Sailing round Russell Island with Peter

Day 3, Friday, our last day as we needed to get back to Steiglitz by the end of the day to pack up the following morning.



It was good to have Peter around and after a chinwag on his boat we agreed to sail round Russell Island and back down Main Channel to Steiglitz and Rudy Maas. At first there was a pleasant sailing breeze, maybe around 10 knots. There is plenty of room in Canaipa Passage to sail. We had a ball sailing up the eastern shore of Russell Island, although we still had to follow the channel markers. At last we felt we were on a sailing trip and it was good not to have the chug chug of our 2 stroke motor all the time.



When we reached the top of Russell Island the wind was rising somewhat alarmingly and we had to beat up the channel to the north of Karragarragarra Island. The tide was against us. Peter's Farr 6000 is faster than Little Dragon and he was well ahead. Suddenly the whipping I had done fastening the clew of the jib to the new jib sheet came undone. Luckily the jib rolled up on its furler (it didn't when we were in The Clarence last time).

I decided to anchor for us to put a reef in, sort out the jib and have lunch. Peter was out of sight ahead. I learnt later that he was worried about us and kept ringing me on his Optus mobile but I have Telstra and had no coverage. I am not at all surprised that Cleveland recorded gusts of 29 knots that afternoon. It was wild.



TJib fixed, reef in and fortified by lunch we set off again but this time under motor at least until we rounded the corner and turned south. The plan worked well, we took ages to motor against wind and tide to the corner but we made it. Once we were heading south we were able to hoist our reefed main and continue sailing. Another exhilarating sail.

All 3 days there was either too much or too little wind and by the time we got about three quarters of the way back to Rudy Maas it died away completely. We dropped the main and motored. Peter probably thinks we are wimps because a gentle breeze came up again and he managed to continue under sail the whole way. I was worried that we wouldn't get back before sunset without the motor and I don't have the experience to sail down the slalom course in the dark.

Thanks Nicky for being a great crew the whole time, without you I couldn't have done it. Thanks also Peter for your support and offering to make a little seat to fit over the transom of the new Zodiac.

The Bedroom at Jumpinpin

The Bedroom is near Jumpinpin on South Stradbroke Island. It is only accessible to shallow draft vessels like Little Dragon and, unfortunately, a host of stink boats. Friends tell me that during school holidays it is packed out, but the day we were there we had the place to ourselves. It is only a couple of hundred metres walk over one sand dune to the surf beach. There is a track the ranger uses to drive in and maintain the toilet/shower block, rubbish bins and BBQs, but otherwise it is only accessible by boat. We'll be back...

We were determined to get to The Bedroom

It was a flat calm when we set off on Thursday, day 2 so we again motored. We didn't mind as we still had some windy, narrow channels to navigate to get to The Bedroom. The black dashes on the Beacon to Beacon chart show our route on day 2.



I know that Peter manages to navigate all the narrow channels under sail in his Farr 6000, well all I can say is "You're a better man than me Gunga Din".


At one point early in the day the channel widened and we hoisted the sails but there was so little wind and a strong ebb tide that we were going backwards. So back to motoring.

Why did we want to get to The Bedroom? Well we know two couples with trailer sailors, Cheryl and Terry and Liz and Garry. They all said it was stunning and we must get there. So it became rather like a holy grail. It was obviously a foolish venture on an ebb tide but as we nosed our way in the depth was only 1.4m. It was worth it, we agree it is fantastic. We only stayed 15 mins as we didn't want to go aground but we will be back for an overnighter as soon as possible.


Once we got out of the shallow channel into The Bedroom we anchored off The Southport Yacht Club which appeared to be a youth training camp. We planned a relaxing cuppa with lunch. That wasn't to be. Five speed boats filled with youngsters kept going back and forth and we rocked violently each time. It may well have been a training session for a boat licence now a practical test is required.







We soon decided to get underway and head for Canaipa Passage. The plan was to enter Canaipa Passage by rounding the eastern tip of Crusoe Island. By this time it was a flood tide so I didn't see myself getting swept over the Jumpinpin bar, but the wind was rising as as we got close to the eastern point it was getting choppy and my 5 hp motor was only making ground slowly against the flood tide. So a quick decision - retreat. We turned back and retraced our steps up Whalley's Gutter and McKenzies Channel and then into Canaipa Passage.


