C. Seamans. The following is a collection of classroom teachings, sail-science, lingo, and other terms used in my blog posts that became common to us on our floating home.

Let's take a look at the log entry from February 15th, when C watch took the deck at 3am.
0300
Sailing on a broad reach, starboard tack under the four lowers (main, main staysail, fore staysail, and jib) with a shallow reefed main, steering 280° Per Ship’s Compass, making 2 kts (nm/hr) Speed Over Ground. Wind E’ly F3, seas ExN 3-5’, skies 1/8 St.

Weather

Part of our responsibilities when on watch (see day-to-day life here) were to constantly monitor and record the ship's surroundings. This was for scientific purposes, as well as in the interests of our own safety. A dropping barometer might speak of bad weather on the way. At the beginnings of my blog posts I often include a bit about the weather that day, in the standard format that we record it in. Topics include the wind, with direction and force. The log from Feb 15 described the weather: "Wind E’ly F3, seas ExN 3-5’, skies 1/8 St". The Beaufort Scale is used as a rough indicator of wind force, and you can see the exact diagram we used to evaluate it here. By that log reading, the winds were coming from the East at a Beaufort Force 3, or about 7-10 knots, which is a rough equivalent to mph. 

Second most important to the wind however were the seas. Often these two were correlated, and aboard the Seamans you could feel both wherever you were. While the seas were often driven from the same direction as the wind, exceptions existed, and in our weather log we recorded the sea height. 2-foot swells were inconsequential, while 10-12 footers were sure to have us clinging to the rail. 

Another common entry into our weather log was the clouds, described by 'eighths' of the sky filled. The chart we used to evaluate this is to the left. Obviously, an entry of 0/8 meant clear skies and sunny! The most common clouds were Cu or cumulus, but observing the clouds were important to forecasting oncoming weather, like a cold front or a squall. In the log, "skies 1/8 St" meant a clear stary night with patches of high stratus clouds.

Sailing

Unless otherwise noted, sailing is the way we got anywhere on this journey! One of the first pieces of business to tackle as students was learning the science of the sail plan, balancing sail area fore and aft, as well as top to bottom. The beginning of each blog post might begin with a description of the day's sail plan (which sails were up), our tack (the wind direction relative to the ship), and any other special notes about the sails. The most common sail plan was under the four lowers, as described in that Feb 15 log, which consists of the mainsail, the main staysail, the forestaysail, and the jib. 


This keeps the sail area balanced across the ship fore and aft, and keeps it lower on the masts, which helps prevent luffing of sails up above. In that log, winds were light (7-10 knots), and this sail plan allowed us to most effectively use that wind to our advantage. In the tack diagram, the 'dead area' is the zone where sailing too close to the wind would stop movement. The Seamans can sail about 60-70 degrees toward the wind, which would be called close hauled. From the Feb 15 log, "Sailing on a broad reach, starboard tack" would look something like 8 o'clock on that diagram, with the sails sheeted to port and the wind coming over the quarterdeck to starboard.

Navigation

To make progress on our journey we used a variety of tools to get us from one place to another. Besides modern GPS equipment, we were also learned in the way of traditional maritime navigation: the use of a compass, dead reckoning, and chart plotting. Many logs describe the course ordered, which is passed down by the captain (or a mate) to steer 'per the ship's compass', which accounts for variation in Earth's magnetic field affecting our ship. This number would be from the 360 degrees of the compass rose, and in conversation 280° would be read as two-eight-zero, to avoid confusion. Based on our speed over ground (SOG) and direction, we could plot vectors from our last known position and 'reckon' our current location on the chart (map). Of course, GPS units were able to tell us SOG and a relatively accurate position, however when we were nearest land it was more accurate to use radar and visual bearings (sight-lines) to triangulate our position.

Abbreviations and Other noteworthy terms

Often the log describes the shallow reefed main (mains'l), which simply means that more sail area is exposed. When the main is deep reefed, the food (lower portion) of the sail is furled and lashed down, reducing sail area. The main may also be 'prevented', meaning a line from the end of the boom at the bottom of the sail is secured to a cleat on the quarterdeck preventing it from swinging back and forth.

• stbd=starboard (right)    port=(left)
• nm=nautical miles         kts=knots=nm/hour
• PSC=per ship's compass     c/o=course ordered
• s.r.=shallow reefed [mains'l]
• SOG=speed over ground

Life at sea

• kitchen=galley    floor=sole    ceiling=overhead    wheel=helm    toilet=head
• door=hatch          dirt=mung   hook=anchor           cleaning=mandatory
• your shipmates=your best friends

Week 1: Auckland to Bay of Islands

10-Feb

1300
Ship's Log: Alongside Princes Wharf, Auckland, New Zealand
Ship’s Position: 36°50.5’S 174°45.8’E

Following our unplanned layover in San Francisco, my fellow shipmates and I received a warm welcome aboard the Robert C. Seamans at Princes Wharf. With time to stash our gear, our NZ experience began with a walking tour of the ever-changing Auckland waterfront, from the cruise ship terminal which we were presently alongside, to the Wynyard Quarter. Auckland's harbors are a balance between tourism, modern development, and a thriving industrial presence with container ships. Today was our introduction to the changeability of New Zealand’s weather, with downpour immediately followed by sunshine. 

A catchy phrase and Queen Elizabeth Park, Auckland, with the sky tower.

11-Feb

0700

Ship's Log: Alongside Princes Wharf, portside to, 37 POB, ship all secure. 

