We are home and safe after having sailed 131 kilometres. Here is a copy of the route we took in an anti-clockwise direction sailing around Lake Taupō. It took us a leisurely 4 nights, 5 days and we highly recommend this adventure to anyone capable or hitching a ride on a friends boat. We used 8 litres of fuel, 22 litres of drinking water, and 2 bottles of red wine along with a healthy dose of chocolate and a few cans of ready made food. Our boat is self sufficient with a small array of solar panels and we carried a port-a-loo. All in all a very inexpensive 5 day adventure. We will be back with more adventures like this one.
After having sailed on Lake Taupo only for this summer and having just completed a 5 day circumnavigation by sailboat we wanted to pass on some valuable lessons we have learned. Fortunately we have learned these lessons from a combination of local advice, some great training and being prepared rather then bad experiences. These tips will help anyone thinking venturing a bit further afield. 1) Be very wary of wind forecasts. We found that most reputable wind forecasts were at best reliable only for the Lake Taupō Bay. (we had 3 apps) The land mass around Taupo deflects wind in all directions. On our way home we had a 5 knot SE forecast and we encountered everything from 20 knots NW, 15 knots E, 0 knots, and 20 knots NE. Some bays have their own wind pattern. 2) Be very mindful of winds once in the western bays. If the wind swings to a blistering Easterly, you can get caught. We dragged our little 20 footer up the Waihaha stream. Be ready to run for cover if you can't do that. Liste