Sailing around Australia; The Great Trolley Debate

Portland, Victoria

3/3/15  The Great Trolley Debate

Arrival in a town or port, on each leg of our sailing adventure, gives us the opportunity to replenish stocks of food, water and fuel and that is usually a major undertaking.

On the completion of most legs or stages, we will need to take on a couple of weeks of food, 100 litres or more of fuel and a couple of hundred litres of water.

Fresh water is usually the easiest commodity to replenish if we are in a marina. Most marinas have a tap right next to the berth.

For fuel, many marinas have a fuel berth. Problem is that most fuel berths are built out of tough materials like wood and steel. Not a good mix with polished white fiberglass!  They are usually built for bigger boats and quite high out of the water. So scrambling off Easy Tiger and passing the thick, black, dirty, heavy pump hoses down, then swapping sides is not for the feint hearted. One of the few times Leanne and I have had a bit of a bingle on Easy Tiger was trying to get off a fuel wharf  with the wind against us.

To counteract these problems we have 8 20litre jerry cans, 4 for fuel and 4 for fresh water. We also have 2 jerrys for unleaded fuel that's used in the generator and the dinghy engine.

These all have to be taken to the nearest service station and filled. Add to this 2 weeks worth of grocery shopping, and 20 kilos of washing, there is plenty that has to be transported back to the boat.

Fortunately, in every port, without fail we have met some amazing, generous and helpful people who have offered to either take us to the shops or, in most cases have leant us a vehicle. The problem then is, getting from the vehicle to the boat. For example in Streaky Bay, I had to completely refill our fresh water tanks which are about 600 litres, using four jerry cans (84 litres at a time). Geoff and Heather Georgiou very kindly loaned us their ute and donated rain water form their home tanks. But then I had to get the full jerry cans from the vehicle to the dinghy at the other end of the jetty, a 200 metre walk.

I had predicted this problem while we were in Albany at the start of our around Australia Sailing adventure. There I purchased a $19 sack trolley. The problem with this was, that I could only fit 2 jerry cans on it at a time and the weight of 2 full jerry cans made it quite hard to tip and push.

The other problems with this sack trolley were that it didn’t fold down at all, so one hadn’t to be a bit of a magician to put it into the front storage locker on Easy Tiger and being $19 worth of metal trolley meant that my $19 worth of value ran out on the jetty at Streaky Bay on about the fourth trip back and forth along the jetty. The wheels suddenly became the one part of trolley that folded up, pity they weren’t supposed to.

When we were preparing for our sailing adventure we somehow came across an aluminium folding sack trolley. These are great because they fold down virtually flat which takes away the need for magician’s skills when storing it.

Unfortunately, with the weight of just one full jerry can and rolling over a slightly rough service, this trolley folds down virtually flat, ready for storage!

While we were in Crown marina in Adelaide, people from another boat went by, pulling a four wheel tow along trolley. Thinking that they were off a boat on the other side of the marina, we knocked on their door and asked them to have a look. Right boat, wrong trolley.  Although these people showed us trolley was a Claxo, sort of like a shopping trolley that folds down flat. It was obviously very well engineered and being poly, it wouldn't rust. They were very proud of it.

I wasn’t convinced that this was the right trolley for us though, as the wheels were only small and I couldn’t see them rolling easily over rough surfaces with four full jerry cans of diesel in the trolley.

We were sitting out the back of Easy Tiger “discussing” the merits of my ideal trolley and Leanne’s ideal trolley, when the guy in the boat next to us happened along, pulling a four wheel garden cart type trolley. We set on him with a thousand questions mostly all at once, “does it fold down? Is it rust proofed? How heavy a load can it bare? Where did you get it? How much was it?”  After trying to answer all our questions he referred us to the nearest Bunnings store.

We got to Bunnings not long after and wandered around looking at wheelbarrows and sack trollies. No 4 wheel garden carts in stock. We considered another type of folding trolley but having experienced the folding up of the folding trolley and the difficulty of pushing and tilting heavy loads over rough surfaces, I could see the benefits of the 4 wheel pull along “wagon”. Without one to demonstrate though we were far from convinced.

