Books of Tasmania Quiz

During our cruise the crews were pitted against each other in a series of quizzes. Topics ranged from Music of the 80s to Naval Lore and much in between. A couple of posts ago I gave you my first quiz – Tasmanian Books – many of which are set in and around the area we were cruising.

How did you go with the quiz? I expect that unless you’re a Tasmanian interested in the southwest of the island, you would have had difficulty answering too many of these. But hopefully you’ve read at least a couple of Tasmania’s most famous authors to give you a chance at one or two. Either way here you’ll find a fantastic reading list for this area and further afield.

So here are the answers:

1. What’s the title of Richard Flanagan’s book on the underbelly of Tasmania’s salmon farming industry?

Arguably Tasmania’s most famous author, Richard Flanagan won the Booker Prize for his novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North, but his recent book on the underbelly of Tasmania’s salmon farming industry is called Toxic (Penguin, 2021).

2. The Alphabet of _ _ _… (what three words) is the title of Danielle Wood’s 2002 Australian/Vogel Prize-winning novel set at the Cape Bruny Lighthouse?

It is called The Alphabet of Light and Dark (Allen& Unwin, 2003).

Danielle’s writing is very diverse, but as well as fairytales, popular fiction (writing as Minnie Dark), children’s fiction (with Heather Rose, writing together as Angelica Banks), she has a strong interest in Tasmanian history and culture, having edited collections such as Deep South, a Tasmanian story anthology.

3. Stephanie Parkyn’s novel Into the World is a fictional account of which woman who passed as a man to gain the position of steward on board French explorer Bruni D’Entrecasteaux’s ship La Recherche, visiting Tasmania in 1792 and 1793?

Into the World (Allen&Unwin, 2017) is a fictional account of Louise Girardin (sometimes known as Marie-Louise) who at the age of 35, truly did dress as a man and sailed from France as a steward on board D’Entrecasteaux’s ship La Recherche, visiting Tasmania in 1792 and 1793. Louise was the first European woman to set foot on this island. Suspicion was high amongst the crew, and she even fought a duel to maintain her cover. Sadly she died of dysentery in Indonesia, where the doctor confirmed that she was indeed female – but is this really what happened?

Steph has since published two other historical novels set in Napoleon’s France Josephine’s Garden (2021) and The Freedom of Birds (2021).

4. Robyn Mundy has volunteered for Tas Maritime Radio and spent at least two stints as volunteer lightkeeper on Maatsuyker Island. What is the title of her novel set on the island?

Robyn’s novel set on Maatsuyker Island is called Wild Light (Picador, 2016).

Robyn has also spent time working in Antarctica, the setting for her novel The Nature of Ice. Her third novel, Cold Coast is set in Svalbard and based on the story of the island’s first female trapper. You can find out more about Robyn’s writing on her blog Wildlight | writing the wild.

5. What is the title of Christobel Mattingley’s biography of Denny King (who lived most of his life at Melaleuca, southwest Tasmania)?

Christobel’s book King of the Wilderness details the remarkable life of Deny King, who lived at Melaleuca where he mined tin, raised a family, entertained walkers and observed the rare orange bellied parrot. It was largely through his concern and efforts in conservation that the whole area was declared a World Heritage site and protected for the future. The book was first published by Text Publishing in 2001.

6. Denny’s daughter Janet Fenton wrote a book about her aunt and uncle, who also lived first at Bond Bay, then at Clayton’s Corner. What is the title of this book?

Janet Fenton’s book is: Win and Clyde: Side by Side in Tasmania’s Far South West (Forty Degrees South, 2010).

Our family has a tenuous link here: when my parents arrived in Tasmania (before I was born) they rented a house in Moonah, whilst the owners were spending the summer at their shack in Port Davey. This family, the Watsons, became lifelong friends and the youngest daughter was my mother’s goddaughter. This photo in the book is a young Helen horsing around with Clyde Clayton at Bond Bay.

7. What is the name of Denny’s grandson, who has written two volumes of history of South West Tasmania?

Deny King’s grandson, Tony Fenton has written two volumes of history of southwest Tasmania. The first, called: A History of Port Davey, South West Tasmania Volume 1: Fleeting Hopes (Forty Degrees South, 2017) is a fascinating read, detailing ‘all the disparate accounts of forays into South West Tasmania’ from the aboriginal inhabitants, European explorers, surveyors, piners, miners and other hopefuls up to the early twentieth century, including many a search and rescue of the lost.

8. Purported to be the first Australian novel written in 1831 is which book by Henry Savery, a convict transported to Van Diemen’s Land, detailing the life of a convict at Port Arthur?

Quintus Servinton is purported to be the first novel written in Australia. Dated 1831 the book by Henry Savery, himself a convict, is an interesting insight into convict life at Port Arthur. This prison on Tasmania’s East coast operated from 1830 into the 1880s. Savery was transported for forgery and debt in 1825 and wrote for the Colonial Times in Hobart before writing the novel.

