A Little South

Marine Stadium anchorage

The name of this place - Southport - belies the fact that we have hardly moved south at all.  Having traveled only three hours from Horizon Shores through tortuous, crowded and very shallow channels, we have arrived at the marine stadium anchorage.  We are in the middle of a busy resort area and only two miles from the exit of these inner waters out to the open ocean.

The anchorage is well protected from weather from all directions and a short dinghy ride allows access to shops, cinemas and even a theme park.  The more general area of which Southport is part - the Gold Coast - is a popular vacation area for Australians and New Zealanders.  For us, it is an excellent place to wait for good offshore weather for the two-night sail down to Port Stevens, our next stop south along the coast.

As is often the case when we want to sail somewhere, the wind is contrary; and so we wait. We want two to three days of fair weather so as to complete our passage non-stop. We do not feel we have the time to add many stopping places and the ports along the coast all have shallow river bars which complicate the timing and complexity of their access.  A suitable period is forecast to begin in a day or two.  It will be followed by a southerly gale so our timing must be precise.

The time spent waiting is not objectionable in the least.  The scene is endlessly entertaining with the human activity of beach-goers on the surrounding shore and the natural activity of the local creatures.  Large pelicans aviate ponderously across the shallows while mother ducks tour among the boats proudly showing off their brood.

Last night was Halloween. The accompanying photo shows how trick-or-treating is done on the water.  Pirate costumes are of course in order!  The social life includes visits to and being visited by nearby foreign boats - each of us advertising our origin with a prominent national ensign flown from the stern.  So far we have met two New Zealand crews and the family of a French boat from New Caledonia.

Zazie from New Caledonia

Zazie's crew

Of course, just so it doesn't appear to be all fun and play, I again mention the topic of boat maintenance:  Just completed projects have included the planned treating and repainting the bottom of a large locker to eliminate a small area of corrosion.

As well, two days ago the incredibly loud and always unexpected bilge alarm announced that water was rising inside our boat.  Tasting the bilge water (not salty) told us that we were in no danger of sinking. A hurried search around all the fresh water plumbing soon yielded up the leaky fitting. A half-hour of fiddling then replaced the faulty item with a new one from our spares kit to put things right.   The work (and the fun) continue!

Our new dodger

Our new dodger by East Coast Trimmers

We're so pleased with the new dodger - made within two days by East Coast Trimmers it is a truly marvellous aquisition! As mentioned in our previous posting, the last dodger shepherded us through at least 80,000 nautical miles. 'She' was knocked down (along with us!) on her very first long trip away from Australia and suffered damage which I repaired. We thought we could never get another GOOD SAILOR as she had proved to be, but we were wrong (alas - we often find ourselves in this position!).

The new dodger is a miracle of measuring, artistry and technology. She has miraculous new windows which are UV resistant as are the threads used in her construction. I had to re-stitch the old one numerous times. Her reinforcing is of grey chafe-resistant suede and the beige Sunbrella (the ONLY fabric that's used in hard-wearing marine environments) zips onto and matches the sunshade we had made 10 years ago.

The only trouble is that I need to varnish some woodwrok under the dodger ... and Larry and I don't want to remove it ... ever!

Our dodger will move when needed (like the last one - which was damaged in the knockdown!) It's less scary to know that the dodger (which is relatively high up in the boat) can move around, It seems better to lose the dodger than to have such a rigid structure that it takes some essential part of the boat with it (like the companionway hatch). A lot of people have more permanent dodgers made and installed on their boats - usually out of fibreglass - but although we fully expect never to be in the position again of having a knockdown, we like our dodgers to be able to move.

Our thanks to Rod Watts (owner of East Coast Trimmers) and to Jason Chancellor for the wonderful and timely work. You surpassed our expectations!

Jason Chancellor & Rodney Watts

Rod Watts

Horizon Shores Marina

We're in the middle of a convoluted waterway near Brisbane but far from any public transport or train station so we can only leave by foot or by taking a $35 taxi trip to the nearest train station.

Our boat has a 2.2m draft - yikes!