The trolley debate went on hold as we left Adelaide for Kangaroo Island. After Kangaroo Island we arrived in Robe ready to replenish fuel and food and take washing to the caravan park. A walk around the town first to track down the location of each service we required was done on the first day.

Leaving the Foodland and looking across at the local hardware store, I was stopped in my tracks! The perfect trolley sat out the front of Mitre 10. It was a four wheel pull along garden wagon, with a poly bin! Leanne and I raced acros the road grabbed the trolley and took it for a test drive. It rolled along nicely, Leanne could both steer it and pull it with me in it. It seemed to be easily able to take my weight ok. $105 seemed like a good price. YEP, this was it. The perfect trolley.

The lady from Robe mitre 10 delivered it to the boat. We had people on board for morning tea. As soon as they left, it was into assembly mode. BUT, before we could assemble, Leanne decided to give it a coat of rust guard. But where to spray paint? Off we went over to the sand dunes behind the sailing club. No problems there with over spray. Then we waited for 6 hours for the paint to dry. I was really hanging out to take for a spin.

Next morning we had the super trolley assembled and packed. Four Jerry cans for diesel from the servo and a big bag of washing to be delivered to the caravan park a mere kilometer and a half away.

To say I got some strange looks as a I wheel my loaded garden cart down the main street of Robe, would be an understatement. They might have though we were homeless people, or, you know, not quite all there. Either way they gave me a wide berth. I got even stranger looks as I towed it up and down the aisles of Foodland with only a loaf of bread and a lettuce in it.

When I had the 4 jerry cans in it, the young guy at the servo asked me if I was preparing for Armageddon or the end of the world. I said yeah something like that and gave a nervous twitch just to add good effect.

But I didn’t care. The trolley will be super handy when it comes to getting our provisions from point a to point b. The debate has now changed form what type of trolley to where the hell do we store it.

The super trolley / wagon loaded with 4 jerry cans and 2 weeks washing, ready for it's maiden run.

Sailing around Australia; Altered State.

Portland Victoria

28/2/2015  Altered State

The last couple of legs (or stages) of our sailing around Australia adventure have required us to do long hours at the helm of Easy Tiger.

Kangaroo Island to Robe was 27 hours and the leg we have just completed, Robe to Portland was 30 hours of nonstop motoring, with the odd bit of sailing thrown in.

 Being awake so long, can put ones mind into an altered state.

Fatigue becomes a real issue on these long journeys. It’s not like you can pull over and have time out. Although I do recall that the Zofian’s deployed their para-anchor and had a time out while crossing the Great Australian Bight.

I have also heard stories of someone so fatigued that he thought there were lawnmowers floating in the water. One night, when I was long distance truck driving, I was counting big steel framed electricity poles to keep myself amused. I was quite shocked to find there were actually none there on my return trip during the daylight.

To try and combat fatigue, Leanne and I try to keep a rotation of three to four hours on “watch” each. Being on watch involves keeping Easy Tiger on course, keeping an eye out for obstacles such as crayfish pot ropes and floats, reefs and their markers and of course ships. Also, we must watch the wind and sails in case conditions change, record our position every hour and make sure we monitor the engines.

While off watch, we an sleep for a few hours if conditions are calm. If conditions are a bit choppy, it can be like trying to sleep in the middle of a bouncy castle during a four year olds birthday party.

I have also tried reading, or working on the computer during my time off watch with moderate success. Typing my latest blog topic or catching up with news passes the time well, but I can only do that for an hour or so before I risk motion sickness.

Leanne passes her time during the day fishing when she is not on watch. This trip she caught 8 Barracouta. Shame that they are not good eating and are often full of parasitical worms.

