Crank up those amps

No, no, not the stereo!

The bloke has been in an absolute blather. The house batteries have been delivering too few amps. Hours of charging with both the motor and the Honda Genni and really we'd be better off running the Genni whenever we want a single amp for all the good the charging had done! And to think of all the noise interfering with the serenity. Voltage alarms under the bunk peeping away in the dead of night had the Bloke prowling around turning stuff off and both of us having disturbed sleep. Action was required.

On Sunday morning, despite having a lovely time out at The Group and plans to sail up to Tumby Bay, the state of charge , or lack of it, meant that our bow was pointing South to Port Lincoln Marina instead of NW to Tumby Bay - even before breakfast.

Make mine 240 volts and be quick about it!

OMG - What ate our lure?

We tried trawling off the back of Zofia on the way back to Port Lincoln from 'The Group'.

This is what was left of the metal trace, lure etc...

It certainly had teeth!

Evening activities

When the sailing is done for the day there are plenty of stories that need to be exchanged. This can happen over drinkies or over a meal.

Exhibit A - Spot what is out of place.

Very glam Tina. Welcome aboard!

Jim from Onora with the Bloke

Jeannie from Onora

Ian, Jim and the Bloke. A bottle of red each. "I'll try yours if you'll try mine"

Igor, Svetlana and other birds

A trip back from Morton Bay at the northern end of Reevesby Island  o our original south western anchorage in glassy conditions, gave us an opportunity to admire the bird life and get reacquainted with Igor and Svetlana who paddled out to greet us back with hope in their hearts. Probably hoping for a handout!

Looking over the bow into the water. We told you.... NO FISH!

Igor and Svetlana try to look aloof. They knew we'd be back.

Come on, come on, they'll be here in a sec!

Crikey, better get a tickle on!

Phew, thought I'd never get off

Leave now you say?

Exit: stage right!

Svetlana

How long has this been going on?

To say that we have been delighted with our sojourn in and around Port Lincoln so far would be an understatement. The Eyre Peninsula in general has so much to see and from a sailing perspective, once you have rounded the foot of the peninsula and entered Spencer Gulf, is both a relief and truly a WOW experience.

Today we really got a taste of what a fabulous cruising ground this Gulf is. The South Australians just couldn't conceal it any longer. Outside of this State we've never heard so much as a whisper about this wonderland! The Port Lincoln Yacht Club held their annual race to Reevesby Island in the Sir Joseph Banks Group and we also met up with some boats that are participating in a 6 week cruise in Spencer Gulf from the Garden Island Yacht Club (Adelaide). This afternoon there were some 15+ yachts here anchored in the bay. All shapes and sizes. The GIYC cruise here every year and it has been a very popular event over the last 9-10 years. We have at last seen and met some of the crews that Ken Hill told us about. Desiree, Little One, Beachcomber, Girt By Sea just to mention a few. Not many of the racers have stayed on tonight but we were at least able to reciprocate last Sunday's roast with a Saturday roast aboard Zofia for Wendy and Jonathan from PLYC who raced in on Sextant - a very smart looking and nippy 34' X-Yacht. We had a Sunday roast at their place last week. Just when we thought our kidneys might come back from rehab we've given it another nudge. There is a lot of talk about South Australian water being a bit awful. I'm not sure who has made the assessment because everyone just seems to drink red wine here.

Sadly, we will be waiving goodbye to Tina and Ian and their Portuguese water dog Pippi, from Midnight Blue. They will be making their way home to Wirrinna south of Adelaide. We've had a ripping 2 weeks with them and we've benefited from their guidance around the Capes and other local knowledge too. And why wouldn't they leave: it's official, we have absolutely no more red wine on board!

Tina and Ian

Tina, Ian and Wendy enjoying the beach sundowner

No fish today. We decided against even trying. This is the 2nd or 3rd sweep in the Channel this week.

The virtual fish vacuum

Earlier this week we saw this anchored on the horizon adjacent to one of the GIYC Cruisers. 
It slipped in overnight. You'd wake in fright wouldn't you!

Goodness me, calm as can be!

Our view of Reevesby Island in The Sir Joseph Banks Group. Shore visits are on hold since its residents include a lot of tiger snakes and death adders.