Often thought of as Australia’s first novel, Marcus Clarke’s For the Term of His Natural Life was first serialised in The Australian Journal beginning in 1870 and first published as a book in 1874, 43 years after Savery’s novel.

9. What is the title of Bryce Courtenay’s novel featuring the Hobart Female Factory and a pub with the book’s title as it’s name?

Courtenay’s 1995 novel The Potato Factory is based on the life of real Van Diemen’s Land convict Ikey Solomon. It tells a fictional story of the two women in Ikey’s life and features the Hobart Female Factory, a colonial prison for women, with much of the story set in a pub called The Potato Factory.

10. Sailor author Jon Tucker (whose boat New Zealand Maid was for many years moored at Kettering) has written a series of books for children about a live-aboard sailing family. What is the title of the first book set on Snake Island in the D’Entrecasteaux Channel?

The first in Jon’s Those Kids series is called Those Snake Island Kids (Storm Bay Books, 2014). We had the privilege of sailing to Snake Island to attend the book launch, sitting around the campsite. There was even a treasure hunt for the many kids who attended! The first book is now followed by Those Eco-Pirate Kids, Those Shipwreck Kids, Those Sugar Barge Kids and Those Seal Rock Kids. A great series for the young sailor in your life! Available from Storm Bay Books: Storm Bay Books | Books to inspire a love of the outdoors (nzmaid.com)

11. Jon also sailed to Antarctica in a small home-built yacht with two of his sons. What is the title of the book he wrote about this voyage, also the name of the boat?

Jon’s travel memoir is titled Snow Petrel: a father-son voyage to the windiest place in the world (Forty Degrees South, 2011). The boat Snow Petrel is named after a small pure white Antarctic seabird.

12. Which Stella Prize-winning author’s novel Bruny involves the fictional handover of Tasmania to the Chinese and the construction of a bridge across the D’Entrecasteaux Channel.

The novel Bruny was written by Heather Rose, a former classmate of mine, prolific author and all-round good person. Bruny (Allen&Unwin, 2019) is rather cheeky and full of Tasmanian in-jokes. “More like a hand grenade than a book…” says author Rohan Wilson.

Heather’s 2016 novel The Museum of Modern Love won the Stella, Christina Stead and Margaret Scott Prizes in 2016/17. Find out more about Heather’s books here: Heather Rose — The award winning Australian author

13. Which Tasmanian author’s book series is set in post nuclear holocaust Tasmania, featuring an invasion by The Alliance, made up of North Korea, Indonesia and India?

Fellow adventurer Rick Allen, captain of our expedition vessel, Southern Explorer, is the author of a post-apocalyptic series called Toast. The first two books of the series – The Ride to Hell and Hell’s Salvation are available from his website: Rick Allen | Author (rickallenbooks.com) The books are heavily influenced by Rick’s rich and varied life. He spent years in the Australian Navy, worked as a rigger, on fish farms and as a saddler.

14. Photographer and sailor, Andrew Wilson has published two volumes of superb photos of crusty Tasmanian sailors. What is the title (vol 1 & 2)?

Andrew’s books are Old Sea Dogs of Tasmania volumes 1 & 2 (2013 and 2016). Photographer Hobart Tas | Portraiture | Advertising | Documentary (andrewwilsonphotography.com.au)

15. What beautiful hard-cover photo book of south-west Tasmanian anchorages (now in its third edition) were most of our fleet likely to be carrying? Title and author.

Ian Johnston, fellow CYCT member and intrepid sailor, has now published three editions of his  beautiful hard-cover photo book of south-west Tasmanian anchorages: The Shank, The Shank Returns and The Shank Revisited (2020).

Like most of the fleet, we certainly had our copy on board, and found it useful for preparing to come alongside the waterfall, and on the way back for anchorages in New Harbour and Louisa Bay. Here is the spread for Melaleuca.

The book is also available from Andrew Wilson’s site above.

16. Name the Richard Flanagan novel set on the Franklin River.

Death of a River Guide is set on the Franklin River, one of the world’s iconic wild rivers, popular for rafting and kayaking. Later on in our trip we took our dinghy up the lower reaches of the Franklin from Warner’s Landing in the Gordon. Richard spent time as a rafting guide on the Franklin and it shows. A breathtaking read, this novel really makes you feel like you are drowning! (my signed copy below is published by McPhee Gribble/Penguin, 1994)

17. Name the Richard Flanagan novel which includes an artist convict and the building of a railway on Sarah Island (Macquarie Harbour) by a mad commandant?

Gould’s Book of Fish is a magical fiction of the escapades of artist convict William Buelow Gould who died from drowning attempting to escape from Sarah Island in 1831. I think this is my favourite Flanagan novel, and was amused and entranced by the idea of a railway running around tiny Sarah Island. Not to mention Gould’s beautiful fish illustrations which I’ve viewed at the State Library of Tasmania. These are also reproduced at the end of my edition of the novel (Picador, 2001).

18. Which author wrote many children’s novels set around Tasmania, including the 1964 title A High and Haunted Island, where two schoolgirls are stranded on the rocky shore of Port Davey?

