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..

Schouten Passage to Wineglass Bay

After a good night at Bryan's Corner, we moved around to Wineglass Bay to enjoy the surrounds there and reduce the next day's travel time. There were some seas on the nose, as usual, but not nearly as bad as we faced getting to Bryan's Corner and we managed to average 4.8 knots over the 13 nautical miles. We came across some seals appearing to sleep until Tegwen approached and saw the usual array of sea birds.

Once at Wineglass Bay we got out the dinghy and went ashore to enjoy the beach. We ran into Bryan and Rowena from Schools Out on the beach and they invited us over for sundowners later which we certainly enjoyed. Tegwen first met Schools out in Eden and subsequently in Lady Barron, Flinders Island back in December.

Unlike the last time here, there were just the two yachts anchored for the night and no trawlers. The northerly wind brought a short sea causing quite a bit of pitching overnight so once again, Wineglass Bay as lovely as it is, wasn't as restful as we had hoped.

Triabunna to Schouten Passage

A gentle start to the day visiting the Triabunna Bakehouse, the service station and the supermarket and then a delightful shower at the Visitor Centre. We left Triabunna with the sun behind us, which certainly helps to ascertain the limits of the incredibly narrow and in places tortuous channel, setting sail abeam the woodchip loader.

Once out in Great Oyster Bay the wind proved to be strengthening and short seas were developing. After trying to sail for around two hours, the wind and sea state had worsened to make progress extremely uncomfortable and slow. Back to motor sailing and ultimately to straight motoring as the destination was of course, directly into the wind. The nominally six hour trip ended up taking around eight hours with the seas often bringing Tegwen almost to what seemed like a halt. The bad conditions all disappeared as we approached the shelter of Bryan's Corner at the western end of Schouten Passage.

The anchor went down just on sunset and once Tegwen was tidied, Bruce cooked a great barbecue pork and rice dish for dinner. There are just three other boats nearby, such a contrast to mid January!

Port Arthur to Triabunna

We spent Friday at anchor, reading and chatting most of the day, to let the strong winds and larger swells abate. The weather cycled around all day from sunny to howling wind to rain to hail and back to sunny again. Late afternoon we had a visitor, John from the yacht Esoterica anchored nearby. After some good conversation and a cup of tea, we relocated to Esoterica to meet Kerrin, John's wife, who had been patiently waiting for us all to arrive for drinks! One thing led to another and we ended up having a very nice dinner on their large cruising yacht with much talking late into the night.

Saturday morning we dragged ourselves out of bed to face quite a chilly morning for the start of a long days sailing. As we headed out of the Port Arthur area and proceeded to round Tasman Island, the swell came up with a bit of a sea on top but nothing like conditions we faced on arrival two days prior. Once around Tasman Island we went further out where it all settled down very nicely and we were able to sail for most of the day as opposed to motoring, as has been required so often before, to reach Triabunna some twelve hours later. It was a most pleasant days sailing with the wind varying at times from a reach to a run, a little cool when the sun hid behind clouds but nevertheless most enjoyable. One of the best day's sailing on the trip to date.

Triabunna harbour was fairly full upon arrival but Stan the Harbour Master approved the berth we had commandeered so all was well. A near disaster struck as we reached the pub as the meals service finishes at 7:30pm, the exact time of our arrival. However, the smiling proprietor reassured us it wasn't too late to order if we were quick to make up our minds - a disaster averted. Both of us ordered steaks but struggled to eat them all as they were so huge! Tomorrow we shall top up the water and fuel then visit the Triabunna Bakery previously established as worth the visit, before setting off for Bryan's Corner.

Tegwen's Return Commences - Hobart to Port Arthur

Having motored up from Kettering and provisioning with fuel, water and food on Wednesday, the homeward leg of Tegwen's cruise to and around Tasmania started today from the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania. With a light dusting of snow and a rainbow showing on Mt Wellington, Bruce Hall and Stephen set off just after 9:00am. Once into the Derwent Estuary, the westerly wind started picking up and we set the genoa and turned off the motor. The forecast for the day ahead involved significant and increasing wind along with a decent swell, so just the more easily managed sail was deployed. We had considerable speed even so and managed to average 6.2 knots for the whole day's sailing.

As we crossed Storm Bay the conditions became more boisterous and the genoa was partially furled with little effect on speed. Approaching the entrance to Port Arthur the swell eased off, the winds subdued a little and the sun cast its light on the cliffs leading to Tasman Island - a magnificant sight. We arrived off the Port Arthur settlement with blue sky and some clouds and anchored Tegwen in a very sheltered spot to sit out the strong weather forecast for tomorrow.