Flinders 2017 – Mac’s trip
10th
March – 18th
March
Midday was 2 1/2 hours before low water at Swan Island and the
forecast was for no wind. It was a long paddle across under these
conditions
and the tide took us east of Cygnet Island as it had done 3 weeks ago,
and to
near South Head on Clarke Island. The tide just turned as we got near
Clarke
Island and it was a relatively easy paddle along to Rebecca Bay and
then round
into the campsite in Spike Bay – 5 1/2 hours from Little Musselroe Bay.
We could
have gone onto Preservation Island fairly easily but thought we’d done
enough
for one day. Had a pleasant night here with a good campfire.
Spike
Bay
Left very early to make use of the last of the flood tide
towards Cape Sir John. We landed briefly on Preservation Island (they
now have
NBN connected) for water and then continued across Thunder and
Lightning Bay to
Cape Sir John – the tide turning against us before we got there. But
there is
not a lot of strong current here so kept going towards Long Island but
landed
on a beach halfway for a long lunch break.
Then into Franklin Sound
where the current was with us again
and a steady paddle to Ned’s Point – a bit of a long day at about 6
hours but
bad weather was coming and I wanted to be in the good sheltered
campsite at
Ned’s Point where the old farm house used to be. I broke a tent pole
here. I
was a bit tired and Mac collected nearly all the firewood and kept the
fire
going in the evening.
Sunday
12th
Fairly light consistent rain all morning, and a strong
easterly wind. Mac went for a walk along the road all the way to the
township –
4.9km each way. The weather cleared in the afternoon.
We left about 10, a couple of hours before high water so as
to have it right up the beach at Trousers Point when we got there – and
it was.
There was a very large
double kayak on the beach and 3
single kayaks – members of the TSCC. We had lunch there for 3/4 of an
hour and
chatted to them before we left to continue to Whitemark.
We wanted to keep pressing
north a reasonable distance each
day. At Whitemark we checked out the camping possibilities and decided
no-one
was going to worry if we camped right in the BBQ area just near the
wharf – and
landed there. Today was a public holiday and only the pub was open –
where we
had a cider or two before going back to the kayaks for a rest before
dinner. We
had booked while at the pub.
Tuesday
14th
Walking to the hardware shop to look for something to repair
the tent pole with (temporarily fixed with a ball point pen taped
across the
break) I walked past a gentleman who looked vaguely familiar, going in
the
opposite direction. I asked him if he was a Walker, which he was. It
was
Leedham Walker who I had met on my 1982 double Bass Strait crossing –
he and
his wife Judy had invited me in to their house for the night. He didn't
remember me.
There was a strong wind warning for NE so in view of this we
decided to run with it without sails to Long Island and down to Thunder
and
Lightning Bay where we knew it would be a struggle back into the beach
there
but I wanted to be there to make it easier to get to Preservation the
next day
when there was supposed to be NW to W wind – also a strong wind
warning. And
strong it was – going into Thunder and Lightning I’ll swear I was going
backwards in some of the gusts, and barely making headway at other
times – it
was a grueling paddle into the beach. But it was worth the struggle and
we set
up in the extremely sheltered campsite there, and Mac filled his water
bottle
at one of the springs flowing across the beach. One was flowing so fast
as it
came off the bank you could hold a bottle under it to fill it – a small
waterfall.
The wind was supposed to be strong NE till the middle of the
day and then go NW/W. but early in the morning it was already NW so we
quickly
packed up and headed for Preservation Island. We mostly sailed all the
way
(inside Key Island) but the wind got stronger and stronger going across
to
Preservation Island and kept going round to the west. I noticed this
and in a
bit of a lull managed to jibe the sail across to the left side. Mac
didn't and
a bit later on we were spearing down some big waves and he came
perilously
close several times to capsizing because the sail was on the wrong
side. The wind was so strong it bent the boom on his sail. He
eventually un-cleated it and just let it flap out in front like a flag
for a
while before managing to get it down and put away. All very touch and
go for a
while, but not far from the shack which we were glad to get to. The
forecast
for the next day was for strong easterlies so we planned a rest day
tomorrow –
the following three days all looked a possibility for crossing back
over Banks
Strait.
At nine a plane landed with one of the owners and a couple
of workmen to do some urgent plumbing repairs where the cattle had
broken some
pipes. Mac and I quickly tidied our stuff out of the way and sat
outside most
of the day to be out of their way when they had morning tea and lunch
inside –
it was quite windy but not actually too cold.
I was up quite early and the wind had gone NE so I went back
to bed again till Mac got up about 6. He had a look outside and said he
would
be happy to paddle in these conditions so another quick pack and we
were on the
water at 6.20 – just light enough with a nearly full moon to see each
other
easily. The sun rose about 7.10 and the light wind let us sail all the
way
across the strait – with the falling tide acting like a slingshot to
speed us
on our way down along Clarke Island. We headed magnetic S all the way
and the
tide took us right between Cygnet and Little Swan Island, where I asked
Mac how
long we had been paddling. He had seemed a bit doubtful during the trip
when I
had told him that Sue and I had gone from Swan Island to Preservation
Island in
3 1/2 hours a couple of years ago.
So
he looked at his watch
and said 2 hours 50 minutes and I
asked if he now believed you could go from Swan to Preservation in 3
1/2 hours.
“Yep”.
Our track: 23 to 32 –
heading magnetic south the whole time
till past Little Swan Island. 29 was somewhere near Little Swan.
