I've been pretty slack with the blog
lately just posting up links to videos of our trips instead of
writing about them, but, I'll have to write this latest trip up as
there is no video (yet). There were five of us with a very loose
plan of paddling out through Tuross bar on Monday and pulling into
land (and hopefully a pick-up) on Friday. While I prefer trips that
have a destination, heading out to sea and turning north or south,
depending on which way the wind blows is easier to organize and does
not involve long and tedious car shuttles.
Pelican at Lavender Bay
Monday morning we all met at Lavender
Bay at Tuross Head and packed our boats with five days of food and
water. The tide was already running rapidly in so it was a bit of
work to paddle out to the bar which was pretty friendly on this day
and we all got out without even getting wet. A light northerly was
blowing so the sails went up and off we went. Potato Point and then
Jemisons Point came up quickly and we tucked in behind Jemisons Point
for a bit of shelter. Apparently, at lower tides you can land easily
- in northerly conditions - on a small bit of sand in the shelter of
the point. The tide was a bit high for easy landing today and we had
been going only an hour so no-one felt the need to land.
In the lee of Jemisons Point
By the time we got to Brou Beach the
wind had died completely and suddenly the boats felt heavy and
sluggish - or maybe it was me that felt heavy and sluggish; in any
event, it was a long paddle down Brou Beach to Dalmeny. The little
boat ramp at Dalmeny was not an easy place to land with a fairly
easterly swell so we continued on to Narooma and paddled in through
the bar instead. The usual seals were entertaining the tourists at
Bar Rock. We had lunch in Narooma and then drifted up Wagonga Inlet
with a rising tailwind.
Peter near Mullimburra Point
A southerly change was predicted to
blow in with a rising swell and Peter was concerned about launching
from Mystery Bay the next morning so consensus seemed to be camping
in Wagonga Inlet. I would not recommend this unless you have to as
it is a bit tough to find a good site and, let's admit it, beach
camping is a big part of sea kayaking. We did manage to find a spot
and I even got a nice long walk along a bush track before dark. It
was a hot night, until around 2 am when a few drops of rain signaled the southerly change and we all jumped out of our tents to put our
tent flies on.
Sailing south from Tuross Heads
On Tuesday, we got away early so we did
not have to fight the tide paddling out of Narooma Bar. Although the
tide was flowing in by the time we got to the bar, paddling out was
pretty easy, but the ocean was big and bumpy once we got out. The
southerly wind was only about 12 to 15 knots, but the seas were lumpy
with a two metre swell running. Doug and I went down to our 2/3
sails as the full metre square sail would have been too exciting - or
terrifying.
North of Batemans Bay
For the first hour or so, I felt as if
I had embarked upon the longest and worst protected rock climbing
lead of my life. The kind of pitch where the gear is non-existent,
the fall long, and the belay so, so far away. But, after pitching,
rolling and bracing into breaking waves for a while my nerves started
to settle down, and by the time we got to Potato Point (we were
heading back north) I was almost comfortable. Peter's rudder had
broken as soon as we exited Wagonga Inlet so he had been using
corrective strokes all the way to Potato Point.
Gauntlets at Mullimburra Point
There were surfers in the water north
of Potato Point which is always a bit worrying when you are trying to
land a sea kayak without killing anyone, but a rip was running out
along the rocks made for a surprisingly easy landing. Peter
immediately burrowed nose first into his boat to fix his rudder.
Peter effecting a rudder repair
Once the rudder was repaired, we set
off again, pitching and rolling up past One Tree Point at Tuross
Heads and north along Bingie Beach to Bingie Bingie Point. There
must have been a strong current running off Bingie Bingie Point as it
was hard work paddling out around the breaking reef and for a while I
was not sure I was going to make it. North of Bingie Bingie Point,
the paddling got easier and Mullimburra Point was a doddle in
comparison. We stopped at Mullimburra where we met three young
lads who were two weeks into a month long sea kayak trip from Sydney
to Mallacoota. It was great to see some other kayakers, particularly
under 50, out doing an epic trip and having their own adventures.
Rock passages near Burrewarra Point
On
Wednesday, the fickle wind was forecast to switch again to the north
but not particularly strongly so we continued our northward journey
getting away early again so that we would lessen the amount of time
we had to beat into a headwind. The morning was almost glassy calm as
we paddled up long beaches all the way to Broulee where we took a
break. On the north side of Burrewarra Point, Peter led us through a
narrow gauntlet and a pod of dolphins swam around my boat.
Dolphins
PC, DB
We had lunch at
Guerilla Bay and then with a light headwind blowing settled into a
slow steady pull to the Tollgate Islands and then onto North Head.
Our camp had a fantastic view of the Tollgate Islands and, breaking
the pattern of a long dry summer, we got a few hours of rain in the
evening.
Steve surfing the Nadgee
PC, DB
Thursday morning
the wind was blowing from the south again but forecast to ease over
the day so we had a lazy morning and I went for a long walk before we
set off around 9.30 am. North Head was bumpy with exploding
haystacks everywhere and a two to three metre swell rolling in. We
paddled north giving all the reefs and bombies a wide berth. The
wind had dropped almost to nothing but it was surprisingly rough all
the way to Beagle Bay. Lunch was a long affair lounging about on
some green grass above the beach and then we paddled a few more
kilometres north to a sheltered camp. Steve took the Nadgee out for
a surf and I had a wonderful walk along the rock platform and through
a gorgeous spotted gum forest. Kangaroos grazed around the tents in
the evening.
Spotted gum forest
Friday, of
course the wind was northerly, so we headed back towards Batemans
Bay. The non-paddling spouses had agreed to pick us up from Mosquito
Bay after lunch. Calm winds and glassy seas gave way to a moderate
northeasterly wind by the time we reached North Head again and we
kayak-sailed past the Tollgates and into sheltered Mosquito Bay.
Beach landing
The tally for
the trip was around 150 km and included one fish caught - and eaten
raw! - a half dozen shark sightings (species unknown), many dolphins
and seals, one broken rudder (twice), glassy calm mornings, heaving
swells, exploding haystacks, and winds which never blew in the same
direction for more than 24 hours straight. Don't you love sea
kayaking.
Stop press, the video is here.
