After 10 days of walking in St Clare National Park (6 days in the snow) we put away our boots and headed for the east coast to continue with the second part of our planned adventure – sea kayaking.

We met up with Mike, a long-time friend of Dave’s, to be guided by his local knowledge on the best places to go. He had limited time to accompany us, so we decided to start close to Hobart and then move on to Freycinet Peninsula.

Although we had managed to fit in a few short paddles in Wollongong before we left, these trips would effectively be the first sea trials for the Komodo modular sea kayaks in open water. We were keen to see how they performed fully loaded and under expedition conditions.

Day trip to Port Athur

Friday 16th January, 2004

After re-grouping at Sorrel, we drove to Safety Cove, on the western side of Port Arthur.

Around noon, we launched the kayaks (3 double Komodos and 1 Gecko). Mike & Alison, Dennis & Mark, Bruce & Judy with Dave in the Gecko, paddled for about 40 minutes around Briggs Point and Standup Point to Crescent Bay where we beached. However Bruce and Judy managed to capsize right on the shore break.

We had lunch there and could still see the fire burning across the water on Arthur’s Peak. We had intended to paddle out from Fortescue Bay but the whole area was closed due to the fire.

It was much windier around Standup Point with a SE blowing and a small SE swell.

After lunch we paddled to Port Arthur where it was more protected – going around Point Puer, inside the Isle of the Dead and across into Mason Cove and the Port Arthur Historic Site to take some photos.

We then paddled over to Tramway Point in Carnarvon Bay where we arrived about 4pm.

Mike walked around to Safety Cove to get his car, drove back to the rest of us – we did a car shuffle and loaded all the sea kayaks. We then drove to the Port Arthur Caravan Park which had a nice grassy sites and a camp kitchen.

It was a most enjoyable day – an easy paddle and a great way to see the ruins of Port Arthur from a different perspective.

Day Trip in Fortescue Bay

Saturday 17th January, 2004

We had light rain overnight.

As Fortescue Bay was now open, we decided to paddle out from there, even though some of the fires were still smouldering.

We launched the kayaks on the beach near the camping area at 11:15am, with the wind blowing offshore from the NW.

Bruce & Judy, Dennis & Mark paddled together while Dave paddled with Chris, whom we had met on the beach. This meant that we did not have to convert the double Komodo back to a single version and it gave Chris the opportunity to have his first taste of an open ocean trip in a double sea kayak (as he had only previously paddled in protected waters).

We paddled out to Cape Hauy, taking lots of photos of the amazing Candlestick and Lanterns on the outer point. When we arrived at the Candlestick, Chris wanted to paddle through the gap (about 6 metres wide) but Dave suggested they wait to assess the situation. Soon a wall of foaming water, 2 metres tall, surged through the gap and we decided not to proceed, as it was far too dangerous. We paddled around the point a little way to see the Totem, but there was a fairly big, rough southerly swell so we didn’t venture very far. Dave managed to get a couple of photos before we headed back.

Bruce spoke to some abalone divers on the way, who said there wasn’t a lot of abalone left any more. Visibility was about 5 metres. Very spectacular cliffs with expectations of seeing some seals, but we didn’t manage see even one.

We arrived back at Fortescue Bay at about 2:15pm. We packed up and drove north through the steady rain, stopping for tea on the way, before finally arriving at Bicheno. We stayed in The Silver Sands Hotel, overlooking the Bay.

The forecast for the next day sounded bad, so we thought we would be spending tomorrow resting.

3 Day Trip at Freycinet Peninsula

Sunday 18th January, 2004

As the weather looked OK, we decided to drive to Coles Bay and make a start on the Freycinet trip.

It took a while to get all the equipment organised for the three/four day trip, but the Komodos swallowed up the week’s supply of water and gear very easily, even taking a couple of chairs as well – much to the amazement of the onlookers from the pub.

Dave was in the single "Orange Flash", Bruce and Judy in the "Yellow Submarine", and Dennis and Mark had the "Red Devil".

We left the boat ramp on the southeast side of Coles Bay at noon and headed straight into a strong southwest wind, which was blowing across Oyster Bay.

We stopped for lunch between Parsons Cove and the old quarry at about 1pm. We left half hour later with the wind decreasing in strength, although there were still some strong gusts.

We paddled around the Hazards and Fleurieu Point (kept a wide berth of the reefs and fish nets).

