16/12/10 - Thursday
We were prepared to stay for a couple of days at Omaio but after listening to the weather forecast in the morning which had significantly increased winds and no sign of a break we decided the sensible thing was to head back four hours to Whakatane – the nearest harbour that we could enter for shelter.
The entrance to Whakatane is a little daunting being a narrow channel with rocks close on either side. Because of the conditions in the bay the entrance to Whakatane is often closed if it is considered too dangerous and after speaking to the Coastguard they informed us that the harbourmaster strongly advised that we should enter the harbour rather than sheltering at Whale Island as the entrance could well be closed later. With increasing NE winds and rising seas we headed to Whakatane. Peter did a wonderful job holding Gunner on course across the bar and we happily tied up to the town wharf.
Had a great fish dinner - the fattest Kawhai we have ever seen as they had been feeding on whitebait at the mouth of the Motu River for some time. Great whitebait season around this area.
More photos tomorrow.
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