Wineglass Bay to Bryan's Corner

Another Dawn start as we wanted to ensure that we travel the 2 hours to the next anchorage to wait out the next northerly blow coming (30kts NE) that was due to start later in the day.

We passed through Shouten Passage, seeing a few more boats anchored in a couple of bays on the north end of Shouten Island, and headed to Bryans Corner and tucked in the to minimise and wind and wave for the blow. We laid out 150ft of chain in the 20-ft depth and pulled hard to ensure the anchor was well and truly set as we read a couple of reports of boats dragging in 30kts. 

Another beach walk this time littered with scallop shells of all sizes and colours. I have heard that scallop diving is supposed to be excellent in Tas and the sight of all these shells has inspired me to look into trying to get a license and retrieve some.

Back on the boat we cracked open a bottle of wine and enjoyed the view. Jude had prepared a wonderful vegetable and chicken curry for supper which certainly hit the spot.

As predicted the wind picked up, 20-25kts gusting to just over 30kts, but we were confident that the anchor was well set so we had a very restful night’s sleep.  

Tasmanian Devil footprint

North Flinders to Wineglass Bay

We checked the weather and it looks like there are lots of weather changes on their way with a couple of large northerly and southerly systems due to pass in the next week. This could mean that we could be stuck here for a while and there are no all weather anchorages. 

We had hoped to stop over in Trousers Bay but we ended up deciding that we had a good window to make it to Wineglass Bay in an overnight passage. Part of this journey requires planning to pass through Banks Strait between Flinders island and Mainland Tasmania. Like many straits Banks has strong currents flowing through it and can cause steep seas in strong winds so good timing and the right conditions are required. 

Our projections showed that we could arrive at the strait at slack water with the 15-20kt wind predicted from the NE and as we passed through the current would build to spit us out the other side. This seemed too good an opportunity to miss soo we decided to go for it although somewhat disappointed that we did not see more of Flinders. 

Our sail down the coast of Flinders and through the strait was absolutely wonderful. Like the day before the winds were 15kts on the beam and the seas were flat in the lee of the island. We were trucking along and very comfortable. We zipped through Bank at 8kts with less than 1m seas. Our price for a wonderful day and evening sail was for the winds to drop below 5 its, as predicted for the rest of the journey to Wineglass Bay through the night so we had to motor, something I am not keen on doing.

It was an uneventful night and the seas were flat so again it was comfortable. Still we have seen no boats or ships but have seen a stationary bright light to the east, presumed to be a drilling rig. The sun came up as we approached Wineglass and lit up the steep and colourful and intimidating cliffs of the Hazard Mountains and entrance to the Bay. 

Finally a fellow sailor! as we entered deeper into Wineglass Bay we spotted a yacht tucked away in the north corner of the bay. As the winds were due to shift to the south in the next few hours we decided to anchor in the southern side of the Bay about 200 mts off the beach. Charts for this bay are not that great so it was hard to see how far we could get into the bay away from the ocean swell but with reports of another boat being washed up on the beach we traded comfort for caution. 

After a brief time chilling, taking in the quite spectacular scenery we decided to head ashore for a walk along the crescent shaped white sand beach, strewn with shells, seaweed and the rotting carcass of a seal. Except for a couple of topless backpackers, according to Jude - she did not tell me until later, there was not a soul on the beach and we strolled to the north end and marvelled at the orange coloured rocks along the far shore. 

Both Jude and I thought the scenery reminded us of our time in the Pacific North West and Alaska so we are so far very impressed with Tasmania!! There is a path at the end of the beach that goes up the mountain to a lookout over the bay. Unfortunately we did not bring our shoes so we could not go up the 1000 steps so we walked back along the beach to the very basic backpacker campsite (wink wink). 

We went back to the boat and picked up out hiking boots and walked back along the beach and up the 1000 step track to the lookout over the bay. When we returned to the dinghy from the walk it was time to go for a swim to cool off. The water looked so tempting. Clear and blue and calm. Surprisingly it was not too cold, probably about 19c As we feared the swell coming in from the ocean made for a slightly unpleasant night sleep with the boat rolling when set broadside to the incoming swell. 

One benefit of the restless night was seeing an amazing phosphoresce show in the water. I have nit seen the like since the Sea of Cortez in Mexico. The water was alive. Small illuminated specks with flashes streaking through the water, some quite large and predator chases prey up and down the food chain. I must have watched for an hour or so and made the uncomfortable night worth it!