Mark and Dennis stopped to stretch their legs on Refuge Island. From there we paddled across to Cooks Beach and along to the southern end where we came ashore at about 4:15pm (13kms for the day).

We set up camp on top of the dune under some casuarinas. Judy went for a swim and Bruce went for a snorkel. Bruce saw two friendly bat rays, though one tried to scare him away. The water was clear and 17C. Just to the north of our campsite there were quite a few others also camping. There was a pit toilet, an old hut with 4 bunks and tables and benches and plenty of wooden floor space to sleep on. There were also three rainwater tanks, but with very little water in them because of the drought. On the point to the south of us there was a well-hidden permanent campsite for a guided kayaking group. Here there was a big dining shelter and five tents with two beds, mattresses and pillows, all on wooden platforms. There were also two FLUSHING toilets. Freycinet Adventures have a similar camp at another location.

That night there was a beautiful sunset with no wind.

Monday 19th January, 2004

The wind changed around to the northwest during the night and was already blowing lightly when we got up.

We packed up and left about 8am and paddled south around Weatherhead Point and into the northern end of Bryan’s Beach.

We stopped to check out the campsite Mike had told us about - it was OK but a bigger one existed further down the beach.

Along the way we passed a fairy penguin swimming.

The wind was very strong by now as we paddled on to Passage Beach. We found a nice sheltered campsite at the northern end of the beach, behind the dunes under the casuarinas. We then decided to paddle east through Schouten Passage and south down the eastern side of Schouten Island, but once we got to Passage Rock, we changed our minds. The wind and the waves were coming hard against us, so we had a quick look at the rock (that looked like a whale surfacing in the Passage), and decided to head directly across to Schouten Island.

There was a good campsite on the eastern end of Crocketts Bay but, as it was too exposed in a northerly wind, we left to return to Passage Beach.

It was a tough paddle back across the Passage, with waves occasionally breaking over the deck, as the wind had picked up and the swell had increased. We were glad once we rounded the point and headed back to the campsite.

After setting up camp, we had lunch and then walked back south around the rocks to the very end of Freycinet Peninsula. We saw some abalone in the water as we were walking around, which we took as a good sign. Judy, Bruce and Mark went snorkelling and caught three large abalone in the 17C water. The kelp was very thick, long and strong, making it difficult to see much on the sea bottom. Bruce saw a large lobster, but it got away when he tried to grab it. We took the abalone back to the campsite and cut them into thin slices and cooked them on the Trangia. They were very tender and tasty. Luckily we had some wine, cheese, biscuits and port to round off a perfect day.

Tuesday 20th January, 2004

There was still a strong northerly wind blowing when we got up at 7:30am. Bruce and Judy went for a swim.

By the time we had breakfast, the wind had eased a little. Dennis contacted the weather bureau and found that a southerly change was forecast, so we decided to head back to the cars before it arrived.

We left about 10am and started to paddle back into what soon became a strong northerly wind.

Several yachts and a motor cruiser were sheltered in Bryan’s corner near the shore. We paddled around Weatherhead Point where we hit the full force of the strong northerly wind and some good-sized waves (estimate wind speed 20-30 knots). We battled our way for 9km (averaging 6kmp on the GPS) to the northern end of Cooks Beach, where we landed at noon for a rest and some lunch. There was a good camping site here.

After lunch, we headed north into a strong North East chop to the northern end of Hazards Beach, where it was fairly sheltered. We arrived there about 2pm after another 6km paddle.

Looking out from the shore, there appeared to be no waves, but we had experienced a few waves over the bow, so it was deceptive.

We met walkers on the beach who thought it was calm out in the bay.

There was quite a lot of interest by walkers in our Komodo Sea Kayaks. When she was told that they came apart in sections, one woman remarked that it was "a great idea! It must have been designed by a woman".

We headed north once again, this time in calmer waters until we rounded Fleurieu Point, where we met the full force of the northeast wind once again. Further on, where we thought we would get some protection from the coast, the wind turned more easterly, across the lowlands just south of the Hazards.

It was a hard slog across Coles Bay to the Boat Ramp, where we were finally able to lay down our paddles around 4:30pm.

We were all very weary, but had packed up by 5:30pm. By this time the wind had died down, but there was still no sign of the predicted southerly change.

