Stanley - Devonport

The passage from Three Hummock to Stanley was quite interesting. We decided to leave early before a 30-35knt Westerly blow was due later in the day and make for the port of Stanley. We had a quick passage averaging about 6 knots and arrived to a very foggy port, we could hardly see "The Nut" - Stanley's main attraction, a giant rock on the headland as you enter the port - and relied heavily on the radar to confirm the position of the land relative to the boat. A very tight entrance into the port saw us tied to a fishing boat wharf with a 3 metre tide - interesting.

That night a 30-35 knot wind blew in from the West as forecast and we were glad to be in the safety of the port even though we had a relatively uncomfortable night adjusting fenders and lines as the tide raced in and out. Little did we know that worse was to come.

On my birthday we climbed The Nut and took a heap of photos. It's a very impressive rock and makes the town quite unique. We also bought a Crayfish from the docks for $65 per Kilo - Cheapest I've seen for a long time. It was a birthday to remember.

Sunday night there was another Westerly blow forecast for about 30-35 knots. We weren't concerned at that stage as we had been in worse and felt quite safe. Well, lets just say they can't be right all of the time - we got 55 knots of natures finest. A wild night to say the least. Bass Voyager endured a night of being thrust hard against a swaying pylon of wood and concrete, bashing her beam and losing only paint. I climbed up on to the wharf a few times to check the lines and it was swaying more then our boat! When the wind dropped to 40 Knots we decided it was quiet enough to get some sleep (!)

We left Stanley on Tuesday morning after an exciting week and stayed at Table Cape, a small bay only 23Nm from Stanley. The next morning we upped anchored and made for Devonport. It is located on the Mersey River and is the landing port for the Spirit Of Tasmania. We have spent the day here at the Mersey River Yacht Club and we are happy with the facilities.

More to come....

The Nut, Stanley. We couldnt see this as we sailed in - it was blanketed in fog.

Stanley

Views from on top of The Nut

Stanley Harbour - BV's mast visible in the farthest pen...

Three Hummock Island visible in the far distance

 

View from our current anchorage in the Mersey River in Devonport

Three Hummock Island

Hi everyone
We are now in the fishing harbour at Stanley on the North West coast of Tasmania! We made it! Yay us!

More about Stanley in a later post, but first I have to tell you about Three Hummock Island... I think we may have found paradise on earth. On arrival to the Fleurieu Group of islands we received a friendly welcome over the radio from Beverly and John, the Managers of the homestead on Three Hummock Island (THI), inviting us to visit. An unforecast south easterly blew the swell right into our anchorage at Hunter Island making for a nauseatingly rolly night, so the next morning we eagerly motored the 3 nautical miles over to the calm bay at Chimney Corner, THI.

THI is about as remote and pristine as you can get (click here to see it on Google Maps). The only way to get to the island is to fly in on a charter plane, or charter a boat - or sail there, like us! It is an amazing mix of historic homestead (the newest building on the island was built in the 1940s), dramatic granite outcrops, sweeping sandy beaches and dense bushland. It is home to hundreds of Kangaroos, Cape Barron Geese, a Shearwater colony, fairy penguins, and countless other gorgeous critters.

Bev and John welcomed us into their home with open arms, immediately spoiling us with cups of tea and cakes. They showed us around the homestead and nearby cottage which they have beautifully restored as boutique accommodation. They took us by 4WD down to a nearby beach - John has been working hard at restoring the old bush tracks around the island to make it easier to get around - to where they have been harvesting amazingly tasty sea salt from the granite rockpools. THIS = Three Hummock Island Salt - a pinch of THIS and a pinch of that!

Then, best of all they showed us their amazing organic garden which supplies the homestead with wonderful fresh fruit, heirloom veggies and herbs (Bev and John only travel to the mainland every two months for supplies, so a productive garden is essential). We were totally overwhelmed when they loaded us up with a basket of ripe fruit, veggies, herbs and eggs - so appreciated as our fresh food supplies were seriously dwindling! Such genuine hospitality and kindness - thanks so much guys! We had some great laughs and feel like we made a couple of great new friends.

We were so impressed with what Beverly and John have acheived at THI. We can even see ourselves doing something similar one day. At the risk of sounding like a travel advertisement, if you ever get the urge to escape somewhere truly unique, pristine and remote, but with all the hospitality and comforts of home, visit Three Hummock Island. Its a magical place. Their website is http://www.threehummockisland.com.au/

I only wish we could have stayed longer, but the wind was forecast to turn nasty as a deep depression passed over the West Coast on Monday, so we made plans to leave on Monday morning.

