Escaping Tasmania; Crossing Bass Strait


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Oceania » Australia » New South Wales
July 14th 2015
Published: August 2nd 2015
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Hobart Tasmania to Bermagui, NSW


Sophie and DougSophie and DougSophie and Doug

Heading to Hobart town
We are off and heading north to the sun, warm water and coral. That at least was the plan.



Distance covered – 538 nmiles – over 16 days (30 May to 14 June) from Prince of Wales Bay Tasmania to Bermagui, NSW. The crossing of Bass Strait involved 363 nmiles taking 73.5 hours at an average of 5 knots.



After the crew arrived, one of the first jobs was to get Spoh and Digga some warm clothing so we visited the Salvo shop in Newtown. They were able to get several good pieces of clothing and warm woollen hats. Now we were ready.



Who are the crew? Digga and Soph, both young professionals from southwest England (Bristol was where they last lived) on a yearlong travel adventure. They found me on a website called “Find-A-Crew” which is for skippers and crew to find each other from around the world. They were surfing in Indonesia at the time so a very big temperature change for them.



As usual, I strongly suggested that they take seasickness tablets, so after several chemists (most of whom offered very poor options) they had a supply of tablets for the trip. Please note that I always suggest crew take tablets unless they have a known history of not getting sick. Sailing adventures are big scary things so people’s anxieties are up which adds to the effect of the motion of Hakura, thus develops a close and loving relationship with a bucket. Also note that many times crew buy the tablets and then not take them. They usually later say “But we were feeling ok before we started”.



Come Saturday 30 May we left the safety and comfort of the Prince of Wales Bay Marina and headed to Sullivans Cove on Hobart waterfront for a final chance to say goodbye to my friends in Hobart. The wind was strong on the way down, which was ok as it was behind us. Just after we had tied up in the shelter of the cove the wind picked up and was blowing 40 plus knots. We were very glad to be safely in the cove.



We stayed overnight on the public wharf that is in the Sullivans Marina complex. The usual limit is 4 hours but we saw nobody to tell us to move on. Digga and Spoh took the opportunity to visit Hobart, particularly the Salamanca Market. They enjoyed it, though they said there were some empty spaces, which was not surprising due the strong winds.



Over Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning many people who wished us a good and safe voyage visited us. Thanks for all the kind thoughts and especially the yummy ANZAC biscuits, Claire. Unfortunately they did not last long as they were so yummy.



We cast off from the wharf at 2 pm on Sunday and headed down to Alexanders Bay on Bruny Island. This was a quite motor as there was little wind but some rain. The plan was to head off across Storm Bay on the Monday and make for Fortescue Bay, a trip of about 45 nautical miles so a longish day, particularly for the crews’ first taste of roughish conditions.



Next morning the weather forecast was not great but Digga really wanted to get going so I agreed and we headed off. In hindsight, this was not one of my great decisions. Not an issue for me, but due to seasickness and the cold my crew did not enjoy the trip. The wind was about the strength forecast with occasional higher gusts but the direction was more southerly so a slight head wind rather that being from behind the beam.



As we rounded Cape Raoul the wind backed to the southeast, thus it stayed forward of the bean rather than moved aft. This meant that the hoped for flatting of the ride did not occur. Also, I noticed that Soph was getting whiter and sicker by the minute. I asked Digga to check her and make an assessment of her and his status with an idea of whether they could stand another couple of hours of this or should we head for the shelter of Port Arthur.



Digga’s assessment was that shelter was a better option, which was good because that was my thoughts too. We were able to ease sheets slightly and headed for the entrance of Port Arthur. I even predicted that Soph would be smiling at me once we were rounded the entrance.



Just after that, Digga joined in the love affair with the bucket. After that I told him to take Soph below and get her into a warm sleeping bag. I was a bit too optimistic with my prediction. It was not till she had warmed up and we were well into Port Arthur did she smile at me.



We were heading for the same public mooring as Claire and I had used but there was a yacht on it, plus another one anchored nearby, so we had to anchor as well. Oh the crowds. As we passed the anchored vessel, they hailed us and invited us over for dinner. What a great welcome.



Once we were anchored and the kettle was on both Digga and Soph brighten up. The usual cure of seasickness had worked: a safe anchorage and the prospect of a warm cup of tea. So ended our first day of sailing and as it turned out the worst weather of the whole trip.



We got picked up by the other yacht and taken across for a great evening and wonderful warm dinner. The crew were ex RNZN officers who had sailed around the world at least once and now lived in Kettering in Tasmania. The guy off the other yacht (the one on my mooring!) was a Frenchman who was sailing his newly acquired yacht from northern Tasmania to Hobart. In the process he had lost his anchor thus he needed to stay on the mooring (which was fine with me, really).



