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Nightmoves

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Trips:

Robbie and Tess around Australia

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Hinchinbrook to Mourilyan Harbour via Dunk Island,

Cardwell, Australia

Upon arriving at Little Pioneer Bay we picked up a Marine Park Mooring and attached was a notice that pest control was taking place (Shooting wild goats from a helicopter) in the area so don't stay here, well that was never going to happen I rang the number on the notice expecting a confrontation as there was a strong wind warning and there was no way we would be leaving this safe haven....
To my relief the notice had been cancelled due to the bad weather so we were able to settle back and enjoy the serenity, we went for a walk on the beach and a swim on the coral, the water was not very clear but just the right temperature.
The next day we headed for Lucinda even though I had sworn I would never cross the bar again after my last experiance, then again it was my decision to cross the bar previously on a low outgoing tide one of my closest encounters to losing Nightmoves.
We had a rising tide which made the bar crossing easy, once behind Hinchinbrook Island it was like a mill pond it could blow a hundred knots here and it would still be smooth, we travelled to Scraggy Point and anchored for the night, quite apt I thought we fitted in well as the Scraggs on Nightmoves at Scraggy Point.
From Scraggy Point we sailed to Dunk Island and I suppose we became Dunks then again after an afternoon session at the Plantation Bar at the resort the captain was drunk and buggered his arm getting in the dingy to retreat to Nightmoves, the wench was in her glory telling the drunk at Dunk the perils of alcohol, of course this was like a gust of wind, heard, felt and thanks for coming.....
Before leaving Dunk a swim was in order the water again was not very clear but very nice to cool off, we upped anchor and motor sailed to Mourilyan Harbour the wind was erratic from 5 to 15 knots anywhere between Southwest to Northeast we went inside the South and North Barnard Islands, quite a few surprises lay beneath when transvering these waters, we made many course changes to avoid the crunching sound of boat on reef.
Once inside Mourilyan Harbour we have settled in very calm waters, the weather has been unfavourable overnight so we are staying put until the worst passes. Apparently a 30ft. sloop with one person onboard dragged anchor at Fitzroy island overnight then was dismasted and drifting somewhere towards the reef, a search is underway we hope they find him.
R&T

permalink written by  Nightmoves on April 22, 2010 from Cardwell, Australia
from the travel blog: Robbie and Tess around Australia
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THE FIRST SHAKEDOWN

Townsville, Australia

2 days of travelling completed but not without a few things going wrong, we left Townsville at 9.00am heading for Rattlesnake Island which is only 18 Nautical miles,
Upon recieving the weather forcast earlier that day once we were halfway out Coastguard gave out a strong wind warning for the Townsville area, it was not too much of a worry as we only had a couple of hours to go.
We anchored at Rattlesnake for the night on the northan point which was uncomfortable as the waves worked their way round the point, we upped anchor early to get as far as possible before the wind reached the 30 knots predicted, this is when the trouble started, I noticed some water in the port engine room so after pumping that out I looked for the source but could not find it, we set sail and after a couple of minits I checked the engine room again to find water gushing in from the rear shaft seal, by this time we were sailing along at 7 knots and had to drag the sails in and head back to shallow water to anchor and fix the problem.
So after a short time the problem was fixed and away we went again, we were cruising along and decided to have a cup of tea to settle down and the gas ran out... of course the fridge works on gas, so the bottle had to be changed and squeezing Robbies frame into the gas locker is a task in itself in calm waters let alone under sail with 2 metre waves pushing us along.
After much grunting, pushing and cursing the new gas bottle was going and it was indeed time for a cuppa, alas by this stage Tess had changed colour and was praying head down into the yellow bucket, she was making some strange noises and by the look on her face I tried to make myself invisable but that did not work, next plan was to try and convince her that those white cap waves were not higher than the boat, she replied by praying into the yellow bucket again.
The best thing now was to find some calmer water so we passed close to islands for some respite for Tess, but once away into the roughness the yellow bucket was given another prayer.
Calm water was close at hand after an hour and the greeness disappeared from the skin of my beloved, so here we are tucked away nicely in Little Pioneer Bay waiting for a break in the weather to continue on, at this stage we will go through the Hinchinbrook Channel as this is not affected by foul weather,
Cheers R&T.

permalink written by  Nightmoves on April 19, 2010 from Townsville, Australia
from the travel blog: Robbie and Tess around Australia
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Time to leave Airlie Beach

Townsville, Australia

It's been a week since Nightmoves landed me safely in Townsville, the trip up from Airlie Beach was fairly sedate, I had an escort to the eco resort at the bottom of Glousester Island in the form of the Ardvarkians (Pete and Merralyn on thier Gulfstar 46). We both anchored up and headed for the bar on the shore for a sesson but the place was closed so we headed back to Ardvaark for an on board drink.
The Ardvarkians were heading back to the Whitsundays so I set sail for Cape Upstart, Tess was waiting for me in Townsville as she was working nightshifts so for the second time I am solo sailing back to Townsville, after a pleasant night at the Cape I set sail for Cape Bowling Green and was going to stay there for the night but the south easterly was pushing me along nicely so Townsville was my destination, I pulled into the Breakwater Marina and for the last week Tess and I have been going through the endless lists of things to do and buy.
Our departure date from Townsville is Sunday 18th. by then if there is any thing left on the lists so be it, our destination is Cairns via all the islands we come across on the way we are not on any set time limit so it could take 3 weeks,
Cheers R&T.