As we made our preparations we were joined in the bay by the sailing yacht Let's Go who were rendezvousing (that's a word, right?) with their friends on power yacht Opal Lady which we had met previously on King Island. THI marked the culmination of Opal Lady's circumnavigation of Australia, so of course celebrations were in order. Karen and Al invited all of us aboard to share in a glass of champagne to toast their achievement.

At dawn on Monday we sailed 30 nautical miles downwind, pushed along at a cracking pace by the approaching front, through fog and rain and 2 metre seas. We made great time, and a good thing too as winds of nearly 60 knots where recorded on the West Cape overnight. We only had about 40 here in the safety of Stanley Harbour, and that was enough, thank you very much! We were glad we made the choice to leave when we did, despite wishing we had more time in the islands. Its OK, we will be back one day!

Anchorage at Chimney Corner, Three Hummock Island

Walk to the Homestead

Manager John searching for THIS (Three Hummock Island Salt) in the dimpled granite rocks

Amazing produce from Beverly and John's garden - brocolli, strawberries, onions, giant garlic, heirloom zuccini, parsley, basil, running beans... so delicious.

THI locals

 View from the homestead, Bass Voyager in the distance.

King Island - Hunter Island - Three Hummock Island

I wrote the post below yesterday but we lost internet access, and I cant be bothered re-editing it! Just imagine I posted it yesterday ;o) Anyway, we are now anchored off Three Hummock Island, where we will probably stay for a day or two.

I'm writing from Shepherds Bay on Hunter Island, after (pretty much) completing our crossing of Bass Strait! We are only half a day from Mainland Tassie, and from here on in it should be a piece of cake - he he ;o)

We have no phone reception here, but have managed to get internet access by hoisting the wireless device to the top of the mast. This has allowed us to spend the afternoon listening to the JJJ Hottest 100 and having our own little Australia Day party!

As Michael said, we left Port Fairy on the evening of 17 January to cross the first half of the notorious Bass Strait. After an uncomfortable but otherwise uneventful 24 hours we anchored in the lee of New Year Island, before heading to Currie Harbour on King Island the following morning. We had so been looking forward to visiting this very remote place, with its promise of the best beef, famous cheeses, seafood and tragic maritime history. We got a rather “cool” welcome from the local fisherman as we made the tricky entrance into the harbour dotted with nasty reefs. Tourism is not the biggest export on King Island, and obviously yet another boatload of outsiders taking up space on their wharf was more of a nuisance than a welcome addition! The fishos directed us to raft up against one of the big steel cray boats, which was fine by us, it just meant clambering over their decks to get up on to the wharf.

We eagerly hiked up the hill to the town of Currie which was a great little town – really friendly and home to a fantastic supermarket, butcher and bakery – home of Michael’s dream $12 crayfish pies.

We decided to cough up the dollars and hire a car for the next two days which was definitely worth it as we were able to explore every corner of the island and get a real sense of the place. We visited “that” cheese factory, explored the Martian remnants of a 7000 year old calcified forest and learnt heaps about the tragic maritime history of the island. Michael went snorkeling in Currie Harbour and caught a beautiful abalone, but unfortunately the conditions were too rough to go diving for crayfish on the outside of the reefs. I had never really tried abalone – only once years ago when we caught one while cray diving. They are one of those seafoods that are so ridiculously expensive that “average” folks like us never really had the opportunity or desire to buy them. When you catch them yourself it’s a bit hard to see what the fuss is all about! They are lovely, but I bet they are even more delicious when you pay $50 per kilo! Tonight I cooked the abalone we caught here at Shepherds Bay with chill, heaps o garlic and olive oil, coriander, spaghetti and some real deal parmagiano-reggiano. Felt pretty proud of the result too!

Its so beautiful here. Its such a relief (particularly for our parents!) to know that we have completed our last offshore passage for a while. Only day-hops from here on in! Well, until we leave Tassie...

We have been invited over the radio to go and visit the caretakers of a homestead on nearby Three Hummock Island, so I think we will do that tomorrow morning if the weather is good. We hope to stay there for at least a few days because we've heard it has a lovely anchorage. From there we will head over to the Tassie mainland - our first port of call will be probably Stanley. Will be in touch soon!