Ship’s Position: 36°50.5’S 174°45.8’E

Mission Bay and Rangitoto Island

Our exploration of the Auckland region continued with a bus tour, guided by Joe Fagan of the University of Auckland. Stops included Mt Eden (a volcanic cinder cone), Mission Bay and a view of Rangitoto volcano, the Cascade Kauri Park, and Bethels beach with its black volcanic sands and fantastic view of the Tasman Sea. More about Kauri trees later on. The Auckland Region, with a population of about 1.5 million, constitutes 33% of NZ's 4.5 million people. After a long day, our exhausted shipmates slept the whole bus ride back.

Shipmates soaking in the view from the Mt Eden summit, 

view of Auckland, Rangitoto in the far right 

Bethels Beach on the West Coast of Auckland

12-Feb

1552

Ship's Log: Let go port hook in 9m of water; veer to two shots. All secure. Anchor watch set, West side of Motuihe Island

Ship’s Position: 36°48.7’S 174°55.9’E, Voyage: 3.4 nautical miles

After a morning of emergency drills and preparation, we were finally ready to set sail! (Well, motor). All hands to General Quarters to bring the Seamans off her dock and motor to Waihaorangatahi Bay, just outside of the city. I was designated helmsman for this first sea journey, and despite the enormous stress of that first job, my shipmates commended me for it. In class today fellow geo-nerd Charlotte and I gave a synopsis of the regional geology, and watched the sun set behind the city and Rangitoto Island. In the local language of Maori, Rangitoto loosely translates to 'blood-filled skies', alluding to its volcanic eruption from the sea around 1400 AD. 

Departing Auckland and a great sunset

13-Feb

0700

Ship's Log: C watch takes the deck at anchor, prepare to get underway, bound for Great Barrier Island. Wind South, Beaufort Force 2, Seas Calm, Sky 8/8ths Cumulus

Ship’s Position: 36°46.5’S 174°57.4’E, Voyage: 42.1 nm

I took the helm again today to leave our anchorage and begin our journey north. We saw gannets and shearwaters bobby in the waves and circling off to starboard, and off in the distance the spouts of whales! Sea sickness began to set in with the constant motion of the deck, but I was later awoken from my afternoon nap to the sound of our anchor chain clanking (yes, it’s right by my bunk). Captain Eliot opened the pool after class for a swim (and shower). 

The helm in the afternoon sun and drying after our swim.

14-Feb

1300

Ship's Log: C watch takes the watch at anchor in Kaiarara Bay, Great Barrier Island. Preparing to get underway, Bound for Russel, Bay of Islands. Winds Easterly F3, Seas ENE 1’. Skies 6/8 Ci, Two shots of chain to the port hook. 

Ship’s Position: 36°11.0’S 175°21.3’E, Voyage: 68.3 nm

Before making sail for the first port stop in Russel, we made an excursion ashore Great Barrier Island in the small boats. We explored the rocky shore creatures of North Island and hiked inland several km through fern, palm, and kauri forest. The kauri tree is the largest in NZ by height (up to 150ft!) and was prized by the Maori for its timber to build huge canoes. Unfortunately, the kauri are threatened by a deadly fungus which attacks them and causes kauri die-back, which we saw on our tour of Auckland.
Crossing a swing bridge over a gravelly river bed we sang Hakuna Matata, a testament to our love of singing and sea shanties. Shortly after lunch we hauled anchor and practiced some sailing maneuvers (gybe and tack) in more open water, as demonstrated by our fantastic crew. Clearly the pilot whales thought the whole thing was interested, since they followed us back out to sea. Today was our first experience seeing the Seamans pulling at her sails, with no motor. Soon enough we would be working to memorize the 70 or so lines that raise, lower, sheet, and adjust her sails.

Robert C. Seamans anchored in Kaiarara Bay and a pod of pilot whales

15-Feb

0300

Ship's Log: C watch relieves B watch, Sailing on a broad reach, starboard tack under the four lowers (main, main staysail, fore staysail, and jib) with a shallow reefed main, steering 280° Per Ship’s Compass, making 2 kts (nm/hr) Speed Over Ground. Wind E’ly F3, seas ExN 3-5’, skies 1/8 St. 
See my post on sailing lingo!

Ship’s Position: 35°30.9’S 175°4.8’E, 17 nm E of Poor Knight Islands, Voyage 133 nm

Woken at 2:30 for dawn watch, this morning I worked in the lab counting euphausids (krill) and differentiating them from shrimp. The stars are so unfamiliar, but I’m getting acquainted to new constellations like the Southern Cross. Did some sail handling and set the topsail, only to strike it after spotting a squall ahead. Our mate Sarah described how we could see the 'vertical development' of the cloud, indicating that stormy weather could follow it. After a sunrise over the ocean I retreated to my bunk until class at 14:30. At 17:00 we passed “the hole in the rock”, or Motukokako Island. Struck the four lowers as we prepared to anchor overnight in Oke Bay in the Bay of Islands.

Hole in the rock and our nautical charts navigating along the coast.

16-Feb

1300

Ship’s Log: A watch relieves C watch sailing port tack under jib, stays’ls, and tops’l, course steered 190 PSC, Wind ENE F4 on approach to Russel and anchorage

Ship’s Position: 35°13.0’S 174°7.6’E, Bay of Islands, Voyage: 180 nm

I thoroughly enjoyed a deep sleep at anchor. C watch again in charge of getting the ship underway from our anchorage this morning. Sailed into deeper water to conduct some science and drop a hydrocast. This would be the first of many scientific stations we would conduct over the cruise, which usually consisted of a hydrocast collecting conductivity, temperature, and depth (CTD) data through the water column, along with surface samples and plankton tows.
Later on we set the tops’l as we made downwind towards Russel. Relieved by A watch, and woken by the anchor chain at 14:30 when we dropped hook in Russel. 

Dew on our compass in the morning and some science offshore!

Cruise Track So Far