permalink written by  Nightmoves on April 11, 2010 from Townsville, Australia
from the travel blog: Robbie and Tess around Australia
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Cyclone ULUIE

Airlie Beach, Austria

Cyclone ULUIE (you loo eee) decided to visit the marina on her way to Proserpine, at catorgery 3 she delivered wind gusts upwards of 180klms an hour, we were told to evacuate the marina by 6pm as ULUIE was crossing directly over us at 1am Sunday morning.
Tess and I took shelter in a motel on the side of a hill in Airlie Beach which was a smart move as we were basically only getting half of the wind strength, the power dropped out at about 10pm and then ULUIE let rip, at about 2am the eye of ULUIE was sitting dead centre of Airlie Beach, it was very eerie as the wind had dropped to zero and the torretial rain had stopped.
I went down to the marina expecting to see carnage everywere the marina had survived the first half of ULUIE, the only thing on Nightmoves damaged was the headsail it had unfurled itself about halfway and was ripped in a few places, the eye of ULUIE took 2 hours to pass then all hell broke loose again, at about 8am it was all over and we went back to Nightmoves and were surprised that nothing had moved inside or outside.
We were lucky over 60 boats from Shute Harbour to Cannonvale Beach had been damaged, of those at least 20 were now guests of Davey Jones Locker, the waves outside the marina at the height of ULUIE were 3 meters no wonder heaps of boats broke thier moorings and were tossed onto the rocks.
The cleanup started on Sunday and will take a couple of weeks to complete, huge cranes are setup at Cannonvale boat ramp to lift all the beyond repair hulks out of the water for their final voyage to the dump.
A few tales are going around about insurance ripoffs why would anyone leave multi million dollar boats on moorings when there is plenty of room in the marina ???
So time marches on,Tess has only 8 shifts to go and thats it for a year I am stuck trying to finish my current project as the weather is being unkind, I only need 5 days without rain and I can finish the landscaping then off to Townsville for a couple of weeks to victual the boat and away we go...
Cheers
R&T.

permalink written by  Nightmoves on March 24, 2010 from Airlie Beach, Austria
from the travel blog: Robbie and Tess around Australia
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Getting started

Townsville, Australia

Getting started was and is the most time consuming and money burning activity, for one you have to have a capable vessel that can handle the rigors of the ocean also comfortable enough to spend hours dozing and relaxing.
With Nightmoves she fulfills all the criteria needed for a safe and comfotable voyage, the storage onboard is huge there is enough room for a years supply of tucker, we made up a list of must haves for the trip, The first thing that was installed was the kick arse air-conditioner this is a must in the tropics when anchored in a mosquito infested river or when it's just hot and humid, of course a generator is then required to run the thing.
Next up is power requirements to run the 12 volt electronics and gadjets without using the generator, 4 solar panels were installed on the roof and combined they produce up to 200 amps a day, this is more than we need and there are the days when the sun doesn't shine, refridgeration is a big thing so we have backed up the standard fridge which runs on LPG. with a 70 litre 12 volt fridge /freezer which runs off the solar panel battery bank, this bank has 380 amp hours of power even on overcast days there is sufficient backup to run the fridge.
The next thing on the agenda was sail/rigging condition the headsail is fine but the mainsail had a bit missing in the middle so $1,900.00 later the new main was fitted and all is good, the rigging was inspected by a fellow from Airlie and despite the age (11 years) all's good there as well.
Next consideration is fuel/LPG/fresh water, at the moment there is 500 litres of fresh water and 380 litres of fuel, a tank was purchased for 400 litres of fuel but working out that each motor burns 3.8 litres an hour thats 50 hours running both engines @ a boat speed of 8 knots gives a range of 400 nautical miles, running 1 motor will give a range of 600 nautical miles, the decision was made to carry 40 litres of diesel as back up if needed. The 400 litre tank will now be used for fresh water this will last a month at least. LPG for refridgeration, cooking and water heating is covered by 6/20 litre bottles these will last 10 weeks if required to.
A new GPS, EPIREB, VHF Marine Radio, Flares, Electronic Charts are now on board, the bank account suffered but all the gear bought was necessary to ensure a safe trip.
On the food front we have found many things that do not require refridgeration, the best thing was pre-cooked beef and lamb in food grade bags which you store in the cupboard for up to 18 months, tinned butter which has a shelf life of 12 months, you can get long life cheese but it is very salty and bland. Yogurt comes in a bag and is made as required, ice cream comes in a bag as well. Fresh bread we will make along the way, I think that we are well prepared all we have to do now is Go !!!!
R&T.


permalink written by  Nightmoves on January 30, 2010 from Townsville, Australia
from the travel blog: Robbie and Tess around Australia
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