The next day was given over to recovering from our sail and a chance of Digga and Soph to explore the historic Port Arthur site. It was good to see both of them enjoying themselves after the cold and seasickness of the day before.



To add to Sop’s misery of being seasick, she had been sitting in a spot where water can build up and her wet weather gear had developed a hole in the seat of the trousers so she got soaked. I don’t know what gear is coming to these days. The set she was wearing had come from my brother Scott who had only had it since the 1970s. On a brighter note we did manage to sew and glue up the broken seam (after finding that duck tape did not work). Not sure if it is waterproof as we did not get to really test it again.



On Wednesday the 3rd of June we headed out of Port Arthur for Fortescue Bay. A short trip of less than 20 nmiles. The wind was light and behind us though forecasted to pick up in the afternoon. We were through the gap between Tasman Island and Cape Pillar before the wind picked up. We still managed a good eased sheets sail up the east coast of the Tasman Peninsular before heading into Canoe Bay in Fortescue Bay. A very sheltered spot. We were even visited by a Goshawk. The first one of these birds I have seen.



Thursday had us motor sailing up to Chinaman’s Bay on the western side of Maria Island. It was a good day and a fine anchorage to end with. This was my first time on this side of the isthmuses between north and south Maria Island. Claire and I had stayed on the eastern side in Riedle Bay in December.



We stayed in the bay for a couple of nights and even managed to go fishing on the Friday, catching 7 legal flathead. We hooked several more undersize ones that all made it back, even past our mate the Tasmanian shy albatross. It ate most of the left overs from flitting the fish, but it missed all the undersize ones. The fillets make a great dinner of fish and chips.



We would have loved to stay longer but the weather was due to get worse so on Saturday morning we headed into Triabunna. We had no difficulties getting in and tied up to a fishing boat as I had done last time. I checked with the harbourmaster and he wanted us to move to one of the new marina style berths near the entrance. So after that was done we were able to explore Triabunna.



First stop was the fish and chip van for a lunch. The lady who runs it remembered me and even went so far as to tell my crew they were in good hands as I was “not a dickhead”. High parse indeed.



We ended up staying for four days till the worst of the wind had gone. I enjoy Triabunna but there is not much there though everybody is friendly and helpful.



We all managed to do our washing at the local camping ground, after checking with the owners. They are very willing for visiting yachties to use their place, just not the free campers.



Early on the morning of 10 June we headed out of Triabunna for Wineglass Bay and our last night in Tasmania. The wind was a solid westerly giving us a good sail across Great Oyster Bay around Schouten Island and up the east coast of the Freycinet Peninsula. It was good for Soph and Digga to feel how Hakura handled a wind from on the beam and nobody was sick. A good start.



We dropped anchor in Wineglass Bay just after 3 pm as the westerly wind started to pick up. A good sign for tomorrow where such wind would push us up the coast, at least I hoped that would be so. Now after nearly 6 months I was back in Wineglass Bay where I had anchored in Tasmanian for the first time. During the afternoon we finished getting Hakura and ourselves ready for the trip north.



You may remember that Digga and Soph are English and that they come from the southwest of England. Now Digga’s family have a tradition of swimming in the sea most of the year, though particularly on Christmas Day so Tassie’s cold water should not have stopped him. He finally jumped in at Wineglass Bay and said, through gritted teeth, that it was ok. I would not do it and he did not get out right away, so well done Digga.



Another good thing to come from Digga’s swim was that he reported back that Hakura had little fouling but there was some rope around the prop. Oh yea, I do remember having a line go over the side when I was moving Hakura once. Digga was able to cut the line off and then we let him back on board.



The night was not as quite as I had hoped, as the wind was strong from the west and blowing over the isthmus. No waves but Hakura was bobbing and waving most of the time. I got up once and let a bit more chain out (actually about another 30 meters). Whilst most of the time I like to use as little as possible (a hung up from having to hand pull it sometimes) when the wind gets up I often let out lots. It is better that the chain is on the seafloor helping to hold Hakura in place rather than staying dry in the anchor well.



We did sleep and Thursday 11 June dawned clear and calmer. We eat a hearty breakfast – porridge no doublet, before heading off for the crossing at 9 am. As noted already it was calmer. Much calmer. We motored out of the bay and began the 340 nmile crossing.



We motor sailed up the east coast into a light nor’west wind, expecting the wind to pickup and then we would be able to turn off the motor. This expectation continued for most of the trip, in the end we only turned the motor off for about 4 hours on day two when we were approaching the Victorian coast.