Nan Chauncy (1900-1970) published 14 children’s novels set around Tasmania, including the 1964 title A High and Haunted Island. Her best-known title, They Found a Cave, was adapted for a feature film in 1962. Chauncy won Children’s Book of the Year three times and a CBCA award is now named after her.

19. Which character from Charles Dickens’ novel Oliver Twist was supposedly based on Tasmanian convict Ikey Solomon?

Before Bryce Courtenay, Charles Dickens heard the tale of Ikey Solomon. His villainous character Fagin in the novel Oliver Twist was supposedly based on this London criminal whose arrest, escape, recapture, trial and transport to Van Diemen’s Land was highly publicised in London at the time. Fagin is considered ‘one of the most notorious antisemitic portraits in English Literature’ (www.britannica.com).

20. Paul Collins’ book Hells Gates is based on the story of which notorious cannibal convict who escaped from Sarah Island?

Hells Gates is a historical narrative based on the story of Alexander Pearce, a convict who escaped from Sarah Island in 1822 along with seven companions and attempted to make their way to Hobart overland. Nine weeks later, Pearce was the only one to complete the journey, having avoided starvation by eating his fellow escapees one by one along the way. (Hardie Grant Books, 2014)

Well, how did you go? Sorry I don’t have any prize – except for your new and excellent reading list. Enjoy.

A Day at Melaleuca

After a couple of days tucked up on board sheltering from a weather system we pulled up a very muddy anchor and motored back to Clayton’s Corner in Bathurst Harbour. We anchored in the relatively deep (5m) hole in the middle of the anchorage and prepared for a long dinghy ride up the Melaleuca Inlet. Previously we have taken the big boat up this shallow waterway, however the tides and low rainfall were against us this trip and we didn’t want to risk sticking in the mud. Southern Explorer had ventured up earlier and run aground only fifty metres short of the landing jetty.

The inlet is a waterway that connects the Melaleuca lagoon to the Bathurst Harbour. It stretches for about six nautical miles through teatree and button grass, and though it appears to be a river is more correctly described as estuarine. Its entire length has a speed limit of 5 knots (5 nautical miles per hour or just less than 10 km per hour) for all vessels, in order to protect the delicate banks from erosion caused by their wash. It is evident that there is a lot more traffic on this waterway than we had noted in either of our two prior visits, with various tour companies operating out of Melaleuca, including the luxury vessel Odalisque, connecting with daily flights by small plane, as well as cruise ships like the Coral Discoverer visiting. It is up to individuals to adhere to the 5 knot limit, and our trip took us around an hour each way. We wondered how many of these operators actually adhere to the rules. Sadly, there is quite a bit of bank erosion evident.

We arrived at the dinghy jetty just as a large party of kayakers were preparing to head downstream for a week or more of paddling. Roaring 40s Kayaking offer a 4 or 8 day kayaking expedition in this area, with meals and camping included. We chatted briefly with the participants and discovered that this trip has been described as ‘the most magnificent paddling destination in Australia’ by Australian Geographic magazine and is one of the Lonely Planet’s top 10 epic sea kayak paddles! A couple of the kayakers, both older ladies, had flown here from the United States especially for this adventure. They seemed to be working their way around the world trying all 10 with a trip New Zealand next.

We spent the day walking around Melaleuca, first taking the Needwonee Walk, an interpretive walk around the point at the confluence of the creek and lagoon, with reconstructed aboriginal shelters and information, as well as a beautiful panel telling the dreaming story of creation.

Image courtesy Par Avion

This track led to the edge of the Melaleuca Lagoon, where we startled a very soggy wombat that was foraging in the shallows, and then on to the walkers’ campsite and shelters, including the Charles King Memorial Hut. This is an old Nissan hut, corrugated iron curved over to form the walls and roof, with the original fireplace and wood stove (no longer in use) and a collection of artefacts and photos. The hut offers shelter to bushwalkers with a collection of bunk beds, dining table and other comforts. We ate our lunch at the picnic table outside. A few despondent walkers were waiting in a second hut for a flight out. They had made the six-day walk in from Cockle Creek on the coast track and their plane had been delayed by bad weather, forcing them to spend an extra night here with no food as they had exhausted their provisions. The plane was due in soon, but wouldn’t take them out today as there was another party waiting already.

We walked across the airstrip to have a look for orange bellied parrots around the banks of the creek.

We also had a look at the old tin mine workings. It’s a fascinating collection of equipment, now disused. The life of the miners – the King and Willson families – back in the mid twentieth century must have been very isolated on this beautiful, wild and wet plain.

Then we visited the Denny King Museum, and spent some time browsing the many artefacts, stories and photos from the King family, as well as some beautiful illustrations of native flora and fauna of the area done by Janet Fenton, who grew up here doing school by radio and correspondence. The museum is also the site of the bird hide and we watched the rare orange-bellied parrots feeding at the bird table outside the window.

The airstrip has a salubrious ‘terminal’ and here we met up with Janne and Bill from Brite Star who had also made the trip up the inlet and were sitting here to use the free wifi to search for a refrigeration technician in Strahan, our next port of call. Their fridge has broken down and they have been storing food on other boats and calling for ‘Uber Eats’ style delivery each night.

