News of Cruising Yachts
pp. 97-101 · Read in the full issue
» First of several yachts to head andsward from New Zealand this tumn, the well-known Trans sman racer, Ghost, cleared Auck id for Papeete direct on March The 28-foot cutter is skippered Ken Brown, with Neil and Keith leman, of Auckland, and Arnold eaney, of Wellington, all experi ced yachtsmen, completing the nplement. Neil Coleman was one the crew of Rangi, the Auckland ;ht wrecked on Norfolk in 1952. ► Wanderer 111, from the Solent, gland, with Eric and Susan scock aboard, and bound for the tipodes, is now reported to have ared Balboa, January 23, for the rquesas. Wanderer 11, Hiscock’s lier yacht, now owned by Bill well, was preparing to clear jeete for Penrhyn in March on way to Australia. > Sin Miedo, reported here last nth, again cleared Papeete Feb try 13 for the outer isles. The iht, we believe, will head back Honolulu from French Oceania.
• Arthur Rogers lost another member of her original crew in February when author W. J. V.
Crealock ( Vagabonding Under Sail ) left owner Hepworth and his wife in sole possession and returned to England per MM liner Caledonian.
Other members aboard on her arrival in Papeete late last year have gradually dispersed during the hurricane-season lay-up. • Tropic Seas, with John and Mary Caldwell and their three children, finally cleared Papeete on March 9 in continuation of their cruise, via Islands ports, to Auck land and Sydney. Their Tahiti born son, Roger Hiro, is sampling deep-water sailing for the first time. • Novia, 34-foot San Diego ketch,
manned by Lee and Ann Gregg, cleared Balboa early February for the Tuamotu, Marquesas and Tahiti. • Calypso, American yacht in Tahiti waters, has found moorings there while her owner, with his brother-in-law, Mr. Kim Powell (an American now resident in Tahiti) journeyed back to earn some dollars on the Panama Canal construction job. They departed per last Cale donien sailing. Both men have previously worked in the Canal Zone. • Two yachts already known in the Islands and reportedly now pre paring to again clear Auckland soon on further cruises, will have dif ferent profiles this year. Bounty, formerly a gaff cutter, has now be-
►me a wishbone ketch, and Wakaya is been converted to a normal Jtch rig. These yachts cruised Dnga-Fiji previously. • Waltzing Matilda, which urneyed to Britain from Sydney 1951 via the South Pacific and agellan Strait, is homeward bound a Panama. Phil and Keith avenport cleared Falmouth early .nuary in the 46-foot cutter for Lami, Fla., the trans-Atlantic ssage taking 56 days. The yacht ould appear in the Islands this inter. She had recently been uising in Norwegian waters. • At Barbadoes, in January, was e English yacht Moonraker (Dr.
A. (Peter) Pye and wife Anne) und for Tahiti and thence Van- Liver.
• Another yacht soon to leave Britain is the well-known ten tonner Tern 11, formerly owned by yachting writer Claude Worth. In 1950, under the ownership of Lt.- Col. D. G. Brodie, Tern II won the RCC Cup for a cruise to Majorca and return. Now owned by Lieu tenant E. Pester, RNZN, she will clear about June for Panama, the Islands and New Zealand. • There’s news of the schooner yacht California, which was in Tahiti waters early 1951, and other Island ports further west later that
year, in the course of a round-the world cruise. In a letter from the aide of US Admiral Robert Carney, Commander of Allied Forces in Southern Europe, we gather that the yacht is now in the Mediter ranean. (The Admiral had been aboard at Naples, spotted a copy of our Pacific Islands Year Book, liked what he saw and wrote for a copy right away). • According to coconut radio, Birger Bryhn and family, with their stout 58-foot Norwegian pilot cutter, are likely to be on the move
again if the yacht is not soon sold in Sydney. t • Ho Ho II arrived in Australian waters, via Islands ports, in 1951, the Norwegian owner planning to sell her there. The yacht becomes liable for import duty if she remains over the allowable period unsold.
Ho Ho II is a valuable vessel and duty would be considerable. Birger’s friends in the Islands will hope that the matter is successfully resolved.