The convoluted waterway

tied to the fuel dock

Why did we choose this marina? This is where the sailmaker we selected to make our sprayhood (dodger) has his business. It's 7a.m. and Rod and his assistant Jason are currently outside measuring and taking notes on the job. The dodger (sprayhood in England) is the covering over the steps which lead down into the boat from the cockpit. It plays a vital role in keeping the watch-person comfortable (and dry) offshore. If it's well-made, you don't need to wear outer raingear or warm clothes to stand out there and keep watch.

waterfront home

When we got to Australia 10 years ago, our first dodger (constructed in Victoria in 2001) had failed. We had one made here - and it did the job brilliantly for about 80,000 nautical miles. We hope Rod and Jason can make one just as good. They're using real leather and Sunbrella - the colours may not 'match' perfectly, but we hope for a 'GOOD SAILOR'.

Horizon Shores restraurant

puzzle of Vernazza, Italy

People start work early here. Businesses don't officially open until 8:30 or 9, but trades-people and people who have to be out in the sun (like Rod) tend to start as early as 5a.m. There are not many liveaboards here - the marina restaurant closes at 3p.m. and there are few people around our dock. Yesterday I only saw 3 people walk down the ramp to our section of docks, and none of them came anywhere near.

Casey with 'goody bag'

Natalie and Casey

I include a photo of the 1,000 piece jigsaw we spent a whole day obsessing over. It passed the time quickly during the one day we anchored out. I'm sure neighbours around us wondered if we'd murdered each other!

I'm including a few photos of Horizon Shores. We had a lovely welcome at the office where we met Natalie and Casey.

The Shag Islet Cruising Yacht Club

Before we leave Raby Bay, I wanted to say a few words about a sailing association with the rather relaxed name of The Shag Islet Cruising Yacht Club (BTW -  a Shag is a type of common cormorant Down Under, and there's an actual Shag Islet somewhere further north). We joined the club when we were here six years ago - stayed in touch with friend Ken (who started the club about 7 years ago) for several years and renewed our interest when we reached Townsville and spent time with Club officer Michael Johnson on SV 'Pleasure'.

ANYONE can join who has an interest in the marine environment. When we joined, it was simply a social club and we had wandered into the Shag's Breath Cafe across from our dock here at Raby Bay. Ken and wife Rhonda Thackeray started it after he was refused entrance to a more traditional Yacht Club because he was not an officer of a reciprocating club. Now everyone in the club is an officer - I'm Vice-Commodore in Tuwanek Point, BC and Larry is the V.C. of Pirate's Cove, BC.

Joining the SICYC (2010)  with Rhonda and Ken

Since starting the club, they branched out and now have members world-wide. However, the most fantastic effort they have made has been to start donating all funds to help research into Prostate Cancer. So far this year, they have raised the astounding amount of $105,000!

Over several weeks on Wednesday nights, we've joined the fun ... we  just wanted to thank the club for their hospitality and to commend them for their good works!

The Hog's Breath Cafe in Raby Bay

Fun at Raby Bay Marina

The Marina office

We've been tied up here for a month ... it's a lovely spot with restaurants, grocery stores and excellent walks around the area. During this time, I went back to Ontario Canada for 15 days to visit family and friends. Meanwhile, Larry had to go in to have surgery and correct a 'man's problem'. He's gradually recovering but isn't allowed to carry anything heavy. So our new friends (and former Canadian compatriots) here are helping us out ... so far we've been driven around to Costco for supplies and invited for dinner to the lovely home of  Charlotte and Dave (SV Walkabout).

View of restaurants and businesses from Trav III

We met the 'Walkabouts' at the Wednesday night get-together of the Shag Islet Cruising Yacht Club here at the Hog's Breath Cafe just steps from where we're docked. We joined this club and got the T-shirt six years ago when we accidentally wandered into the Wednesday Club night. We'll be writing more about the club in succeeding blogs. Also in our photos with us are Tony and Marianne - she's a Canadian from Sudbury.. She and Tony have a lovely set-up nearby - actually within view of Traversay. Their condo overlooks the canal on which their boat is tied up.

I've started to do some 'serious' writing about our trip ... so far I've sent an article about the Rules/Regs for entering OZ to 'Currents' - the on-line magazine for the Bluewater Cruising Association.