We watched the next plane land, bringing in a new party of walkers outward bound for Cockle Creek. In true Tasmanian style I was hailed by one of them, a young man, ‘Hello, aren’t you Alice’s mother?’ It was Tien, one of our daughter’s old university classmates.

The trip back down the inlet was slow, cold and slightly wet as the weather began to close in. We snuggled down in the anchorage and enjoyed a barbecue in our covered cockpit using our fantastic little portable Cobb, in which we also baked hot bread rolls. This could be the last barbecue of the trip as Derek accidentally dropped the coal basket overboard when dousing the coals.

Oh, and I haven’t forgotten about the quiz – I’ll give you a little longer for your research and post the results in the next day or two.

Balmoral Hill Climb, and a Quiz for Readers!

After our trip to refill at the waterfall, we headed east along the Bathurst Channel to Casilda Cove. We anchored outside the cove and took our dinghy ashore for a walk up Balmoral Hill. The inner sanctuary of Casilda Cove is known as one of the most sheltered anchorages in the area. On a previous trip we sheltered here for two or three nights tied to trees on the shore to wait for a blow to pass over. This time the weather was much more benign, although before we arrived two other boats from our fleet had taken the opportunity to anchor in here for the day. The entrance is quite tricky but once around the rocky reef you find a snug corner that can fit up to half a dozen boats if necessary. Further in past the cove is the huge expanse of Horseshoe Inlet, which is wide and long and dotted with islands, however it is far too shallow for a keelboat.

The walk up Balmoral Hill was steep, through bauera, teatree, heaths and button grass, but we were soon rewarded with amazing views up and down the Bathurst Channel, and across to Joe Page Bay, which was to be our next anchorage.

In the next image you can clearly see the narrowest part of the Channel, between Joan Point on the near side and Farrell Point to the north. This is where the remote 70 kilometre walking track from Melaleuca to Scotts Peak crosses the Channel. As we motored past various times during the trip we could spot the rowing boats provided for walkers to use to cross the water. There are three boats, and walkers must leave at least one on each shore. A feat of logic not quite as tricky as the classic puzzle of how to ferry a wolf, a goat and a cabbage across a river without something being eaten, but it still provides a rowing challenge!

From the top we could just see Southern Explorer and Gradiva as they made their way in to Joe Page Bay and around a corner to our anchorage at Morries. We also saw a tourist boat drop a party at the beach directly below us. It still feels remote to have such vast and expansive views, and yet only be able to see evidence of a handful of people at most.

After scrambling, slipping and sliding back down the hill we took a dinghy tour of Casilda Cove to have a look at Phase Three and Dulcinea who were tied up to some of the recently installed staples on the rocky shore. Adventurer, sailor, author and photographer Ian Johnston has been instrumental in getting staples installed here and in other remote anchorages for the use of sailors. They save the precious shoreline vegetation and provide more security in the fierce weather the Roaring Forties often throws this way. We spotted a good number of these staples in Casilda Cove, and noted them for the future. If necessary, we could probably fit our entire fleet in here.

Back to the boat, and we motored across to Joe Page Bay to join the others, following Phase Three and Dulcinea who had untied soon after we buzzed past them in the dinghy. We enjoyed a calm afternoon at anchor, then joined everyone for sundowners on Southern Explorer.

It was time for another quiz – and this time it was our turn to present one. The topic was Tasmanian Books, with an emphasis on those set in our cruising area for this trip. As I love reading local works and used to work at the Tasmania Writers Centre, this was not really a surprise. The well-read crew of Phase Three won the quiz, and I presented a prize of a basket I made using old rope.

For those of you who would like a challenge, here’s the quiz. Write down your answers and I’ll post the solution next time. See how many you get right. A thorough knowledge of southwest Tasmania is an advantage.

1. What’s the title of Richard Flanagan’s book on the underbelly of Tasmania’s salmon farming industry?

2. The Alphabet of _ _ _… (what three words) is the title of Danielle Wood’s 2002 Australian/Vogel Prize-winning novel set at the Cape Bruny Lighthouse? (clue: it’s descriptive of the language of lighthouses)

3. Stephanie Parkyn’s novel Into the World is a fictional account of which woman who passed as a man to gain the position of steward on board French explorer Bruni D’Entrecasteaux’s ship La Recherche, visiting Tasmania in 1792 and 1793?

4. Robyn Mundy has volunteered for Tas Maritime Radio and spent at least two stints as volunteer lightkeeper on Maatsuyker Island. What is the title of her novel set on the island?

5. What is the title of Christobel Mattingley’s biography of Denny King (who lived most of his life at Melaleuca, southwest Tasmania)?

6. Denny’s daughter Janet Fenton wrote a book about her aunt and uncle, who also lived first at Bond Bay, then at Clayton’s Corner. What is the title of this book?

7. What is the name of Denny’s grandson, who has written two volumes of history of southwest Tasmania, the first called: A History of Port Davey, South West Tasmania Volume 1: Fleeting Hopes?

