The Geelong Trailable Yacht Club

27. 08.

Where: St Helens to Portarlington for an overnight stay and return the following day
When: 26 - 27 September
Briefing Time: 10:00 amOur first cruise for this season is planned to start from St Helens, sailing through to Portarlington taking in the sights of the beautiful Bellarine Peninsula. Once there we are planning a demonstration of the Cobb Cooker to learn first-hand what is possible with this amazing system. We aim to book into the local hotel for a great evening, and invite other members who for whatever reason can’t cruise with us to join us. After a leisurely breakfast on Sunday morning we will have a briefing on our return voyage home back through the North Channel.

Why don’t you join us…. please contact Paul Graham: 0432 248 962 by Saturday September 19th if possible so I can send you out the appropriate forms and information. OR ring on 0432 248 969 to let us know if you plan to join us on the Saturday night.

27. 08.

Part 3

Just got back from our first really big adventure, and it was ‘out of this world’. In talking to some locals, we decided to sail from Mackay out to Scawfell Island, a distance of 22nm, and stay in a really safe all weather anchorage at Refuge Bay. We planned to stay a couple of nights, but the weather forecast indicated strong winds a few days into the future, so we were prepared for a longer stay.

The trip out on Monday was perfect, 10 - 15kn on a shy reach, Ian helmed all the way without a single tack. Our navigation skills are improving, and we sailed directly there without any hassles. We anchored off shore the first night but then moved closer inshore so that we could ‘bottom out’ at low tide. This means we lift the centerboard/keel and let the boat sit on the sand. For several hours we then have access to all the beach facilities (a drop toilet and a dry rainwater tank), and a boat that does not move. Because the weather did indeed turn nasty, this last point ensured at least a couple of hours of lovely peaceful sleep. Several larger boats that we spoke to envied our ability to bottom out. We ate very well including roast lamb (cooked to perfection in our Cobb cooker), Thai warm beef chilli salad, curried beef etc. Marie even made a date loaf using the Cobb cooker and skills she learnt from her Mum who, when camping, could make birthday cakes in a frypan - what a woman!

Ian was concerned by Thursday that he only had 2 beers left, and was starting to wonder about the ability to brew beer from a dry water tank on a desert island. We decide to sail out on Saturday, although the forecast was at the upper end of our comfort zone. With the help of Marie’s brother Mick, we have been working on our heavy weather sailing skills and decided to put them to the test. The wind was 20-25kn,would again be a shy reach, but with 2m waves in a washing machine type sea. We put up a small amount of sail and handled the trip really well, if slowly, the waves settling during the afternoon.

The next day Marie was talking to a woman in the laundry (yes the cruising life is not all about drinking Chardonnay and eating things on biscuits) and another woman approached and asked if we were the small boat that had sailed into the marina on Saturday from Scawfell. I confirmed that we were, and she then told be that they had also sailed in on Saturday, and when her Year 12 son saw us sail into the marina, he said that if we could do the trip in ‘that small boat’, he would never woos again! There was a bit of discussion around the Marina about our exploits, but I can assure you all that we were never at risk, and we sailed safely, conservatively and delightfully the whole way.

Enough of the boring sailing stuff. I want to tell you a delightful story about Sophie the wonder dog, who belongs to a local couple Jan and David (who advised us about Scawfell). On the way out to Scawfell, you have to pass St Bee’s Island where Jan and David were motor cruising last year with their dog Sophie, a beautiful dark grey cattle dog. About 5 miles off St Bees they realised that Sophie was no longer onboard and immediately went into man overboard mode (or should that be bitch overboard?) Despite searching for many hours they were unable to locate her, and returned to Mackay much saddened by their loss.

Five months later, they received a report from a friend who had heard at a dinner party that there was a feral dog living on St Bees, and subsisting on fresh water and feral goats. Inquiries revealed that it was a cattle dog, which the rangers caught and returned to Mackay Harbour. The reunion was amazing, and even the sailors on the launch were crying. Sophie was delighted to see Jan and David, and acted as if nothing had happened and wanted to get into the car and go home.

A vet visit shortly thereafter revealed that Sophie was in excellent health if a little tatty, and her teeth were in perfect condition from dining on goat bones. She has become quite famous with reports of her exploits being sent all over the world, and a possible movie in the offing. As Jan and David cannot keep up with the requests for photo shoots, appearances and movies, Sophie is now being managed by Harry M. Miller. Despite all of this, Sophie is a delightfully friendly dog and a wonderful family pet.

