Journal Entries

February 2009

Last month was busy, rushing around trying to organise work and my trip to the wooden boat festival in Tasmania. Despite almost having to cancel my trip a couple of times due to work emergencies, I finally got away.

6 February - I arrived in Hobart today around midday. This was my first trip ever to Tasmania. It has a reputation of having very cold and unpredictable weather being in the southern latitudes and about as close to Antarctica as one probably wants to get. I was just glad to get out of the stifling humidity in Queensland.

Upon arrival I was greeted with approximately 20 degrees Celsius and blue skies with a bit of cloud. If Hobart 's weather is like this, I want to live here.

The photo below is looking out from the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania at Sandy Bay.

I obtained a berth at the yacht club just over a year ago and was extremely fortunate, since they are now very difficult to get. My berth is currently occupied by some yachting friends I met in Brisbane. The berth is the second boat from the right in the photo below. Just in front of the boat is the dock, then a big concrete sea wall protecting the marina from the sometimes wild weather.

Below is looking over the sea wall and out onto the Derwent river. The Derwent is more like an enormous bay and can get pretty rough.

I had a walk around the local area of Sandy Bay and following are some photos of the area.

Right next to the yacht club is the "Errol Flynn Reserve". Apparently old Errol grew up in this area and had his first exposure to boats in this bay.

As dusk approached, Hobart turned on it's charms. This town is extremely picturesque, surrounded by small mountains, it is truly beautiful. Here is the marina, where hopefully I will keep my boat at some point in the future.

7 February - Last night was very warm and a comfortable night. Cutty is with me and she appreciated the cooler weather since she has been suffering with the heat in Brisbane.

I awoke this morning to an overcast day with the forecast being a maximum of 27 degrees and periodic rain.

I was heading to the wooden boat festival which is in the heart of Hobart and about 20 minutes walk from the yacht club. The photo below is looking back toward the yacht club as I was heading into town.

The temperature was perfect, especially for walking and I wouldn't want to do this in Brisbane as I would be wet and uncomfortable with sweat.

The thing that really strikes me about Hobart is how quaint it is. There are no real high rise buildings (there are some medium rise in town) and most of the streets are filled with the original historic houses. It has a real European feel to it. Below is the "Shipwrights Inn".

Below is a typical street at "Battery Point" which is only a 10 - 15 minute walk from Hobart.

I arrived at the festival and the weather wasn't ideal but still very pleasant. The light showers kept the temperature down to the low 20's. I'm making such a big deal about the weather because everyone always tells me how bad the weather is in Tasmania and that I wouldn't like to live there.

The wooden boat festival is something special. It is on ever second year and is world famous. Boats and people travel from all corners of the globe to attend.

I couldn't believe my luck when I noticed an Atkin design double ender. I immediately recognised her as a "Vixen" (my dream yacht) and the owner was very surprised that I picked the design since there are only a handful of these stunning boats in the world. Luck would have it that she is moored in Cygnet and hopefully I can get to see a bit more of this beautiful yacht.

Following are some of the sights seen at the festival. Windward Star was a particularly nice example of a immaculately maintained classic.

This little clinker dinghy is powered by an outboard steam engine.

a masterpiece.

and another steam driven putter.

I was gathering lots of ideas for my boat and I particularly liked this hard dodger below. I'm going to need a good solid dodger if I am spending time in the cooler latitudes.

A lovely Lyle Hess Bristol Channel Pilot Cutter below.

Cutty was fascinated by the bronze sculptures of dogs around the dock.

She figured out pretty quickly though that they only looked like dogs since they had no smell. The photo below looks like a poster but in fact it is a sculpture at the dock and the square rigger ship behind is actually a boat in the background.

The festival has so many interesting displays including the traditional art of barrel making.

The wooden boat school from Franklin had a stand there and below one of the students is carving a knee.

and the traditional method of caulking seams.

another interesting display, demonstrating old engines.

a pedal powered dinghy. I like this.

and here is a familiar sight, 2 Colin Archer fat bottomed ladies.

Throughout the day there were races and activities on the water

Salmon farming is huge business in Tasmania and particularly in the Huon region. Huon Salmon had a stand there selling all types of salmon based meals, even salmon burgers.

A large cruise liner from Japan was visiting for a couple of days.

No it's not London but a big red double decker which conducts tours around Hobart.

On the way back to the yacht club I came across an Alpaca. It spotted Cutty and the man invited Cutty over to meet it.

Cutty was a bit shy at first but seemed really interested in the big dog with a long neck. I'm sure if they spent some time together they would get along well.

To walk from the Hobart waterfront to the yacht club is about a 15-20 minute walk and on a weekend Salamanca place hosts an outdoor market.

I am so impressed with the atmosphere of Hobart. It's like stepping back in time and such a nice change to the high rise concrete & glass of Brisbane.

The streets around Hobart are very European.

it's so quaint.

Below is a little cottage selling nautical antiques and overlooking the harbour.

and looking down the hill toward the yacht club.

Here is a little garden shed with a view.

8 February - The weather was much nicer this morning and I thought I should get some photos of Hobart on a sunny day so you didn't think it was always dreary and overcast. Below is the yacht club marina.

This is the ship "Enterprise". A very robust little ship.

and the wooden boat festival in nicer weather today.

The classic boat community is so small. I have run into people I have met previously in Brisbane. I was walking along the dock and heard a boy calling out "It's Cutty! It's Cutty!". It was the son of a family who have a beautiful New Zealand yacht named "Innocenti". I met the family when they were in Brisbane and they have 3 children onboard and all of them fell in love with Cutty and were very excited to see her.

