Groundswell August 2010

august

I

2010

A r e g u l a r n e w S l e t t e r f r o m t h e C r u i s i n g Y ac h t C l u b o f S o u t h A u s t r a l i a

inside > racing presentation night > narrow boating in UK canals > in search of the sun > jemmaroo’s crusade > louisiades Archipelago > boat yards in china > effluent disposal

John Gerard President Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia

From the President

Board of Management President Treasurer

John Gerard Henry Petersen Wayne Coonan Andrew Corletto David Murray Andrew Saies Tom Tymons

Flag Officers Commodore Vice Commodore Rear Commodore

Geoff Catt Chris Morphett Rob Sellick

Administration Executive Officer Administration Manager Bookkeeper Marketing/Comms Leasing Coordinator Receptionist Marine Academy Coord.

Racing Manager Food & Bev. Manager Head Chef Functions Manager Slip Master Gardener Pt Vincent Marina

Craig Evans Jenny Krogdahl Jo-anne Parsloe Rob Williams/Laura Cowley Laura Cowley Danielle Stringer TBA Jess Hargreaves Mario Cataldi Andreas Bauer Michelle Matte Tim Went Robert Gray Rob Marner

Association Chairpersons Cruising John Sibly Fishing Glenn Spear Racing Traci Ayris Social Activities Jacq Heffernan Life Members Arthur F Carolan Richard H Fidock AO Graeme L Footer James A Henry (Dec’d.)

Malcolm A Kinnaird AC Editors of Groundswell Gay Footer, Anja Richards, Rob Perrin, Craig Evans.

Contributions to reception@cycsa.com.au Advertising in Groundswell Jenny Krogdahl: telephone 08 8248 4222 Groundswell is the official journal of the Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia Inc. Lady Gowrie Drive, North Haven PO Box 1020 North Haven SA 5018 Telephone: 08 8248 4222 Facsimile: 08 8248 5888 Email: reception@cycsa.com.au Web: www.cycsa.com.au Phone Port Vincent: 0414 611 110 Registered by Australia Post Publication No PP565001/00184 ISSN 1039-4230 Graphic design by Paynter Visuals & Associates Printed by Reflex Printing

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he winter season is now upon us, which generally restricts our boating activities, however it is a good time to catch up on maintenance. The Club’s slip facilities at this time are under utilised, therefore offering an excellent opportunity at reduced rates. Please make the most of it!

Recently two surveys were circulated to members, one being for catering purposes and the other relating to storage facilities. Both have had good responses. The former will give the Marketing and Catering staff a guide as to the requirements for the coming season and ensure improvements are made where needed. The latter survey is very critical for our planning of your future storage requirements, especially regarding sailing equipment. As you are aware, the existing freight containers are to be removed from the Club grounds by February 2011 owing to a Council ruling. Also important is the exact location of the new facilities as it will impact on future master site plans for any Clubhouse renovation. Please ensure your expression of interest for storage is submitted immediately as we will shortly be finalising designs with our architect.

We have recently finalised the contract for the appointment of an author to be engaged to write the history of the Club over the past 40 years. The publication, consisting of a narrative story and photographs will be released on or before 1 May 2013, which is the Club’s 40th Anniversary. If any member has some good, relevant information, please forward it in writing to the office.

Accolades must be bestowed upon our hospitality staff owing to their recent achievement in the National Bridal Hospitality Awards. To be voted ‘Best Club Venue in Australia’ is a great achievement. Congratulations to Mario, Michelle and all concerned.

By now you would have received your annual membership account and probably noticed the change in terminology for the description ‘Maintenance Fees’. The new phrase ‘Corporate Fees’ has been introduced as it was considered more representative of the purpose for which the fees apply as they are used to administer the total corporate body, not just maintenance.

On 26 July I met with the newly formed Port Vincent Marina Committee and discussed their concerns and aspirations. We certainly appreciated each other’s common goals of improving the current perception of the marine development. Many projects were discussed with the main ones being; the bird problem, barbeque construction (which has now received Council Application Approval), depth of the marina entrance and general marina maintenance. I am pleased this committee has taken the initiative to represent and act in the best interest of berth owners at Port Vincent. Ongoing consultation will occur.

On behalf of the Club, I wish to thank Brett Yardley for his great contribution as co-ordinator of the CYCSA Marine Academy. Brett resigned from his position on 30 June, however he will continue in a training/teaching role. Under Brett’s supervision the initial launch of the Academy was successful and continues to provide a great contribution to the Club in many ways.

Zoya Gretchkosiy, Finance Manager resigned in June and I thank her for the manner in which she reorganised the Clubs accounting system, with guidance from Club Treasurer, Henry Petersen.

