Ships_Cat Meets Capt'n Cook (and others)

Ships_Cat

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Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

In early April while wife and myself were anchored in Ship Cove, Queen Charlotte Sound, New Zealand the replica of Captain James Cook's Endeavour briefly visited on her way back to her home port of Sydney, Australia as the completion of her circumnavigation (which included, of course, a visit to the UK). For those interested here are some photos of her (she also has an internet site http://www.barkendeavour.com.au).

Arrival in Ship Cove -
Endeavour_1.jpg


We felt genuinely privileged to find her anchoring as our neighbour -
Endeavour_2.jpg


Her departure for Sydney -
Endeavour_3.jpg


Immediately prior to sailing she fired a cannon salute to the great navigator.

For those not aware, Ship Cove was Cook's base for refitting and planning once arrived in this hemisphere for all of his 3 voyages of discovery - his first visit was in Jan, 1770 following his arrival in NZ in October, 1769. He discovered it quite by accident and is the only all weather anchorage in all of the outer Sounds at the top of South Island, even though it can be very windy in there - we have sat anchored in solid 50-65 knot winds in there, for example, and on occasions of just gusty conditions have had the spray whipped up higher than our second spreaders which are about 12m above the sea. Cook records having to put out lines to shore to secure the vessels in heavy winds.

The place reeks of his history and comparing his journals with the place is fascinating.

For example, in the photo of Endeavour departing the island behind is Motuara Island. On that island is where Cook took possession of the Sounds and all the surrounding lands. Immediately behind her (behind the small white boat) the small promontory off Motuara is where on his second voyage he and the astronomers established their observatory as one of Cook's tasks was to compare the determination of longitude by the lunar method and by the newly developed Harrison chronometer. For this he carried Kendall's K1 first copy of Harrison's chronometer plus 3 of Arnold's. K1 and one of Arnold's were carried by Cook on Resolution and the other 2 Arnold's by Furneaux on Cook's companion ship Adventure.

Cook also carried K1 on his third voyage on which William Bligh was master with Cook on Resolution; Bligh carried K2, the successor of K1, on HMS Bounty and K2 was later carried to Pitcairn Island by the mutineers who later sold it on to a whaler.

In the same photo, in the far distance under the high hills is the bay where Adventure lost 10 men to Maoris and members of the remaining crew found their only remains as baskets of cooked human flesh, 2 hands and one head. The men had gone across in a cutter to collect green grass for the livestock on the vessels.

Unfortunately, there is no physical evidence left from any of Cook's activities during the extended times that he was in the Cove.

Another sailing vessel, but modern. We often find ourselves in company with the sailing vessel Spirit of New Zealand, a barquetine, and once again found ourselves so on this trip -

Spirit_1.jpg


She is "dedicated to the youth of New Zealand" but is not specifically for sail training. Rather the emphasis is on promoting adventure for youth using the sea as a medium so there are many shore type expeditions, etc. She followed us through Cook Strait on 23 April to Wellington, possibly with the same intentions as us, to get through before the forecast storm conditions. Several hours after our arrival the wind was ranging 45-65 knots in the marina and next morning the waverider buoy just outside Wellington Harbour was maxing at 11 m seas.

Hope you enjoyed the photos as I always enjoy those of others.

John
Photos hosted by xs.to.
 

boatmike

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Nice photo's John! He has an awful lot to answer for, that Cap'n Cook......
Glad you enjoyed your summer cruise, now you can get on with some work while I start mine!
 

snowleopard

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Nice to see her out and about. I sailed with the original skipper (of the replica that is!). He had taken her around the Pacific but when they got back to Sydney the owners decided it was more profitable to use her for taking trippers round Sydney harbour so he jumped ship.

I saw what I thought was her in Sydney harbour in Feb but on closer inspection it turned out to be a replica of the Bounty. I don't know anything of her history.
 

ShipsWoofy

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Great Shots John and interesting narrative. But I am a little confused.

SWMBO is always telling me that NZ came under British rule in 1840, when Cook signed the papers with the Maoris at the treaty house in Waitangi. The Maoris were bought off with guns and blankets.