It was late afternoon by the time we reached Slipping Sands and a strong N/NW was coming straight down Canaipa Passage. We tried anchoring at Slipping Sands, but we rocked wildly - not a good omen for a good night's sleep. We up anchored (thanks Nicky) and decided to keep going to Fishermans Channel and hope that was quieter. It was and we anchored right over the yellow anchor in Beacon to Beacon north of Oak Island. It didn't take us long to have a glass of red wine, dinner and settle down for the night.


Peter Barnes wanted to join us in his Farr 6000 but he had been delayed by a funeral in Mullumbimby so wasn't able to launch until 7 pm. It shows his years of experience as a professional seaman that he navigated from Cabbage Tree Point to where we were anchored down Fishermans Channel in the dark. We woke up next morning to see him anchored alongside.

Slalom course in a dust storm

It was quite eerie motoring off into the dust storm. We were novices at following the slalom course of port and starboard channel markers in Beacon to Beacon, but I must give credit to Nicky who did a valiant job. In very non-nautical terms we knew that we turned left out of the marina and first right!

When I say motored off I mean it. There was no way we were going to hoist the sails. The wind seemed to be on our nose (whichever way we went) and it just kept increasing.

For the record I have just checked the archived maximum wind gusts recorded at Cleveland (the nearest location as far as I know). The recordings don't give wind direction but I reckon it stayed NW most of the 3 days we were out.

Monday 12th Oct 29 knots, Tuesday 13th Oct 31 knots (thank goodness we stayed home)

Wed 14th - the day we left - 28 knots

Thursday 15th - 17 knots

Friday 16th - 29 knots (no wonder we needed to reef)

Our plan had been to anchor for the night at Slipping Sands in Canaipa Passage, but way before we got there we decided that we needed to find somewhere far more protected so we slipped into McKenzies Channel to the West of Crusoe Island. It proved a good decision as we found a great spot and by early evening the wind dropped away completely and with it the dust storm. You can see from the photos below how still it was early the next morning.

Nicky got a well deserved good night's sleep. I also slept well even though my chest felt full of dust.

Rudy Maas Marina

By Wednesday 14 October BOM coastal waters forecast for Gold Coast had moderated (a little) to:


Wed: N/NW 15-20 knot, tending W/NW at 20-25 knots during the day, shifting W/SW 15-20 in the late afternoon and evening.



Thursday W/SW 10-15 knots easing to 5-10 knots during the morning. Shifting NE/NW during the afternoon and evening.



Friday W/SW 10-15 early shifting SE/NE during the afternoon.

There wasn't a strong wind warning so we decided to give it a go. The forecast had said "hazy". We had no idea that meant there was going to be another dust storm almost as bad as the one that was reported worldwide a few weeks ago.

We had the tide times and it was, loosely speaking, high morning and evening and low midday.



Rudy Maas must be one of the few places in the Gold Coast that hasn't been "done up". I rate it as a 1 star place and it suits me just fine. For a very modest sum we launched down the excellent triple concrete ramp and stored the car and trailer nearby within what they claimed to be a secure area. I am scared of dogs but but these guard dogs didn't even scare me!
They also let us stay in their mini-marina on our last night. Thank you Rudy Maas.


We probably should have read the signs better, the palm trees were bent horizontal and no-one else was launching. However we went saying to ourselves that if it was too bad we could anchor just outside the marina. After the debacle in the Clarence River (see the Southerly Buster post) Nicky and I were determined not to provide more tales of calamity for our post-swim coffee group..

Spot the difference

I scoured the internet for another second hand Zodiac but there were absolutely none advertised anywhere in Australia. So I bit the bullet and purchased a new one. Spot the difference? I'll help - this one has a yellow trim.

I had rather nervously phoned the Australian Pensioner's Insurance Association who insure my boat and reported the theft of my Zodiac. They didn't bat an eyelid and immediately mailed me a cheque for the sum insured. So far I have only had really positive experiences with this insurance company. They didn't even raise my premium after paying for a new mast last year.

I needed the Zodiac (or some form of tender) as Nicky and I had planned a three night trip from 12th to 14th October to Stradbroke Island. Peter was coming as well in his Farr 6000. At the last moment we very reluctantly postponed as the weather forecast for Tuesday 13th October was NW 20-30 knots.