I think you have all suffered enough with a sailing story and a lost dog story, so with apologies to Paul, Kate, Claire, Beth, Mark, Lachie and all the other Trekkies out there.
Part 4

So many adventures to tell you about and so little time!

Since my last communiqué we have moved up the coast to Airlie Beach and we are using the local Sailing Club as our base (warm showers and hot lattes). It is costing the astronomical sum of $1.10 per day to get full member privileges. They have made us feel very welcome and we are enjoying the fast paced tourist resort type town. There are backpackers all over the place and many languages, sure feels like we are not in Bendigo Toto.

We were anchored off South Molle Island last week and a passing dinghy invited us to lunch with them on prawns and wine, they thought our boat was cute. They were on a 50 foot charter boat (a Bavaria) and it was beautiful, and so it should be for over $1000 per day. We had a terrific time, and went into the resort for pre dinner drinks and many cocktails later, and no dinner, we managed to navigate our way back to the boat. Now I have been having some difficulty getting from the small inflatable dinghy onto our boat, but after several Pina Coladas, several Kamikazes and several things with umbrellas in them, it was remarkably easy and graceful, slept very well that night.

We have also spent several nights at Nara Inlet which is beautiful, and offers a short walk up to a cave that has some aboriginal cave paintings that visitors are welcome to peruse. The indigenous Ngaro people have been very generous in sharing this treasure, and as I have never seen cave paintings before, I was really amazed.

We keep catching up with people that we have met previously, and it is like seeing old friends after years of separation. There are several boats in the area that we keep in radio contact with, and try to cross paths every so often.

Most of the popular anchorages are very busy, and it would not be unusual to have between 20 and 50 boats moored there. We have found a little inlet called Bluff inlet which is about 3 nM from Airlie Beach and never another boat. It is a wonderful find, and may be the one that Dad was talking about. Sometimes it is just good to get away from the crowds!

There is a small 18 foot boat permanently anchored close to Airlie Beach. We always say hello to the owner Wayne who lives aboard, and his nephew Bob who is staying for a few months. Wayne is an invalid pensioner who does not like to pay rent, and who loves being on the water. The other day they called us over and gave us some shark fillets that they had caught. It was marinated in garlic, oil and lemon and was about the most delicious thing I have ever tasted.

I am amazed at the variety of people that we are meeting. Tim and Diana on the charter yacht who are seriously wealthy and have serious fun sharing it, and Wayne and Bob who have very little but share it just the same. It is humbling.

We are planning to stay in this area for quite a while yet as there are still so many places to explore. All those travel shows and postcards you may have seen do not do justice to the beauty of this area, it is gob smacking. Just to give an example of this, the other day I was sitting on the Porta Potti enjoying the view out of the companionway (door for you landlubbers), when 2 dolphins started playing around outside. It was great. Hopefully, I have been able to gross out Eleanor and a few others with that little anecdote, and I will leave you all with that thought in your heads.

Cheers

Marie and Ian

16. 10.

 The Farr Trailer Yacht Association of Victoria is planning a cruise along the Murray in September 2009 to which members of other yacht clubs and associations are invited. This cruise is part of the series of cruise organised by the Trailable Yacht Division of Yachting Victoria. Ron Tormey is the contact for this cruise (ph 9359 5648) and as you can see it will be a well planned event . Think about joining this cruise in 2009 (you have 12 months to plan!). It should be a lot of fun. I have more details from Ron re details river levels, wind strengths and temperatures. Contact Rob Ballard for this information. Ed.

1. Cruise Options

· Although the cruise is planned as a 3 week cruise, it could be taken by anyone wanting a shorter cruise as a 1 or 2 week(s) cruise by joining or leaving the cruise at Waikerie or Blanchetown (see suggested cruise details below).

· Option 1 Renmark to Waikerie, 1 week

· Option 2 Renmark to Blanchetown, 2 weeks

· Option 3 Renmark to Murray Bridge, 3 weeks (depends on water level past Blanchetown)

· Option 4 Waikerie to Blanchetown, 1 week

· Option 5 Waikerie to Murray Bridge, 2 weeks (depends on water level past Blanchetown)

· Option 6 Blanchetown to Murray Bridge, 1 week (depends on water level past Blanchetown)

2. River Levels

· Water levels in the river will be monitored before the cruise.

· The lock system maintains a reasonable level throughout the river although the level below Lock 1 at Blanchetown could create a problem.

