Bustard Head 2019

Pancake Creek is an enjoyable destination and a bit of a 1/2 way stop between Burnett Heads and Great Keppel Island. We’ve visited a number of times and sometimes out of necessity, to shelter. (BTW since it’s just across the next headland or around the corner from Gladstone, phone, internet and TV reception is excellent). 

On this occasion I was successful in persuading the bloke to accompany me on the walk up to the Bustard Head Lighthouse. Walks with a destination, especially a lighthouse,  are so rewarding.  

Like all lighthouses these days, the actual light visible out at sea, is an uber powerful LED, but the structure and original light remains. In this instance, the lighthouse and adjacent buildings have been preserved and continue to be maintained by a roster of volunteer caretakers. The history associated with the original lighthouse keepers, staff and families is on display and their memory is kept vivid. Not for nothing is there a navigational aide such as this at Bustard Head. The waters in the vicinity are to be respected. Since our first trip up this way in 2016, we can sadly count the loss of at least 6 mariners! 

The walk is best undertaken during low tide as the tidal flat is revealed. The short cut across the the tidal flat is marked by a bucket!  

The Bloke see’s that the end is in sight. Boot camp hasn’t been too severe today!


But wait, there is another vista to enjoy a little beyond the lighthouse! The entrance to Jenny Lind Creek confirms that the lighthouse stands on an island. 

An expanse of water at high tide drains at low to reveal the waterway’s shallow parts. 

A fellow traveller. 

A distinctive mangrove tree that is frequently photographed.  


Mangrove leaves pooling to adorn this puddle.


Vessels anchored in Pancake Creek.


This is the track of the ‘boot camp’ walk. I’m guessing that The Bloke reckons he’s earned his anchor dram today. 

Clearly, it’s time for ‘Sundowners’. Cheers!

Brisbane River Shenanigans

With a month to spare before our scheduled trip home, a visit up the Brisbane River was a natural choice. Visit the kids, friends, a spot of Xmas shopping. Leaving the Deanbilla anchorage at North Stradbroke Island at 06:30am would gift us an ebbing tide to assist us to the Brisbane River mouth in Moreton Bay and from 09:30 the Brisbane River would commence its flood to assist us upstream. A pretty good plan we thought. What could go wrong? To begin with the weather forecast was for a trough. Oh no, the gloves are off! We planned around the forecast which suggested 20kts for a period from around 11:00am before dropping off and by which time we would be well upstream and in protected waters. So to be honest, we were a little surprised to get 38kts across our bows by 09:30am.

Even the prawners were hiding behind Mud Island and lashed together.

Some fishing Ninja types undeterred by adverse weather or perhaps also caught out?

The arrows are the predictions of strength and direction. The black line is the recorded observation. Earlier and stronger!

We were going to have a tricky day any way we looked at it, even had we remained in Moreton Bay. We just pressed on. At one point we were passing through the port with 38kts blasting at us from the west when the Bloke noticed the cover on the kayak blowing off. He urged me to go forward to prevent both the cover and stuff that we keep there, from flying away. Luckily it was possible to save the anchor ball (day shape) which was only just hanging onto the lifelines by a snagged sister-clip we use to secure it when in use. The coiled jackstays were handy to tie the cover down because that cover had a mind to come off and the Bloke had a moment of mirth watching me on the bow lying on top of it all just trying to hold it all down!

We pushed on into a headwind through the lower reaches of the river beyond the Port of Brisbane and the industrial areas east of the Gateway Bridges. There is a popular anchoring area near Bulimba and a bit of high drama as 2 yachts were dragging anchor in the strong gusting winds. Other yatchies in their tenders were attempting to control one of the unattended vessels and united in their efforts. They were going to earn their rum ration, that was for sure. Gosh how we hate westerlies.

We kept going for the city reach. 

 

On two previous visits, we’d been able to hire pile moorings adjacent to the city botanical gardens. We knew that these would not be available this time since 50% had been removed to make way for a Brisbane City Council marine initiative - the construction of a ‘River Hub’. The remaining moorings were now chock-a-block with the same neglected, unseaworthy hulks that we’d observed 3 years ago. Anchoring space was at a premium in the area beyond the pile moorings, especially as the vessels were swinging and moving wildly to the opposing forces of tide and gusting wind. To make matters worse there were buoys demarking what was probably a sunken vessel and taking up even more territory. We had a couple of goes at anchoring but we were likely to swing out into the channel heavily traversed by Brisbane’s myriad of river ferries. The Bloke wasn’t having any if it!

 

In the end we turned about and decided to try out the area just ahead of the Storey Bridge. By the time we’d got back there a catamaran had anchored at about the spot we’d mentally noted when inbound. Good for them. Unlucky for us. The first space we tried, opposite a now removed wharf, had a rubbly bottom and offered poor holding so we went ahead a bit and squeezed in ahead if an unattended boat sporting a For Sale sign. Our golfers lazer range finder came into its own reassuring us that 33m separated us. We spent the next few hours adjusting our thinking with regards getting ashore. 

By a strange coincidence, some American cruisers we know (Kindred Spirit) had witnessed our anchoring efforts from their passing ferry. They tried to attract our attention but we were pretty focused and wearing our headphones too, so their voices just carried away in the wind. They did send us a message though asking where we had finished up. On their return trip from the art galleries they took a photo. They were in Brisbane for only one day and were flying home the next morning. The odds of being spotted were pretty small, but we were!

