Participant trainees in the Youth Voyage week-long adventure on the R. Tucker Thompson schooner.
Each year the R. Tucker Thompson Sailing Trust and the gaff-rigged schooner the trust are responsible for embarks on a special Youth Voyage.
It is sponsored by Top Energy NZ and this year’s theme was “Next Steps”. The week-long programme introduced guest speakers and activities where the sailors explored their personal strengths and skills.
Jo Lynch, chief executive of the trust, said the voyage provides a platform for the trainees to think about what they would like to do after finishing high school.
“That could be further education, training or apprenticeship, travelling or fulfilling a life-long dream.”
The trainees spent a day with industry professionals such as Jess Baxter from Queenstown Resort College (Paihia), Raymone Tuka from the Defence Department, NorthTec | Te Pūkenga’s Jo Ann Hogan, Smart Trade and Tane Clarke and Focus NZ’s Ian Pritchard.
A special visit came from marine biologists Kayle Keyes, who is TriOceans education director, and TriOceans field and research director Thibaud Guerin.
They worked on leadership activities at the remote beaches of Te Paihi Island and Turtle Island and witnessed the use of an underwater drone that checks the foliage and marine life at the bottom of the ocean near the Black Rocks.
The trainees also received an introduction to reef ecosystems by snorkelling at Deep Water Cove with Thompson’s crew Adam Coerper, Tom Macfarlane and Zhane Harvey.
As well as sailing during the day they did a night sail to Paradise Bay on Urupukapuka Island and to Matauwhi Bay, Russell, with Peter Murphy as skipper.
Some of those who had previously completed the youth programme have gone on to do the Qualified Deck Crew Training course which started on June 6 under the guidance of Terry Dunn.
Around 20 Kerikeri High School students from Save All Valuable Environments (SAVE) recently spent two hours tackling some of the over-grown weeds at Roland’s Wood on Inlet Rd.
They cleared some of last year’s plantings, pulling out weeds that included 28 kapok pods. The weeds are commonly known as mothplant and on ripening their pods, which are the size of a large feijoa, burst open and send thousands of seeds to grow and further strangulate other plants and trees.
The students from SAVE were there at the end of May armed with their own spades and gloves and they received guidance and knowledge from Bill Haigh. Kerikeri High School had generously provided some native trees such as manuka, kanuka and ake ake, for the students to plant after all their effort.
Roland’s Wood is a four-hectare piece of English beech woodland bequeathed to Kerikeri by Roland Sansom. There is a new portion of land of similar size adjacent, at the far end near Heron Hill. It’s known as Lavendar’s Land.
Dogs are allowed off-lead in the woodland and they tend to make the most of it but it’s also known for its bluebells which flower in September.
The park is managed by Friends of Roland’s Wood Charitable Trust which was established in 2015 and preserves and maintains the area of the wood on Kerikeri’s Inlet Rd. It has oversight from Far North District Council.
Sue Richards, who has recently joined the Roland’s Wood Trust Board of Trustees, said the current focus is on the extension and in particular the planted areas below the main track.
“The students showcased the good works done by youth in our community.”
The op shop in Russell is considered one of the most successful of all St John op shops in New Zealand.
That’s according to Richard Blundell, a Knight of the Order of St John and patron of the Northland region, who was in town on Monday to present 10-year service medals to a group of the op shop’s volunteers.
He was accompanied in presenting the medals by Kaikohe’s Peter Macauley, who is a Knight of the Order of St John and was St John’s Kaikohe Area Committee chairman before stepping down in 2019.
They were joined by Russell identity Diane Smith who had been invested as a Commander of the Order of St John by Dame Cindy Kiro in the Anglican Cathedral in Auckland a few days earlier.
Blundell related a story of a purchase made at St John’s Op Shop in Mangawhai.
“I stopped there and spied an English jacket which looked fairly new and was in good condition. When I got it home I realised the stitching on the pockets hadn’t even been removed and it cost me $12. I still wear it,” he said.
The service medal is considered special within Hato Hone St John. On the obverse side is an image of Queen Victoria who is depicted looking right. On United Kingdom coins she was depicted looking left. The medal was designed by her daughter the Duchess of Argyle.
Receiving the medals in Christ Church Russell were Fran Nixon, Karenne Wilson, Linda Mee and Leslie Blundell.
The Order of St John is one of the oldest service organisations in the world, dating back to the Crusades. The St John organisation in New Zealand was founded in 1885 by a cleric and a doctor from Christchurch who held a community meeting to initiate its establishment. Up to that point medical services were scant in the new colony.
Although the organisation is known primarily for its ambulance service, it runs many other training programmes including first aid, youth and community programmes, event health services and it provides alarms.
The Bay of Islands Swordfish Club held the 53rd International Yellowtail Fishing Tournament in mid-June.
There were 91 anglers fishing this year in 31 teams which included 12 junior teams and three ladies’ teams.
A newly appointed sponsor for this year was Total Span Bay of Islands.
Some of the awards up for grabs include the Hardest Trying Junior, the Most Promising Junior, and the Most Meritorious Catch. There is also the Mr Bottomly Award given to the angler who catches the biggest rock or loses the most lures.
There are the “usual” awards which include the heaviest fish of the day, the heaviest fish of the tournament, heaviest fish in the junior class. Then there is the angler and skipper with the most points per day overall and the longest fish caught daily among some other awards.
If there is a tie in the points in any award category the first angler or team to earn the points will be declared the winner.
The rules allow for a maximum of three yellowtail caught per angler per day and a maximum of six yellowtail per boat per day weighed and measured. It’s a conservation measure.
Every yellowtail that gets weighed during the tournament is measured and the data is given to Blue Water Marine Research. Along with the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council and LegaSea, they help monitor kingfish stocks to create a sustainable future for recreational anglers.
The biggest yellowtail was caught on the third day by Nathan Leach from Australia’s Newcastle Game Fishing Club on the boat St Mortiz. It weighed in at 29.70kg.
Overall there were 75 yellowtail kingfish weighed, eight snapper weighed, four yellowtail kingfish were tagged and released and 21 yellowtail kingfish were measured and released.
The tournament gives a boost to the Russell economy with seven teams from Australia joining the 24 New Zealand teams. Most of the visitors stay locally. A number of charter boats were also hired.
The latest news bites from around the region.