Te Moana

A favourite anchorage, 1770

2010-09-26T02:45:06Z

We’ve spent most of the past week at 1770, a charming anchorage between Gladstone and Bundaberg in Central Queensland. Joy and I rate it in our top 2-3 anchorages along the east coast.

While some “yuppification” has occurred since we were last here in 2004, it has a real charm, coupled the convenience of easy access to facilities and activities. We were there for 5 days not because of the unfavourable weather, but because we wanted to be there.

Our experience:

The entrance was easy at high tide with nothing less than 3 meters depth and clear marking . Beacon to Beacon 8th edition proved the best information source for navigation and anchoring.

It is well sheltered from the South East and we had no problem anchoring. We anchored in water with never less than 2.2m depth. The local VMR, Round Hill, is knowledgeable and very helpful.

The camping ground sells essentials such as bread, milk and ice cream. The marina sells both unleaded and diesel fuel and some chandlery.

There is an excellent restaurant ashore, The Tree . More restaurants, shops, post office etc in Agnes Waters. The local taxi is at (0417) 749 000 typically $20 for the ride to Agnes Waters.

And there is a chance to be a tourist, taking a “Lark” to Bustard Head or a tourist boat to Lady Musgrave. Despite that, it still largely looks like the place where Jimmy Cook landed in 1770. And it’s a pet friendly anchorage!

Maintaining Speed

2010-09-09T05:12:46Z

We received the replacement speed transducer from Andersen Marine while we were in Mackay. I fitted it the other day and we can again see how much tidal currents contribute to our speed. Yes, as shown in the picture, we were getting up to 3.5 knots of current going down the Whitsunday passage today on a rising tide.

Actually, I’ve really enjoyed the opportunity to do some maintenance to the boat while on this trip. Apart from fitting the new speed transducer, I’ve made up a new bridle, fender ropes and performed a regular service to both diesel engines. That’s on top of the repairs after our bit of trouble with the boom.

If it doesn’t get any worse than this

2010-09-02T21:13:00Z

It’s difficult to express the experience of living on a boat for an extended period and taking it to wherever the mood takes you. A deserted island one day, a convenient marina the next. Which is to say that we’re enjoying ourselves.

Occasionally something doesn’t quite go the way you expect it to (Joy’s phone went bloop in the plonk), but if it doesn’t can any worse than having to buy a new phone, we’re not complaining.

Another aspect of this cruise is that it has also been fun to meet up with other skipr users (and encouraging a few more to join). That’s been clearly worth the effort.

We might even be able to catch up with Mervyn, Joy’s cousin who is just ahead of us on Cool Change , anchored at Goldsmith Island.

From big to beautiful

2010-08-27T22:41:15Z

Entering Gladstone makes you feel like a big boat. You’re expected to notify Harbour Control of your entry on VHF channel 13. There are a 10 or so bulk carriers waiting outside for a berth and another 10 or so being loaded inside. Not exactly Rotterdam, but lively and industrial looking nevertheless. For us it’s a novelty, we’re here just to stay overnight and as a logical stop.

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We’re waiting for the right time and tide to navigate The Narrows behind Curtis Island on our way North. This passage can only be attempted at high tide, as the middle section at Cattle Crossing falls dry at low tide.

We’re really enjoying our inshore travels this trip and the Narrows didn’t disappoint. Water like a mirror and sun to burn off the early morning mist.

While the Narrows has a bit of a reputation among keel boat sailors, it is well documented an well marked. I’ve also been pleased with C-Map on our chart plotter. It’s generally been up to date and accurate for inland waterways, even where the standard Hydro Office maps don’t provide coverage.

And than to emerge at the other end into the Coral Sea. Bliss.

In the middle of Bundaberg

2010-08-22T20:43:24Z

OK, so the marina is a bit daggy and the town is a little run-down, but the sunrises are spectacular. We enjoy going inland wherever we can. We travelled up the Burnett river only an hour after low tide and at no time saw less than a meter under our (1.2m) keel.

The marina population here consists mainly of live-aboards who are friendly and very helpful. And of course the shops are within easy walking distance. On our way back North, we hope to visit Maryborough by going up the Mary river.

Great Sandy Strait Navigation

2010-08-20T04:27:38Z

We've really been enjoying the inland waterways on our way North this year. First Moreton Bay and now the Great Sandy Strait. Of course, Te Moana has an advantage here with its shallow draft. Nevertheless, with a bit of care most yachts can (and do) enjoy this area.

And with a chart plotter, even a dog can find its way.

Across the Bar

2010-08-18T22:14:56Z

Yesterday we had a long but easy motor-sailing day from Mooloolaba, leaving at 0400. We crossed Wide Bay bar, which was looking flat and un-threatening (not as much fun as last time) and arrived at Garrys Anchorage behind Fraser Island in late afternoon.

This morning we awoke to a glorious morning. We briefly turned on the radio and breakfast television, but decided that the world was a better place when undisturbed by politics and argy bargy.

Southport to Peel Island

2010-08-15T09:45:40Z

We enjoyed traveling North from Southport "behind" Stradbroke Island.

After receiving encouraging reports from others on the "Beyond Barrenjoey" mailing list, we decided to take the Canaipa Passage rather than the Main Passage. We were very pleased with the well marked track, only dropping a touch below 2.0 meters on a couple of occasions. We also received some excellent local advice from VMR Jacobs Well and bypassed the Jumpinpin area by using Whalleys Gutter and Mackenzie Channel. Beacon to Beacon is definitely a must-have here. A screendump from our chart plotter is reproduced below.

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Where is Te Moana?