The new glass gates at the entrance of the gangway are now operating in a ‘free mode’ during their introductory period. However, at the start of the new season, the timing mechanism will be activated resulting in your membership card having to be used after hours.

More details regarding its operation are listed elsewhere in this publication.

An important event is approaching on the Club’s calendar, which is the Club’s AGM on Wednesday 18 August. The Board of Management encourages you to attend this important function.

As there are a number of important projects being currently undertaken, the Board of Management plans to hold an information session following the Club’s AGM, to update members. The topics for presentation are Marina West Review, Clubhouse Master Plan Upgrade, Port Vincent BBQ Development, Club History, Storage Facilities Area, Junior Sailing and Marina East Replacement. Please make the most of this opportunity so as to be informed on these projects.

I look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 18 August.

John Gerard, President Cover Photo: RSAYS Commodore Caillin Howard with CYCSA Commodore Geoff Catt at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, aimed at estabishing a joint youth training scheme. (See Commodore’s Report) Photo: Gerry Colella.

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Craig Evans Executive Officer

At the Helm

CLUB NEWS

VALE Ivan Henry Godfrey 29/09/1943 – 02/05/2010

Long standing member, Ivan Godfrey, passed away recently and our sympathies are extended to his wife, Kay, and his family. Bryan Mellors, a friend and fishing mate, has written some words about him for the Club.

Long time Senior Member Ivan Henry Godfrey passed away suddenly at home on 2 May 2010. Ivan joined the CYCSA in August 1981 and was always involved one way or another in Club life.

He was apprenticed to Hugh Quin of Port Adelaide as a sail maker in 1960 and subsequently finished five years later in 1965. It was quite soon afterwards that he branched out on his own catering, mainly to the RSAYS sailing community and local dinghy clubs, which he practiced as a sole operator, and subsequently at the CYCSA when it came on stream in the 1980’s. He continued along these lines until his retirement from sail making in 2004.

He was an active sailor during his working life, competing in small craft up to and including crewing aboard Jim Polson’s Gip for the 1963 Sydney to Hobart Race. Interspersed with these activities were about a dozen Port Lincoln races in various vessels. His offshore expertise was also sought when he was involved in several yacht deliveries interstate. It was when he started winding down his sailing activities that we built Indra together, a 7.8m plywood planing hull which occupied most of his water activities.

He owned and used Indra for 19 years, reluctantly selling her 12 months before his untimely death.

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he 2009 -2010 financial year is now well behind us and for many it was economically a very tough year. I am glad to report that that the Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia had a reasonably successful year and membership numbers have remained similar to those of the past few seasons. With many recent improvements around the Club including a number of new facilities, various accreditations under our new business management system, improvements in membership services and the formation of a marketing department the Club is in a strong position ‘moving forward’.

The Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia, like most Clubs, relies on the generosity of sponsors. Sponsors are involved in our Club for a variety of different reasons and regardless of whether it is a company that is allied to the boating industry, one that considers our demographic attractive or one of the many members that just want to support the Club they love, I would ask that you consider our sponsors when next making a purchase and, where possible, return the support.

Our new marketing and communications department has been working on a CYCSA Member’s Handbook and a brand new CYCSA Website. Both of these will be up and running prior to Opening Day and are shaping up well. New sponsorship packages and programs are also being created and if you are involved in a company, or know somebody who would like to be involved in sponsoring the Club, our marketing staff would love to hear from you.

The Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia was recently named as one of the first marinas in Australia to be awarded the new Marina Industries Association of Australia Level IV Clean Marina accreditation. The other two marinas, also South Australian, include The Marina, Hindmarsh Island and Cape Jaffa Marina. Certification was presented to all three marinas by Minister Conlon at an official presentation held at the CYCSA on 28 July.

Marina access to the CYCSA’s original marina, Marina East, is about to change. Those of you that have been down to the Club over the cooler winter months would have seen the construction of new glass security doors that are located at the head of the gangway leading down to the marina berths. These doors have been operating in ‘auto mode’ for the past few months however, in September, these gates will be switched so that your Club gate access card will be required to access the marina. Your card will not be required to exit the marina.

Additional information will be available from the Club’s website and reception.

As part of the Club’s ongoing quality, environmental and safety systems improvement plan, we will soon be implementing a contractor’s induction process. These inductions will be required to be completed by all contractors who enter the Club’s property, both at North Haven and Port Vincent. Regardless of whether the contractor is working for the Club or a member, they will need to arrange an induction with either Tim Went at North Haven or Rob Marner in Port Vincent. The Club will post a list of contractors who have been inducted and members will be responsible to make sure that any contractors they use on their vessel have been inducted.