8. Purported to be the first Australian novel written in 1831 is which book by Henry Savery, a convict transported to Van Diemen’s Land, detailing the life of a convict at Port Arthur? (hint: it’s not For the Term of His Natural Life by Marcus Clarke)

9. What is the title of Bryce Courtenay’s novel featuring the Hobart Female Factory and a pub with the book’s title as it’s name?

10. Sailor author Jon Tucker (whose boat New Zealand Maid was for many years moored at Kettering) has written a series of books for children about a live-aboard sailing family. What is the title of the first book set on Snake Island in the D’Entrecasteaux Channel?

11. Jon also sailed to Antarctica in a small home-built yacht with two of his sons. What is the title of the book he wrote about this voyage, also the name of the boat?

12. Which Stella Prize-winning author’s novel Bruny involves the fictional handover of Tasmania to the Chinese and the construction of a bridge across the D’Entrecasteaux Channel.

13. Which Tasmanian author’s book series is set in post nuclear holocaust Tasmania, featuring an invasion by The Alliance, made up of North Korea, Indonesia and India?

14. Photographer and sailor, Andrew Wilson has published two volumes of superb photos of crusty Tasmanian sailors. What is the title (vol 1 & 2)?

15. What beautiful hard-cover photo book of south-west Tasmanian anchorages (now in its third edition) were most of our fleet likely to be carrying? Title and author. (Hint: the author is mentioned above – but find the title.)

16. Name the Richard Flanagan novel set on the Franklin River.

17. Name the Richard Flanagan novel which includes an artist convict and the building of a railway on Sarah Island (Macquarie Harbour) by a mad commandant?

18. Which author wrote many children’s novels set around Tasmania, including the 1964 title A High and Haunted Island, where two schoolgirls are stranded on the rocky shore of Port Davey. (Hint: this author’s most well-known book is called They Found a Cave.)

19. Which character from Charles Dickens’ novel Oliver Twist was supposedly based on Tasmanian convict Ikey Solomon?

20. Paul Collins’ novel Hells Gates is based on the story of which notorious cannibal convict who escaped from Sarah Island?

Good luck!

Watering Bay

On Friday the morning dawned calm and clear. The fleet decided to take the opportunity to make a change of scenery, shake out the limbs with a brisk walk and for us, fill our depleting tanks with water from a nearby waterfall.

Our boat is a coastal cruiser, and unlike many in the fleet, not set up with huge water tanks or a water-maker. With four on board and only 330 litres of water capacity some quick maths shows you that in order for it to last one week that gives us a little under 12 litres per person per day. Have you ever thought about how much water you use in a day? By this stage we had been out for 9 days, and even with frugal water use, we were well into the second of our two water tanks. We had 60 litres backup in jerrycans, but if there’s free water on offer, why not give it a go? And besides, as the saying goes, once you’ve drunk from the tannin creeks down here you will always return to the south-west.

There is usually plenty of rainfall in this area (as I keep repeating!) and plenty of creeks and rivers replenish the freshwater layer in the harbour. However, a boat like ours, with a draft of around two metres, cannot get far enough up any river to find potable fresh water. If you want to avoid carting jerrycans of water in your dinghy from a creek to the big boat, there are two options to refill in the harbour. At Clayton’s Corner there are two rainwater tanks filled from the roof of the house with a hose to the jetty, which is in water just deep enough for us to come alongside on a quiet day; the other option is at Watering Bay. Here a waterfall plunges from a cliff around 70 metres high and into the deep water of Bathurst Channel. Over the years fishermen and sailors have rigged up a collection system – a large jerrycan suspended beneath the flow with a long hose attached to the outflow at the base. We came right alongside the cliff where a huge PVC bumper and plenty of lines attached to staples in the rock made it easy to tie up, grab the hose and fill the tanks.

Unfortunately there was very little water flowing down the falls, and the jerrycan wasn’t filling well enough to maintain the flow. While we waited for the water to trickle in Craig decided to climb up the rock wall to a ledge by the can, to see if he could diagnose the filling problem. He was able to hold the jerrycan under a better water flow to fill the tanks a little faster. But while he was there, he decided to shower in the waterfall, and put on a show for all to see! We’re not sure how much soap managed to get into the tanks in the process.

Not to be outdone, Gayelene took the opportunity to do a load of washing on the foredeck, using the age old bucket, soap and scrub method. By the time the tanks were full we had a clean Craig and the boat was festooned with laundry.

Companion vessel Brite Star were also keen to get some water, and waited for us to leave before attempting to tie up. However, as they were only two on board and their long bowsprit made it difficult to approach safely. Once there, they were not able to get the water flowing well enough into their tanks and they soon aborted.

These shots give you a perspective of the size of the waterfall with the boat tucked in underneath.

We then proceeded back east in the Channel for another adventure.