· A final decision on the finishing point for the cruise will be made 1 month before the start of the cruise.

3. Logistics

· It will take up to 2 days to travel to Renmark by road.

· Allow 1 day to launch and provision the boat.

· It will take one day to transfer the cars & trailers to Blanchetown after launching the boat and return by bus to Renmark, see Car and Trailer Storage below.

· Total distance Renmark to Murray Bridge by water is approx. 456 Km. With an average speed of 6 - 8 Km per hour it would take 12 days, with approx. 6 hours motoring down the river each day, an average of approx 38 Km per day, some days longer and some shorter.

· There is no bus service from Murray Bridge to Blanchetown so we will need to move car(s) to Murray Bridge so we can return by car to collect cars & trailers from Blanchetown, one more day, see Car and Trailer Storage below.

· Suggest we have 3 or 4 spare days.  These spare days could be used for a rest day in the larger towns where people might like to have a break and look around town, or could be used to rest and shelter on strong wind days.  Advisable we don’t use all of them early in the cruise.  May need some towards the end of the cruise for windy days.

· Allow 2 days to retrieve the boats and travel back to Melbourne.

· Therefore 3 weeks, including the weekends before and after, would make a total of 23 days for the full trip from Renmark to Murray Bridge, see Suggested Cruise Details below.

2 days Travel to Renmark
1 day Launch and provision the boat
1 day Transfer cars and trailer to Blanchetown
12 days Motoring down River
4 days In reserve, rest or waiting days
1 day Retrieving cars and trailer from Blanchetown
2 days Returning home

4.     Car and Trailer Storage

· Move them to Blanchetown Caravan Park with lock up storage yard (am), distance approx. 120 Km. Return to Renmark by bus. Stateliner bus service departs Blanchetown 2.25 pm and arrives Renmark 4.15 pm.  Current cost for bus trip is $29.10, with pensioner concession $14.55.  Bus departs Blanchetown 2.25 pm and arrives at Renmark at 4.15 pm.

· When we arrive at Blanchetown, spend the next day moving car(s) to Murray Bridge so we have vehicle(s) to take the drivers back to Blanchetown to retrieve cars/trailers. Approx. 130 Km each way.

5. Additional information

· Recommended Guide Book; “Murray River Pilot” by Baker & Reschke

· You can rig the boat with mast raised and boom to support a boom tent for cover.  Otherwise you will need a jury rig to support a boom tent.

· Upon leaving Renmark we need to pass under the Paringa Bridge.  Clearance is 3.8m above pool level when the bridge is lowered, and 12.3m when raised.  The bridge opens once each morning and afternoon during weekdays and mornings only at weekends and public holidays.  Otherwise 2 hours notice is required to have the bridge opened.  We will need to time our departure to coincide with the bridge opening at 9.30 am.  There is only one other bridge to worry about.  When we reach Murray Bridge the Road bridge is 9.3 m and the rail bridge 8.7 m above pool level. If you have raised the mast you may have to lower it to pass under these bridges.

· There are several locks to pass through, only 1 on any one day.  It can take up to an hour to pass through the lock depending whether a boat coming up stream is passing through the lock when we arrive at the lock. Locks are usually a short distance downstream from town, and operate 8am to 11.30am and 1pm to 4.30pm.

· Departure time each morning will depend on the Kms to cover the next day and participants will be notified the previous night.

· Once we start motoring downstream it will be possible for boats to raft up together and run on 1 motor alternating between boats approx. each hour.

16. 10.

 Yes, it is on again, our annual cruise to Port Fairy!

 For those of you who have done this trip in the past: I will say no more. If you haven’t done this trip, and if racing is not your forte but you like cruising then this is the cruise for you. Port Fairy is a lovely old fishing village on the Moyne River. It is about 20 km west of Warrnambool. My preferred way of getting there is to travel along the Hamilton Highway, then from Mortlake to Warrnambool, then west to Port Fairy.

 Mooring and overnight stay will be in the river alongside jetties. There is some great sailing to be done in the bay and if the weather is goo, you could sail around Lady Julia Percy Island, as some of us have done in the past. I have made arrangements with the Yacht Club, and if some of you decide to take a caravan instead of a yacht, you can park on their Club grounds. I have also spoken with the Harbour Master. He will try and fit us in somewhere, as they are re-building some of the jetties. He asked me how many yachts were coming, i said about 6. However I will need to know the exact number by 18th October. Please give me a ring on 52 75 7 444 or 0428 586 029.

