By SASKIA KONYNENBURG and PETER de GRAAF A BRUSH with the first cyclone to reach Northland this summer cut a few camping holidays short, beached one yacht and tore another from its moorings - but otherwise left the region relatively unscathed. MetService weather ambassador Bob McDavitt said Cyclone Funa passed betweenNorfolk Island and Northland on Sunday night, with frontal systems on its eastern flank giving the North a mild lashing. The wind peaked at 116km/h at Cape Reinga and the wettest spot - Puhipuhi Hills - received 85mm of rain over 1 hours. In Northland the rain topped up water tanks and revived pastures, but the top of the South Island was likely to cop the real deal today, with heavy rain and wind warnings in force for Nelson and Golden Bay. The strong winds ripped apart a tent belonging to an Auckland family camping at Matauri Bay, but they're vowing to stick to their holiday plans. Ian Dorward, his wife Toni and their 7-year-old son Daniel, had to move their tent from a beachfront site when winds nearly lifted it off the ground. They thought they'd found a more sheltered spot, but a gust of wind sent their gazebo tearing through the tent. "We were surprised by the ferocity of the wind ... we haven't had much sleep," Ian said. The campsite owners have lent the Dorwards a tent. Meanwhile, Mr McDavitt said the outlook for Anniversary Weekend was promising: "There's a nice anticyclone on the way, but another low developing near Samoa that might produce strong south-easterly winds at the beginning of the long weekend - but I think the anticyclone will (win) out."