The night passages are far worse for fatigue. Also there is little you can do in terms of keeping an eye out for crayfish pot ropes or even unmarked reefs when it is pitch black. All you have got to do is keep looking out into the black. Occasionally we do see a light, grateful for a sign of life, until we realize it may be a cargo ship bearing down on us.

Everything seems to slow down as fatigue creeps in. Unfortunately, staring at the sat- nav in a trance like state does not make time pass any faster.

Last night, we had to contend with plowing into a strong current, which slowed the boat down by a knot. That meant after ten hours of darkness, we were ten nautical miles behind our trip plan and that added another 2 hours to our journey.

The long trips are really tough but when you pull into delightful places like Robe and now Portland, it does seem to be worth it. We just have to stay long enough in each place to get over the fatigue and re-boot our minds.

Overnight, we have altered a geographical state as well. We have finally left South Australia and are now in Portland Victoria.  I must say that we have really enjoyed cruising around South Australia’s coast. From Streaky, Sceales and Coffin bays, to Port Lincoln and Robe these uncluttered anchorages and marina’s are well worth the visit.

We found the facilities and staff at Marina Adelaide were top notch and I think that the economical rates and location of Crown Marina were a real bonus.

Definitely South Australia’s coast is well worth a few bouts of serious fatigue to get to. Oh and if you do happen to see a few lawnmowers or electricity poles along the way, what the heck, that state of mind doesn't last... I hope.

This shot taken from the foreshore walk at Robe South Australia

Barracouta.  Easy to catch but crap to eat... shame cos we caught 8 of 'em.

Our updated map/track.

Sailing around Australia; Bloody Tuna

25/2/2015  Bloody Tuna!

Anyone who knows Leanne, knows that things can get a bit crazy on board Easy Tiger when a fish is caught. For 99 percent of our sailing around Australia adventure, Leanne has had a fishing line or two trailing behind the boat and in Western Australia, did quite well. She caught at least half a dozen Tuna, a couple of Mackerel and not to be outdone I had reeled in a good sized Pike.

South Australia has been a bit quieter, so we had packed most of the fish “processing” tools like the gaff hook for example, away. Leanne has still trawled right down the west coast and Port Lincoln to Adelaide with no success.

When we left Adelaide a couple of weeks ago, Ian and Sue Sully came with us to Kangaroo Island. Ian brought a para vane trawling line that proved it’s worth once the water got a bit shallower. He caught 2 Snook in about 12 metres of water.

This fired up the fishing manager aboard Easy Tiger. Ian very kindly donated the line to Leanne, and she used it on the way from Kangaroo Island to Robe last week. Again two Snook were caught in pretty much the same spot.

On the way out of American River on Kangaroo Island, sailing conditions became very close to perfect for Easy Tiger and we managed to get along at 8 to 9 knots. The water got quite a lot deeper so the para vane was packed away for another day.

We passed the Penneshaw hotel and then the ferry terminal, then turned southeast at Snapper point. We hurtled past Antechamber bay making excellent time with the wind behind us as predicted.

When we logged on with the American River VMR, Carol  connected us with another boat called Sapphire with Richard, Isabelle and their kids Robbie and Rebecca aboard. We could just see their sail on the horizon in front of us. They were also making their way to Robe.

As midday approached the wind softened and it was back to one motor chugging away. This did slow us to about 5.5knots, so Leanne got out the trawling rod, attached a new lure and let a hundred or so metres out.

Everything progressed well as we motored our way southeast towards our destination of Robe.

We did a shift change, with Leanne going off watch and me taking over at around 5.30pm. It was a beautiful warm day, by this time there was no wind to speak of and the sea surface resembled glass. Leanne decided to have a shower and a clean up on the back deck, preparing for sailing overnight.

After Leanne, I did the same, showering and change of clothes into clean, warmer clothes.

I had just taken the helm, when ZZZZ. The trawling line began unreeling at a rapid rate. The rod was bending indication that something quite heavy and strong had taken the lure.

