VOYAGE IN A SURF CANOE

Evening Star, Issue 22026, 11 May 1935, Page 10

VOYAGE IN A SURF CANOE

THE EASTER CRUISE OF THE AVALON [Written for the ‘Evening Star.’] f For many months the more adventurous spirits had discussed ocean travelling m the sqrf canoe. _ No one seemed to raise any objection on the score of danger or risk, and all that was wanting was a suitable opportunity, and away we would go. The craft is a splendid piece of workmanship, designed primarily for work in a heavy surf and handled by a crew which understands after a couple of years of sometimes very damp experience exactly how it rides even the heaviest and choppiest sea. It was modelled on the surf boats of Australia and the South Pacific, pointed fore and aft and with stem and stern lifted a good four inches rides over the steepest roller. There are bulkheads at each end sufficiently large to enable a crew of four to remain in control and paddle successfully, even though the water reaches the gunwales. It is propelled by paddles, and at the time of the Easter adventure a saip was added to thepporerw r er unit—a square sail slung from a mast of Oregon pine, and bearing on it a large A in blue—for “ Avalon.” Just before Easter the trip was proposed—from Dunedin Harbour to Purakanui. Arrangements were hastily made, provisions sent on to the crib, wardrobes scoured for the, oldest of old clothing, for no one doubfed that at some part of the journey water in un known quantities would be shipped. At 8 o’clock on Good Friday w r e lifted our craft into the water, packed in what small amount of luggage was .being taken, stepped the mast and sail, and set out. The luggage—a very important item, as we found later—consisted of a rucksack containing repair outfit for the canvas, a few dry clothes of the skip per’s, and a kit bag, regulation type, guaranteed waterproof, and full of all sorts of heavy things, fishing lines,, clothes, and dry rations for the forward hands. This for the first part of the journey w r as placed w r ell to the front. - ■ With tide and wind behind us we made excellent progress, reaching Quarantine Island after an hour’s exhilarating running. The bright spot was provided by the sail; it elected to como loose off Ravensbourne just as a strong gust wms fairly lifting the boat out of the water. The top flapped out

in front of the boat, hurling-the 1)0001 under the keel. One of the forward hands here distinguished himself by climbing the mast to recover the shroud, - then crawling out over the bow for the boom. This, in a choppy sea, a fresh breeze, ' and a canvas canoe, required : a certain amount of nerve. However, all was made snug again! the sail was hoisted, and without further interruption we reached the Spit in Three hours, of which the last entailed the hardest work, as the southerly which had blown us down the failed completely and left us to battle our way against a turning tide round to the mole. After a luncheon in the sandhills we carried the boat across the base of the mole, repacked, and set off again with fitful gusts puffing round the cliff faces above the end of Spit beach and Titri beach. Here'. it was that we nearly had a ducking. The skipper, whose job was to attend to the sail, steer, and—most important—to preserve the balance by leaning one way or the other, and occasionally to do a little paddling if he were cold, elected to pack the kit bag in beside him at the hack of the boat. When we were well out —a quarter of a mile—he suddenly discovered that if the boat heeled over on his side he—supreme balance preserver—was so jammed ' in that he was unable to throw the boat on to an even keel, which was, to say the least of it, disquieting. After being caught unawares by two gusts and shipping a bucket or two of water with each, standing on beam, ends, losing paddles, and generally causing pandemonium on board, during which the air about the fo’c’stle took on a distinct bluish tinge, we decided to land and repack the kit bag well to the front. In we went to Titri Beach, and managed a very flukey landing in front of a row of big rollers, any or which would have caused us a moment of trouble. We were lucky getting out again, just managing to creep over several greenbacks just as they were curling. From there round to Long Beach was one long plug against the wind, with choppy seas breaking over the weather side all the way. It was back-breaking work, and most tantalising to watch the slow progress of rock and cliff face. What a glorious spell we had at Loug Beach! The sun came out for us, and feeling very much the castaways of fiction, wo stripped. off our soaking clothing and relaxed in a warm and sheltered nook. The last stage of the journey was good going. We beat along Long Beach in a beam wind at a good four knots, and apart from a little excitement in landing at Cave Beach and a steady plug against a' stiff southerly into the Purakanui Estuary, the remainder of the journey was uneventful. Who shall say liow we enjoyed a fire and a hot cup of tea at a neighbouring crib, or how cosy blankets were that night? The return journey on Easter Monday provided plenty of thrills. We had prayed for a northerly to take us home, and we were answered —with a vengeance! At about 4 in the morning the light northerly sprang up, and when we slipped down the estuary with the tide at about 7.30, it, had developed in a fresh breeze raising the sea into a dirty chop which tossed our light craft about like a cork. We edged gently over to Long Beach Point, past Murderers’ Bay, and hero caught the full force of wind and sea. White-caps were breaking everywhere, and the choppy sea through which we had been edging developed into a real deep-water tumble. We stood well out from the point and allowed the wind to carry us sufficiently far along to enable us to paddle straight in front of it for the base of the mole. There were a few

auxiogs moments when we backed over rollers sufficiently, big to have swept us into the rocks, Lad we .given the boat its head. Usually then we shipped water over the weahter side as; the crest passed under us,- This flopped into our laps, but we had to ignore it and “look out for the one behind.’ Fortunately at tho mole there was a fairly light surf in spite of the high wind, and we made a spectacular landing on a small roller, soaked to the skin, and cold. • We had intended to wait there until the tide turned, a matter of another hour or so, but were too cold and wet to enjoy a long spell, so, after a small lunch and a rub down in an old engine shed, w© lifted the boat across the mole and pushed off into the channel. In spite of a following wind we made slow; progress against the tide, and _ after seme narrow escapes from swamping in the very choppy sea, caused by the north-easter blowing against an outgoing tide, we were glad to have a spell in a sheltered bay a mile down the harbour. Here the inhabitants of a crib took compassion on us, and for an hour we stood in front of a roaring fire and dried ourselves out, partook of hot tea, and generally re-established our self* confidence and enthusiasm, which had been dampened considerably by the hard journey from the mole. ■ When the tide turned we resinpped, and with what was now a gale behind us and an inflowing tide beneath us we lifted the sail and immediately spurted into what must have been a steady 10 or 12 knots. From then on we made excellent time. There was an anxious moment when we were beating across to the nearer channel past Quarantin® Island. One of the forward hands, misunderstood an order from the skipper just as an exceptionally heavy gust was heeling/iis over, and held on to the sail a second to 6 long. We were nearly ° U From Port Chalmers to Bavensbohni* we fairly flew through the water, and the two hands aft found it strenuou* work keeping the boat before the wind. Inshore from the channel great roller* were sweeping along, and we had no difficulty in riding these for as much as 200 yards, .passing as the gust reached its maximum velocity on to th® wave ahead. It was most exhilarating.- * From the boat harbour across to our* finishing post near the harbour basin we “scudded under bare poles,” and so finished our journey two hours after our last stop. It had been a pioneering voyage, attended with -risks certainly, but then the boat is a wonderful littia craft, the skipper understands it, and the crew have unbounded confidence in it, him, and themselves.