OVERSEA YACHTS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23208, 30 November 1938, Page 14

OVERSEA YACHTS

FOUR AT AUCKLAND TWO LEAVE SHORTLY SCHOOLGIRL AND MOTHER VANOKA'S BUN- TO CHILE Auckland must.be on© of the most favoured porta of call for ocean-going yachts. No fewer than four small craft from distant parts of tho world are at present in port. Owned by an American, a South African, an Englishman and a Pole, they vary in size from a 73ft. all-steel vessel to a tiny converted centreboard boat of 21ft. Two of tho yachts will leave New Zealand next month, and are busily preparing for sea.

The 73ft. ketch-rigged auxiliary yacht Vanora, owned by Sirs. Marion Rice Hart, an American, will leave for Ancud, Chile, before December 10 on a course that will involve nearly 6000 miles' sailing without calling at any port. The Vanora will not follow the great circle course, as this would take her too far south into the iceberg region. From Ancud it is planned to sail south, through the Straits of Magellan, and up the east coasts of South and North America to New York. ' i . Water for Ove;r Three Months Large supplies of provisions are being taken aboard and sufficient water for between three and four months, although it is not expected that the run to Chile will take its long as that. Supplies in the tanks are being supplemented by a number of demijohns of water.

To replace two New Zealanders who helped to bring the Vanora from Noumea to Auckland, additions are being made to th& crew before the vessel sails. Mr. 1). K. Matheson has joined the yacht as sailing master. He was recently captain of the ketch Miena trading on the coaist, and before that was an officer ill the Nobel auxiliary schooner Huia. It is probable that at least one other ;l : rom among a number of applicants will accompany the vessel when sha Bails. Mrs. Hart is at' present on a visit to Rotorua. Members of the crew yesterday expressed their gratitude for the hospitality extended to them by yachtsmen and others during their stay in Auckland.

Voyage to South Africa The 57ft. ketch-rigged yacht Land's End, owned by Captain H. Jeffery, is also preparing to leave. Alterations to the vessel are almost complete, and Captain Jeffery hopes to sail on the first stage of his return journey to South Africa on December 15. He will travel to Bay of Islands and thence to Tonga, and after calls at other Pacific Islands will proceed, via New Guinea, the Dutch East Indies, islands in the Indian Ocean, and. the east coast of Africa Durban. The trip will take about 12 months.

Captain Jeffery will be accompanied by his wife,- whom he married in Auckland in August, sind her ten-year-old daughter, Heleno Hansen, a boarding pupil at the Diocesan High School. Passengers as far as the Bay of Islands will be Captain Jeffery's Mrs. H. Jeffery, sen., who has just arrived from South Africa, and his wife's sister, Miss Z. James. Extensive Alterations

Two members o5 the crew, Messrs. G. Cadenhead and J. Worden, hare left the vessel, and Mr. W. Compton, of Auckland, has joined. The alterations to the Land's End include the conversion of two cabins into a stateroom for Captain Jeffery and Ms wife, ancl of a hold forward into a cabin with four berths. A new bowsprit 6ft. longer than the old one has been fitted, and a larger jib has been made. This :is expected to result in a distinct improvement i in. the yacht's sailing qualities. Other minor changes have beeia made to the rigging. j| For use in the islands, a new dinghy with an outboard motor is. being taken, in addition to the sailing dinghy already carried. The galley has been remodelled, and an especially imported getrol stove of a new type has been tted. The Land'it End will go on the slip for inspection and cleaning before sailing. Of the other overseas yachts in port, the 21ft. kctch-rigged yacht Farys, which a young Pole, Mr. E. J. Weber, brought from Tahiti at the end of 1986, is on the slip at W. G. Lowe and Son's yard in St. Mary's Bay. Her future movements are indefinite.

The fourth yacht, the 70ft. auxiliary ketch Bonds, owned by Captain H. V. Hudson, is still ly ing anchored near, the new export wharf. After a stay in Auckland, Captain Hudson plans to make a cruise round the North Island.