That was when Leanne, who is still recovering from dengue fever, grabbed the rod, stiffened the drag and started winding. All the while urgently shouting, “YES, YES, YES”.

Being as good hearted and natured as I am, I offered to do the heavy lifting for Leanne and bring the fish in. “No way”, she shouted, “I know your rule”. She had a point. My rule is simply that whoever winds the fish in…caught the fish.

To assist the winding in of the fish, I stopped the boat.

After half an hour or so of winding a little, give a little, Leanne had the fish close enough to see that it was a Tuna. A big Tuna.

I did a brief search for the gaff hook without success. I did an even briefer search for the gloves. The only alternative I could manage was wrapping some thick rag around my hand then grabbed the line and hauled the fish aboard.

Leanne has previously used an old shower curtain to “process” the fish she has caught. This keeps the mess contained and off our unsealed cork deck. So the big Tuna was slid on to the shower curtain that was folded in half.

“Now what?” I said. “this may be a bit big for us”. I was looking down on a 750mm long 20kg Tuna. Leanne, had already dashed to get her fillet knife and other “processing” tools. “Gotta bleed it” she said “otherwise we will have wasted it’s life”. Without further ado, she stabbed the big Tuna behind the pectoral fin.

The big Tuna, obviously still alive, objected to being stabbed by flapping violently around. Leanne had severed an artery in the big fish and it did the required trick, meaning it started bleeding. Heavily.

Combine a fish leaking about three litres of blood, have it thrashing around on your cork boat deck and then start sawing it’s head off, result; an unholy mess.

Leanne was now going through her ritual of apologizing to the fish as she was hacking it’s head off. I could now see fish blood now spattered on the roof, on the seat cushions and trickling down into the engine bay. Thinking that we had better get it off before it stained, I got the bucket and filled it with seawater. Then I started dousing the back deck. Unfortunately Leanne was in the way when I flung the fourth bucket of water, splashing cold sea water mixed with fish blood over her.

The fish’s head was now completely off and it’s internal organs had spilled, on to the cork deck. “Oh no”, I said. “We haven’t taken a photo!” This is usually part of Leanne’s fish catching ritual. To achieve a proper photo, I stuffed the organs back inside the fish and pushed the head back in place.  I held it there while Leanne snapped a couple of photo’s for her facebook page, then we swapped and I took a photo.

I continued the bucket sloshing of the entire rear of the boat, while Leanne continued to hack away at the big Tuna. We cast the head and internal organs into the sea towards a waiting bird. From nowhere, one bird instantly turned into 100 birds. Their eyesight and ability to spot a feed form several miles away, must be amazing.

Leanne transferred the fish into the galley. Unfortunately it obviously hadn’t been bled out, as witnessed by the trail of mess from the back deck into the galley. The bloody mess now occupied the entire bench on one side of the galley. “Where are we going to put all this?” I asked, remembering that our fridges and freezer were all full. We had restocked and provisioned for four weeks while we were in Adelaide.

Looking at the big pile of  bloody fish that was accumulating as Leanne hacked away at it, was quite unappealing to say the least. Finally she agreed that we could keep the less blood filled pieces she was trying to extract, the rest would have to go back where it came from.

The birds were very happy to receive pieces of fish tossed to them. The bigger pieces quickly sank. I hate to think what gobbled them up.

After an hour of cleaning up what we thought was the rest of the mess, we re-showered and changed into another set of clothes, then got under way.

Next morning we arrived in the delightful town of Robe. There was a gaggle of people on the jetty to catch our ropes and welcome us, which was nice.

As we tied on I noticed the the red streaks of dried blood on the back of the boat.  I hoped our greeters hadn't seen them. They didn’t say anything, but then you wouldn’t would you? If they did I wonder if they would have accepted our explanation of the bloody tuna fiasco.

Leanne and her prized catch.

Yes! I am holding the head in place for the photo opportunity.

Inside for the "processing". Let the mess begin!!!

The main beneficiaries of our lack of knowledge as to how to process a bloody Tuna!