✨ Harbour Master's Report
Harbour Master’s Office,
Napier, Nov. 16, 1864.
SIR,—I have the honor to submit the following Report on the Buoys and Moorings in Hawke’s Bay.
The moorings lately placed in the Roadstead are well adapted for the purpose for which they are required, and sufficiently strong to secure a ship of one thousand tons. They are laid down in the South-West bight of the Bay, in the best holding ground, and distant one mile from shore, the Bluff bearing South-East by East.
The swell and sea, which is liable to set into the Bay with Southerly gales, is broken by the outer tail of the Rangatira Bank and the shoaler water occupying the centre of the Roadstead; so that a ship secured to the moorings will be in comparatively smooth water, and, if provided with ordinary good cables, in perfect safety.
This anchorage is open to the North-East gales which generally occur twice annually. As the gales invariably set in with rain and seldom reach the anchorage with any great force, and as their duration does not exceed twenty-four hours, shifting suddenly to the North-West, which has the effect of counteracting and reducing the swell occasioned by these gales, a vessel at this anchorage is therefore not in any danger from their effects.
The “Pania Reef,” running North-East and South-West, is fifty fathoms in length and twenty in breadth, having a mean depth of water of twelve feet; there are, however, some ledges of rock on this Reef with only seven and eight feet of water on them, which deepens suddenly East and West of the Reef to nine and ten fathoms. A Buoy, painted white, is placed South by West one hundred fathoms from the Southern end of the Reef, and bears from the Bluff North-North-East, distant nearly two miles.
The “Auckland Rock,” on which the sea only breaks in very rough weather, bears from the Bluff North by West nearly half a mile, with a depth of twelve feet of water at low tide. A Buoy is placed twenty feet North of this rock. There is a rocky shoal in its vicinity with four fathoms of water on it.
I have not made any report in reference to entering the Harbour, as the shifting of the sands off the mouth precludes my giving permanent directions.
The Pilot, who is aware of the approach of all vessels entering the Bay, if possible always goes off on the usual signal for that purpose being made.
I have the honor to be,
Sir,
Your most obedient servant,
THOS. MURRAY,
Harbour-Master.
His Honor the Superintendent,
Napier.
Printed under the authority of the Government of the Province of Hawke’s Bay, by JAMES WOOD
Printer for the time being to such Government,
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Hawke's Bay Provincial Gazette 1864, No 27
✨ LLM interpretation of page content
🏗️ Report on Buoys and Moorings in Hawke’s Bay
🏗️ Infrastructure & Public Works16 November 1864
Buoys, Moorings, Hawke’s Bay, Harbour Safety, Anchorage
- Thomas Murray (Harbour-Master), Author of the report
- THOS. MURRAY, Harbour-Master