Yachts

• Bumblebee 4: This 22 M

Maxi ocean racer in transit from Sydney to Tahiti, the Car ibbean and the United States, called into Avatiu Harbour in the Cooks to repair a broken rudder, sustained in heavy seas in the second week of February, reports Karen Garner-Williams from Raro tonga. Bumblebee 4 left Syd ney on January 31, with a crew of six including skipper Graham Freeman, who sailed in the Bumblebee 3 in the 1975 Admiral’s Cup. Along with Graham Freeman were

Peter Gardner, Mike Taylor, Col Broomfield, Peter Dyball and John Munson, who sailed in the 1979 Admiral’s Cup in Ragamuffin. The sleek, white Bumblebee 4, an unusual guest in Avatiu harbour during the hurricane season, left the Cooks on February 19 bound for Antigua, Bermuda, New York and further afield, and expects to be away from Syd ney for 18 months. The break meant that the Bumblebee 4 was a week behind schedule and would probably have to cut short its call in Tahiti. The Bumblebee 4 was first across the line in the 1979 Sydney to Hobart yacht race and is said to be one of the fastest ocean racers in the world. The tem porary replacement rudder was constructed locally. A permanent replacement has been ordered from Holland at an estimated cost of $lO 000.

Thanks also to Dr Stephen R. Weinstein for his report of Bumblebee 4's enforced call at Rarotonga. Dr Weinstein re cords that the rudderless racer almost collided with a trawler when entering Avatiu Har bour. • MATA MOANA. Viliami Fehoko, better known as Tonga Bill, is presently cruis ing the coast of Papua New Guinea in his self-built 5.50 m sloop Mata Moana, the ‘Eye of the Sea’ in Tongan, reports Jimmy Cornell. The young Tongan is one of the very few yachtsmen among the Pacific Islanders and the craft in which he has already covered many thousands of miles in the South Pacific is hardly larger than the sailing boats of his home island of Haano, in the Haapai Group. In 1974 Bill met Mike Bales, a retired Lt. Com mander (RN), and joined Mike’s 8 m yacht Jellicle as crew, sailing to New Zealand.

During a year’s stay in New Zealand, Bill started building Mata Moana in a shed in Auckland while earning his liv ing as a galvaniser. Sailing on Jellicle, Bill and Mike made a 34-day passage to Raevaevae in French Polynesia and spent 10 months in the Society Islands before returning to NZ via Rarotonga. Bill finished his own boat in 1977 and in June sailed singlehanded to Rare

Above: Bumblebee 4 in Avatiu harbour, Rarotonga, Cook Islands.

Photo: Karen Garner-Williams. Below: Wotan at Tubuai, Austral Islands, French Polynesia. Photo: Don Travers.

tonga. Trying to be in Huahine for Bastille Day, he put to sea again and arrived there on July 13. In April 1978, after nearly one year in French Polynesia, he left for Rarotonga from where he sailed non-stop to his home island, Haano, to a hero’s welcome. After cruising the Tongan islands, Mata Moana returned to NZ and in April 1979 the small yacht sailed for the New Hebrides.

From Santo, Bill took his boat to Port Moresby arriving there in September 1979. In December he left for Madang, the engineless boat being forced to spend Christmas at sea, becalmed in the Vitiaz Straits. Bill has no precise plans for the future, but is con fident that Mata Moana will take him wherever he decides to go. • NAGADA 11. This Calypso 13.50 m ketch designed by Frans Maas was built of foam sandwich by amateur builder Eddie Haering. Eddie, who comes originally from West Germany, joined Air Niugini as an aircraft engineer when the airline was founded. It took him over five years of his spare time to build the boat in Port Moresby, Nagada II being launched in May 1979. Ac companied by wife Ute and daughters Katja (12) and Iris (6), Eddie sailed the Hamburg registered yacht on a shake down cruise to Samarai, Lae and Madang. Plans for 1980 include a trip to the Philippines and beyond. ► APTERYX. A Cavalier 39 ibreglass sloop crewed by Mew Zealanders Peter and Jo Smith, Apteryx is spending the

cyclone season in Madang,

3 NG. In the last seven years 3 eter has built over 300 yachts

it the Cavalier Boatbuilding

So in Auckland, his own luxury having taken just over )ne year to be completed. \pteryx, named after the indent flightless bird, left New Zealand in July 1979 bound or Fiji, then carried on to the view Hebrides, Solomons and 3 NG.

