Tegwen to Tasmania Summer 2010-11 Completed

Tegwen is now safely back at her marina berth in Batemans Bay having completed the "Tegwen to Tasmania" cruise.  She now awaits a complete wash down, scrub and clean after three and a half months away but this will have to wait a few days while the skipper's life returns to "normalcy".

I would like to thank Russ Shalders, Mark Smith, Mark Webb, Graham Giles, Steve Knight and Bruce Hall who crewed with me on this cruise and my wife Christine for her support and understanding.  This cruise would not have been possible without them.

Some additional cruise details and photos may be added over time.

Tegwen to Tasmania - Eden to Batemans Bay

Tegwen left the Eden wharf just after 6:30 this morning. Despite the forecasts of 20 - 30 knots during the morning they did not eventuate. We had reasonable winds, with the direction swinging as forecast and lessening at the end of the day but not scary stuff. The swell helped us along and all in all it was a quick trip of 15 hours and a relaxing way to wind up the journey.

We are now waiting off Square Head for the the morning tide when Tegwen be taken across the Batemans Bay Bar and finally to her home berth and the completion of her journey to Tasmania.

Tegwen to Tasmania - Lady Barron to Eden

Tegwen left Lady Barron wharf at 7:00am Sunday 13th March, just before the turn of the tide, to negotiate the tricky channels of Adelaide Bay and the eastern Franklin Sound channels.  As expected, there were light winds against us once out in open waters and this remained so for most of the day.  Having reached a point abeam of the tip of Flinders Island still motoring into light winds, we were wondering what had happened to the predicted south westerly we were hoping would send us across Bass Strait proper. 

Then at 7:55pm, five minutes before the BOM Forecast Wind chart showed strong SW winds in the area, they arrived with a bang and the sleigh ride began!  For the rest of the night we had winds averaging around 27 knots with a 1 metre SE swell and SW seas of 1 to 2 metres on top.  It was fairly dark and the sensation of speed was tremendous with the wake phosphorescing and Tegwen twitching in the confused combination of sea and swell.  As we only had the two of us on board, we didn't put the main up, just the reefed genoa with the motor assisting.  Tegwen held 6 to 7 knots all through the night until mid morning Monday, the wind had eased to 20 knots and then in the afternoon down to 12 and later even less. 

Somewhere around Gabo Island the rain showers started to come across and we didn't shake them off until the entrance to Twofold Bay and our chosen anchorage in East Boyd Bay, where we found five other yachts.  We were safely at anchor by 11:00pm having enjoyed a speedy trip with plenty of excitement but none of the terrors that Bass Strait can dish out.

Tegwen made the crossing from Lady Barron to Eden in 40 hours, which was significantly quicker than originally planned.  The maximum wind speed was 31.5 knots, Tegwen averaged 5.7 knots over 168 nautical miles of the crossing and 5.4 knots over the full 216 nautical miles.

Tegwen to Tasmania - Lady Barron Leisure

Come Friday morning, as hoped, some boats left the wharf and we were able to secure a good berth for Tegwen. Spoke to the Tasports officer and he was happy with where we were for the expected duration, so need to worry about having to move. The weather forecasts look good for a Sunday morning departure so we have a couple of days to occupy ourselves at Lady Barron.

Friday was well spent securing Tegwen at the wharf, fetching fuel, some supplies and a coffee from Max's store and then availing ourselves of the shower and washing machine available at the Tavern, all the while dodging sporadic rain. Once again the locals offered us a lift back with the full jerry cans which saved us some effort.

Saturday saw us back at Max's watching the passing parade of people seeking their weekend newspaper fix. The early morning mist and rain had kept the airport closed for some time and the delivery was delayed. People were getting anxious as they went through newsprint withdrawal. We discovered while waiting there that we had missed the markets at Whitemark, the capital of Flinders Island, held earlier that morning. We had wondered about hitching up that way for a ,look around to fill in the day. After asking the newspaper delivery man who had finally arrived with the newspapers if he was going up that way, he replied no, the other van had gone up there. However, he had an old car he was happy to lend us which he did! The Tasmanian hospitality never ceases to amaze! So it was a leisurely drive up to Whitemark, fortunately getting to the bakery just before it closed and similarly to the general store and newsagency. Whitemark, unfortunately, has seen better days but we did get some feel for the nature of the landscape along the way. An enjoyable afternoon's amble after all.

We prepared Tegwen for the early morning departure for Eden and then endeavoured to sleep, while the ferry from Bridport arrived to unload gravel and then load logs for a lot of the night. The wharf is convenient but has its down side too.

Eddystone Point to Lady Barron

A rolly night at Eddystone Point with a NE sea and a SE wind. Not that there was much to the night anyway, as we had a 1:50am departure to ensure we were favoured by the strong tidal currents approaching Lady Barron. We had a quick trip, mostly under sail until the late morning winds eased prior to the predicted midday build up, arriving at Lady Barron before 1:00pm.

As we approached Flinders Island the rain started and was with us all the way in unfortunately. The wharf at Lady Barron was full so we picked up an available mooring, at least for a while. If one of the fishing boats leaves we will endeavour to come along side - neither of us wants to play dinghies in the rain. It was then time to get out of all our wet weather gear and enjoy a hot lunch followed by a catch up of last night's sleep.

Lady Barron will be our stepping off point across Bass Strait for Eden.  Accordingly we could be here one or more days awaiting an appropriate weather window . . . .

Long Point to Eddystone Point

After a very restful night at Long Point we set off by 6:30am for Eddystone Point. It turned out to be a lovely day with only slight seas and plenty of sunshine. We sailed a large part of the day only needing the motor to assist towards the end when the winds had dropped off to 8 knots or below. We shared the anchorage overnight with four fishing boats.

Wineglass Bay to Long Point

We left Wineglass Bay by 7:00am in an effort to get some distance behind us before the seas rose further with the increasing breeze.  The trip up to Bicheno went well and the seas were certainly much kindlier than those we had faced two days ago.

The Gulch at Bicheno was relatively calm although the usual current was flowing through. Tegwen had the entire wharf to herself which made tying up easier. Francois, a retired Frenchman who was fishing at the wharf offered us a lift to the service station as well as subsequently back to town to get lunch.  Beats walking with full jerry cans!  This is the second time that the Bicheno locals have been exceedingly helpful.

Had lunch at the Bicheno Bakery, of course, and got some fresh food items at the IGA then walked back to the Gulch.  Because of the swell in the Gulch, Bicheno can be a very difficult place to stop at but Tegwen has now twice been looked upon favourably.

The final leg for the day to Long Point took under two hours and the seas settled the closer we got.  The Long Point anchorage is very sheltered at the moment and a lovely spot.  The sunset was very dramatic with a myriad of strong cloud shapes painted in strong sun colours and dark greys.  We were joined by another yacht just as this display commenced.  A most relaxing and satisfactory way to end the day.

Looking forward to a restful night's sleep before heading off for Eddystone Point.  The forecast looks much better and we hope to be able to sail most of the way tomorrow rather than having to motor to get there in a timely manner.  The need to proceed is predicated on the weather forecasts for Bass Strait in a few days time.  We are looking for favourable winds as Tegwen hasn't the fuel range to motor across Bass Strait and in any case, sailing is of course the preferred method of propulsion..