Sailability from Norfolk to Lake Ainsworth

Those of you who have followed this blog from the very first post will know that my sister and I have followed both our parents' passion for sailing. Mum had a stroke when she was 74 which caused paralysis of her right side. While we were holidaying together I found that there was a disabled sailing school nearby, The Roanoke Day Centre run by the Nancy Oldfield Trust on Barton Broad, Norfolk. They were a bit taken aback at my request that they gave Mum a go and said that they catered for teenagers. I muttered "discrimination" and they relented. I will never forget the look of sheer bliss on her face as she took the helm and tacked back and forth across Barton Broad.

I have always had in mind that one day I could volunteer at such a centre. My sister has been telling me about how she volunteers as a keel boat skipper for Sailability in Southern England. My first contact with Sailability in Australia was at the Big River Sailing Club. I was impressed and then found out that they also sailed at Lake Ainsworth, Lennox Heads which is far closer to home for me.
This photo is of the little ballast assisted dinghies Sailability uses on Lake Ainsworth. They are an international class and their gun sailor Chris, a little person, is competing in the Para Olympics in the 303 with the yellow sail in England next year.





I went out for a spin with Chris. He doesn't weigh much and I weigh too much which doesn't improve the trim when sitting side by side. I quickly adjusted to using the joystick to steer but the main snag is that the super heavy centre board is too heavy for me to lift from a seated position.





I have watched men and women, young and old with a range of serious disabilities sail round the lake. Those with enough experience sail single handed and others go with an experienced volunteer. All come back elated.





I intend to return whenever I can and try to make myself useful. However I will leave the stronger and younger volunteers to lift the centre boards and lift people in and out of the boats. I can easily wade around and push the boats in and out and help rig. As I have a boat licence I can also drive the rescue launch.

I

The southerly buster

It was the long weekend and I was all organised with Nicky to crew on Saturday and Rae on Sunday and Monday. The plan was to launch at Maclean and head up to Brushgrove. However we were foiled by finding that the Clarence River was "closed" on the Sunday for the annual Bridge to Bridge event.

We quickly revised the plan and launched at Harwood planning to overnight at Iluka. The tide was good, an ebb all the afternoon, but I knew there was a strong wind warning and forecast of a 20-30 knot southerly coming in that evening. So although there wasn't much wind when we left we still put in a reef "just in case...".

All went well until we reached the green Goodwood Island buoy. I was on the helm and Nicky below phoning Rob about our new plan. Before we left Harwood John had commented that we would see the southerly approach. Well I didn't. Reflecting back on what happened next I realise that I must get far smarter at predicting changes before they happen.

Within a minute around 2.30 pm the wind shifted from around 13 knots NW to gale force southerly. I am not exaggerating. The weather observations at Yamba recorded the wind gusting to 34 knots. Lucky we had the reef in. To keep off the lee shore I had to attempt to hold her on the wind. We barrelled along heading ominously towards the rocks protecting the Goodwood Island Wharf. I managed to get the motor on and get her under control past the rocks. Then I saw that it was possible to come ashore on sand to the East of the wharf. I made a snap decision to do this.

The southerly buster had put an end to fishing for the day and two fishermen were packing up their gear when they suddenly saw Little Dragon hurtling towards them. They leapt into action and caught us. The sails were flogging wildly and it was quite a struggle to get them down. The jib furler wasn't up to the task.

At this point the fishermen, Steve and his son Ben, who live close to the Browns Rocks Caravan Park, would have been quite entitled to think that they had helped us out of danger and leave us to sort ourselves out. Not a bit of it, Steve drove me to the Big River Sailing Club to fetch my car and trailer leaving Ben to help Nicky hold the boat. Little Dragon came ashore just by a sandy spot mullet fishermen use to launch but the sand was far too soft for my car to pull her out. Steve said he would try with his stronger vehicle but it ended up bogged. So Steve dispatched his son to fetch his father-in-law's tractor. We waited and soon father-in-law arrived and surveyed the scene. His plan was that I motored round to the other end of the wharf where there was a better ramp where it would be possible for his tractor to pull me out. Nicky and I were a bit nervous heading back out into the wild weather but all went well. A huge thank you to Steve, Ben and father-in-law. I promise I will return the favour if ever the opportunity arises.

We had been towing the Zodiac as we would need it at Iluka. While waiting for the tractor we carried it up the bank close to the road ready to pack it up into the boot of my car.

