Fifeshire Rock (pictured) sits in the middle of what used to be the entrance to Nelson Harbour. As you can see at low tide there is not alot of water there. Big ships would have to wait for high tide to get in or out. The rock is named after a 557 ton sailing ship, which was one of a group of four ships to visit Nelson in 1842, bringing settlers from London. The Fifeshire was on its maiden voyage and already had the reputation of being an unlucky ship by the time it arrived in Nelson. 17 passengers had died at sea from what is only recorded as "a fever", and as if that wasn't enough, she had a very close encounter with a rocky shoreline near Stephens Island, almost at the journeys end. The last bit of bad luck came when she was leaving Nelson on Feburary 27 1842, less than a month after her arrival. She was a little late leaving and the high tide had turned by the time she reached Fifeshire Rock. Just when her cumbersome hull had almost cleared the harbour mouth, the wind dropped and left her to drift onto arrow reef, right beside the landmark rock that now bears her name. The retreating tide made it impossible to get the Fifeshire off the reef again and her own weight broke her back.
The story has a happy ending though. All the passengers were saftley disembarked and the man who bought the wreck for salvage is said to have done very well from the venture.
btw... This entrance is no longer used because a new one, known as The Cut was made by carving a hole through the Boulder Bank that surronds the harbour.
6:31:39 PM 
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