Hobie Cat Forums

Hi all, back on deck after a relaxing few weeks away.

Here are your postcards ...............

notice the Balinese pedicure ?

funny, I didn't hear these blokes whing'n about their rudder not work'n or corrosion on their akas

..............( now there is a place that could do with a 1/2 dozen AI's, but unfortunately none to be seen ).


Just wondering if anyone is keen in forming another amada before Christmas somewhere between Sydney and Port Stephens ? Terrigal / Maitland Bay / Fingal Bay / Nelson Bay, I'm easy. Any preferences ?

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Don't take life too seriously................it ain't permanent.

Welcome back mate and thanks for the postcards!
Looks like you had a relaxing holiday. The weather here has been stormy with big seas so you didn't miss anything.
I'm always keen to get another armada together. We still have to do the Terrigal run though any of your suggestions are fine by us. I can usually work around dates so if anyone has any preferences please chime in!

I know it would probably be another car shuffle, but I have always fancied this trip.



from the northern end of Stocton Beach to Shoal Bay. Almost 30 K's with diversions.

Just a thought.

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Don't take life too seriously................it ain't permanent.

Welcome back slaughter keen to do a trip around broken Bay and explore the beaches. I'll fit in re timing, every weekend is 4 days for me. Have to be an A-A trip. Car shuffling is to hard to arrange. I'd put in at Palm Beach.

Had a great sail last Sat, Pitwater to Sydney - around 4 hours. Fortuneately we were dropped off at Palm Beach and sailed back to the cars at Northbridge. Conditions were great winds 5- 30knots - the AIs loved it. Great sail to do.

Slaughter,
That trip from Stockton looks good. What are the launch sites like on the beach? Would swell be a problem?

Davew,
Pittwater to Sydney -thats a trip I've always wanted to do!
Any more details to share?
The car shuffle logistics have put me off from doing anything about it though.
BTW- for the Terrigal to Pretty Beach trip you would just need to get to Terrigal. I can arrange for a car to return us back to Terrigal.

Slaughter
Not a lot to report other than to say it was great. Seas were good as long as you give the back wash off the cliffs plenty of room - 1000M. What was surprising was how easily you can lose sight of your buddy. There we 2 of us and we stuck together until Warriwood where Jack went out to sea chasing whales and I staid 150M outside the surf as we headed down from Narrabeen to Longreef. I kept an eye out for Jack and he said he did the same, anyway the sail I thought was him turned out not to be and we lost each other. I delayed rounding Long Reef assuming he was behind me. It was impossible to see another AI more than 300M away in the conditions. The swell was around 2M wind NE 15-20kts. I considered sailing into the wind and have a look around but considered it useless. I phoned Jack - no answer. So 3 thoughts went through my mind.
1. He has had gear failure
2. He has fallen overboard
3. He has up ended it.
There we plenty of boats, planes and choppers about so I figured he'd be OK. He is experienced and well dressed in wet suit and PFD and the wind was sending him into Collaroy so good luck.

I questioned leaving him but considered it the only option. I was somewhat concerned about his well being on the run down to Sydney. On rounding North Head I was very relieved to see him sheltering inside the headland. I then thought "(censored)" he left me for dead (lol). We sailed together to Northbridge and decided some lessons were learnt. That's what these trips are about - learning what we and the boats are capable of and how to do it better next time.

We are both sailing nuts with offshore experience, we discussed the safety and communications protocols while driving up to Palm Beach. However we both lead rather than follow and that's how we were separated.

Next time we shall stay within 200M of each other and have whistle contact. It was a bit worrying losing your mate offshore. Next trip we'll do it better with a loud whistle, means get closer and both must respond.
Can't wait to do it again though my most enjoyable sail yet.

We know how you must have felt Dave. When we lost Chris one day at Broughton Island, I can't say that we paniced, but our imaginations were certainly working overtime. The whistle and 200m is a good idea. 4hrs in the saddle is a fair effort. How was the comfort ?