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9 February - It was time to leave Hobart and begin to see some more of Tasmania. I had rented a small camper van to do some driving around and I packed Cutty up and took off heading South.

on the way out of town the view back toward Hobart was impressive. You can see the boats moored at the marina at the bottom centre of the photo.

My first stop was to be Cygnet which is the little town I would like to get more familiar with. The scenery along the way is rolling pasture farmland.

and below is Cygnet. My little campervan is in the right of the photo. Cygnet is an interesting little place with a diverse community ranging from local farmers to alternative hippy types and it reminds me a bit of Byron Bay way before it was developed.

Most importantly it has a sailing club.

Below is the slipway and moorings at Cygnet.

I am interested in relocating to Tasmania and this area is very appealing. About 5 minutes drive out of the town centre is a little bay known as "Copper Alley Bay". There are a handful of boats moored here and some exceptionally nice waterfront land.

Looking across the bay to "Deep Bay" there are some local yachts making the most of the breeze.

This could be my ideal place. I'd like to know if the owner of this parcel of land would sell.

and the view from the back of the block. I could restore the little church and spend winters by the fireplace looking over the anchorage. Ah, to dream.

About 6 months ago I had a permanent mooring laid at "Deep Bay". I had never been there but from google earth it looked like an ideal place and since moorings are becoming difficult to get I thought I should act sooner rather than later.

I arrived at Deep Bay and was happy with my choice. My mooring is the little white buoy in the right of the photo below.

Cutty seemed to think it was a good place and we parked here for lunch.

We went for a drive up the hillside to look at some small parcels of land. Below is the view looking down onto Deep Bay.

I love the landscape here and the cooler climate flora. Particularly pine trees. It must be beautiful in winter.

We stayed at Deep Bay for the night and were heading South tomorrow.

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10 February - I continued out along the coast road and through little townships like Franklin where there were some nice antique shops. They were a bit tourist geared but nice all the same.

There were plenty of old maritime bits and pieces (you can see a couple of navigation lanterns on the top shelf).

but nothing really exceptionally priced.

Just across the road was the famous Wooden Boat School. It's not that impressive a building but is really quaint.

It is located on the Huon river and is very picturesque. The photo below is the riverfront of the school.

and inside is the current project being constructed by the students. The school has a really nice feel about it and is world famous. If I was going to learn to build wooden boats, then I would probably like to do it here.

Further along down the river was the Huon Yacht Club. I wasn't too keen on the water colour of the Huon River as it's quite brown. I think this is due to all of the tanins in the water from the timbers upstream. The countryside is stunning though.

I drove along for a while longer and came to a little town called Geeveston. The streets were filled with timber carvings and it was a quaint place.

you can see another carving on the right side of the building. These wouldn't last long in the city on a Friday or Saturday night.

The drive South was very scenic. That is probably what is so striking about Tasmania, the natural beauty of the place is awesome.

Below is the bay of Dover which is a lovely little fishing township at the Southern end of Tasmania.

I really liked Dover since the beaches were white sand and rock with pine trees right to the water's edge. The landscape of the cooler climate is a nice change to sandy beaches and palm trees.

Little beach front shacks are not uncommon.

11 February - We stayed overnight at Dover and headed further South in the morning to Southport. We then headed back North toward Hobart again as I wanted to explore the Northern side of Hobart and out toward Port Arthur.

Cutty was enjoying our little camper van trip and was quite comfortable.

we travelled along the South East coast through little protected bays like the one below.

It really is a stunning and unspoilt part of the world.

The bays are protected by Bruny Island and this forms a large protected channel which is ideal for cruising. Most of the area was used traditionally for growing apples and cherries.

The shot below was almost postcard perfect. See the 2 swans.

Speaking of Cherries. How does $7 per kilo sound. These didn't last long as I ate them whilst driving.

I arrived back at Deep Bay since this was the area I really wanted to get to know. Walking along the shoreline there is an endless supply of oysters. I prized one from a rock and opened it. These are good big eating oysters. If only I had a lemon.

Around this area there are several little cedar chalet style cottages. I'd love to get something like this and have the boat moored out the front.

Below is a Peppermint Bay. Notice the sculpture of the human half buried behind and to the left of Cutty.

You don't see signs like this in the city.

12 February - Today we drove out to the far East toward Port Arthur. Below is the view down toward Eaglehawk Neck. The day was perfect. A little cloud around and a very slight chill in the air.

Eaglehawk Neck is a thin piece of land between the mainland and Port Arthur where the convicts were imprisoned. Along the neck were posted vicious dogs that would alert the guards of any escapees. Below is a bronze sculpture depicting one of the guard dogs. That's Cutty on the left doing her best impersonation of a guard dog.

Tasmania has a rough coastline and I certainly got a sense of being at the edge of the world.

All of this travelling was taking its toll on Cutty who would much prefer to be out running on the beach.

So we discovered a little bay called "Safety Bay" just near Port Arthur. It was an incredibly beautiful bay with pristine water and white sand. I think we will anchor here someday.

There are some yachts in the background of this photo. They are the members of the Royal Yacht Club on the first leg of the circumnavigation of Tasmania.

The trees are a clear indication of the constant weather the coastline is subjected to.

It has been a fantastic trip and Cutty has had plenty of first experiences. Here she is meeting a cow for the first time. She was curious but wary.

It's back to Brisbane tonight and this trip has reinforced that I'm heading in the right direction. Hopefully it will not be too long before we return here onboard the old Westsail.