Chilling with a Schooner… Cove

The delight of an extended sailing trip like this is that there is plenty of time. Time to relax, take a slow day, wait for the weather and just time to immerse ourselves in our surroundings. Here, at 43 degrees south, in the heart of the World Heritage listed Southwest National Park, we are a long way from city life, and after more than a week away from home we’ve left all those everyday stresses behind. Out of mobile range we’ve even stopped checking our phones. Granted, we did take our Starlink satellite dish with us, mounted on our shiny new targa arch*, for remote access to the internet, however, it draws heavily on our limited battery power, especially on a cloudy day, so we’re only using it occasionally, and mainly for checking the weather models.

On Wednesday it rained, as a low-pressure system moved over us, and Derek took the opportunity to service the boat toilet (the less said about that, the better). After lunch we whiled away the afternoon with our newest board game – Wingspan. A game all about birds! Where has that been all my life? A perfect fit for me, and, much to Derek’s frustration, I quickly asserted my dominance.

In the evening we joined the fleet on board Southern Explorer for sun-downers and a quiz. The topic was popular music, mainly focused on the 1980s. The era of our early adulthood. So you’d think team Ariadne’s Clew would have done okay. Sadly no. We had to settle for a low score and third place. It was fun trying to remember tunes and artists, despite heading home with a few earworms.

Southern Explorer, our sun-downers venue, on the left, and Gradiva on the right.

We stayed put for Thursday as well, and entertained ourselves with reading, games (more Wingspan wins for me!), knitting and so forth. Gayelene went for a swim with a bar of soap and shampoo. We carry just 330 litres of water in our tanks, and are conscious of using it wisely. Showers are short affairs, and infrequent, especially with four of us on board for an extended period, and limited options to refill the tanks.

Spending too long on the boat can lead to cabin fever, and sometimes I do get restless. When that happens it’s good to get off the boat and I love to head off for a paddle in the kayak. So I inflated it and headed off to explore the bay.

Tasmanian rivers are known for their brown tannin-stained water, especially in areas where button-grass grows. Despite it being tidal and open to the sea, in the huge area of Bathurst Harbour and Channel, with many rivers flowing in, a layer of dark fresh water has formed over the top of the heavier salt water. As well as being good for bathing, this dark water cuts the amount of light penetrating the surface, and restricts seaweeds to the top layer, allowing a unique marine ecosystem to develop in the deeper saltwater below, with quite unusual plants and animals. The Eaglehawk Dive Centre have put together a great little video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIYeUFy-mAg We didn’t go diving, but I did enjoy looking over the side as I kayaked around Schooner Cove.

Here you can see the air-filled beads of Neptune’s necklace floating near the surface. It has been notably dry in this area this summer, so I imagine the tannin layer is thinner than usual. This region receives an average rainfall of over 2200 mm, compared with Hobart’s 626. Fun fact: did you know that Hobart is Australia’s second driest capital city after Adelaide? That often surprises people.

I’m rambling now. I hear you say: ‘enough of the waffle, give me some more photos!’ Okay. I also visited a small cave on the shore, a living site of the traditional aboriginal inhabitants of the area, the Ninene, a clan of the Southwest nation.

The cave is a short walk from their farmed buttongrass moorlands, their extensive middens on the coast behind Stephens Bay and Noyheener Beach, and close to islands including Muttonbird Island (see photos from previous post) that provided a rich source of seafood. I spent a few moments at the mouth of the cave in solitude and respect, appreciating the ancient cultural heritage of our island.

For a thorough history of Tasmania’s aboriginal people I would recommend Lyndall Ryan’s 2012 book Tasmanian Aborigines: a history since 1803.

*Targa arch – at the risk of going down another rabbit hole, in our case, this is a stainless steel framework at the back of our boat fitted with davits that we use to hoist the dinghy out of the water and carry it whilst sailing. It also serves as a mounting place for our solar panels, and satellite dish. The word ‘targa’ comes originally from a German word for ‘shield’ and was used in the 1960s for a model of Porsche car (that’s where the name for the race comes from). However, I’m not sure how it made its way into boating… Any comments welcome.

Walking the Wombat Way

On the morning of Tuesday 31^st January all the boats moved to Clytie Cove, an anchorage in the Bathurst Channel a little further westwards.

An aside regarding the geography of this area: in preparation for a trip such as this we do a good deal of research with charts (navigational maps), anchorage guides, books and other resources. One great resource for this area is the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife’s Port Davey Marine Reserve Visitor’s guide, which includes a map, booklet and DVD. Our edition is from 2010, around the time of our first visit to the area on Ariadne’s Clew, but is still very relevant.

Here’s a close-up from the map, of the Bathurst Channel. Hopefully you can see the channel running east-west in the centre of the map, with Clytie Cove not far from Bathurst Harbour at its right-hand end and Schooner Cove at the left, not far from the entrance at Port Davey. You can also see that most of the channel is shaded (dotted) to indicate ‘Sensitive Area – please do not anchor’, however this excludes a variety of bays where anchoring is permitted.