 Mooring fees in the river will be $15 per day per boat. The days of free mooring seem to have well and truly gone! The Commodore of the Port Fairy Yacht Club is Bill Morgan - 0409 147 696. The Harbour Master’s name is M Dumesny 0408 529 190.   

Jake Postuma                                                                           

31. 03.

Jock is one of those genuine people you meet from time to time who enjoys sharing just a moment of their lives with you and leave you truly amazed by their real life experiences. An Aussie thru and thru Jock farmed for many years near Horsham in central Victoria working 18 hour days and little time for his love of sailing boats and flying gliders. Then 15 years ago Jock, his wife and two children Kate & Andrew (aged 8 & 6) packed up and sailed their newly acquired yacht the Fi-Tuen out of Fremantle on a three year adventure that took them to New Guinea, Indonesia and Thailand. His stories of daily life on the high sea’s were so vivid you could taste it, stories helped along by realities of a book I was reading at the time, Jesse Martin’s solo and unassisted adventure around the world on his yacht Braveheart.

Jock has a new family now and has lived in Thailand for the past 12 years but not before he sailed his Adams 13 single handed from Thailand to Australia twice, ran aground on an uncharted reef, sailed into Dilli harbour during a civil uprising with a broken keel and has seen more sunsets than most of us put together.

Our day started when Jock picked us up from our hotel in his old Nissan utility and we bundle the kids in the back to motor to the top of Phuket Island through little Thai villages and rice patties separated by clumps of tropical rain forest. Fi-Tuen sat moored amongst several big keel boats, launches and motor boats that seemed worlds apart from the rural communities that we passed through to get to the Yacht Haven Marina. Before cruising there was some basic housekeeping to do as Jock wanted to prepare Fi-Tuen for a sail to the south of the island for dry dock and maintenance. Louise scrubbed up the galley while Jock knocked a few troublesome barnacles from the hull and the kids and I scrubbed the decks.

We eventually motored out into the bay void of any sign of wind on glassy waters and in bright sunshine. Phang Nga Bay is a sight to be seen almost prehistoric with limestone islands everywhere reaching straight up out of the ocean hundreds of feet high topped with a thick coating of tropical foliage. When the tide is low limestone caves just big enough to explore in a sea canoe are revealed in the enormous cliff face. Some caves provide access to hidden lagoons trapped in the center of the island but you have to lay flat on your back in the canoe and maneuver between limestone formations to get through. The local tourist trade run boatloads of sightseeing trips to explore the caves and visit James Bond Island made famous for the movie “Man with the Golden Gun”.

Jock steered the Fi-Tuen towards a beautiful sandy beach on one of the larger islands where we beached in about a meter of water to ferry our small kettle BBQ, towels and foam box full of cold beer, the occasional sausage (imported from NZ) and a loaf of bread. Even though the Fi-Tuen has a swing keel maneuvering her in the shallows between sandbars and with the gentle tide took Jock’s years of experience. The beach was spectacular, clean white sand void of footprints flanked with big shady palm trees and surrounded by tropical rain forest. The only sign of man having set foot on the island was a couple of grass huts backed into the jungle used by Thai fishermen to shelter from the midday sun and an old wooden canoe that lay derelict, almost like a garden ornament on the beach.

After satisfying our hunger, a couple of ice cold beers and a cool swim the real fun started. A 15 knot off shore breeze blew in resulting in flat seas and great sailing. With a relatively narrow beam the Adams 13 sails comfortably with its lee transom almost under water and spirits along at an exceptionally fast pace. Heaving on its enormous genoa as we tacked up the bay made a similar maneuver on my Castle 650 (Freeloader) inconspicuous by comparison. The kids enjoyed the comfort of bathing in the sun on the high side hanging their legs over the gunwale while the best I could do to fight gravity in the cockpit was to straddle one of Fi-Tuen’s big winch rollers like the horn of a saddle.

The afternoon was most satisfying as we tacked our way up the bay into the setting sun using the now fast moving tide to drag the Fi-Tuen through the wind shadow of islands and right into the marina not wanting to drop sail until we really had to. Sailing Phang Nga Bay is up there with the best of things I shall ever do, meeting Jock Cromie is something I shall never forget. If you ever find yourself in Thailand look Jock up and visit his Yacht Charter web site at http://www.sailing-phuket.com you will enjoy the experience.

Lee Shaddock