'MAIAU. This 16.50 m ibreglass ketch called at tebaul on her way from Bris )ane to San Francisco. Skip

per Tim Towers took delivery of the boat in Taiwan in 1975, sailed to Hong Kong, the Philippines, PNG and Aus tralia. On the present voyage he is accompanied by crew Eric Lawton. From Rabaul, Maiau sailed to Bougainville, then on to Nauru, Kiribati and Hawaii. • WOTAN, a 15.91 m gaff rigged yawl of Danish registry was a recent visitor to the Aus tral Islands from Tahiti, reports Don Travers from Tubuai. On board were captain Jorgen Hansen, wife Rosa, daughter Ninette, sons Michael and John, nephew Palle Jorgen sen and Tahitian guest crew Marie. Wotan is a motor-sailer with a 165 hp diesel. Built in Denmark in 1942 as a fishing trawler, she saw many years of service after the war in Danish coastguard and spent time in Greenland waters. The Han sens bought Wotan in 1976 at government auction and con verted her to sail. They left Denmark in 1978 on a world cruise and have made many stops including Plymouth, Lis bon, Canary Islands, West Indies, Venezuela, Colombia, San Islas Islands, Panama, Cocos Island, Galapagos, Marquesas, Tuamotus, Tahiti, Rurutu and Tubuai. They re turned to Tahiti from Tubuai with plans to cruise the So ciety Islands and then head west through the Pacific Islands, New Zealand and Torres Strait.

The following completes Jimmy Cornell’s account of the craft and crews which spent Christmas-New Year 1979-1980 in Rabaul. For others see Cruising Yachts (PIM Mar. pp 73-76).

• Merry Maiden: This

Philip Rhodes 18.60 m ketch built of wood in 1947 is on its second voyage around the world. Skipper Seaton Gras accompanied his father Ranulf Gras and family on the first voyage, which lasted nearly six years from 1969-75. Sea ton enjoyed sailing so much that with his father’s per mission he took Merry Maiden and set off again. Leaving his homeport of Salem in Mas sachusetts in October 1976, he sailed to the Caribbean and

Panama, arriving in the Pacific in July 1977. After visiting Ecuador, Merry Maiden sailed to the Galapagos, Easter Island, Pitcairn, Marquesas, Tuamotus, Society Islands, Rarotonga, the two Samoas, Tonga and Fiji to New Zealand. After 10 months in New Zealand Merry Maiden left in September 1979 for Fiji, New Caledonia, New Hebrides, Santa Cruz and Solomons to arrive on Christ mas Eve in Rabaul. After a short trip to Australia, Merry Maiden will return to PNG and sail on to Micronesia. The crew has changed several times since leaving the USA, the only original member being Larry Smith, who joined the yacht in Florida. • RAMA: This 12.20 m ter rocement ketch was built by skipper Ralph Junger. Ac companied by Dorothy Hillis, Rama left their homeport of Townsville in August 1979, sailing inside the Great Barrier Reef to Cairns and then on to PNG. After the cyclone season a trip to the Solomons is envisaged.

• Galatea Iv: This 14.50 M

Kennedy-designed cutter is taking retired Canadian den tist Bob Miller and his wife Marg on a leisurely trip around the world. They left their homeport in May 1978 sailing first to the Marquesas, Tuamo tus, Society and Cook Islands.

After visiting Tonga and Fiji, Galatea IV arrived in New Zealand for the 78/79 cyclone season. Fiji was revisited in 1979, after which the Millers sailed to the New Hebrides, Solomons and PNG. In 1980 they plan to sail to the Philip pines and Malaysia, and later possibly to the Mediter ranean. • RANGER: Also in Rabaul for Christmas was Gene Williams on his Garden 35 ketch Ranger from Victoria, British Columbia. After leaving Canada in September 1976, Ranger sailed down the coast to California, and from there to the Marquesas. One year was spent in French Polynesia, be fore heading for the Cooks, the Samoas, Tonga, Fiji and New Zealand. After the sum mer in New Zealand, Gene sailed to Fiji, the New Hebrides, Ontbng Java and Rabaul, planning to spend the

cyclone season in PNG waters. • JOALIE II: John Sladek, a mechanical engineer from Port Kembla, New South Wales, designed and built his own 16 m steel ketch Joalie II in only 18 months. With wife Joan and daughter Julie, he left home in May 1979 bound for New Caledonia, New Hebrides, Banks, Solomons and PNG. The Sladeks plan to sail around the north coast of PNG to Indonesia to arrive in Singapore towards the end of next year.

Tonga BIN’, or Viliami Fehoko, aboard his self-built 5.5 m sloop

Mata Moana ‘Eye of the Sea’

In Tongan. Viliami is one of the few Islander yachtsmen, and already has behind him many thousands of miles of South Pacific sailing in his boat which is not much bigger than the sail ing boats of his home island of Haano, In the Haapai group.

Viliami built Mata Moana in a shed in Auckland, while earning his living as a galvaniser. Photo:

Jimmy Cornell.