The four of us (Gayelene, Craig, Derek and I) were keen to get ashore and stretch our legs, however with few walking tracks in this area it is not always possible. Down here the bush is so dense that one really has to stay on formed paths. This summer the undergrowth was uncharacteristically dry making the usually boggy buttongrass plains fairly easy walking, but despite this, what looks, from a distance, like a pleasant stroll on a grassy hillside can easily turn out to be a bush bash through thickets of resistant teatree, heath and buttongrass as high as your shoulders.

Scott, our cruise leader, knew of a walkable path on shore nearby and most of the fleet were keen to give it a try. We all landed on a small beach, tied up our dinghies and followed Scott as he scrambled up the bank into the bush. Soon the call came to follow, and we all emerged onto a narrow path which led us uphill towards a saddle between Mt Nares and Schooner Hill. This was no man-made path. The clues were everywhere. The track-makers had left small piles of brick-shaped deposits at regular intervals – this was the work of wombats!

We followed this wombat highway to a rocky outcrop that gave us spectacular views south across Hannant Inlet to the coast. In the distance we could see Sugarloaf Rock and the East Pyramids hazy with sea-spray.

Rather than climbing another mountain we then followed a minor wombat road up the slopes of Schooner Hill through a wonderland of wildflowers.

Soon we could see back to our anchorage and the Bathurst Channel. We watched a sea-plane land and weave its way between our boats to lodge itself on a small beach at the corner of the bay.

One of these things is not like the others…!

When we returned to the beach we could see the plane passengers sitting on the beach having a romantic (and presumably expensive) afternoon tea!

In the evening we all went ashore where the plane had been and set up for sun-downers at the beautiful little campsite amongst the trees. We were joined by a couple of American adventurers from a catamaran anchored in the bay. They are on a ‘round the world’ trip, and have been on the go for several years. It was fun chatting to them about their exploits. Their boat is called Other 2/3 – I imagine this is reference to the earth being 2/3 ocean… which is worth exploring by boat!

Old River Paddle

The large square-shaped area of Bathurst Harbour covers around 60 km² with rivers and inlets around its coast. The Old River flows into the northeast corner and, whilst the more athletic of the fleet chose to walk up the daunting slopes of Mt Rugby (771m high), Gayelene, Craig, Derek and I opted for a cruise across the harbour and up this river.

Here are the walkers on their way to the first ridge

We had to anchor quite a way off the mouth, as this area is largely unsurveyed and has extensive sandbars across the entrance. The four of us piled into the dinghy, replete with a picnic lunch, and with the kayak in tow behind. We soon encountered the bar and spent a while paddling and putting slowly around to find a good entrance. Once inside it’s river rules – hug to the outside of the bends where the river flows fastest and creates the deepest channel. The banks were thick with teatree and melaleuca. After motoring slowly upriver for about 2 km we came to the end of the navigable section and a fork in the river. Gayelene and I hopped into the kayak to reconnoitre. On one branch the river ran swiftly over rapids, but in the other we found a good place to tie up and go ashore for a short walk into the forest.

Here we found lush rainforest – though, like most of this area we noted how dry it was underfoot. It seems that La Nina years probably mean less rainfall than usual in the southwest of Tasmania. Soon we found a beautiful grove of old Huon pines.

The Huon pine is a protected species, and penalties apply to anyone who takes its timber from the wild. We were shocked to see a fairly recent chainsaw cut on one branch here in an area that has been a World Heritage site since 1982!

This venerable old tree grows at the rate of about 1 mm per year, so this branch would be well over 100 years old. It was heavily logged in the 19^th century, principally as it was such great timber for boat building.

We returned to the river where we had a picnic lunch on the pebbly bank. Gayelene and Craig took a dip in the icy cold water while Derek and I paddled up the first rapids and along a straight stretch to the second in the kayak.

That night, after returning to Clytie Cove just in time for sun-downers on Southern Explorer with the rest, including a few very weary mountaineers, we ate a barbecue on deck and watched the sunset.

Reflections

We had moved to Clytie Cove in the Bathurst Channel to be with the fleet on Sunday night. This area is famous for stunning reflections in the still water on a quiet day. The weather down here is highly unpredictable, coming in waves as the low pressure systems pass below the island in the summer months. Between these systems, however, you can get superb days.

In the still of the morning of 30^th January we were treated to beautiful reflections of the hills and mountains – especially Mt Rugby, which soars above the Bathurst Channel. The boats around us also looked stunning. Below are photos, first of Mt Rugby, then all the boats in our fleet – Phase Three, Brite Star and Southern Explorer, Dulcinea and finally our cruise leader Gradiva.

Apologies if you have already seen these photos. I thought I had posted this already, but found it in my drafts. So, it’s out of order. But I hope you agree that it’s still worth pausing and contemplating these beautiful reflections. Days like these are worth remembering. And thanks to Rick from Southern Explorer and Sally from Phase Three, who have both given me photos of Ariadne’s Clew on that magical morning. Sally’s is on the left and also the top banner (actually taken the evening before) and Rick’s on the right. Thanks to both of you!

Right into a Ria

So here we were, deep in the Southwest National Park, part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, and in the waters of Port Davey Marine Reserve. Far from towns, roads and shops this huge area of the island is a mecca of wilderness travel. Six or more days walk from Cockle Creek in the south-east, or Scotts Peak Dam to the north, the only other ways in are by small plane or boat.

