Lake Taupo

Last week end we explored Lake Taupo on my trailer yacht, the Nanook. Three of us stayed overnight on the boat. Shown here is Kenny having a go at the world famous Taupo hole-in-one!

Taupo

This photo was taken on Lake Taupo at Boat Harbour near Kinloch. Note the crystal clear water. My boat is on the right. The other yacht is a 30 footer. It would be more comfortable inside. However it is too large to tow this on the road because of its width. Larger yachts like this are tied to moorings or parked at a marina which has easy access to the sea.

The largest size trailer yacht that can be towed easily on the highway is around 25 foot. If the trailer width is greater than 2 metres, a special pilot vehicle with flashing amber lights must go in front of the towing vehicle to warn on-coming traffic of the "wide load" following. This becomes too inconvenient to arrange for frequent movements.

a floating caravan

The Noelex 22 is a trailer yacht with a retractable keel. It can be used as a floating caravan for a small family. Inside the cabin is a double berth and two other single berths. If necessary a boom tent can be erected over the cockpit for two teen agers sleeping under the stars in summer. I use my boat mostly for exploring the many lakes in NZ. 

The largest is Taupo, the size of Singapore. This lake was a huge volcano crater filled with underground spring water. I dropped anchor one time and it did not reach the bottom! I had 100 metres anchor rope plus 20 metres chain. The rainbow trouts are huge and yummy. There are many free public boat ramps available for launching a boat.