After a night with interest in the form of lightening storms in the direction of the Yorke Peninsula with accompanying rumbling thunder, the Bloke was curious to know after he woke, why the helm covers were rolled up and stored under the Bimini. Clearly he had not completed his evening drinkies with the crews of Midnight Blue and Onora with such an undressing of Zofia's nautical bits. I alone had witnessed the light show and decided to remove the "steering wheel" covers as a precaution against a sudden need to take control of the boat's movements.

All the locals raise their eyebrows when they discover we 'only use a delta anchor' and not their local favorite - a Marsh Stockless anchor. This does somewhat elevate our experience of anchoring insecurity. Only the night before, Moody Blue (from Woollaroo) by any measure a local boat, had dragged anchor in our bay in the wee small hours and to the Bloke's horror and then relief, had slowly and silently drifted out of our cove, missing Zofia by some 10-15m, and out into the channel. The Bloke kept an eye on them in case they were going to get too close the island on the other side of the channel.

A conversation with VMR Tumby Bay, made mention of Moody Blue's new whereabouts and concluded with me asking if the occupants could after all be phoned as their continued drift was beginning to worry me. The skipper is a retired farmer and possibly didn't feel or hear the anchor skipping along the sea bed. Moody Blue was in any event, using a secondary anchor, having lost their primary in another anchorage earlier in their cruise. It's sort of reassuring that anchoring madness is not particular to just our little fleet.

Onora

Entertainment yesterday was at the expense of Onora. This is a true ocean cruiser custom built in NZ in aluminum to the length of some 62'. We feel like a tender by comparison. Jeanie and Jim informed us last night that they weighed 39tons which in combination with the boat length would explain why their anchor looked the size of a small tectonic plate. Even with their 2 circumnavigations under the belt, they had a couple of attempts to get anchored-up and hence the show.

It's a particular relief that it's a calm day with another forecast since the cats are on the move and will hopefully complete their Great Australian Bight experience by tomorrow night. After floating out of Coffin Bay town on the tide yesterday and anchoring at Farm Beach at the head of Coffin Bay they were headed for Avoid Bay for tonight. They can't relax until they reach Memory Cove just south of Port Lincoln. It will be their first anchorage "outside" the Great Australian Bight since the end of January.

For now, we have this cove in the Lagoon at Reevseby Island to ourselves and anticipate a quiet night on our own having declined an invitation for drinkies on board Onora in Morton Bay to our north.

The Bloke is off for a 2nd attempt at catching a fish - any fish. will do. Yesterday was a 'nudge tide', where there is hardly any tidal difference. The locals say that you won't catch anything on a nudge tide and our efforts supported the claim.

Meet Igor and Svetlana. They have adopted us and seldom leave the area at the back of Zofia. They make comments from time to time to each other and to us but they are still not getting any fish, assuming we ever catch any!

Sailing to "The Group"

We left Port Lincoln on Monday to sail across to "The Group" as the locals call it. Sir Joseph Banks Group is a collection of various sized islands just 25 nautical miles off Port Lincoln. We have chosen to sail in company with "Midnight Blue" to Reevesby Island. This is one of the larger islands and offer good protection in almost all weather. The sail across was exciting with "Zofia" doing a consistent 7 knots under full sail. We will stay here until Monday then go on to Tumby Bay, its bakery and sites.

Zofia in flight

We heard it on the radio

Boats use VHF radio to communicate with one another, with port control and with VMR stations (Volunteer Marine Rescue). It's customary to call into the local VMR to log on and off to advise when you are going out to sea (or on to a waterway) when you expect to return, how many people you have on board (POB) and the locations of departure and intended return.

When attending a radio operators course, the Fremantle Sea Resue group cited a very compelling statistic. They had never lost anyone who had logged in. There may have been multiple marine fatalities in coastal waters off Fremantle over the years but never of someone who'd actually logged on with them. If you fail to log off at the time you've nominated they start calling your boat, your phone, your home, your contacts and then rapidly go into search and rescue mode. Time is of the essence and it's the reason it's a good idea to use this service. It's for the times things go pear shaped.