When we were off Bicheno (about 10 nmiles off) we passed through an area that was a bit of a biological hotspot. There were lots of seabirds, including penguins, then Digga noticed whales further offshore and finally we realised the breaking waves around us were dolphins. They did not come and play alongside Hakura till after dark, much to Soph’s disappointment. This was offset, to some degree, by the dolphins being shown up by the bioluminescence as they swan around us.



On the first night Digga reported seeing the lights of a vessel further offshore but said they did not do anything. I corrected him by noting that they had done the right thing – staying away from us.



The weather stayed fine and clear. We last saw the Tasmanian mainland (or at least the light on Eddystone Point just before 6 am on Friday the 12th. We continued to see the hilltops on Cape Barren and Flinders Islands well into Friday. We did our 3 hours on and 6 off without much change all Friday and overnight. The next big excitement was a call of “Tharp she blows” around 9 am on Saturday. A Humpback whale was seen off to port. We saw two schools of dolphins during the day. One group may have been the possible different species from the trip down while the other lot were clearly common dolphins.



We sighted the northeast corner of Victoria (about where Cook first sighted Australia in 1769) around midday. Progress continued to be good till we passed Green Cape (in NSW and just south of Twofold Bay, where I had left way back on 17 December). From this point onwards we came under the influence of the East Australian Current. If you have read my blog of the trip south along the NSW coast you will remember that this current was a great assistance by adding an extra knot of speed. Well now it was taking away a knot from our speed across the bottom.



Before we rounded Green Cape the wind had died so I dropped the main as well as furled in the headsail. On rounding the Cape the wind sprang up, this time from the west-northwest. Bummer, we could have done with the main now. I unfurled the headsail and we tacked up the NSW coast. It was during my watch that I noticed that we were sailing at 5 knots but only making an average of 4 knots. That blood East Australian Current. On checking, the sea temperature was 21.4, a clear sigh of a strong eddy of the East Australian Current. Whilst this was a bit frustrating it did have the good side of slowing us down so that our arrival off Bermagui would be during daylight not the expected dark early morning.



Eight AM did see us off Bermagui and we were alongside at 08:45 Sunday morning. All safe and well. A great trip though lots of motoring but this did mean that the sea was basically flat and nobody was sick or even a bit off colour (at least I think so).



Well done Soph and Digga, you guys did a great job and it was a fun passage.



There is another important aspect of the crew that I think really added to my enjoyment of their company: they did argue with me on lots of things. As many of you know, a real plus with me.



We had a plan to stay a few days in Bermagui and then head north to Batemans Bay and on towards Sydney and finally the tropics. Things were progressing well with people showered, cloths washed, weather forecasts checked and fuel obtained, and then came that dreadful conversation for a skipper.



Digga and Sophie came back on board after a Skype section with his parents to say a medical issue that he had had not cleared and some results were pointing at a much more serious long-term issue. They need to head back to Perth, where a pervious set of test had been done, to get more done. Obviously they had to go and the first opportunity was the bus at 7 AM tomorrow morning heading for Sydney.



I will miss those great cups of tea, the lovely porridge and great thought provoking agreements.



So I went from having a good crew stated to be trained for the trip up the NSW coast to being solo again and with East Australian Current against me making all passaged slower. This, plus the shorter daylight, meant that some night sails would be needed.



Oh well, you just have to keep going, so on Tuesday 16 June morning we were all up and said our good byes and they were off. I wish them well and hope they get it all sorted (spoiler alter - it was a tropical parasite and with the right medication all will be ok).


Additional photos below
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The Iceman

Digga showing us that he can really swim in cold water, Wineglass Bay
The seas were massive while crossing Bass Strait, really.The seas were massive while crossing Bass Strait, really.
The seas were massive while crossing Bass Strait, really.

That is Venus and Jupiter coming into alignment.


3rd August 2015

well done captain!!
great blog once again. We need to vet them before taking printouts to nana cos your last one mentioned that she almost died. Well did that give her something to talk about for a few days:) tehe Bruce went up yesterday and she a bit under the weather with a cold. So shall call in today to see how she is. She has her update meeting on her care plan this week so see what they say. want to get walking with her walker put in as don't think that's happening. She seems more settled there and not giving other residents too much grief! She always loves the carers and they joke a lot with her so that's good. Good luck with your travels north and finding more crew. Scott and maria in Europe so hope their travels going well too Cheers Frances

Tot: 0.167s; Tpl: 0.015s; cc: 10; qc: 59; dbt: 0.0831s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.4mb