2010-08-13T05:50:23Z

We left Southport today and Joy says we’ve really left now :-)

We’re taking our time going “on the inside” of Stradbroke and Moreton Islands and are currently anchored at Short Island, our first stop and expect to get to Mooloolaba on Sunday.

That is six days later than originally planned, but this was never going to be a “planned cruise” in the sense of needing to be anywhere on a certain date.

If you would like to keep up with where we are and what we’re doing, here are a bunch of ways to do so:

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Skipr.net – We’ll post our position daily and more often on interesting/important passages.
Te Moana blog – that’s where we post pictures and stories
The Planet Skipr mailing list – Te Moana is one of the boats featured on the list (effectively, blog posts are emailed at most once a day).
Twitter – Hey, we’re 21st century dudes.
Te Moana SailPlan – an online spreadsheet which we use to plan our cruise – usually not more than a few days ahead (typically no further ahead than the weather forecast)

Links to these items also appear on the front page of the Te Moana blog (centre column)

The other delivery skipper

2010-08-11T23:50:02Z

We've been snug on the Southport marina on the Gold Coast since Monday, so the poor weather this week hasn't bothered us. We now expect to take the "back road" behind Stradbroke Island, across Moreton Bay to Mooloolaba - departing Friday and getting there on Sunday.

We've been spending our time here doing all the little jobs on the boat which by rights we should have done before we left and taking a breather from the inevitable anxiety over whether “we turned off the gas”. As you can see on the photo above, Te Moana is ready to sail again.

Craig (who ‘delivered’ Joy and Jake to the boat) left today on his way home (via Broken Hill or somewhere). Bon Voyage Craig.

So… what really happened

2010-08-09T06:45:10Z

[Updated] David McKay, responding to a previous post commented: "What happened with the boom? Your viewers back home want warts and all you know"?

To the best of my knowledge, here is the sequence of events:

We had a rough night and the rope I was using as a preventer wore through, causing some unintentional gybes until we restored the preventer(Dark night, running South with 35-40 Knots gusts, 4 m seas).

Part of the gooseneck, attaching the boom to the mast, failed the next day in very mild conditions when Leon was "shaking out" the number one reef. It could be that the part had failed earlier and that our single line reefing system had prevented any drama - the boom was being supported by the reefing lines.

Was it longer term metal fatigue - the fracture showed a brittle quality rather than a clean break. When did the part actually break after being weakened?

What we do know:

The line I was using as a preventer was not up to the task and wore through where I had attached it to the end of the boom.
We should have reefed to #2 before conditions deteriorated, putting less strain on the gear.
The boat handled the conditions really well and we were not aware of any breakage during the night.
When the part really failed, it was not at all dramatic. The boat kept sailing on its downwind course and we had plenty of time to do a controlled drop of the sail.

We found someone in Southport this morning who is willing to build a replacement part at short notice.

[Update 11 August] Here is the result:

The repaired part fitted in quite easily. However, it took a fair bit of effort to tidy up the sail and lazy bag. And we found that the second batt from the top had disintegrated. Evolution Sails made up a new batt for us today and the boat is ready to continue on its way.

Mind you the weather is not looking that flash for the next 24 hours, so we might claim another lay day tomorrow (Thursday).

Dawn off Yamba

2010-08-07T21:12:55Z

The start of a new day at sea. We’re just 10 NM South East of Yamba. The wind is still from the South at around 12-15 Knots. We just put up the screecher and let the wind carry us again.

Marius! The boom’s come down!

2010-08-07T05:04:10Z

It was a bit of a rough night last night, particularly around Port Stephens and Seal Rocks with gusty winds up to 30 knots and rain squalls. While we were well equipped to handle it between the four of us, I was pretty tired this morning and took a nap at 0900. I was about to get up, when Leon called out: “Marius, the boom has come down”. Chris was quickly up on deck inspecting the damage.

]]> The gooseneck fitting had broken through metal fatigue and had snapped. As we were sailing with the wind in our back, the boom simply dropped on the deck and the boat kept sailing.

We hoisted the boom off the deck with the reefing lines and secured it before dropping the sail and securing it and the boom to “resting place” on the cabin roof.

We decided to keep going (motoring using the headsail where practical) to The Gold Coast where we’ll look for someone to make a replacement for us. All in all, I’m very pleased that we managed the situation well and feel lucky that it didn’t happen last night…

We’re off to Mooloolaba

2010-08-06T04:03:59Z

Joy and I are going North for a couple of months. To give us head start, a few friends are helping take the boat half way – to Mooloolaba, just North of Brisbane. We just left and are currently motoring up Pittwater. We’re hoping to catch a Southerly and speed past Newcastle. Keep an eye on our track at Skipr.net.

Leon, MIchael, Chris and Marius just before departure (photo: Studio WIndsong)

Bobbin Head Surprise

2010-04-03T23:12:01Z

We had planned to go to Port Hacking with Alfreds Cruising. Unfortunately, the weather looked uninviting and the cruise was cancelled. As the weekend rolled by, the weather wasn't as bad as forecast originally which left us with that "if only" feeling.

]]> So we decided to motor "up the creek" towards Bobbin Head on Saturday with an ambition to anchor at Houseboat Bay, close to Bobbin Head. Along the way, it became clear that the rest of the world had the same idea and all the beautiful little bays along Cowan Creek all had their quota of moored and anchored boats.

Much to our surprise however, when we got as far as Bobbin Head, we spotted an unoccupied public mooring! When the permanent moorings were removed there recently, National Parks put in a couple of public moorings (as well as a two in Houseboat Bay). We'll keep them a secret, I think. And as a bonus, we enjoyed a beautiful sunrise on that extra long (25hr) Sunday.