 

Tasmania here we come - Jervis Bay to Flinders Island

A departure weather window appeared for the 21st and it could not have been a better one - 15 knots from the east for 24 hours then turning NE and 20-25 kts. The original plan was to stop over in Bermagui or Eden before proceeding on to Flinders island at the north end of Tasmania but we decided to just sail through on a 2 night 3 day passage. Departure day arrived and winds were light first thing, as expected, so there was no rush to leave. 

Eventually we departed at about 9:30am, still in light winds but forward of the beam so we sheeted the sails in and picked up speed heading east offshore where we caught a bit of the south setting current and headed south and eased the sails for a marvelous beam reach. 

We passed Eden at about 3am the following morning in what was a great part of the passage with seas only about 1.5-2.0m and the following current. We were still about 20 miles offshore as we gradually changed course south west and into the infamous Bass Strait. Here is what Wikipedia mentions: Strong currents between the Antarctic-driven southeast portions of the Indian Ocean and the Tasman Sea's Pacific Ocean waters provide a strait of powerful, wild storm waves. The shipwrecks on the Tasmanian and Victorian coastlines number in the hundreds, although stronger metal ships and modern marine navigation have greatly reduced the danger. Many vessels, some quite large, have disappeared without a trace, or left scant evidence of their passing. Despite myths and legends of piracy, wrecking and alleged supernatural phenomena akin to those of the Bermuda Triangle, such disappearances can be invariably ascribed to treacherous combinations of wind and sea conditions, and the numerous semi-submerged rocks and reefs within the Straits. 

 As we entered the Bass Strait the sun started to rise, the apparent wind dropped slightly but the seas were still kindly. As we sailed further into the strait we picked up a 2.5 knot following current. We dared not believe it. We were ticking along at 9.5 knots and at one time hit 10.5 knots this current also flattened the seas but in the back of my mind I knew the current could not only continue but it would likely turn the other way as we progressed. Sure enough during the following evening and night the current dropped and eventually turned against us, thankfully only by 0.75 to 1.00 knots but the seas changed dramatically. Not only did the seas become steeper the period shortened and we also had two cross seas and a repeating set of 3 large waves that came every ten minutes or so. Then the wind stated to drop along with our apparent wind, which went aft the beam and our boat speed. Now I don’t mind sailing slowly, it’s often very nice to sail slowly at night. On our passage from Noumea we has a couple of days sailing pleasantly along. This however was anything but pleasant with the boat rolling on the seas from different directions which in turn loaded and unloaded the sails. We headed onto the wind to pick up speed and reduce the rolling. This worked slightly but the shifted more NE and we were now heading 40 degrees off course and slowing. We persevered being rolled around on our sleepless watches until dawn came and with it sight of land. Choice: sail slowly on an indirect course too our destination or fire up the engine and be on the anchor by 7 am. Bugger it fire up the engine. 

 As we sailed past outer and inner sister islands the seas flattened and the wind direction became useful so we raised the sails to complete the rest of the passage to Roydon Island on the north west coast of Flinders island. In fact the final sail was magnificent in the lee of Flinders but still with 15knots on the beam. We dropped the anchor in the fairly open bay in only 15 feet of water with weed and sand on the bottom. Not a soul or other boat have we seen on the whole passage or in this anchorage. We were very pleased to not be rolling and bucking and put the kettle on. Although the water was flat the anchorage did not provide much protection from the wind and in fact it seemed to blow harder her that outside. As we arrived early in the morning we had the whole day to relax and plan the next part of our journey and we work our way to Hobart. 

 We came to the west side of Flinders as it looked like an interesting place to visit and had a few appealing anchorages. We had hoped to get to the Kent Group of islands but the wind direction down the strait prevented us from getting there without another night at sea in uncomfortable conditions. From what we have seen so far Flinders and the islands here are quite barren. We have seen a few houses but have not seen any other boats.

Sydney to Jervis Bay

Blurry eyed but well rested we raised our anchor at 4am in darkness and headed out of Sydney harbour and steered Sarita south towards Jervis Bay. The weather forecast was for 20-25 knots from the NE with a strong wind warning in place. We logged on with Marine Rescue for our passage as the choppy seas of the heads subsided. The sun came up in a cloudless sky over the ocean which reminded Jude and I of the many ocean dawns we have witnessed and we became accustomed to the roll of the boat on the ocean swell. 

