Pastime of Sydney- 2009 Adventures

Log reads 518NM (about 950Km).

We were up at 0530 on Thursday morning. A quick breakfast and we upped-anchor at 0620 with just enough light to get out of Bittangabee Creek. It was an easier exit than entry as the swell had turned around and we no longer had breaking surf on all sides.

We were close hauled (ie as close to the wind as you can sail) with a single reef until South of Gabo Island. Unfortunately, there was current against us. This does not seem to happen to the Sydney-Hobart race fleet. At 1.6kts, it seriously reduced our 5.5 to 3.9kts. There was nothing much to be done about it other than to realise, even at that early stage, that an arrival in the day was almost out of the question.

Huge numbers of dolphins came to visit us, synchronised in rows and columns. They stayed for a brief while and then departed to be replaced by a couple of seals.

We had steady but light rain for six hours, but fortunately once it stopped, there was no more for the rest of the passage.

As the wind came around, we got romping along nicely at about 7.5kts.

The seas were quite big (3metres on two swells from two directions). The current made the waves steep so things were a bit rough.

During the afternoon, Penny lay down for a rest but was uncomfortable and when she got up, mal de mer struck. She was then uncomfortable for the remainder of the trip and indeed stayed awake the whole 42hrs. Fortunately, on the second day here health was much better but she stayed above decks.

We heated up the stew for dinner but only David partook.

We only had one problem during the night. The oar came off Flinders (our Cape Horn wind steering system). It is only meant to come off when you hit something. It might have been the rough seas or more likely, the shock-cord which is part of the mechanism might have lost some strength. Putting it back on involves heaving-to then David going out onto the transom (back) of the boat and re-attaching it. This activity caused the loss of dinner for Dave, but it was only a brief affair and he was okay a few hours later. At first light, we replaced the piece of shock cord and had no further problems (and have never had any previously).

We sighted Deal, Erith and Dover islands before sunset but it was pitch black so we came in slowly and sussed out the anchorage. Our first attempt had us too close to the cliffs so we did it again and were happy. The time was 2300. We had sailed an extra 23NM due to the current. We had some with us but it was, perversely, mostly against us.

After a brief tidy up, it was straight into bed for a solid sleep.

Our weather window was only just sufficient. As we anchored, the wind started to come in from the West.

We will stay here exploring for a few days before heading off to Launceston.

Best Regds, Dave & Penny
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Hi All,

We should be leaving Thursday morning around 0630. We have a weather "window" of about 41hrs before the next Southerly. We are headed for Deal Island off the North part of Tassie. Should have 3 metre seas on Friday so hope that's the max. They build up a lot in the shallowish water.

We have been off internet & phones since Sunday and will likely not see our Sailmail until we get there some time Friday night.

A couple of dolphins just came to say "goodbye" and yesterday we saw a 1.5metre goanna, Eastern grey kangaroos, King Parrots and white crested sea eagles...plus more.

All the best,

Dave and Penny

As we wait for the weather, we are enjoying this place. It becomes a bit rocky when the wind drops or the tide is high but otherwise okay.

No other boats at all and only the occasional National Parks visitor.

Our two flathead, one bream, one yellowtail and one sting ray have all been too small and returned to the water.

We are about 19NM from the Victorian border. This is the most Southerly anchorage in NSW. There was a stiff wind change in the early hours of the morning (there is a gale warning from here to points South) and sadly we could again smell smoke from Victoria.

There are good walks here though many trees have come down across paths so we will be careful in the strong winds.

We have a pleasant white sandy beach and explored about 1Km up BVittangabee Creek.

Our weather window slipped a day to Thursday morning because the cold front was bigger and longer than expected. It is proving very challenging getting a 48hr weather window at the moment. We do not fancy the 6metre seas in some parts of Bass Strait at the moment!

Regards,

Dave & Penny
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Today (Sunday) we are going South to "Bittangabee Creek". It is in the Ben Boyd National Park. Then, first thing Wednesday, we will head across Bass Strait for Deal Island.

There was a brief weather window this morning but too short to get us to Deal Island. German friends have left but we think they might have a tough trip with too-light winds at the start and 10hrs of fierce Southerley in their faces at the end. They are headed for a different island- Babel Island.

Bye, Dave & Penny

We received the engine part on Wednesday (a very wet day) and all went well with the installation. So now, we have an engine again.

We needed it on Tuesday when we dragged anchor in the strong Southerly winds. Wew had originally anchored for just a brief while and then had no engine. Just shgows always to be prepared.

We have been sightseeing around here, going for walks, doing some varnishing and other bits and pieces.

The locals are friendly and have been looking after us well (eg lifts to town).

