Good weather was forecast for Sun 2nd March, we departed from Barnicle St ramp, Ross river on a king high tide. The water was only about a foot below the flat tarmac area so easy. At the rigging up anchorage seaward of the bridge, i tested the VHF radio for the first time, calling coast guard and lodging our trip plan with them (Day sail on Cleveland Bay).
A 10 knot Easterly on a slight sea greeted us as we cleared the harbor entrance. Close reaching on starboard tack on a course seaward of orchard rocks on Magnetic Island, could Horseshoe bay be reached.? The wind dropped a bit so motor-sailing kept our speed up to 5 -6 knots. The east coast of Magnetic Island was a lee shore to us so we stayed at least 1 nm out to keep plenty of sea room.
Listening in on VHF Chanel 16 was interesting, mostly commercial shipping and ferries. A large ship came into port and requested tug boats, soon after two tugs were out and then they went over to Channel 8 for the work of berthing the vessel.
We sailed as far as Arthur Bay, then the wind started picking up from the ENE and seas began to get bigger, it is a more exposed area beyond the protection of Cape Cleveland. Also Coast guard gave a weather report on VHF channel 22, strong wind warning next day. We turned back and ran downwind close to the Magnetic Island Coastline. It is a very steep Island covered in forest and has rounded granite headlands, some of which had nice houses with million dollar views.
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| Small Bay , east coast of Magnetic Island |
Sailed into Geoffrey bay to see if it was OK to anchor, the chart showed a sizable fringing reef filling up most of the bay leaving little room for a protected spot. Snorkelers were out and marked the edge of the reef with dive buoys. The was a boat ramp with its lower edge exposed by the spring low tide. Dark patches on the seafloor implied many scattered small reefs which we didn't want to drop anchor onto. First it would smash up the life there and second the anchor was likely to get stuck. So headed off on a broad reach in calmer waters along the coast.
Allot of commercial tourist vessels and the coast guards large launch went in and out of Nelly Bay harbor-marina. It is the most protected on the Island due to large seawalls being built. No boats are allowed to anchor in there, a marina berth is mandatory. On the VHF each vessel reported that they were arriving or departing the harbor.
There was a monstrous multi-floor box set forming a huge eyesore on Bright point. It's probably because the straight sides of the building don't complement the landscape, smaller houses blend in because they have trees and sloping green or grey roof-lines etc breaking up their outlines. Councils should only approve architectural designs that blend in with the environment. Anything else is detracting a little from the natural tourist draw-card.
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| Bright Point - Nelly Bay |
We rounded Hawkings point and ran into Picnic Bay to round up and anchor just off the stinger net on the lee side of the jetty. The bottom looked like sand. This is proving to be the best bay to anchor in for us. Time to have a rest, paddle ashore. Anchored next to us was another small yacht with a family out for a sail. They had a dinghy with a small outboard and oars and it looked like a well set up small cruiser.
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| Scamp took us ashore |
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| Picnic Bay anti-stinger enclosure (net) and anchorage |
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| Picnic Bay Mall |
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| Picnic Bay boat ramp view |
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| View of Townsville from Picnic Bay |
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| Spring Low tide exposes fringing reef flat |
By 1600 it looked like the few other yachts out there, big and small, were heading towards port Townsville. So we went back aboard. This time i pulled Scamp the kayak up onto the fore-deck. She didn't stow snuggly but did squeeze in almost vertically with the fatter stern up forward - I didn't want to tow it downwind in rising seas and wind. There was just enough room left to haul the anchor.
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| Small yacht heading home |
Used the trusty Johno for a few minutes to power straight upwind out of the bay and go around the reef's marker beacon. We sailed fast with full sail up on a loose reach. The kayak had the added benefit of being to windward of the fore-hatch, so it acted as a nice spray shield and the hatch could be left open for ventilation below.
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| Townsville port to leeward |
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| Magnetic Island astern |
It was another quick 50 minute crossing, nearing port i furled the jib to slow us down a bit at the boistrous break-wall entrance, then we glided in on flat waters. The anchor and de-rig routine went well - it gets easier with practice. . Called coast guard on VHF channel 22 to let them know we returned safely and they could take us off their trip sheet. The first test sail for the VHF radio went really well, it's a great bit of safety equipment and gives an extra layer of security at sea.
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| Ross River bridge ahead - Scamp on deck |
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| Ross River Port - Rosshaven Marine and Trawler berths |
The anchor set up with the 10 lb CQR with new 6 mm diam chain (7m) on the old 10 mm warp seems about right for Teria in our conditions. It's easier to raise and lower with the reduced chain weight, (was 8m of 8 mm chain) also it held well in sand and mud. In the river at low tide i had the 7 m of chain over and tied the warp off on the bollard. On the Island i let out about 6 m more warp.
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| Pelican on Ross River |
One of the best part of any trip is motoring back along the river's calm water, the rocking and rolling over and the safest mooring ahead - the back yard. Left Scamp tied to the rails on deck for the tow home, it looks ungainly but saves on time and effort.
In regards to trip planning, it looks like Horseshoe bay is near the limits of day-sailing range. Leave really early and get back late. An overnight anchorage there could be better.
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