If this is the case how old was cook, if he was captain in 1769 he must have been what 30 years old, in 1841 he would have been 101 or so. Please correct my History?
 

Sgeir

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Captain James Cook led a pretty short but eventful life, 1728 - 1779.

Paperback Captain James Cook - a biography, by Richard Hough (pub. Coronet) currently in the shops.

John - great pictures!

{EDIT} Just checked: he died in 1779, not 1777 as I had written earlier.
 

BobPrell

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

When relating with your SWMBO, tell her Cook signed treaty with maoris, as this must be what she requires you to believe. Avoid going into any detail.

When dealing with the rest of the world, you will need something better. I suggest you start with Wikipedia.

About Cook and Ship Cove, good on him, he must have taken nothing but observations and left nothing but footprints.

cheers.
 

tonyran

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Great photos and thanks for sharing with us. Do you have any info on chartering possibilities in NZ? Would you recomend North or South Island as a preference?

English history may relate that Cook left nothing behind from his visit, but from experiences over the following 250 years maybe the Maoris would disagree!
 

Ships_Cat

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Hi Woofy one

Hope you have a good attention span /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif.

My NZ history is not that great but goes something like this. Abel Tasman arrived as the first known European explorer in 1642 but never landed and so took no possessing actions (the reasons for which is a whole other story). Cook arrived as the next in October 1769 and as I said took possession at Ship Cove around Jan Feb 1770 (I haven't checked the exact month) but he did the same at some other locations in NZ as well (I think including in Poverty Bay around the time of first landing but I stand corrected on that).

After Cook there was not much need for administration as the only visitors were itinerant sealers and whalers until around 1815 or so when the first settlers arrived. Again things seemed to go reasonably swimmingly with no headaches for the English Government until in 1837 the New Zealand Association was formed in England. Despite common myth by some here I think it is clear that the British Government at no stage wanted to force control onto NZ (effectively then, only being the Maoris) and any reading of Cook's own words make it clear that he was of the same ilk. For example he imposed no punishment on the Maoris for killing and eating 10 of Adventure's crew as he saw that as part of their own accepted behaviour although, of course, extremely offensive to him.

The Association's objective was to buy land from the Maoris and then to sell that to emigrants to settle in NZ. Already Maoris were selling land at negligible prices simply to get some money and also some of our ex convict neighbours from across the Tasman (not joking here, I do mean the real convicts transported to Oz from England) were arriving and making things a little wild.

For reasons that I don't understand the NZ Association had to have their intentions approved in the House of Commons and they were rejected. So the NZ Association revamped itself as the New Zealand Company and proceeded to do as intended but without the approval of the British Government and formed the first settlement here in Wellington (at Petone on the northern side of the harbour if you recall from looking out from Mt Victoria). Whether this was technically legal or not I do not know but the British Government did regard NZ as "possessed" by the Government - nonetheless the flow of British immigrants, who remained British subjects of course, started.

These things forced the British government to realise it had to take some urgent action by claiming sovereignty and rule so in order to do that Captain Hobson was sent to NZ arriving in January 1840 as Governor to obtain the consent (to be not forcibly obtained) of the Maoris to such rule. At this time, parts of the country not settled by stable settlers, particulalrly the North, were becoming lawless and by 4 February Hobson had drafted the Treaty of Waitangi and approached Henry Williams, a respected missionary to translate it into Maori. This I imagine was quite a cryptographic feat as Maori had no written language and arguments remain til this day as to whether the English version or the Maori ones hold on various matters where they seem to be at odds to each other.

On the same day it was read to a gathering of local Chiefs and also Europeans in the Bay of Islands and I think it was signed by the first chiefs on that day, the first being Hone Heke who gained later fame by chopping down the flagpole as protest. After some flurries of disagreement on the European side it was signed by them on 6 Feb, now known as Waitangi Day. Copies of the Treaty (2 I think) were taken to other parts of the country for signing by other chiefs. Not all signed, of course, but with those that did all copies were returned by around June.

Hobson remained in the Bay of Islands as Governor and British rule was established with the seat of Government being in Auckland. NZ's first parliament of its own, followed quite quickly after in 1854, again in Auckland.