Caitlin and Michael

PS I called it! Gotye won the Hottest 100. I love this song. Kimbra's vocal performance takes it to a whole other level. Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know

Wharf at Currie Harbour, King Island

View from our boat across to Currie Lighthouse and "The Boathouse" - a restaurant without food or drinks - all BYO - the laziness of the concept is inspiring!!

Cray fishermen sorting their catch on the wharf

There are pheasants, peacocks and turkeys running wild all over King Island - they were introduced as sport/food and have thrived. Really strange to see.

This is typical of the cattle pastures in the North of the island.

Yes, that is supposed to be "Quarantine Bay". Michael made some rude comment about it being due to the fact that the only high school on King Island only goes up to Year 10. ;o/

We walked along this river down to Yellow Rock Beach on the North Coast to see the wreck of the Paddle Steamer the Shannon. What the hell was a Paddle Steamer doing out in Bass Strait??

Cape Wickham Lighthouse - the tallest lighthouse in the Southern Hemisphere.

The road to disappointment....

Penny's Lagoon in Martha Lavinia State Park. Apparently one of only a handful of "suspended" lakes in the world. Can someone tell me what that actually means??? ;o)

Memorial at Grassy Mine, overlooking Grassy Harbour. Grassy was a very strange town. In the 1970's it was booming with thousands of mine workers and families. In 1990 the mine closed, and the population plummeted. Its now dotted with derelict, abandoned houses, and had a very strange vibe. It is the best harbour on King Island but we chose to stay at Currie because it has good facilities and the weather allowed us to safely do so.

We are now in the Roaring Forties...

King Island is the resting place of more shipwrecks than any other area in Australia. This is a memorial to one of the most tragic. The wrecking of the Cataraqui in 1845 remains Australia’s worst civil and maritime disaster: 400 emigrants drowned when the ship struck rocks just a hundred metres offshore on the west coast. Half of the victims were children. It was very emotional visiting this site and imagining the terrifying scenes. The vicious coastline was both dramatically beautiful and terrible.

 

Best name for a town ever!

This was an amazing place on the southern coast of the Island - a 7000 year old calcified forest, perched above the Southern Ocean. The features are actually the calcified root systems, not branches.

Our anchorage at Shepherds Bay, Hunter Island.

Arrived at King Island!

Well we finally got a suitable break in the weather to make our way to King Island. Leaving Tuesday night at about 7pm we arrived at New Year Island at about 3pm on Wednesday. The first part of the voyage was very calm but by 3AM the wind picked up to 20-25 knots and the seas followed. They weren't too big but they were all side on which made for a rolling boat motion - not too comfortable but definitely better with sails up to dampen the effect. We stayed the night at New Year Island which was very protected from the South Westerlies that were blowing all night and early in the morning we motored the three hours to Currie on the West side of the island about half way along. It's the furthest South both Caitlin and I have been. Today I had a Crayfish pie and although it cost $12 it was very nice. More to come soon.

Quick update...

Ive said it before... the best way to make God laugh? Make plans...

After all the fanfare we got up this morning, checked the weather and decided not to leave today! Its not as good out there as we'd hoped and we dont want to take any risks. So frustrating though. Oh well, we're not in a rush, and the weather is just getting better and better over the next few days.


So many false starts on this trip. Bear with us!
:-/

Departing Port Fairy

Just a quick note to let you know that we are planning to leave Port Fairy tomorrow morning as planned (unless the weather changes dramatically!) The trip is 140 nautical miles to destination Grassy on King Island's East coast, so we hope to arrive late on Saturday. In the meantime, here are some final photos from our lovely stay at Port Fairy.
Speak to you from Tasmania!

The other day there was an inter-faith Blessing of the Fleet right near where we are docked. Neither of us usually go in for these sort of things, but given we're about to cross Bass Strait we figured it couldn't hurt to have some of the good vibes rub off on us! The sentiment of the service was really nice, prayers for the safety of seafarers and such things, and plus it was fun to see all the local boys jump in the river after the cross, in the Greek Orthodox tradition.

This is a replica of a Spanish Caravel called Notorious which was handmade from reclaimed timber as a labour of love over 10 years. I have no idea how it would sail! Oh well, the world needs eccentrics! I immediately thought of our friends Kerry and Claudia (www.astrayspray.com) - and you think Astray looks like a pirate ship!!! Ha! ;o)