'Shaggers' Wednesday night event

Charlotte's garden

Last weekend we went to see the excellent Tom Hanks movie 'Sully' about the airline Captain who landed his airplane on the Hudson River (with zero fatalities). We happened to meet up with Susan and Rick Carroll and as he's a retired Air Traffic Controller the conversation veered  towards the movie and the actuial event. The conversation became very protracted - we met the Carroll's son-in-law Matt and we'll be meeting the extended family on Sunday. Matt has extensive links to the sailing community. We're hoping to borrow this family's muscles on Sunday to help move the old chain off our boat and to move the new chain on as Larry won't be able to lift anything heavy for some time yet.

Susan and Rick Carroll

Charlotte in her garden

Fish pond

New and old friends!

SV Magenta

Al and Garry

SV Tonoa

The last few weeks we've met a score of fascinating people and re-connected with long-time friends. Out on the reefs and after not having met another soul for 10 days, we were delighted when Garry and Al arrived on their Sceptre 43 (a Canadian boat purchased from a Canadian) ‘Magenta’. They came aboard for dinner and gifted us with some magnificent fresh tuna and other fish. They had left home about 4 weeks earlier, and were spending a holiday together fishing and reef-walking. These are pastimes much enjoyed by Australian men as it allows them time away from us pesky women … they get to pursue their passion (fishing). They pick up lots of interesting artefacts during their walks. Of course, they have to wait for low tide as usually the reefs are hidden during the high tides. Apparently they often come upon sea snakes during these walks.Soon after returning to civilization, Al and Garry would re-connect with their womenfolk and cruise northward towards the ‘Sun’ with them.

Pete from Tonoa

Nerida

Larry with Ralph

Anyone who knows me knows that I hate fishing … it has to be THE most boring sport to watch, and in childhood I had to do too much of it with 3 brothers and a mother all of whom were mad-keen fishermen. I even asked prospective husbands if they fished or watched TV sports - either of these two obsessions were an instant turn-off. At any rate, I very much sympathize with Australian women if fishing and snakes are the reason we see so few ‘cruising’ in the wilds here. Of course, a few other reasons became transparently clear during our weeks out in the Coral Sea. With no actual land, or land scantily covered with sand, the huge pounders coming over all the way from French Polynesia leaves one wave-swept and unable to sleep easily in a tiny boat. So we met a few buddies out fishing. Another problem here is the chance of getting stuck in the sand. Charts are not totally reliable as the sand shifts and charts cannot stay abreast of all the ‘new’ sandbanks. On our way here to Mooloolaba we ran aground and had to wait for 20 minutes for the tide to come up. This meant that we were ‘late’ to cross ‘Tin Can’ strait and also late some hours later to get through the breakwater here at Mooloolaba while it was light. We then were late tying up to the dock and (because I couldn’t maker out the berth number) we were klutzy in getting into our spot. A number of helpful males were yelling instructions at Larry. Once we were safely ‘in’ we were exhausted. This just illustrates how much more difficult it would be for a 2-person crew here in Australia to sail – men LIKE to yell at each other, but I’m sure most females I know don’t like it. And that’s why we meet few women from Australia cruising offshore.

Sel and Jen in 2006

Larry with Sel

The first woman I’d seen for a very long time was Nerida at Lady Musgrave Island. She was there for 2 weeks as a watch-keeper along with her husband Ralph. In this Australian National Park, there IS an actual full-time island and retired people are invited to stay and camp for 2 weeks at a time. They orient tourists and campers, make sure paths are cleared and give more information about the island if asked. It’s still very wild and isolated – the boat they were supposed to come out in (a regular tourist craft) had sunk – no loss of life – and the National Park Service had to get them to the island. 

At Noosa beach with Ron and Sarah

We have had a lovely time here meeting with some long-time friends. Sel Parlane (SV Footloose II) came over and we went out for dinner. We met while were in Hobart in 2006 and have managed to stay in touch ever since. Sel lives here now and Jen is over in Nelson NZ so we’ll get to see her again when we go there for Christmas.