It looks as if we will have a few more days to wait for the next weather window. That low that soaked everyone up North came here but hopefully "normal" weather patterns are resuming.

It is a pity we misswed the last weather window due to the oil line, but just as well we found it before settings out.

All the best,
Dave & Penny

Well, we are still in Eden and not in Bass Strait. In pre-trip checks, we found the engine oil level dramatically low. Oil was dripping from a steel oil line. Wiping it with a rag turned the drip into a small geyser. David removed the line (which goes to 5 places on the engine) after removing the starter motor and it then broke into two pieces. An attempted fix with some high pressure hose was unsuccessful.

So, we will order bits tomorrow and have missed this weather window. Mean time, we will enjoy Eden.

bye, Dave & Penny

no-footer

We are in Eden! Arrived in Twofold Bay Friday night around 21:10. <br><br> We had a good night's sleep at Broulee. We had intended to get up at 0500 or so for the 80NM (about 150Km) passage down to Eden. Not having been to Eden before, we had hoped to arrive with some twilight left. <br><br> However, at 0500 and indeed for quite a few hours after, it was pouring with rain and there was no wind. So, we had a bit of a sleep-in and left at 08:15. From the start, the wind was from an unexpected direction and probably a land breeze. This suited us and we sailed close-hauled (ie the yacht is as close to the wind as it can be and still move forwards). With current against us (because of the long blowing Southerlies), we made slowish but okay time to Narooma. Then the wind swung around to 12-15kts from the SE which is perfect for Pastime. We were soon romping along at anything up to 7kts (close hauled) all the way South from Montague Island. Given the seas into us, we only got a couple of big waves over the bows and did not get more than a spray of salt water. It was cold (16deg) so we had on four layers of clothing. Amazingly, we received no rain- fantastic! By the time we reached Twofold Bay, we were more than a couple of hours ahead of schedule. <br><br> We saw one large seal on the way but no dolphins this time. <br><br> When we got into the Bay, it was pitch black due to clouds and the fact that the moon had not risen. There was a lot of light from the big woodchip mill, but none of that was useful. There four four large ships. We had hoped to anchor in "Snug Cove" but it was starting to look a bit dicey as we had no visibility. Then we turned on the computer so we could use the electronic charts to get close to our destination. For the first time, Mr Microsoft (our non-friend) decided that Windows would no longer recognise our mouse. So, forget the electronics. We manually plotted a different course to the bottom of the Bay and anchored there about 45mins later. No dramas, but we were a bit tired and slept well. <br><br> We had averaged a touch under 6kts for the passage down and were delighted with this plus the fact that it had been such an excellent sail. <br><br> Then, this morning, we pulled up to the wharf and John from Coastal Patrol kindly brought down our replacement rubber ducky in his 4WD. How kind! Carrying it back would have been a pest and we have not seen a taxi here. <br><br> The first weather window for a while opened up this morning and six boats left for Tassie. <br><br> We will leave early Sunday morning and hope to arrive at Deal Island in Bass Strait some time on Monday night. <br><br> We might get seas up to 3M in Bass Strait according to the forecast, but hope they do not get quite that big. <br><br> So, the next blog will hopefully be from Deal Island.We will be there for a few days waiting for a strong low pressure system (and nasty winds) to pass through then it will be off to the Tamar River and Launceston. <br><br> For the first time, we have no internet on the boat because there is no 3G coverage in Eden. So, this comes to you over the slow HF Radio link and Sailmail. <br><br> All the best, <br><br> Penny & Dave

We got to the jetty so Penny could do some last minute shopping. It was so rough that the boat slamming into the jetty burst one of our three fenders.

Then, with some apprehension, we approached the bar. There was quite a swell of over a metre rolling in. With only 8 inches of water under our keel, we did not want to get dumped on the shallowest spot between crests of the waves. We made it through (just) and anchored in the only spot with some Southerly shelter. It was pretty miserable and improved a lot when we put out our home made "rocket stppers". These were brilliant....at least until night fall when the very strong winds abated, leaving us lurching broadside to the big waves. We had a sleepless night with the bouncing around.

So today, after a particularly heavy rain shower, we headed of to Broulee, which is only about 12NM away. We had a cold and "vigorous" trip with the 3metre waves on a 3 metre swell and 20-30kt winds into our faces much of the time. Fortunately, at the start and at the end we could use one sail which greatly steadied the boat and stopped the aweful lurching motion.

We are wondering why people actually sail down South! We have decided we must be mad. The temperature today has been max 17deg and it has been raining for a couple of days...

We are quite comfy now anchored in the lee of Broulee Island at the South end of Broulee. Some soup and warm clothes are helping restore our equilibrium.

