Gargleblaster
Well-known member
This is likely to be hard, as it is a long way from the East Coast of England. But you are looking at a very famous bay named after a very famous ship.
Which East Coast
- Thread starter Gargleblaster
- Start date
This is likely to be hard, as it is a long way from the East Coast of England. But you are looking at a very famous bay named after a very famous ship.
flipper
New member
Bounty Bay, Pitcairn Island?
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
Bother, that was obviously much too easy.
flipper
New member
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
I'll try again without any clues. Which Eastish sort of Coast?
millbeach
New member
Hey, Is that my lost inflatable tender ?
Lost off Mersea in June..
Lost off Mersea in June..
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
While the super collider may have proved that time travel exists, I don't think they would have been experimenting with inflatables - but you never know.
However from my knowledge of currents and prevailing winds and I have studied the pilot charts in detail as I was concerned that it could be your tender, I can report that it would be impossible for a dinghy from Mersea Island to end up in this spot.
Tradewinds
Well-known member
Portobelo nr Panama?
Koeketiene
Well-known member
Was thinking Central America too - but 8 weeks from Panama to Pitcairn?
Doesn't seem likely. Even if it were possible, why would you want to miss the good bits?
So, think he went 'the wrong way' and this might be somewhere in Chile.
Tradewinds
Well-known member
I didn't notice the dates
He'd have to get a real move on
He'd have to get a real move on
Tradewinds
Well-known member
"Eastish Coast" - 55 days to Pitcairn via Panama. 3500 miles from Panama roughly @ 100 day = 35 days passage + stopover in Galapagos (3 -10 days) + Easter Island if going that way.
I think I'll stick with my 1st guess. Panama Caribbean coast if not Portobelo but it looks familiar.
I think I'll stick with my 1st guess. Panama Caribbean coast if not Portobelo but it looks familiar.
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
Very good. 100% correct.
Please ignore the dates on the camera. The battery went flat and it is hard to charge on a boat so the dates were lost a couple of times without me noticing. It's keeping its dates well now I'm back on land.
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
Not a bad guess as to my route, didn't go to the Galapagos though. Actual complete route was.
Left Antigua 27 Apr
Arrived Christobal Port, Panama 6 May
Transited Panama Canal 19/20 May
Left Panama City 22 May
Arrived Hanga Roa, Easter Island 16 June
Left Easter Island 23 June
Couldn't stop at Pitcairn as the sea was too big to anchor. But received a very warm radio welcome.
Arrived Pape'ete, Tahiti 19 July
Left Tahiti 30 July
Arrived Noumea, New Caledonia 24 Aug
Left Noumea 27 Aug
Arrived Coffs Harbour, Australia 4 Sep, then down to the Pittwater just north of Sydney.
A quick trip in terms of not stopping many places or for very long, but I tend to enjoy the sailing more than the visiting. Most of the time ashore was spent awaiting officialdom or for crew changes. The fishing was wonderful, lots of very fresh Bluefin and Yellowfin Tuna, one Baracouta and a Wahoo.
Tradewinds
Well-known member
Excellent.
Glad to see someone doing a different route to the usual.
We had a friend whose middle name was Christian & he thought he was related so we told him that we would go to Pitcairn via Easter Island.
Before committing ourselves I remember listening on the SSB to a bloke who had anchored off Easter Island who couldn't get off his boat (he'd also lost his mizzen on the way down). He was having an awful time at the roadstead.
Well I didn't fancy going all that way just to look at it, so, in the end, we took the easy way out & headed to the Marquesas instead! A decision I don't regret for one moment.
What a fabulous cruising area though - so many choices (& so little time). I'd go back to the Pacific like a shot if I could (I fancy the Gambier Is).
The fishing is excellent if your kit can cope with it (we caught - and lost - a marlin & a swordfish as well as successfully catching various types of tuna & our real favourite, mahi-mahi).
Glad to see someone doing a different route to the usual.
We had a friend whose middle name was Christian & he thought he was related so we told him that we would go to Pitcairn via Easter Island
.Before committing ourselves I remember listening on the SSB to a bloke who had anchored off Easter Island who couldn't get off his boat (he'd also lost his mizzen on the way down). He was having an awful time at the roadstead.
Well I didn't fancy going all that way just to look at it, so, in the end, we took the easy way out & headed to the Marquesas instead! A decision I don't regret for one moment.
What a fabulous cruising area though - so many choices (& so little time). I'd go back to the Pacific like a shot if I could (I fancy the Gambier Is).
The fishing is excellent if your kit can cope with it (we caught - and lost - a marlin & a swordfish as well as successfully catching various types of tuna & our real favourite, mahi-mahi).
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
The anchorage off Hanga Roa [the only town] was not easy in 14-20 metres, and local bylaws state that someone must remain on the boat at all time [it was a bylaw I surreptiously ignored during the day]. I had two days when I couldn't get ashore because I wasn't brave enough to go through the breaking surf in an inflatable. In the middle of that my anchor dragged 100 metres during the night. But fortunatley there was one buoy which had been occupied when I arrived but had become available as a Rival 34 needing repairs had been occupying it but went into the difficult little harbour at Hanga Piko for repairs, so I was able to pick up the buoy and felt a lot more secure.
Hanga Roa is on the West Coast, but there are also anchorages on the East Coast and the North Coast which should cover most of the swell conditions that can occur. However of course near a small island like that in the middle of the ocean you are always going to get some swell. We had SE wind for most of the time we were there so were protected from the worst effects of the swell at Hanga Roa, although the days I had trouble with the surf and the anchor dragging the swell was coming more from the north although the wind was still SE.
The Armada de Chile [Chilean Navy] were excellent and very helpful. Normal amount of bureacracy on checking in but very helpful with moving boats around and brilliant on weather conditions. They also managed to do an out of hours check out for me with no charges but inconvenient to the other bureacrats involved.
The Rapa Nui and the Chileans do not get on and there is a distinct feeling of dislike amongst them as they both make up about half the population of 4000 each. The Rival 34, who had been there 6 months, told me either to fly two courtesy flags or none. As I had none and none were available from the limited number of shops I flew none.
It is definitely a place I don't regret visiting and definitely one worth ticking off on places to see but I don't think I would go out of my way to go back. Pitcairn however is on my list of must sees now having received the warmest radio welcome I have ever received. I was unable to anchor because of a 4 metre swell in the 20 metre depth, anchorage in the lee of the island and was advised it would be at least 3 days before they could get a boat out to me with the conditions existing at the time.
Tradewinds
Well-known member
Thanks for the post - very interesting.
Was the trip this year or 2005?
Was the trip this year or 2005?
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
It was this year, 2011, it's just my camera that likes to live in the past.