So what T has told you is essentially correct with my wordy elaboration above just trying to cover the ground from the concept of British "possession" to "rule". I think the concept of the Maoris being tricked out of their land with blankets, etc is not of much truth, however. At the time leading up to the Treaty things were pretty lawless insofar as the behaviour of many of both the Maori and the Europeans was concerned in that on the Maori side, for example, Maori's were selling land that their tribe had no ownership of or the selling party had no right to sell on the behalf of the tribe.

In general the only land difficulties in NZ were what are regarded as illegal confiscations by the NZ Government (after 1854), for example, as a consequence of the Maori Wars (1860-mid 60's) and also later as a result of land being improperly taken and held for public works. As T will be aware, some of those difficulties exist to this day and are the subject still of heat on both sides and recompense.

As I say, I am no expert in this, but I think in general terms the above is correct. NZ History 101 now complete, perhaps it should have been done in the "Lounge" /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif.

Regards

John
 

Sgeir

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

[ QUOTE ]
he imposed no punishment on the Maoris for killing and eating 10 of Adventure's crew as he saw that as part of their own accepted behaviour although, of course, extremely offensive to him.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sounds a bit Das Boot's approach to skippering and inspired leadership /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 

Ships_Cat

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Some brief answers to others:

Snowleopard

I have never seen the Endeavour in Sydney either (in fact her visit in Ship Cove was the first time I had seen her) and like you have several times been taken in by finding what I had seen in the distance in Sydney was the Bounty replica.

Tonyran

The main cruising places for charters are in Marlborough Sounds (were the photos were taken) and Bay of Islands up north of Auckland. There are also charters out of Auckland.

If you look at a map (or better still a chart - they can be downloaded free from http://www.hydro.linz.govt.nz/) you will see that both of the Marlborough Sounds are very large expanses of water with many inlets and bays. A problem for anyone booking charters in Marlborough Sounds is that the weather can be very changeable and very windy. We frequently feel sorry for charterers so caught out, but they do still seem to enjoy the place. The charter companies have moorings at strategic locations for the boats and you are required to check in by radio each day as to your location and intentions. As far as I know you can only charter in either of Queen Charlotte Sound or in Pelorous Sound ie charterers are prohibited from proceeding out of either Sound to sail to the other. Queen Charlotte Sound charter companies are based in Picton and Pelorous ones in Havelock. You can also charter from Nelson and the whole of Tasman Bay is normally quite mild wind wise but there are less places of interest - however, Abel Tasman National Park on the western side is a very pretty location. The best months are February-March. If you do come and are interested in marine life I suggest that you cadge a skippered ride out into Cook Strait as it is frequented by a wide variety of seabirds, including albatross's (but which are more common in the winter months) which are truely beautiful birds with 3 m wingspan, narrow wings and long wingtip on wave glides.

About Bay of Islands I can say little but it has much more settled weather and is generally a bit warmer. If interested you may find PMing Rob_Webb worthwhile, a recent English immigrant who cruised his own new boat in Bay of Islands this last summer.

If you would like me to fish out some addresses for Marlborough or would like to know more just PM me.

John
 

ShipsWoofy

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Thank you for that John, interesting. I had forgotten about the flag pole; I read that while at Waitangi. T's step father who is Maori was trying to explain it all to me, but he has had a stroke (very common for modern Maori I believe) which made it very difficult to understand unfortunately.

The more I read and see the more I fancy your part of the world, but up north where the sun shines me thinks!
 

Ships_Cat

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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

Thanks everyone for all the feedback.

One thing that always amazes me about the ships of the era (and before) is how they fitted everyone on board, plus all the animals, stores and gear they carried. And with the likes of Cook who had to also carry various non marine people for long periods of time as well such as naturalists, astronomers and artists as well as the normal ship's company.

John
 
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Re: Ships_Cat Meets Capt\'n Cook (and others)

I think it is a shame that the word Bark in her name is spelt in the American way and not Barque(ntine) as that is what she is.

I'm surprised that you weren't frightened off by the bark, Ship's Cat /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

She visited us in Falmouth while in the UK and secured alongside Port Pendennis Marina pontoon by the Museum. Quite a sight and plenty of visitors. It was great to look down on her from the museum lookout.
 
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