Cruising the Lakes

Malua has travelled in may waterways around the world from the high seas of the southern ocean to the canals of France and also the brown waters of the inter-coastal waterways (ICW) of the east coast of the USA.  Maybe the most amazing waterway was the Hudson River flowing down the shores of Manhattan where we stayed opposite 48 St for almost a month.  Now this last location was right in the bustle and noise of down town New York so to set off up the placid water ways of the Victorian Gippsland Lakes was what Denny and I needed.

The passage westwards up the entrance area is quite easy and very well buoyed.  We entered the Bancroft Bay which opens up to a wide lake and headed for the northern shore and Chinaman's Creek.  Here we stayed the night and the following day exploring the creek and the surrounding bush land - a bit different to downtown Manhattan or even Lyon. 

Next day up the anchor which was covered in mud and off to the local pub at Metung for a drink and some food.  This is a great place to walk along the shore and look into the many holiday homes overlooking the water.

Where to next?  Well you dont have to look for a weather window or even consider the swell or wind.  It is just cast off the lines and off one goes to the next destination which in our case was Paynesville.

We pulled alongside and tied up to a very accessible dock and walked the water front before preparing one of the gourmet meals Malua is famous for.  No French truffles and Brest chicken at the local market here but still good food.

I unpacked my folding bicycle and rode to the local marina and boatyard.  Only to find it was up a creek and not easy to access or to find a local motel so Lakes Entrance was a good choice.

After a long walk on Raymonds Island we returned to Malua and a good sleep.  Next day it was off to the upper reaches of the lakes into Duck Bay and the bush surrounds.  Unfortunately it rained and rained for a few days so we were constrained from doing any long walks but did see a few tracks.  All well signposted and easy to follow - where has the adventure gone in the modern world?

It was now time to head back to Paynesville and towards Lakes Entrance.  No planning required just up anchor or in this case let go the mooring line and point the bow along the track to the next waypoint and there you go - we are on passage.

We stopped at Paynesville for a few provisions and at Metung for an evening G&T then head back to Lakes Entrance.  The water outflow was with us and we made quick time back to our spot at Lakes Entrance waterfront along with the fishing fleet.

Thankfully our VW Golf was still in the parking spot we had left it next to a few fisherman's vehicles who had also gone to sea - quite a relief.

A magical moment on Malua

On the hard - Anti-fouling

Bullocks Island government hardstand is a very well run facility with safety and security featuring very high.  One has to do an online safety course before they will take you out of the water with a well managed travel lift.  It was done very well but they sure know how to charge for extras you did not ask for.

Finally get Malua on the ground with scaffolding all around. and ready to start the work.

An aside.  One of the reasons I had chosen this location was that I had been negotiating with a potential purchaser of Malua who lived near Melbourne and we had agreed that as a condition of purchase he would organise an out of water survey to occur after the anti-fouling had been applied - about Wednesday.

He arrived on Friday evening just as I had docked Malua at the new location and asked to come aboard.  After some hesitation I said yes and he came down below.  From the instant he stepped aboard I knew he was not interested in the purchase because he took little interest in the vessel.  I answered his questions and then asked him to leave but he again insisted to see the vessel on the hard on Monday - what could I say?  On Monday he arrived and looked at the bottom and prop.  I asked when would the surveyor be arriving and he came out with the statement: I have not arranged one!  Well that left me up in the air with very little time to organise one at this location in two day.  My full persuasive power where brought in to bear as I asked a local surveyor to do the job.  Thankfully he arrived on the appointed time and undertook a very comprehensive and detailed survey.  Malua passed with flying colours.

Now on with the work.  I have completed a wash, sand and two coats of anti-fouling in less than 8 hours along the east coast of America when cruising in that area.  That was hard work and good organisation but it is possible with a night to dry before splash down the next morning.

Our labour laws only let the locals work from 7:00 am to 3:50 pm four days a week - Fridays is early knock off.  Here they want to lock up so you cant stay on board or work after hours.  Most days I had to rush to pack up before they close and find a motel to stay the night in - just a short walk away.

No one afternoon I forgot a vital item on board as I hurried to close up Malua for the night and only realised that I had left it behind on reaching the motel.  As they say in Australia "No worrys"  This would not be the first or even the last marina with high fences I have entered after it was secure for the night.  It would not be good protocol to reveal my modus operandi but I can tell you at low tide the security goes out with the water.  I was able to walk - shoes off right into the compound and get my item then approach the automatic gate which opened for me to exit - easy 

This is the first time I have ever used Prop Speed anti-fouling on one of my propellers.  While in Queensland at Boat Works I was able to walk up to the counter of a chandler and order a small pack of the valuable covering - no questions asked.  In NSW they will not sell you the product unless you go on a course with a very high price tag and the people who have undertaken the course are not allowed to sell you the product.

After reading the instruction more than once, watching the videos and finally doing the preparation in fine detail it was time to paint on this golden magical covering.  Well it was simple and definitely not worth the cost of the course but wait will it work?  We will have to wait and see.

Splash down happened rather easily and I motored up river again to find a spot along side a floating pontoon waiting for Denny to arrive - this time in our car for a few weeks cruising in the lakes

Haul out at Lakes Entrance

This is the first time I have been to Victoria on Malua and the first time I had experienced the marine infrastructure.  What a wonderful contrast to New South Wales where the government seems to not care about the potential to use the wonderful water ways for boaters and those people you enjoy a day next to a lake, river or river mouth.  Here facilities are good, plentiful and well organised so all can use them.  They appear to be well maintained and more importantly located in the rights place.

