In the footsteps of Captain Cook
Karen Eriksen copes with instrument failure while sailing the coastline of New South Wales with her children
After years of exploring overseas cruising grounds, my husband John and I decided to show our teenage children some of their own country’s coastline. The plan was to spend three school holidays on our Swan 46, Senta, sailing to the Great Barrier Reef before the boat was delivered back to Sydney.
We wanted to recreate some of the family bond we’d experienced during our one-year sailing sabbatical in 2012, and spend time with the children before they flew the nest. Teenage siblings cooped up in a confined space with parents would be challenging, especially as Finn, 15, and Lizzie, 13, fought like cat and dog at the best of times.
The first two weeks of our adventure saw us exploring the coast of New South Wales. The distance was around 200 miles, and with plenty of stops, the route would only have a few long sailing days. Lizzie’s friend also joined us.
We left Sydney in a gusty, unsteady 35-knot westerly wind, but out on the ocean with the double reef and No 3 genoa up, things settled down and we made good speed towards Pittwater.
We were just enjoying a celebratory drink when a strong gust hit. I quickly let off the jib but couldn’t rescue the full glass that hurtled across the cockpit and smashed in spectacular fashion. The girls down below, stretched out together on a bunk, started screaming, and the wind instrument showed 44 knots. A good test for the rig!
The next morning, after an evening meal at Newport’s Royal Motor Yacht Club, we tacked towards Lion Island in beautiful sunshine, before heading to Refuge Bay where we have a mooring. Finn shuttled back and forth on the stand-up paddleboard to get us all ashore, avoiding the clusters of orange jellyfish. We couldn’t spot any close to the beach, so we threw a ball around and showered under the waterfall afterwards.
From Refuge Bay to Newcastle was a good 50-mile sail, and we cast off at 0500. Shock, horror, the new B&G instruments did not work. Did something get wet yesterday? John was suitably distressed, as we had spent real money to upgrade the systems, and now nothing. In mixed swell, with No 3 genoa and sometimes a reef, we motorsailed on and off.
DISCOVERING NEWCASTLE’S CHARMS
Closing in on Newcastle we saw the many coal freighters moored off the coast waiting for cargo. We approached the harbour entrance with the prominent Nobby’s Head to port at the same time as a large orange freighter. Four tugboats were waiting to tow the ship in. We decided to hang back.
In the spacious marina we got a good berth for our hard-to-park Swan, and Finn helped us moor. Once alongside, the teenagers disappeared for a long shower.
During the two days in Newcastle the city
grew on us, with its promenade and new waterfront residential blocks with cafes and restaurants. Our excursion to the beautiful Art Deco Newcastle Baths was initially disappointing; when we arrived a sign informed us they were closed. There were, however, plenty of people hanging around in swimwear and others doing laps in the pool. The closure was due to the large swell that swamped the ocean pools at high tide. We waited around for 15 minutes before the pool opened again. The girls were just at the pool’s edge when a huge wave crashed in, flooding everything. Squealing, they hung onto the railings with the water swirling around them. With the closed sign up again we just risked a quick swim in freezing water.
Lizzie’s friend and Finn took the train back to Sydney in the afternoon. Our excursion to Fort Scratchley with just Lizzie was a resounding success, the sun was out, the view fantastic and we learned about the Second World War submarine attack on Newcastle.
From Newcastle we headed for the natural harbour of Port
Stephens and the snazzy Soldiers
Point Marina.
The 33-mile sail with full sails up was enjoyable but lumpy, and
Lizzie and I felt a bit sick.
We passed endless sandy beaches with high sand dunes and tall headlands. Looking at the coast I admired explorers like Captain Cook who navigated these inhospitable waters without mod cons; it must have been scary at times. Although we had no instruments we did have a GPS, chart computer and charts on the ipad. Finn rejoined the boat at Soldiers Point, and on leaving Port Stephens the next morning enthusiastically threw his fishing line out. During the eight-hour sail he got two bites, but each time the lure was bitten off. John and I were secretly relieved not to have the mess of a dead fish on the boat.
Without a depth sounder we worried about crossing the Forster bar, but slipped in at high water without problems. We tied up on the stump jetty in Tuncurry next to a park lined by apartment blocks. The surroundings were uninspiring, the weather grey, then rainy. The entrance to our final destination, Laurieton in Camden Haven offered the biggest challenge of the trip. We had no depth data and Camden bar shouldn’t be crossed in any swell. With waves breaking around us and John and I nervously arguing, we surfed into the beautiful Camden River that greeted us with a tranquil landscape and sunshine. Half an hour later our friend Hughie took our lines at our berth at the Fish Coop. We had arrived...