By this time Rob had arrived to collect Nicky and they left around the time Rae showed up. She was mystified at my text telling her to come to Goodwood Island Wharf rather than Maclean. The wind was still so strong that it was whipping up the gravel on the road. While I was packing Little Dragon up Rae went to roll up the Zodiac. A few minutes later she came back and said she couldn't find it but she had found a long neck black turtle. I had a look and it had definitely gone. Vanished.

Goodwood Island Wharf is on a back road and only half a dozen or so vehicles had passed us in either direction. One of them must have stopped and thrown the Zodiac into the back of their ute. I am trying to think that maybe they thought it was abandoned...... It wasn't and I would like it back. Model C240 Serial No Z11101

Later Nicky and I had a debrief. I have already said that I must learn to recognise approaching southerly busters. Apart from that we reckon that Little Dragon did well. She didn't go anywhere near capsizing and the motor started when needed. Lastly I am going to pay more heed to strong wind warnings and stay ashore. Another adventure over. Sorry you never got a sail Rae.

... Followed by a magic Sunday

First things first: Cafe Wa in Maclean continues to make a very superior coffee. They open at 8 am daily and I just can't resist a quick fix before my crew arrives and the wind picks up.



Jerry Harris (Irish Jerry - another ocean swimmer) arrived promptly and was keen to get underway as we had to return to the ramp by around 1 pm before the tide ebbed too far and the trailer got stuck in the mud - again.



I was anchored about 20 metres out from the bank which made it a cinch to set off under sail. In fact, reflecting on the magic weekend, I didn't need to start that ... outboard once (I hope it still goes).



Initially the wind was a light SW and we headed upstream towards Harwood Bridge. Before we had gone very far it dropped away and veered SE then E and finally back SW. We were becalmed for a while but time passed pleasantly as a pod of 3 dolphins entertained us by frolicking close by.



Finally the wind picked up again. Jerry enjoyed taking the helm. The only way to learn is to practice tacking and gybing and he got plenty of both. we sailed up to the bridge and then downstream about half way to Iluka.



Although there was a fine breeze, around 10 knots, it remained very flukey. Every time Jerry thought he had got her going "just right" the wind shifted.



It was warm, dry and sunny - the sort of spring day that makes one feel good to be allive. All in all another magic day.
Now Little Dragon is home again, hosed down and tucked up under an old sail that has found a new life as a cheap boat cover.



NB I am writing this 3 days after getting home during a gale and dust storm. No-one in their right mind would be out sailing today.

A magic Saturday on The Clarence ...

My Saturday crew had to pull out so I headed off to the Big River Sailing Club minus crew. I needn't have worried, Saturday is club day and there was no shortage of takers.



Before lunch I went out with Adrien and his twin 5 year old sons. Adrien owns a 44 ft yacht which he has sailed half way round the world. My afternoon crew owns a 20 ft cruising catamaran. Both these skippers were impressed with Little Dragon's responsive performance.

It was one of those magic days when everything was just right: fine sailing breeze 10 -12 knots, sunshine but not too hot or humid, no mozzies, camaraderie on board and in the clubhouse, no equipment failures and no major blunders on my part.

The new sails look very smart but as the first photo shows the luff is slack. The sail maker is going to put in an extra cringle so that I can fit a Cunningham. With luck next time it will be a photo of a taut luff.


This photo shows off the new jib and its furler.

By late afternoon everyone drifted off home and I settled in to enjoy the mozzie free dusk aboard Little Dragon accompanied by a glass (or two) of red wine and a very palatable sachet of rice and vegetable curry that just needed heating up.

Dismasted but the sails survived

Little Dragon was looking great for the start of the sailing season, the rudder painted red, the timber trims freshly varnished and the white deck all polished. The new sails arrived a week ago to replace the 30 year old ones. So I was all set to show her off at the Big River Sailing Club and put the new sails through their paces. Andrew Landenberger (Olympic NS14 sailor and sailmaker) was coming the next day to check out his handiwork and I hoped he would give me a few hints on tuning the boat up.

I arrived early and took my time rigging. No pressure. Then my crew Lee and Nicky came and we launched anticipating two great days sailing. Unfortunately that was not to be ....

There was a strong SW wind which meant we had to get off a lee shore. Easier to motor than sail - or so I thought. The outboard started (it sometimes refuses) but I couldn't get the motor down. I was being yelled at from the shore "you'll burn it out!" I didn't need telling. I knew. I was blown back onshore and the "experts" also found it wouldn't go up and down properly. End of that story seems to be that a bolt has sheared and it will need drilling out and replacing.