Tomorrow, we hope to make Eden which is 80NM away.

Thanks for the messages, particularly Val and Mike- loyal reders!

Best Regds,
Dave & Penny

We are still in the Clyde River as winds are still Southerly (the direction we wish to travel). Now we have a gale warning for the rest of today with evebn stronger winds tomorrow.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) we need to leave the river as otherwise we will be stuck for two more weeks as the tides will be too low for us to get out over the bar. We'll stop at the jetty to get some fresh bread and fruit. Then we will anchor behind a small island in the bay or maybe go about 20km Sth to Broulee Island if things are not too rough.

We had a welcome phone call from Coastal Patrol that our replacement rubber ducky arrived there today. Perhaps we will get there on the weekend?

All the best, Dave & Penny

We had a good passage down to Batemans Bay, though the wind strength never got to more than about 11kts and the direction remained from the SE.

So, we had to use more engine than we would have liked but the sails still helped the whole way. We had seen dolphins swimming near the boat and seals basking on their backs with flippers lazily poking in the air.

We saw more seals as we made our way South and also a long fish swam by the side of the boat for several hours. It was probably hiding from larger predators.

We anchored in Chain Bay and had a very pleasant swim as it was quite hot.

Next morning- Saturday- we went into the Marina and shipwright's area to top up diesel fuel and water. Penny was able to ho ashore (first time in a week) and get some fresh bread. There was no room in the marina and, in any case, would have been too shallow for us at low tide. So, we came up the Clyde River towards the bridge over the Princes Highway and anchored near some moored boats.

The good thing is that there is a Public Jetty not too far away and we can tie up there for an hour ro stretch our legs and/or do some shopping.

Saturday was very hot with the temperature on board reaching 36deg so swimmiing was frequent. We had rto tie a fender to a long line as a safety rope for when we were swimming as the current flows quite fast here. At its maximum, you cannot swim as fast as the water is moving.

We'll be here for a few days with strong Southerlies.

Regards, Dave & Penny

Tuesday was spent on the boat tidying up and doing small chores. As mentioned, we were unable to get ashore as the high tied were very low and we just got the keel stuck in the mud any time we tried to approach a jetty or the rescue boats.

Around 11am on Wednesday, the wind shifted from the Southerly which had been blowing and we made our way out of the river. Just as we were about to leave, the "Australian Warship" came on the air warning of live firing in our path. Fortunately, they were going to be more than the regulation 7 miles from us. As we were about to leave, the warship announced that it had moved and would now be right in our path (or we should say- we would be in their path!) Anyway, all was well. We spoke to them and they told us they would be finished for the day before we got there. Hooray!

Off we went and soon had the sails up. Due to the wind direction, we had to tack a lot of the way (zig zagging into the wind). The bonus was that we were only a few hundred metres from the cliffs surrounding Jervis Bay and it was a magnificent sight. Much closer than one would normally go. We had great current with us which was compensated a bit by quite rough conditions as the racing current met the big Southerly swells.

By mid afternoon, we were snugly tied up on a free mooring at "Hole in the Wall"- a pretty and isolated spot right at the bottom of Jervis Bay. Strange to thing that we were back in the ACT!

We got lots of chores done- greasing winches, cleaning and polishing windows, washing, topping up oil, repairing a corner of the canopy where the 35-40kt winds had exacted some damage etc.

Today (Thursday) it became necessary to move to the North end of the Bay due to 25-30kt winds howling down from the NNE. We were able to sail most of the way with just our head sail- getting up to about 6.5kts as the wind rose.

We are now snugly anchored with the wind still howling. Fortunately, we had swapped anchors earlier to a type (Admiralty) much more suited to the weed found throughout this area (and much of Tasmania as well_. Conventional anchors do not penetrate the weed, leading to dangers especially in high winds.

Tororrow we hope to head for Bateman's Bay. There are more very strong winds on the way Saturday. By motoring through light Southerlies in the morning, we should be able to harness decent winds after 11am and sail the rest of the way. A lot will depend upon our forecasting because the Met Bureau agrees with most but not all of this- they think the Southerlies will be much stronger. If they are right, you will find us here still for days yet. We hope not because we would like to buy some bread and other things. That is not possible here.

We have ordered a replacement dinghy which is being delivered to Eden.

Cheers, Penny & Dave

We were up early (about sunrise) for the long day's sailing down to Jervis Bay.

The forecast was for light winds at the start picking up later in the day.

So, as expected, we motor-sailed for a few hours before being able to kill the engine as the wind went to the expected 10-15kts.

We were towing the rubber ducky- something that we vowed never to do in the open ocean but we got a bit lazy and this caused things to come unglued later on.