Stringy - Of only been there a couple of times but I think the northern end of Stockton is slightly protected with the headland at Burubi ( unless it's a southerly or similar ). An N/Easter would be perfect.

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Don't take life too seriously................it ain't permanent.

Radios, radios, Radios!

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http://KayakingBob.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2007, 2009 & 2010 Hobie AIs and a 2010 TI

Kayaking Bob has it right: radios, radios, radios!!!

You've got $3500-4000 in equipment, and you don't have one of the key pieces of safety equipment that costs $100-150? Just does not make sense.

Whistles are pretty worthless at more than 100 yds/meters, especially if you have any kind of wind.

Keith

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I sail: S FL, Key Largo, Everglades to Cape Romano, Ft Desoto, Cedar Key

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

Davew,
Thanks for that report. What a trip! As slaughter said we had a similar experience with our Broughton Island trip. After that we came to the same conclusion about radios. We also agreed to stay closer together, stick to a route and not get out of sight of each other.
PS -If you'd had a radio at Jerusalem Bay you would have discovered a lot earlier about our change of plan for lunch!

Glad to hear everyone was safe.

Yes -radios are considered a must in the islands. Yet even a good one is of limited value when the winds are 25+ and the waves are soaking you.

At least, that was my experience, while fishing with a friend last week, in 5-7' seas and elevated winds. Like davew, I could not see my partner (roughly 1/4 mile away) through the swell.

We both had top of the line VHF units and were always less than a mile of each other, but the radio communications were degraded and more than 50% of the transmissions were garbled due to conditions at the time.

At least we could hear each others voice and know they were still alive! We repeated each message several times and when we were close enough, we used handsignals.

My hearing is not bad and my VHF sounds GREAT on dry land, but with high gusting winds creating extra-loud background noise, and whitecapping swells hitting the hull, and the sails flapping, and waterlogged speakers/mics on both sides of the call, and volumes turned up near max, these radios are not nearly as effective. I'm a little concerned about how well they would work if I was actually in the water for any length of time.

I would not trade my floating VHF for any other piece of electronic safety gear.

Still, no system is foolproof.

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"You can avoid reality, but you cannot avoid the consequences of avoiding reality."
- Ayn Rand

We're a bit suspicious of them new-fangled wireless contraptions down our way.

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Slaughter

We spent about 6 hours in the saddle and had no problem with comfort. I have a self inflating add on seat on a 2010 AI. We've spent that long in the saddle several times and you get used to it - I did very little pedaling last Sat and that makes life easier, with no chafe issues that I find when pedaling for long periods, although I'm optimistic about "Lucas Papaw ointment" spread on problem areas prior may be the shot. Jack and I are both over 57 and agreed after Sat sail we could do longer trips, and we will. We are talking about doing Jervis Bay soon. I'll tell you when. I intend to do Broken Bay or Berowra next Mon - Tues depending on weather. I'll put in at either Moonee or Brooklyn.

Re radios I like to keep it simple - a big part of sailing for me the is freedom and relying on your boat, judgement and experience - but eh if you like a radio blasting in your ear that's up to you.

Love all, trust few, and always paddle your own canoe.

NOHUHU,

I'm surprised that you say you cannot hear your radios--maybe it IS the wind. I don't think I've been out in winds over about 20-25 mph, but we have always been able to hear one another on our VHF radios even when we were separated by a couple km. You use your volume/squelch control, right? Maybe it is the swell that is causing a problem. We seldom have swell of the size you encounter here in SFL.

Dave, I don't think of a VHF radio "blasting in your ear." Often, the only time you hear it is when your partners are trying to communicate. It is a safety device and keeps you and your partners informed about what is happening and where you are headed.

Keith

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I sail: S FL, Key Largo, Everglades to Cape Romano, Ft Desoto, Cedar Key

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

Dave, wouldn't you have enjoyed your last trip more knowing your mate was safe and not capsized somewhere a mile offshore?

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