We drove to Sleepy Bay where Bruce, Judy and Mark had a snorkel in the cold water – there was lots of thick kelp and one stingray, but very few fish. The water had about 10m -15m visibility.

Here it would be hard work to take the kayaks down to the water, or retrieve them from the ocean.

Meanwhile, Dave and Dennis drove to Cape Tourville and to take some photos. They saw some very rough seas. We then drove to Bicheno, and after finding the Silver Sands Hotel booked out, set up camp at the Bicheno Caravan Park.

Cosy Corner, Bay of Fires Conservation Area

Wednesday 21st January, 2004

We got up and drove to St Marys, then to St Helens Point, alongside Georges Bay, which has nice clean water.

We walked around the boat ramp near a bar that could be interesting to navigate.

We drove back to St Helens to do some shopping, had lunch and then drove out along the north side of Georges Bay to Binalong Bay. We then headed north into the Bay of Fires Conservation area.

After a short drive on a dirt road, we stopped at Cosy Corner and set up camp under the casuarinas just back from the beach.

This area was very similar to Freycinet, with pink rocks, white sand and clear blue water. Even though we didn’t do any sea kayaking here, it would be an ideal place to explore.

After a siesta, Bruce, Judy and Mark had a surf, while Dennis and Dave went for a walk along the rocks.

The campsite had a pit toilet, but no other facilities. There was no water available, as we had expected.

Stumpy’s Bay, Mt William National Park

Thursday 22nd January, 2004

Bruce and Judy had a swim before breakfast, but there were no waves because of the high tide and offshore wind.

We packed up and left about 9:15am to drive to St Helens to do some more shopping and get more water.

We then drove to Mt William National Park via Pyengana, Weldborough and Gladstone. It was a good dirt road from there to Stumpy’s Bay.

We met Mike and family at Campsite No 2. Here again was another great campsite, just back from the beach under the casuarinas, with a lovely view of the rocks and ocean. There were picnic tables and two pit toilets (with toilet paper supplied!). We set up camp and went for a snorkel around the rocks off the nearby point, just south of where we were camped.

The wind that was blowing strongly from the northwest (offshore) made it unpleasant on the beach, but it killed the swell. The non-existent swell made it a great place to snorkel, and so Mike (with his wetsuit), Bruce, Judy and Mark all went looking for abalone and lobsters. There was a large number of abalone, probably the most Bruce had seen for thirty years, and more than Judy or Mark had ever seen! There were also quite a few anemones, soft corals, and very dense seaweed, making it hard to find lobsters. However Mike found one in about 5metres of water and called Bruce over so that he could take a photo, as he thought it would escape when he tried to grab it - but he couldn’t find it again. Without wetsuits we all started to get cold so we got out. Fifteen minutes later, Mike came out of the water with a 3kg lobster- the one that he had misplaced – it was twice the legal length.

We took six large abalone and sliced them into 6mm sections, pounded them with a metal mallet and fried them in garlic and olive oil - very, very tasty and tender.

While the stew cooked, Bruce and Judy went for another snorkel to get some more abalone for the next night’s dinner – they found nine large ones in less than five minutes. After we had our stew for tea, we helped Mike eat his lobster. To cook it, Marilyn had to pull off all the legs so they and the body would fit in the pot to boil. She chopped the tail in two so she could fry it in the frying pan. YUMMMMYYYY!

This is another great place to explore on water as well as on land, and the superb seafood menu is an added bonus.

Friday 23rd & Saturday 24th January, 2004

The wind had dropped when we got up and the sea was quite calm. Bruce went for a snorkel and Judy went for a long swim along the beach further south.

We left around 10am, as Mike and Marilyn were about to go for a paddle.

We headed back to Devonport but on the way sampled some more of the delights that Tasmania has to offer – Tasmanian scallops (warehouse in Bridport), raspberry ice cream (Christmas Hills Raspberry Farm) and free chocolate and fudge tastings (Anvers Chocolate Factory at Latrobe).

That night we feasted on abalone, Tasmanian scallops and cherries. On Saturday we boarded the ferry and had a smooth crossing back to Melbourne, arriving just before 6:30pm.

It is worth noting that there is a restriction of 5 metres length on vehicles that travel on the Spirit of Tasmania and that, during December and January you may be charged an extra $500 if you exceed this length.

As many single sea kayaks are over 5 metres, we were fortunate to be able to transport the double Komodo sea kayaks in two halves, without the risk of attracting any excess charges.