After a short nap and a shower I walked shore and over the sand dunes to have a look at the river mouth and bar.  As always, it does not look so daunting standing with two feet on solid ground but I was able to see the path I had taken. - not bad.

Next, was to move upriver to come alongside the shops and other facilities.  Again the wharf was easy with a floating pontoon right alongside an enclosure for the charter vessels and upriver from the fishing fleet. I was able to wander along the dock and look at the fishing fleet.  I came across a ex-skipper of one of our vessel -Derwent Adventure working on his boat.  Always with a beer in his hand which was his downfall with the owner.

I was due up on the slip on Monday so on Sunday night I relocated closer to Bullocks Wharf ready for the early morning lift onto the hard and the start of the work.

Arrived Lakes Entrance

Arrived Lakes Entrance after a voyage with more motoring than sailing.

I was able to rest and prepare for the entrance.  This entrance has had a very bad reputation as a very dangerous river bar however thankfully the Victorian Government has stationed a large dredge at the entrance and it dredges the bar almost every day.

However every bar must be taken seriously and this one in particular because it is the mouth of a large river and lake system which means that the catchment area for rain is vast.  If it rains in the upper reaches the water has to flow out to the sea and therefore the outflow over the bar can be very swift.  In fact it can reach more than 7 knots.  Malua at full speed under power can match that speed but the speed over the ground is very modest and the directional stability is very very critical.  One can land up on the rocks before you have time to turn the wheel.

The port authority knows the dangers.  The large fishing fleet also know the danger not on the way out to sea but on the way back into port when the vessel is loaded and the gunwales are close to the water. 

There is a very good web sit that tells you the real time flow speed of the water and when the tide turns and if the predicted flow will turn with the tide. 

The local weather forecast was for a strong wind warning for South West to South East winds to arrive before I was across the bar.  This would have made the swell to build and the waves to increase so I took the decision to cross the bar on arrival with a fast flowing outgoing tide.

Not a prudent seamanship decision.

The bar is deep but as you can see from the photo the outflow can run at 4 to 5 knots and cause standing waves.  These standing waves as opposed to waves from a swell are not as dangerous as a breaking swell wave but can dump a large volume of water in the cockpit.  I always close the companion way opening with washboards and secure them when crossing a bar and ensure I am secured to Malua having experienced a massive wave over the stern on the way into Tonga. 

As is always the case one must get the timing right.  In my youth I have spend many a day watching the wave for the next big set to surf to the shore.  Located outside the channel - offshore I watched the sets and positioned Malua ready for the entrance.  The leads at this entrance are good but they change just at the rock-wall entrance so one has to choose either up the middle or some other path against the outgoing current.

With the the right timing I put the throttle down and Malua started for the entrance with white water breaking on the starboard side and the potential for a shore break on the port and ahead breaking standing waves.  As you get closer to the rock-wall opening the standing waves look even larger than from afar but they were not that steep and not that dangerous but let me tell you even for the most experienced seaman would not take them lightly.

Now the outgoing current question - what speed was it at and what route should I take.  It turns out that it was only 5 knots so with Malua travelling at 7 knots we actually were making 2 knots over the ground.  To travel the 600 m from entrance to the turn it seemed to take forever with my hands gripping the wheel and thinking of the many options if the engine stuttered.

Turn to starboard and one is in the quite water of the Entrance tributary and a white wharf in sight.  Out with the fenders and lines and I went astern into a pen and secured to the piles.  

Another uneventful passage completed. Now for a shower, some hot food and a good sleep

Another magical moment on Malua

On passage towards Lakes Entrance

 

All set and in its place, some pre-frozen food for the passage and a good forecast for the wind to come from the stern - North to help get us round the corner at Green Cape and into the wide open spaces of Bass Strait.

As is normal I left as the sun rose expecting the forecast high to move off the coast and the prevailing wind to come in from the North-East but the wind Gods did not help neither did the waves and swell.

The passage south particularly abeam of Eden was very rough with a big swell echoing off the land making the sea very confused.  In these conditions with little wind to fill the sail the best strategy is to drop the sails and to switch on the engine to get you through the uncomfortable area. 

On went the engine and I settled down in the cockpit to watch the miles pass by hoping that the wind might pick up as the sun set but it was not to be.  

It got dark and all the alarms were set for a few cat naps as we steam towards Lakes Entrance 

Winter is coming and it is getting cold

 

We live in the nations capital and during the winter there are a few nights that the temperature drops below freezing.  Our house was built in the 1970s so is not that well insulated.  The mornings getting out of bed can be quite bracing.

Now this inconvenience was not a problem when Malua was in the Mediterranean and we flew to the norther hemisphere after Easter just as the first frost were predicted. I had 11 summers in a row with this type of rotation.

So why not sail north again to warmer climates closer to the equator and the sun?

Malua has almost 2 years growth on her bottom and that need to be cleaned off and new antifouling put on before any extended cruise is contemplated.

I usually use the local slipway for this but that is not an option in Bermagui nor at Batemans Bay so that leaves only a few slips where you can work on your own vessel.  Lakes Entrance is a very good options and that is where I have booked.

But first a few shake down cruises to see that all systems are working and all equipment is in place so off I go for a cruise out and back just to see how far it is.