 

By sunset and after the tide change we thought we’d be OK, however once the wind direction altered the little boat in the picture was giving the Bloke conniptions.  Without any particular plan he declared this was not a place in which he’d get a wink of sleep so it was a case of 'headphones on and anchor up' and away we went into the night!

We’d paid some attention earlier in the day to a new wharf/floating jetty arrangement at New Farm Park. It is in fact one of the so-far completed (August 2019) River Access Hubs. It was predictably, highly illuminated and completely devoid of users. It was to become our refuge. Our overnight stay was obviously going to exceed the intended 2 hour limit but we decided it would do us nicely. It had been a long day and the Bloke? Well he was totally 'over it' and focused on having an 'anchor dram'.

  

Tied up at the jetty of refuge and perpetual light.

 

The Brisbane Powerhouse Arts Centre -our morning view.

Zofia, all on her own.

We are at the edge of one of Brisbane’s loveliest parks (a favourite of our grandchildren) and getting to know the locals who are fascinated to finally see the facility in use. Zofia may need a publicist judging by the photography going on.

Kite Island Safari

Friends who claim Moreton Bay as either their home or back yard told us about a tiny sand island at the top of the Rainbow Banks near the top end of North Stradbroke Island. It doesn’t actually exist on the charts although we were later informed it’s quite popular for weddings. Since we were in company of the two pairs of Queensland cruisers who’d mentioned the place to us, they felt compelled to take us.

We had good deep water all the way up to Amity Point where we turned at a starboard marker towards, what looked on the charts, to be dry land, but it turned out that even at low tide it was possible to get across the channel - although probably not recommended at LAT (lowest astronomical tide). 

The mighty Mercedes led the tour

Tauranga and Zofia at anchor in a 3-4 kt current

Curlews, terns and pelicans enjoy this sandy island situated in the gap between Moreton and North Stradbroke Islands.

A few drinks to celebrate our little safari

In lighter conditions this might have been an even more enjoyable wee island to visit but on an average day it's best regarded as a lunch anchorage.

Lights Out!

About 6 weeks ago we sailed overnight up from from Scarborough Marina to Double Island Point in order to cross Wide Bay Bar with the morning high tide. A fellow cruiser leaving Mooloolaba later that afternoon, buddy sailed up the coast with us. She commented that our navigation lights seemed feint. Were we separated further than she thought or was there an issue?

COLREGS (international regulations for the avoidance of collisions at sea) mandate that the light array appropriate for your size and type of boat should be visible for at least 2 nautical miles. We turned on our lights and checked they were working but how strongly the lights shone was hard to judge.

Returning recently to Moreton Bay in a single passage commencing from Fraser Island, we sailed into the night to eventually anchor at Peel Island around 1:30am. We were in company with Queenie Grace,  different sailing partners from our last nighttime passage but they hadn’t noticed anything unusual.  It was only when a dusk exodus from one anchorage to another following a storm-front, that another crew noticed our lights were not as bright as those of nearby vessels. Clearly there was something not quite right and our nav lights suddenly become a priority.

At the next opportunity - when the boat was not rocking or rolling, the Bloke investigated. He dismantled the port and starboard navigation lights that are fixed to the bow rails and removed the LED’s to check them. 

Even Blind Freddy could tell something was amiss here. 

The red port lamp was quite apparently compromised. The metal had corroded. Salt water must have got into the fitting. It’s hardly surprising as the bow occasionally takes a ‘greenie’ or dips into a wave. In fact, it was so bad that only a single LED array illuminated!

Both LED bulbs were condemned and the connections in the light fittings on the bow were cleaned with an electrical contact spray.

Luckily, we happened to have a pair of replacement LEDs we were able to substitute immediately, although we had kept the original incandescent globes as ‘spares’ for just such a situation. Our spare parts tub seems to grow year on year! 

We’ll now need to buy some replacements since these 'spares' were intended for our new masthead tri-colour-anchoring light array. Tamar Marine in Launceston, our very most favourite chandlery, will be sending us red and green replacements. Happily we will now be clearly visible at night when out to sea on a black night!

Storm Season In Queensland

Spring heralds a great deal of unstable weather in South East Queensland and strangely, we encountered an almost identical storm 369 days ago.

We were sheltering from strong northerly winds on the south side of Peel Island. Visibility was diminishing.

We’ve learned to check the radar to monitor the progress of inbound storms.

BoM alert confirming what we were already guessing from our own observations.

Hey, it’s become a bit dark for 4pm!

Oh, here we go. Here it comes!

The weather forecast suggested thunderstorms and we also knew that the northerly winds we’d used to sail from Wide Bay Bar/Fraser Island to Peel Island in Moreton Bay were now strengthening and expected to switch to 25kt S-SE by the following morning. It was so hot and extremely humid that the coast was shrouded in haze. 

The wind dropped out, although not for long.

  

Wind and rain about to be delivered.

Weird light created by the approaching storm front.

Rain bucketing down and wind gusting to 37kts. Our decks and rigging received a proper power-wash and yet more red Bundaberg soil grit came out of the rigging. 

Still blowing but with rain easing. The storm front now passed. 

The southerly burst was replaced with the returning northerly. 

 

Weather observations from Bureau of Meteorology. The Gold Coast Seaway is south and Cape Moreton is North of our location.

Glowing evening sky as if nothing had ever happened.