9th July 2013
Gulf of Carpenteria
13o 8.000S 139o 35.35E
At Weipa we caught a taxi into town and replaced all the
gear lost to fish over the last week.
The taxi driver must have been having a slow day and waited around to
take us back and then, wouldn’t charge us for the return trip! He did like a
chat…
We had to move anchor three times and couldn’t find anywhere
to safely stay in the harbor so we dragged Merv out through the channel and are
now anchored just outside on a safe shore.
The only problem is that we weren’t able to top up with water so we will
just have to make do.
There was a flash yacht that was broken down at the jetty.
Charisma would fit in it sideways. It’s called Twizzle. The name is pretty sad
really. http://www.twizzle.org/about/galleries/
will take you to some photos of it if you’ve got a spare 40 million.
Weipa is good for provisioning but, there are few places to
safely anchor and the wind whips down the river and makes those places a lee
shore. The weather forecast is for strong winds North of us so we might as well
get going.
The sea is a bit messy but we are heading the right way.
11th July 2013
Rats’ Cove - Groote Island
13o 39.691S 136o 43.019E
We had a very sloppy but almost uneventful crossing of the
Gulf. At about 3:00 am on the second
night in the Navigator woke me to tell me that there was a squall coming. Half asleep we tried to haul in the genoa and
tangled the loose sheet(rope) which left the genoa half flogging in 30
knots. I had to go up the bow with
knife in my teeth and cut free the tangle.
After about half an hour of getting bounced and soaked through I managed
to cut and reattach a sheet so we could continue on our existing tack.
Only one of these
knots I tied. The others where done by the wind.
We lost the buckets, bait cage and of course the knife over
the side during this. I tried to take a
video of the conditions but you can’t really tell what the sea state was like.
Basically we rolled,
bumped and lurched our way for three nights across the gulf. We took 2 hour watches continuously and made
do with sandwiches and lollies. It was
impossible to cook and even reading was a problem as the boat was tossed
around. The navigator reported having
some vivid dreams whilst sleeping in the forward washing machine berth whilst I
just rotated from watch to sleep. We didn’t sight another ship at all.
We finally got to Groote Island and went into Umbakumba
Community. (Say that fast three times).
Spoke with a couple of locals who suggested this cove. We filled up the
water tank with jerry cans, did the washing, had some fast food and had a scrub
at the closest tap.
Umbakumba Yacht
facilities. (they get about five yachts per year call in)
Umbakumba was a nice little community. We has lunch on the foreshore with the local
police officer, her friend, a cashed up bogun miner from the other side of
Groote and two dogs. The miner was on his new Harley Victory that he can use on
the whole of the 60km of road on Groote. The dogs looked that hungry that they
got to finish our take away.
All cleaned up and the boat is sort of getting back to
normal, so it is drinks at sundown for the first time in four days!
Rat’s Cove
12th July 2013
Rats’ Cove - Groote Island
13o 39.691S 136o 43.019E
We moved to the bay closest to the point where the swell was
less.
A young girl came down to the rocks in front of Charisma, in
the middle of nowhere and started sunbathing.
The Navigator and I took a while for this to finally register… She put
her top on after we got out the binoculars….
More chicks at Rat’s
Cove. This Eagle nest is about 30m from
where we are anchored.
We spent the whole day chasing bait. We could see them but, they were just too far
out to catch. The only place we could get at some was in a small tidal pool
that is also home to a large crock. The biggest
tracks I’ve seen going in and out and down to sunning positions. The fearless
Navigator went down and threw the net for a small result while I kept watch.
From a long way back just in case I would be called to give evidence if they
couldn’t find the body.
Bait hunting
We gave up in disgust and I concentrated on catching live
bait from the back of Charisma. I fell off the back when the folding chair leg
broke and went through the grid. Bloody funny stuff but, a real disaster as I
lost the Navigator’s glow in the dark cup. I’ll let him borrow mine for now as he did help
me out of the water.
I emerge from the
water
I made up for the day by catching three nice snapper late in
the afternoon. The wind however has been relentless all day. What a shame. But the view is still ok…
I can’t reconcile the landscape for you…
It’s just a bit
different…
You’ll just have to
come and have a look for yourself…
13th July 2013
Bartalumba Bay - Groote Island 13o 48.619S 136o
30.966E
We had a very pleasant day sail here after filleting fish
and giving Merv a bit of a clean up.
The eastern side of the bay where we had planned to anchor
was windy and we couldn’t get into the creek. I nudged two bommies today, so we’ve
headed out to the eastern side near the Winchilsea passage and have the most
peaceful anchorage for quite a long time. Calm water and clear skies. We might have overdone the celebratory drinks
tonight so I can see a quiet day tomorrow.
We do have internet and phone coverage however the Kogan
just refuses to get any signal at all?
We spent two days here fishing around the reefs. The Navigator was cleaning up with his “2 Deadly”
lure.
A small coral trout.
It was all smiles until about half an hour after this photo when
something big broke off taking “2 Deadly”
with it. There were tears in his eyes
but he managed to pull himself together with a glass of Shiraz
We just have too much
class…
The next day we returned to the reefs with “2 Deadly”’s cousin
brother. (same lure but different colour) The wind and sun made it difficult to
find where to troll so cousin brother only had limited success. Overnight the sharks had figured out how to
stick their heads in the crab traps and take the baits out. The Navigator had a
very short duel with a hammer head that was attracted to our light. A really aggressive fish. The most aggressive thing we have caught however
was this…
A face only a mother
could love.
It’s called a wolf herring. Check out it’s Neanderthal jaw and
teeth. It was only 20cm long but thought it could take on a 10cm
long lure and ended up impaled breaking its’ neck. Not a pretty sight but, a moral lesson in what
can happen with a poor attitude.
18th July 2013
Gove 12o
11.945S 136o 42.092E
We sailed overnight on the 16th to get here so
that the navigator could have a look around before flying back. It was great to
be comfortable enough with the Navigator in control to get a decent sleep. We both arrived fresh and keen for a tour.
The yacht club is 14km from town. The local bus comes three
times a day and cost $5 each way. A taxi costs $30. The town has a about 5000
people who are here for the lifestyle(fishing) and money. It’s pretty laid back
and friendly in a Kimberley sort of way.
There are about 50 yachts anchored here with about half of them live
aboard. Rent in town is very expensive.
Tuesday is vegetable day.
That’s when the boat comes in. The centre of the arcade at IGA becomes a
fruit and vegetable stall with just the one price list with all the boxes
stacked in the middle of the floor. It’s a bit more zealous over at Woolworths
where the staff keep trying to put stuff out on display as the customers
descend on the stock like seagulls on a chip packet. Too hectic for us and we
went away empty handed. I will come back later to pick over what is left after
the pack has finished.
On the navigator’s last night the yacht club was open for
the state of origin match so we went in under duress from some other
cruisers. We won the meat tray, the
tender raffle (which I donated back to the club) and had our picture taken by a
reporter from the paper. I think it was our rendition of “Hooked on a feeling”
using Umbakumba as the backing chant with the Italian crew that may have bought
us to his attention. The navigator never did find his thongs…
At dawn The Navigator gets left forlornly at the boat ramp. A tear
in his eye… for his lost 2 deadly lure, his hat, and his thongs. Actually he got off pretty lightly.
There are a few boat jobs to be done over the next week or
so until The Mustang arrives. There will be another short intermission and I’m back on Kogan if you want
to get in contact. We will probably leave here about the 30th.
P.S. I’ve offered The Navigator a right of reply so
I’ll post it here when he sends it in. I know he wants to say something about
Dante’s Hell being nothing compared to cooking on the stove…