You do hear a variety of radio techniques from the very official "Romeo that", "... Over and out" very perfunctory style, to some more personalised variations and outright shockers.

Recent offerings that had us laughing was the Aussie drawler that announced " Yup Garry, I'm at the last stick and I'm down to me last tinnie. You can talk me off the log thanks!" . The VMR operator, recognising the voice, acknowledged by saying "Thanks Bugs. We'll catch you next time. Tumby Bay out". Initially we though it might be a Coffin Bay regular, since they have A LOT  of navigational markers that would be colloquially referred to as "sticks" but then we decided that it could just as easily also be the character called 'Bugs' we'd met in Streaky Bay. For non locals reading this, a tinnie is a can of beer. The radio relay suggested he'd timed his trip to perfection!

Another character logged on this morning. "Three POB" he declared and added "...that's Poor Old Bastards" - a new take on Persons On Board.

Over and out!

Leg 22 - Snug Cove to Port Lincoln. This calls for Big Red

Meet BIG RED, our spinnaker

Our focus has been so solidly on getting around the SW Capes (Naturaliste and Leeuwin) and then The Great Australian Bight that most of our passage planning energy has terminated at Port Lincoln.

We held tight at Snug Cove despite feeling like we were dangling out into the channel. The small and gentle remnants of Southern Ocean swells that escaped through Thorny Passage were mere whimpers of their former selves. They rocked us gently in our bunk for a blissful sleep.

For the first time in 2 months we were eager for the arrival of an easterly breeze to take us to Port Lincoln about 20nm to the NE. 'Big Red' was hoisted for the job. What a relief not to have that motor on. Since we were one of 2 boats heading in the same direction it was a race of sorts..... or rather a race to keep up with a 50' cat that was getting wind from it's most favoured quarter!

The Bloke admiring his sail trim

The light at Cape Donington next to Cape Colbert leading into Port Lincoln

Captured Tuna kept in giant netted pens - fish farms are everywhere

A member of the largest fishing fleet in the Southern Hemisphere heads in

Leg 21 - Farewell to The Great Australian Bight

Today 18th March, 2014 is we hope, our last day in The Great Australian Bight so I've decided to record it in more detail.

An almost stupid o'clock start. 0700 sun not yet risen but the moon still in evidence. A low mist draped the landscape. The sea's been quite oily, the color of mercury with big rolly swells up to 3m. It's trying to rain or is it that we are in the cloud? We are escorted out of Misery Cove by dolphins and the sea birds on their way out to sea for the day.

Point Avoid revealed today why it got its name. A group of shoals, reefs and islets extend seawards from the point. Had we not been traveling in company with Midnight Blue and have access to their local knowledge our waypoints would have taken us wide of Price Island. As it was, it was eyes-up to visually check for the breaking reef half way across the channel. All we could see was white capped swells filling the gap. We slowed down and consulted Midnight Blue on VHF81. Staying on the Price Island side was the advice. Super. Let's hug a rock with foaming skirting reefs. With slitty, squinted eyes we discerned that the foam on top of the swells was just spume being carried on the current across the channel. Nothing for the Bloke to stress about at all. Phew.

No need for a closer look - rocks for sure!

No blue sky until 0930. It would be nice if the sun stayed. Dark heavy draping clouds hang over the mainland cliffs. The wind farm that is now emerging on the headland won't  be earning its keep today. The turbines are not shifting and the blades on each tower at different angles almost look despondent. Their sentinel presence looking out into The Great Australian Bight disclosed by occasional flashes. The headland looks like it's pulsing. We suspect that this is a rare windless day and they are generally near lifting their foundations.

Out of luck wind farm - No wind today

This will be another motoring day. Midnight Blue looks like its being lifted up and down on a fork-lift. One moment it's just a mast and then the boom, coach roof and hulls appear before sinking again behind the next swell. It's meant to come up a bit in the middle of the day before declining. Definitely 4m by now.

