when the waters are still in Macquarie Harbour - out from Strahan |
Tasmania - Down the West Coast – Into Hell’s Gate
Sunday 26th Jan 2014:
MrJ at rest and play |
From Hunter Island we
(Alana Rose following Rhapsody) motor-sailed all through that day and on into
the night. In the early part of the following morning we arrived at Hell’s
Gate, the narrow entrance to Macquarie Harbour. During the wee hours of the
morning, about 0200hs (on my watch – how surprising), I could see the nav
lights of Rhapsody in front and the blinking of the beacon on Cape Sorell which
told me that we were not too far away. With very little wind I was using one
motor and no sails, making around 5knots. Steve decided to slow down, Rhapsody came
to a quick halt in front and I was looking at running into him so I made a
quick turn a few degrees to the port, while keeping a close look-out in the
dark. My next step was to wake MrJ, get him on deck to make the decision as far
as what plan of action to take from there. After all he is the Skipper! MrJ
took AR round in a big circle landing her further away and more out to sea.
There we put out a small handkerchief of genoa and cut the motor to bring out
speed back to 3knots. This then slowed AR down. MrJ stayed at the helm to get
us through Hell’s Gate at first light in calm conditions.
0400hs - heading for Hell's Gate - lighthouse on the left, Rhapsody's masthead light on the right |
Once through the
Gate the waterway opened up to a massive span of water, Macquarie Harbour where
with no wind the morning colours reflected across the sky and in the glassy water.
Both boats headed for the anchorage off Strahan in Risby Cove
(S42’09.291/E145’19.872). By this time the NE wind had freshened but we were
not too concerned as we thought we were in a safe anchorage (or were we?).
After a feed and a shower MrJ and I caught up on some sleep. It was lunch time
before we got ashore.
we were blessed with calm waters inside Macquarie Harbour |
Macquarie Harbour is one of the notable Tasmanian harbours with the pretty tourist village
of Strahan at its N extremity and some nice cruising grounds in its S. The S half
of the harbour is in the SW Wilderness World heritage Area and part of this
area includes the Gordon River.
through Hell's gate |
Hell’s Gate
is the entrance to Macquarie Harbour with a convict built West Breakwall with
Pilot Bay on the outside. In Pilot Bay is where the big old ships used to be
anchored down in foul weather while waiting to be towed into the harbour. Yes,
towed! The wooden long boats would tow every ship through the entrance by means
of rowing. Very fit strong oarsmen in those days! Or kedge the ships by mean of
putting the anchor in the rowboats taking the anchor ahead of the ship, drop
the anchor over the side then the prisoners aboard the ship to man the capstan
to pull the ship forward by winching in the anchor rode. No motors or any
electrics back in the 1800’s!
You pass through a
narrow passage between Macquarie Head to STB and the lighthouse on Entrance
Island to Port. Once through there is another lighthouse on Bonnet Island and a
rock training wall to STB. Then you are in the 4n/m Kelly Channel from which
you can go north to Strahan or south down into the harbour.
Strahan is a
harbour-side village with quaint old buildings that have been revamped to
become pretty tourist town with some old building date back to the mining and timber
boom time in the late 19th century. Strahan is nestled on the northern
shores of Macquarie Harbour on the edge of the Tasmanian Wilderness World
Heritage Area. From Strahan boat cruises and plane flights provide a remarkable
journey into the pristine temperate rainforests of the Gordon River. MrJ and I
did the trip in our own boat AR.
the day was hot enough for the ducks to find a bit of shade |
MrJ and I spent only
one night anchor off Strahan. The day that we had arrived, after our sleep, we
went ashore to look around and have some lunch. The tourist information centre
still runs the weekend play The Ship that Never Was. MrJ and I saw this play
back in 1998 when we were last in Tasmania.
the hill we had to walk up to get the fuel |
Tuesday 28th Jan 2014:
On our second morning
at Strahan we had decided to go ashore in the early morning to get some fuel in
our jerries before heading out at lunchtime. But AR had other things in mind –
she decided to take off without us before we had walked down the hill from the
service station. Both MrJ and I nearly had a heart attack upon reaching the
jetty when we saw that AR was across the harbour heading for the shallows.
Terror filled my thoughts!
scampering back to the boat |
By the time we had
climbed into the dinghy loaded our jerries and made our way across the harbour
AR’s STB keel was sitting in the soft mud bank on the other side. With a bit of
a play with the engines and anchor chain we were able to wiggle her off and be
on our way. We lifted the dinghy once AR was in the middle of the bay and then
sailed down Macquarie Harbour with a fresh nor-easter filling the genoa. All
the way down the harbour we had sight of the very conspicuous Mt Sorell to our
left and passed several trout fish farms on the right. Our first anchorage was
in Kelly Basin, a pretty spot surrounded by high hill, thick forests and Mt
Sorel. The fresh winds did not settle till well into the evening.
a rough day on Macquarie Harbour - Mt Sorell dominates the scenery |
sunset in Kelly Basin |
Kelly Basin
was once the site of Pillinger, an old mining boom-town of the late 19th
century. Unlike Strahan it only survived for a decade or so until the
London-based owner of the mining company died and the company was taken over by
the Mt Lyell Company based in Queenstown and Strahan. In Kelly basin there is a
ruined jetty on the NW shore with what is left of the old shunting yards and an
old railway line.
all that is left of the old jetty at Pillinger. Pillinger is an abandoned port and townsite in Kelly Basin, on the south eastern side of Macquarie Harbour on the West Coast of Tasmania. |
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