The winds were around 15knots with the apparent wind well behind the beam so it was initially slow going but we knew the winds would build later in the day along with the seas. Around 10am the winds steadied to around 17-20 knots with periods of 25 knots so we picked up speed but we had to head slightly east to keep the wind from being dead behind us and to make the journey more comfortable but the trade off would be a longer passage as we zigzagged down the coast. Just after midday a huge pod of dolphins started to pass us on both sides. Some sped past and did not linger but others came towards us and performed feats of acrobatics and comedy, rolling on their backs, slapping tails and with groups performing aerial displays. The passing pod lasted over an hour and must have involved thousands of dolphins. Where were they all going or have come from? 

 As the sun was setting low in the early evening sky we made our final gybe directly to the east and the heads of Jervis bay with a towering dark thunder cloud towering over the North part of the bay lighting up the darkening sky with flashes and rolls of thunder. We shortened the sails in anticipation of increased winds from the clouds.

All of the 5 courtesy moorings in the southern part of the bay were taken so we dropped the anchor in about 10m of clear water as the sun set and the winds subsided in the lee of the lushly forested shoreline. It’s always a relief to finish a passage and relax and look forward to what a new destination would have to offer. We called Marine Rescue on the VHF to log off with them at which point they asked us if we had heard about the tsunami warning, which we had not. Did the dolphins know something we had not ? 

Jervis Bay

After a quiet and restful night, no anchor drag or high wind alarms, we brewed the coffee, made breakfast and assessed our surroundings in daylight for the first time and the few boating neighbours. Jervis bay is in fact a very large bay, 9x5 nautical miles, with beaches reported to have the whitest sand in the world. The anchorage we were in is called the Hole in The Wall named after a rock formation on the south west shoreline that resembles a wall that somebody has taken a sledgehammer to. We dropped the dinghy in the water and put the small 2.5 hp outboard on for the journey to the shore over clear waters with part sea grass and part white sand bottom. We went for a swim in the inviting water mindful of the recent shark attack just across the bay a couple of weeks earlier but this could be our last swim of the season as we head into the Southern Ocean. 

The blindingly white beach invited us to stretch our legs so we headed east occasionally stopping for another swim or being pulled into the forest that extends to the shoreline with its impressive gum trees and local fauna. 

 We would be waiting in Jervis Bay for a suitable weather window to head south and at present the 5 day forecast was for strong southerly winds but hey what a place to hang out! Over the next few days we spent our days walking, swimming, sorting and repacking the boat for the least amount of rattles as we rolled down the coast. Of course there were afternoon drinks and naps.

Time to cast off the dock lines again

It has been 5 years since we moved on land but now it is time to move back aboard and cast off the dock lines and head out on the ocean wave again. Although we have sailed on Sartita reasonably regularly over the past 5 years we have not been on any long passages so it will be interesting to see how we settle back into the routine. Although Jude and I are back on Sarita we are one crew member down as our daughter is staying on land to enjoy her freedom and develop her business. It feels very strange not having her about and both Jude and I miss her very much. Although we hate making sailing plans our intention is to head to Tasmania for the rest of the summer and enjoy what is supposed to be an amazing part of Australia with rugged coastlines, brisk winds, and plenty of activities to keep us busy. We had been watching the weather for a few weeks and strong southerly winds seem to be dominating the weather patterns with only 1 day or so of northerlies before switching to southerlies again. Friday 14th January We spent our first night on anchor at Coaster Retreat in Pittwater before heading down to Quarantine Bay in Sydney Harbour for Friday night, the rationale being that it would shorten our first long passage sufficiently to arrive in Jervis Bay in daylight. The weather forecast for Saturday was for strong NE winds 20-30kts with a southerly change coming into Jervis Bay at around 9pm. Having had a look at the observations (actual winds) over the past few days the forecasts have been overestimated with the higher winds occurring more offshore. We decided that we would take this weather window and if the winds did pick up to 30kts they would be manageable as the would be well aft of the beam. Saturday 04:00 Departed Quarantine Bay in darkness. Forecast was for NE 20kts but we had 6kts for the first hour but then the winds built to NE 15kts as we moved offshore. The seas built to around 2-2.5 over the rest of the day as the winds built up to around a max of 25kts. A massive pod of Dolphins passed us around lunchtime, probably numbering in the thousands as the passed us for over an hour. They demonstrated their usual playfulness and acrobatics. We entered Jervis Bay just as the sun was setting and with a towering thunder cloud over the northern part of the bay looking and sounding rather ominous. We dropped an anchor in the southern part of the bay, still in northerly winds but on cue the winds turned to the south around 10pm.

Overall it was a great first passage. A bit lumpy but we have experienced far worse. The passage length was longer than planned as we headed more on the wind and offshore to have a more comfortable sail.