When there's not much going on, thoughts of food surface. The Bloke has remembered the 1/2 doz little sausage rolls I set aside for this passage from Sunday night's catering. Ooh yeh, sausage rolls. Gotta have 'em. Once warmed up they were gobbled up. The Bloke, was so relieved I didn't want to share. I was more keen to crunch down some ginger nut biscuits which I'm convinced are having rather a good anti-emetic effect and without the negatives of a cacky mouth and sleepiness. Sated, the Bloke chose to come off watch for a little lie down (LLD). Didn't  last long though, I made a sudden movement when I detected some cray pots on a lifting swell. All eyes UP, red alert. There were no more that we could see in the troughs or on the crests of the moving sea. Relax again.

The local VMR is good. Cherise from Wild Honey raved about Garry the Tumby Bay operator and not without reason. We'd logged on and off the day before. When logging off at Sensation Beach he said that he'd be on station at 0745 to deliver the weather forecast. And he was. As soon as that was delivered he called out for each of the boats on his log. We of course recognized Midnight Blue, we were traveling with them but we also recognized Fat Albert. It was on a list sent by Ken Hill to keep an eye out for. Can you believe it, yet another Cat! We are beginning to feel lonely or under hulled!  Easy Tiger and Zofia were included in the roll call. Easy Tiger was a 'nothing heard'. Urchin obviously hadn't logged in on 81. A short time later we heard Easy Tiger calling for Urchin on 81. Tumby Bay got excited too and tried Easy Tiger again but they must have been out of range for Garry. He's based in Spencer Gulf. Knowing the cats would be near Flinders Is. and that Easy Tiger should have coverage, we sent a txt for their position. They gave us Urchin's which we then relayed onwards. Urchin is not appearing on AIS. Must contact 'Is it on Maree'. It's ON apparently only it's not visible. Does that mean its actually not working again?

We ponder how Wild Honey are going. They are nearly 24 hrs into their Bight Crossing. At 48' they should gobble up the sea miles and even if they do have to motor, conditions should be mild enough. They were certainly out of range of VHF81 at roll call this morning.

We have made another course adjustment to go inside Cape Rock. It's great traveling with Midnight Blue and being guided the quickest way out of The Bight. Hurrah!  We've never really come this close to 'obstacles' and there was a huge area of spume like a carpet which then broke up like floating alphabet spaghetti. We are also headed inside Linguanea Is. at Cape Carnot. We can expect some current. The sea is shiny again it's so windless and those useless, ugly wind turbines continue to slouch and sag. Some of the swells are pushing up the cliff faces trying to lick their feet but they remain still.

This same stand of turbines is visible from Port Lincoln on eastern side of Eyre Peninsula

Spume carpet

Spume splitting up into alphabet noodles

Linguanea Island

The seas are a mess. I'm not just referring to the noticeable clumps of weed floating on the surface. The swells have broken up an seem to be coming from all directions. Agh the Cape effect! The Bloke, sensing that Austin (the autopilot) is overworking has elected to hand steer. This is a cape followed by a second one - Cape Wiles. It's foaming skirt is beginning to emerge as we round the point.

Cape Wiles looking menacing

This would be horrendous in heavy conditions. How lucky they are mild today. Easily the equivalent of our Leeuwin. No wonder there are so few cruisers on the west Coast of SA. If there was once some limestone on the granite base rock, it's been thoroughly licked clean from what we can see through the spray and mist. There is definitely some current too.

1205 the sea has relaxed. Cape Carnot has released us from its maw. We are in the Southern Ocean but no longer in The Great Australian Bight. Only 16 nm left to Williams Island and we feel that the current is behind us. Could be on anchor in just 3 hrs at an anchorage the Bloke has been looking at, with fascination, for some 3 years. So odd. Carpets of spume are drifting about being blown towards the capes from all the commotion on the rims of Linguanea Is. Cape Wiles sticks out like a decayed and shattered molar; dark and gothic. Gosh we are lucky for the conditions. The sun has come out.

Midnight Blue also motoring, checking a 'steaming' motor while rounding Cape Catastrophe. Thistle Is. in the background

Midnight Blue has been in contact and is pleased with progress and reports that the tidal race through Thorny Passage is favorable for a Cape Catastrophe transit. They propose skipping Williams Is. and proceeding to Snug Cove on Thistle Is. extending today's run by 1 1/2 hrs. The Bloke lifted his head from the day couch and gave the thumbs up... Imagine that, Thistle Is. just spitting distance from Port Lincoln - they day has got even better.