With Ron and Sarah in 2006

We just arrived home yesterday from a wonderful two nights ashore with friends Ron Koyich and Sarah Benecke. They live in what is (to us) an amazingly palatial and beautiful home in Noosa (north along the coast from here). We were so spoiled by the two of them that we feel quite unable to get back into our OWN lives. We had a lovely dinner (including a scallop appetizer) and I was served poached eggs for breakfast! I enjoyed wandering around and looking at elegant clothes in the shops on my own. Ron (who was at the University of Alberta with Larry) drove us up to the Timbeerwah Lookout from which you can see the whole coast. We then headed out to look for kangaroos in a spot Ron knows about, but with no success.

Visiting Ron and Sarah's home 

Bev and one of the braces

For me a most fortuitous event took place … a dinner guest and friend of Sarah’s – Bev Trevithick - arrived.  Bev is completing her PhD using data from research she’s been conducting on wrist injuries sustained by female gymnasts. She’s a highly educated health professional in all aspects of hand and foot care, and she knew about some braces which will help my problem with arthritic and impaired thumbs. She arrived the next day with some (slightly sub-standard) braces and when I fitted them, I could tell immediately that they would completely change my relationship with my keyboards! Since 2009 I’ve been in constant pain whenever I play. As a pianist, it’s both an actual physical pain and a psychic pain because the contrast between what I used to be able to do and what happens now when I sit at an instrument is huge. Once we get to our next Aussie port Sarah will send me my new braces. I also look forward to being more helpful to Larry – he’s had to ‘cover’ for me a lot in the last years. Of course, arthritis is an intransigent disease and perhaps not ALL will be cured by a set of braces.

Larry and I relaxing in Noosa

Larry had not slept ashore since Hallowe’en last year at nephew Peter Unrau’s in Vancouver. So our break ashore was very welcome. Both Ron and Sarah are very busy – Sarah still working practically full-time and Ron involved with many activities including the Noosa Coastguard. We really appreciate their taking us around, introducing us to their beaches and their Indian food restaurant … it is so special to be able to see how Australians live!

Noosa Beach

The Great Sandy Strait

Day after day the wind at Lady Musgrave blew stubbornly from the south, the very direction we wanted to proceed. From previous blogs, it can be seen that we can tack directly toward the wind ... but we don't enjoy the experience!

Finally after eight stationary days, the wind backed toward the east enough to allow an easy sail southward.  Off we went in late afternoon for the overnight sail to the Great Sandy Strait.

In previous travels in this area, we passed both south and north in the deep waters to the outside of Fraser Island, whose seventy nautical mile length rates it the largest sand island in the world.  On this voyage, we decided to travel behind Fraser Island both for the new scenery and to avail ourselves of our first smooth water since leaving Victoria Inner Harbour.

At high tide

Our passage started out with much shortened canvas and a boisterous sail south as close to the wind as we could manage.  By midnight, off the city of Bundaberg, the wind became lighter and then disappeared.  The waves and lively motion in turn made their exit as we motored the last miles toward the Strait in the early hours of dawn.

The Strait has not disappointed.  There are no waves at all that can be felt aboard Traversay III, either at anchor or underway.  This pleasantness does come with a price though.  The water is so shallow that we can only travel at half-tide or higher.  In addition, the vast areas of open water belie the reality that only thin channels of it are ever deep enough for navigation in a boat such as ours.  With the tricky navigation, we feel we cannot travel at night and must travel on a rising tide so that, if we do stray off the path and run aground, we can get away again.  Thus only a few hours a day are available for travel.  Enroute, we saw as little as 20 centimeters [8 inches] of water below our keel and here in our overnight anchorage, we expect the depth to be not much more than that.

At low tide

In a couple of days, we will head out into the ocean where the shallow water presents a different challenge: The ocean waves, on reaching the shallow waters of the Strait entrance break with some fury unless conditions are just right.  This creates yet more time constraints.  To allow us to leave, the tide must be fairly high and flooding [flowing inward] to reduce the propensity of the waves to break - an issue we will face at many Australian river ports with shallow entrances fronting directly onto the ocean.

But for now, all is peaceful ... and we have internet again!