John Woods hopped aboard and we managed to get off the lee shore. The rescue boat took him ashore and delivered me my crew - Lee and Nicky who we had left behind.

We thought our troubles were over. We hoisted the new sails. The mainsail set really well but I think the jib could do with a bit of fine tuning. The next problem was the brand new jam cleat for the mainsheet. I replaced the old one as it kept slipping. Well it certainly jammed but it proved very hard to unjam. It is a Ronstan fitting so it should do its job. I need to have total control over the mainsheet. Um... I reckon I need to consult with more of the "experts".

We sailed for about and hour and a half. The dinghy racing was about to start. I was at the helm. We were on a broad reach. All seemed well in the world. Then wham - we were dismasted! I had no idea why. No-one was hurt and the mast and sails looked ok. I started the motor and headed towards the bank planning to anchor in shallower water. It was too deep out in the channel. Luckily Harriet and John were in the start boat for the dinghy racing. They spotted us and came and towed up back to the ramp. Thanks to you both and apologies for causing a delayed start.

We pulled the mast and sails aboard and decided that we had better get Little Dragon ashore where we could see the damage. Now for the next drama of the day (I reckon it was one too many). I backed the trailer down the ramp to exactly the same depth as usual and we winched the boat onto the trailer. However my Subaru Forrester couldn't tow her up the ramp. It was very low tide and heaps of sticky mud had been dumped on the ramp in last year's flood. So my trailer had sunk into the mud. I was pulled out by a Pajero, more thanks to club members. By the way I wasn't the only one. The Pajero had to rescue another stuck trailer half an hour later.

By this time we were all soaking wet and cold but came back to life with hot showers and cups of tea in the clubhouse.

Finally John Woods took a look at the damage. He immediately found the cause of the calamity. I plead guilty. I hadn't attached the starboard stay correctly to the fitting on the deck so the pin broke. I promise I won't make the same mistake again. It turns out that the only damage was to the mast step and the gooseneck. They both needed a bit of hammering back into shape. The sails were fine. John offered to do the minor repairs overnight at his place in Ashby. John you are a gem.

Sorry to my crew Nicky and Lee that you didn't get any Sunday sailing and to Keith and Noela that Monday was also off. Of course I also had to cancel Andrew Landenberger - sorry you didn't get the text message.

I don't reckon I can continue to launch at Harwood at less than half tide until the mud has been dug off the ramp.

Home again and time for maintainance

Home again and as usual time to hose her down, flush the outboard and generally clean up.

Only a few days later Pat flew back to England and I need to set about some winter maintainance (as well as attack the neglected garden):

* new sails

*varnish the bright work

*decide how/if to get the centre plate out and then sandblasted, bogged and repainted and find a way to hold the plate down if we capsize (a daunting prospect)

*new mainsheet fitting

*turn a large old mainsail into a boat cover

Tin Can Bay to Kauri Creek

Pat and I drove back from the Whitsundays to Tin Can Bay and were reunited with Little Dragon still perched high and dry in the yard of the holiday shack. Nicky and Noela had to fly home and start work immediately.





Again the holiday shack and Tin Can Bay proved a great spot to rest up for a couple of days.



But the sun was shining, the tides just right and the wind favourable. So we couldn't resist planning an overnighter, especially as we had found a chart in the holiday shack.




I thought things were going well when I managed to back down the wide ramp with a reasonable degree of aplomb. Suddenly I heard an ominous crunch. Instead of waiting for me a guy had backed his trailer right into my front bumper. Then he had the gall to blame his wife - her crime was not to be there to guide him!



One can only launch at the public jetty near high tide. This was late morning so we were able to take advantage of the ebb all the afternoon. We had a splendid sail reaching Kauri Creek (which is to put it in non-nautical terms) first on the left past the Wide Bay Bar.





It is time to show that even though Little Dragon doesn't have a galley we still manage to brew a decent cup of coffee. That evening after enjoying the sunset we feasted on a couple of surprisingly tasty precooked rice and curry mixes that only needed heating in their sachets.






Next day we tacked all the way back to Tin Can Bay, this time taking advantage of the morning flood tide.





The shackles keep coming off the track on the mast and the photo is of me (yet again) fixing the problem. Hopefully my new sails (due late August) won't have the same problem.