We were moving along nicely, intermittently reading whilst also keeping a good lookout. Initially, the Autopilot worked fine in the light winds with the repaired motor behaving itself. Later we put on Flinders, the wind steering mechanism which is one of the most worthwhile things on Pastime. A big plug for the manufacturer Cape Horn who not only make a superior product but who also provide fantastic support.

Then came the message over the radio- Securite....priority strong wind warning. The new forecast said 20-30kt winds had already arrived further South around Ulladulla. This iscalled forecasting after it actually happens....

Well, that's not too bad, but we decided to change course for the Crookhaven River which we could reach before Sunset rather than going through or near the dangerous Banks Shoals closer to Jervis Bay. We still had a 52NM journey with a further 19NM to Jervis Bay.

Then we heard "Australian Warship calling....". Someone had decided to do live shelling (ie shooting large ship's guns) off Jervis Bay. We had checked earlier in the day and nothing was scheduled then. This would have necessitated a very large detour for us and we would have been into Jervis Bay after midnight. Thus, the change-course decision seemed to be vindicated.

Well, the Bureau forecast was sort-of right. It did get to the wind speeds predicted and then dropped back. We resisted the impulse to put up more sail and just as well. Before we knew it, we had constant winds from 33 to 39kts. Fortunately it was not gusting higher because this is the low end of gale force anyway.

Coastal Patrol Crookhaven advised that the Bar was getting rougher. It was not a good time to enter with the tide ebbing and meeting big swells rolling right into the entrance.

We had our hands full and could not make out the entrance leads but Penny picked us up on the chart plotter and got me (David) steering the correct course for entry.

Things were moving fast and we kind of forgot the rubber ducky which had tracked behind us very well. Getting the mainsail down was a chore but for once the autopilot behaved and the fixed motor kept us into the by now very big waves in shallowish water. In retrospect, we should have dragged the rubber ducky on board and deflated it.

We came roaring in with the waves breaking. They were about 4metres and fortunately though steep, only a few broke. Then a big bang- I looked behind and the dinghy painter (a stout one) had broken. The instant thought of "turn around" was countered by "No- we'll be broached and rolled over".

So, we continued on safely into the river but with no rubber ducky and no easy way to get ashore.

People are keeping an eye out but now the wind has gone to the South, it will be blown back to Sydney. Unlike our old rubber ducky (which is at home) our name is not on this one, so "goodbye rubber ducky".

Coastal Patrol kindly lent us their mooring and also authorised us to raft up to their rescue boats to get ashore. We tried this at high tide but got briefly stuck in the mud. So the water is too shallow to get to their boats or to the fishing wharf or the public wharf.

So, it is forced liveaboarding for now until we get another rubber ducky.

The Southerlies will be here for another day so we will hopefully move down to Jervis Bay in a day or so.

Best Regds, Dave (& Penny)

Saturday was busy as we packed up the final goods and ferried them to the boat. Towards the end of packing things away, we discovered that we had left behind a number of vital items. So, back went Penny in the rubber ducky. Thank goodness the house is so close.

When we were packed up, we moved over to "The Basin". We had an enjoyable several hours on board Windchimes with friends Greg and Janise. They built their 50' steel cutter themselves and also constructed almost everything on board.

Sunday morning, we waved goodbye to Windchimes. They are awaiting an auto pilot part before heading North to Darwin and Indonesia. The forecast proved to be totally wrong. Instead of 10kt Northerlies, we had 10kt Southerlies.

Because of our low speed, we used the electronic autopilot at the start. This has given us nothing but trouble since we bought it 18months ago. Its predecessor was not much better. We will never buy Raymarine or Autohelm (who they bought) again. After 40minutes, the autopilot motor overheated. So, it was then hand steering with some brief respite when there was enough wind/speed for the wind vane. We tried a second small autopilot (also Raymarine) attached to the wind vane. This can be used in low winds and when motoring. Guess what? It has also failed!

After some time, we completed the 33NM, including an extra "free" 6NM due to the current and arrived at Port Hacking and anchored off Jibbon Beach. Then when the power boats left to go home, we picked up a public mooring for the night. As we expected the wind to change around, this was more convenient than anchoring.

The forecast for Monday was light Northerlies to start with, getting up to 15-20kts at the max. Perfect we thought. The distance to Jervis Bay was 71NM so we needed an early start. That evening, David dismantled the autopilot and found water in the motor (which is supposed to be fully sealed). The previous version had the same sort of problems. Well, after cleaning it and plenty of WD40 it seemed to be working again. We onl,y really need it in light winds and for pulling down the sail and sometimes pulling it down. If necessary, we will do without it yet again.

Regds, Penny & Dave