It will be recalled that Bryhn and a companion came to the Pacific in the mid-1930’5, and eventually lost their then yacht Ho Ho on Norfolk Island. • Tropic Seas, American yacht owned by the Caldwell family, after a lengthy stay in Papeete during the hurricane season (which affects islands further to the west) cleared Papeete on March 9 in continua tion of her voyage to Australia, via Islands ports and New Zealand. • Six months out from the States, Jack and Lee Wheeler, of Portland, Oregon, arrived at Taka roa, Tuamotus, during late March in their yacht Gemini. This yacht has made calls at Honolulu and all the inhabited islands of the Mar quesas. She cleared that Group from Hanavave. Jack Wheeler is a radio Ham, and he has been heard in frequent contact with the States, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand and Japan, Gemini should arrive in Papeete
during April; thence return home via the Leeward Isles of French Oceania. • Viator, 32-ft San Francisco schooner, in which Mr. and Mrs.
Harry Close visited Polynesia last year, is home again. The yacht, last reported clearing Rarotonga for Penrhyn and Honolulu in Sep
tember, arrived safely at the Hawaiian capital, and left foi 'Frisco in December. • Stortehecker 111, last reportec in the Tuamotu in January, haj arrived at Honolulu and plans tc clear for the States in mid-April The 33-ft yawl evidently could nol find a buyer in Honolulu (see Feb.)
• In recent months the move nents of the yachts Wanderer II ind Wanderer 111 have been re ported. Now, to add to the con usion, comes Wanderer. Edward \llcard, English yachtsman and 'achting writer, arrived at Wick ord, RI, USA, after a trans atlantic passage last December. r rom there, after converting the Jerman-built yawl to ketch rig, he dll take off late 1953 on a five-years’ ruise which aims at ports of call aainly off the usual circumnavi ators’ agenda. Allcard may be seen a the Islands next year. • Yet another yacht to join the ueue of craft planning to head slandswards from Auckland this .utumn is Vitali Brothers’ 36-ft utter Blue Water, number seven on le list of probables. Only the big 1-ft Leda is likely to journey farther lan the South Pacific. • Ronald Johnson, best remem ered for his extraordinary drift pyage in a war-surplus American ib-chaser from near Hawaii to iji, in late 1947 (see PIM, March, >4B) is off on another nautical ad mture, from Sydney. Johnson, fter disposing of sub-chaser 671 •enamed Purple Sea ) to W. R. arpenter & Co. (who in turn re amed her Tovata and are using n* in Fiji) went to Sydney in 1951 • ply his trade as a street photo ‘apher. There he acquired his ■esent yacht, again named Purple ’a— a Tasmanian-built 45-ft cutter ith Hi-ft beam, now seven years d. Although without motor, John n has regularly taken cruise irties out on Sydney Harbour dur g two summers. He plans to head r New Guinea, Micronesia, and tssibly the Far East on a photo aphic and journalistic cruise rst port is likely to be Rabaul. • Louis Valier, of yacht Tere, 10 has made a number of voyages im Honolulu to Tahiti, is the new esident of the Honolulu Yacht üb. • Nellie Brush (ex Carib) , bound f Tahiti from Florida, has cleared e Bahamas for Balboa, on the :ond leg of the journey. This cht is a Tahiti-type hard-chine ssel. Owners are not yet identified.
Honolulu-Papeete Race
rhe forthcoming Honolulu-Papeete
cht race is creating interest mnd the Pacific, though it seems likely that there will be any trants from Australia or New aland.
Chairman Eugene Overton, of the anspactific Yacht Club, reports m Los Angeles that seven yachts, igmg from 40 to 100 feet overall, 7e indicated their definite inten a to enter; and there probably 1 be others. >r. Percy Wilson, of 75 Young tel Building, is handling arrange nts in Honolulu, with the Tahiti I controlled by M. Van den
Broek d’Obrennan, who will be back from France soon.
The race is scheduled to com mence from Honolulu on July 24, as a follow-on to the Los Angeles- Honolulu Trans-Pacific Race. It will be the first time for many years that an ocean yacht race has term inated at Papeete. Trophies will be presented by the French Oceania Government, which is giving the event every encouragement as a tourist attraction,
Short Wave Radio
Port Moresby will shortly use a new short-wave outlet for its evening trans missions—6l3o kc/s replacing 7280 kc/s.
Suva, currently operating test trans missions on 5995 kc/s, is now using the new shortwave outlet for its noon to 2 p.m. transmission, as well as from 5.30 p.m. to close-down at 10 p.m. Later it is intended to use the shortwave outlet in parallel with the usual broadcast frequency (930 kc/s) for the morning broadcast from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. also.
Suva tested during late February and March on 6130, 7195 and 9535 kc/s before returning to the present channel. All channels were marred by overseas inter ference, heavy morse interference spoiling Auckland reception of the present 5995 kc/s channel. Reception may be better in the Islands, with the Suva signal over riding the interference.