All was peaceful at Bramble Cove on Friday night, but at around 4 am Saturday (28^th Jan) the wind changed and began to blow us around with strong gusts. We were all concerned for Brite Star without their motor, and radio chatter began early. By the time of the daily morning radio sked we had pulled up anchor and were in search of a more sheltered spot, whilst those with more mechanical knowledge than us had been working on Brite Star’s engine problem. First we tried Schooner Cove, but after late breakfast decided to push on all the way up the narrow 12 km long Bathurst Channel into Clayton’s Corner at the edge of Bathurst Harbour.

This unique marine environment is formed from a drowned valley or ria. The huge harbour in the centre was once a large plain flooded by sea-level rise around 7000 years ago. The entire harbour is quite shallow at 5-7 metres, and the high rainfall and many rivers flowing into it create a layer of dark tannin-rich fresh water over brackish clearer water. In the deeper Channel quite rare sea creatures live in the salt water below, including sea pens, sponges, stars and soft corals.

We were quite surprised to find a cruise ship, the Coral Discoverer, anchored bang in the middle of the Channel just off Parker Bay. They were clearly anchored in the area labelled on our marine reserve map as ‘Sensitive area – Please do not anchor’, this is to protect the fragile marine creatures so easily damaged. We were sad and a little outraged. None of the well-paying passengers or crew gave us so much as a wave as we negotiated our way past.

We anchored at Clayton’s Corner (outside the sensitive area) and cooled off with a swim while boatloads of cruise passengers zipped in and out from the jetty for the short walk up Television Hill. The water feels fresh and silky, though its dark colour and low visibility are a bit unusual.

The next day the bay was quieter and we went ashore with our fellow sailors. We visited the house, formerly home to Win and Clyde Clayton, which has been preserved and is now available as a day shelter, with various memorabilia on display.

Clyde was a fisherman, plying the waters of Port Davey and out into the Southern Ocean. Win, daughter of Charlie King, grew up at Melaleuca and after they married lived with Clyde first at Bond Bay, later moving to this spot for a more sheltered site.

We then set off for the walk up Mt Milner, with our first taste of rainforest, wildflowers, thick heath scrub and spectacular views of the Bathurst Harbour, Melaleuca Inlet, Bathurst Channel and back to Port Davey.

Rocks and Islands (27 Jan 2023)

Up at first light – which in Tasmania at this time of year just happens to be about 5 am – we donned our warm gear and safety harnesses and pulled up the anchor.

We still managed to be the last boat to leave the anchorage. As we came around Partridge Island we found enough wind to hoist the sails and by the time we were abeam of Southport we were able to turn off the engine and enjoy sailing on a broad reach past Actaeon and Sterile Islands all the way to Southeast Cape. On the way we passed Brite Star, which looked beautiful under full sail against the rugged cliffs of the cape. All day we enjoyed watching the Short-tailed Shearwaters (also known as Muttonbirds, Moonbirds and their aboriginal name, Yolla) skim off the waves and circle around. Sometimes we passed flocks of thousands.

But rounding the cape the wind had died off and we began to wallow. It was time to restart the engine and motor-sail. It was reluctant to start. After trying several times, checking the oil and refilling the coolant (which involved me crawling into tight spaces) it became apparent that the starter battery was dead. We still had about 40 nautical miles ahead of us as well as some of the most challenging stretches of water with numerous rocky islands and 2-3 metre seas. Thankfully the conditions were good and we had time on our hands – plus a spare battery we carry for our dive compressor and electric outboard! Craig lugged it down below and I helped him to switch it over for the dead battery. My main task was lying on the folded mattress to hold in out of the way. Even that small task whilst the boat was wallowing around was enough to make me feel rather icky, but thankfully the engine started and we were away again.

Soon we began weaving our way through the many islands – first past the contrasting pair Flat Top and Round Top, with the Mewstone visible in the distance, then between the two Witches (Big Witch, also called De Witt, and Flat Witch) with Maatsuyker and its lighthouse to the south.

Our main worry was coming across crayfish pots or nets as this is a popular fishing ground. Everyone in the fleet was keeping a good lookout and we were alerted by the front boats about a row of pots well before we came upon them. Despite their bright orange marker buoys they can be hard to see when the sea is heaving.

We reached Southwest Cape by early afternoon and turned northwest for the run up to Port Davey. The wind was light and the swells were now coming onto us sideways so we were relieved to reach the entrance and get into the shelter of the Big Caroline Rock – which always sets off a Neil Diamond ear-worm – and the Breaksea Islands to find flat water.

We motored into a very calm Bramble Cove and scrambled into the dinghy for a walk along the pretty beach before sunset. Just as we got back on board for dinner Brite Star arrived. They had more serious engine problems than us and had sailed the whole way. Several of the fleet had gone to their aid in dinghies to tow them the final few hundred metres into the anchorage where they were very relieved to put down the ‘pick’ for the night.