Wind is still struggling to crack 5knots. Luckily our sports cruiser, with optional sails, is striding out at  7 - 7.5 knots!

Excitement. The sea state has gone to shit. The swells are bouncing back off the headlands and then meeting the oncoming swells. This is just like Steep Pt at Shark Bay. We've seen our fist fishing trawler out of Port Lincoln too. Just to give us a smile we've also seen two seals swimming as a pair, leaping through the air like dolphins. Lots more firsts for us today.

Definitely would not like to visit this track in anything but theses light conditions. Wind now 8-10kn. Bloke says chop coming at you from 10 directions. Suddenly it stops as we get into the lee of Williams Is. As we pass it, we are thinking out loud that the conditions would need to be awful to make the anchorage at Williams Is. look good! There are spume carpets strewn all over the place. Their existence spell out how vigorous the fight between competing elements.

Long trails of spume floating on the water

We've ceremonially un-clipped our harnesses. We are now in protected waters. We'll probably clip up again though. Midnight Blue are ahead of us now, the Bloke deferring to the certainty that Ian has tracked through here before. I mention to the bloke we should pull off a little. Midnight Blue's crew look like they are trawling. Do we think we should too? Nagh.. Enough excitement for one day.

Cape Catastrophe, despite its name, was pretty tame today as compared with Carnot and Wiles. The lee side of the headland looks all soft and thickly vegetated. No brutal winds this side stamping their mark.

The lee side of Cape Catastrophe is less battered

Ian from Midnight Blue has excellent judgement and the tidal race, while evident, was not vicious as we went through Thorny Passage. Caution is required here as you can often encounter wind against tide. Enter only at slack or ingoing tide. Lucky us...again!

So we are now parked up at Snug Cove at the NW end of Thistle Island. Tomorrow will see us traverse another 16nm and pull into Port Lincoln. WOW. To celebrate we've had a couple of beers, some bubbles and 1 1/2 doz Coffin Bay Oysters that we've saved for the occasion. An improvement on the extra ration of rum suggested by Dr John!

The Bloke begging me to sit down and celebrate

Job done. The anchor is, we think, in a bed of sand, 40m of chain dragging about on the sea floor and defying the current. The swell is dropping, the breeze is settling and the sun has set over land. We'll enjoy getting accustomed to that - sunset over land, not the ocean.

Happy sailing 'numpties' make it across The Great Australian Bight

Good-night everyone, a sound and satisfied sleep beckons. 

Looking back at Williams Island

West Point

Leg 20 - Coffin Bay to Misery Cove

A lot of morbid references in terms of place names are evident in these parts. It does makes one wonder what was occurring when these locations were being 'discovered'. Names like Misery, Avoid, Catastrophe, Coffin, just to mention a few.

We followed Midnight Blue out of Coffin Bay and used a shortcut that took at least 30 minutes off the transit from the town to the Ocean. Even so, it took over 2 hours to reach Point Sir Isaac. Wild Honey were already on anchor awaiting their exit into The Bight and home to Mandurah. Good Luck guys... hope it's quick and uneventful!

Following Midnight Blue through the Coffin Bay slalom on the morning tide

Our original plan was to also anchor at Point Sir Isaacs before heading out of the Bay and southward.  When it was suggested we go to an altogether nicer anchorage because we'd learned the other name for this anchorage "Seasick Point" we naturally signed up.  Sensation Beach sounded much more appealing. When we anchored we discovered it was also known as Misery Cove . It's at the northern end of Avoid Bay. I couldn't believe we fell for it! The Sensation was possibly a reference to the unusually white beach but the actual sensation was of a VERY rolly anchorage due to surge from the surf on the beach. On the up side it moved us 20nm further south - a good start for the next run around the tip of the Eyre Peninsula. It was also a sandy beach with excellent holding and protection from the wind. No dread ribbon weed to give us anchoring heebie geebies. Who could possibly complain about that? As a testament to how well the anchorage was rated, 2 cray boats arrived during the night and tucked up rather precosciously right next to the rocks. I bet they got a shock to find 2 sailboats already in their hidey hole.

Anchoring behind a nice little headland at Misery Cove