ROUGH PASSAGE OF A SCHOONER.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 11876, 25 April 1904, Page 5

ROUGH PASSAGE OF A SCHOONER.

♦ The arrival at Lyttelton yesterday of the schooner Clyde, nineteen days out from Kaipara, marks the end of a voyage which has been a continuous succession of heavy gales, head winds, and high seas. The Clyde left Lyttelton for Kaipara. on the evening of Monday, March .7th. There was a light southerly breeze blowing, which carried the little vessel well clear of the Heath. 1 . The wind then changed round, and blew 01ft of the north-ea*t, afterwards freshening to a moderate gale. The Clyde beat up against the north-easter as far as Stoneyhurst. The weather was dirty and the glass was falling, and it was decided to put back to Lyttelton, the vessel anchoring in the stream on Tuesday evening Another start was made next morning with a fresh westerly wind. By the time the schooner was off Cheviot there was a heavy gale blowing out of the south-east, which took the Clyde aa far as Cape Campbell. For the" next five or six days moderate northerly gales were met with in Cook Strait, and the vessel made no headway at all, eventually dropping anchor in 'Cloudy Bay on Sunday evening, March The following morning a moderate south-east gale blew up, and at nine o'clock at night New Plymouth was abeam. From then on to Friday northerly winds were encountered, which freshened into a heavy gale on the Friday night, lasting till next morning. After this fino weather was encountered, Kaipara bar being crossed about mid-day «>n Sunday, March 20th, after a tedious passage of fourteen days. Tlje return passage to Lyttelton was marked by even worse weather. After loading a full, cargo of timber, a departure was taken from Kaipara harbour on tho morning of Wednesday, April 6th. A light southerly wind was blowing, which increased to a heavy gale with very high *eas from the south-west. For the next fourteen days tho gale blew winh scarcely a lull, and the Clyde was buffeted about off the mouth of the Waikato. A mountain on the coast was in sight for ten days, the vessel sometimes being to the northward, and sometimes to the southward. After this the weather moderated somewhat, and on the morning of Wednesday, April 20th, the Clyde rounded Cape Egmont. Here fresh northerly winds were picked up, which lasted as far as Cape Campbell, which was made last Thursday morning. From thence fine weather, with jight northerly winds, were experienced, which lasted lip till the arrival of the little vessel at Lyttelton yesterday evening, after a rough passage of nineteen days. The voyage to Kaipara and back occupied 47 days, out of which sixteen days were spent, in unloading and loading in harbour, and thirty-one days in tossing about at sea. *