In addition to contractor inductions, members who wish to use the Club’s tractor or crane will also require some basic training and approval. The crane has been fitted with a special card reader that will only allow approved personnel to operate it.

The Club’s hospitality area has once again achieved a healthy surplus for the last financial year and the success of the area was recognised in its naming by the Australian Bridal Industry as the ‘Best Club Reception Venue in Australia’. We have received similar status for the past three years as the best Club venue in South Australia, however this is the first time that the Club has taken out a National Award. Congratulations to Michelle, Mario, Andreas and all staff involved in this great achievement.

The Club’s restaurant and function facility is a great destination for your next social or corporate gathering and I would encourage you to make the most of your Club and introduce it to your friends and colleagues.

He was an avid Club supporter, a keen Fishing Association member, and could be seen in the bar most Saturday mornings with a group of old fishing mates in animated discussions of whatever old fishermen discuss. He will be missed.

In late July I reached a personal milestone with my fifth year in the role as the Executive Officer of the Club. This follows my three year term as a Board Member of the Club. It has certainly been an interesting ride with many memorable events along the way. I am proud to say that quite a few things have been achieved over this period with many more planned over the next several years. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has assisted me over this period and for your continuing support.

Bryan Mellors

Safe boating.

Craig Evans, Executive Officer

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This is another in a series of profiles featuring Club members who, through their long term commitment and outstanding support, have contributed significantly to the life of the Club.

Paul JAMES Gardiner

P

aul, born and bred on the Peninsula at Semaphore, has sailed at the Club for 23 years and been a Senior Member for 21 years.

He hasn’t strayed far, marrying Bev, from Largs Bay, and setting up their first home in that suburb. They have two children, James and Jessica, and still live locally at Australia II Avenue, North Haven, just a hop, step and a jump from the Club.

Paul spent most of his youth in the water or on one of the jetties fishing, so one could say that the sea is definitely in his blood.

Diving was a sport both he and Bev enjoyed; cave diving at Mount Gambier, wreck diving in the Solomons, diving for cray and abalone at Wilsons Promontory and Pondalowie and for scallops locally. He has a treasured photo of Bev straddling a torpedo in the Solomons and of walking on the wing of a B17 Flying Fortress at 120 feet down.

The Edge, Minnon, Rapid and Flashback are but a few of the boats he has crewed on. He is starting to get a name as a bit of a boat hussy. He sailed the last Lincoln Race on Hold On and raced Lincoln Week on board Two True, and for weekly Club racing is currently sailing on Bullistic. Enjoyable times have been held on various boats over the years and he has crewed in around a dozen Lincoln races, on one occasion winning a special prize for sailing two-handed on a friend’s boat in the Cruising Division of the Lincoln Race. He still has hopes of doing a Sydney to Hobart and feels that he has many good years left in him.

While talking to Paul about his memories he showed me some magazines which featured pictures of what he currently does as his occupation. He is a builder and as such generally builds ‘one-offs’ – and very special they are. One of his recent projects won the John Chappell Award for Residential Architecture and is written up in SA Life.

During a job at the Submarine Base, Paul met Derek Morrison, and through him was introduced to sailing and the Club. He bought a Noelex 25, called it Mondial and sailed it in Club, State, National, Interdominion and Match Racing Championships. He was Club Champion in Noelex and Trailerables from 1992 to 1998 and won the Club’s inaugural two-handed race to Wirrina.

The Club has benefited greatly from Paul with his boundless energy – he was on the Racing Executive for about six years and is currently on the Protest Committee. At any regatta he is not actually sailing in, and particularly at regattas the Club hosts, Paul can be found on the water in one of the Official Boats, generally at the pin end in the Club’s RIB. He has even been known to accept muffins and coffee from passing, non-racing yachts, as he bobbed around waiting for the action to go past.

Paul’s children followed his interest in sailing, competing in International Cadets out of Largs, and when the Club owned some, out of the Club. Paul was actively involved and co-ordinated the Club’s Cadets.

He is boatless now but after he sold Mondial he looked around for a sports boat as well as crewing on several of the keel boats out of the Club, and became hooked. Doctor Feelgood, As Good As It Gets, On

Paul has met and made many friends while at the Club, two such close friends and crew were Dave Hemmingway and Len Claridge.

Once while racing with Len, Len fell down the companionway and broke three ribs. Paul wanted to pull out of the race but Len insisted they keep sailing and they finished up with the gun. Another memory was with Dave on a delivery from Melbourne to Adelaide on Scandia doing 20+ knots dodging whales and cray pots. Sadly, both loyal crew have passed away.

Paul enjoys a hard day on the race course...

In the future, given that Bev doesn’t enjoy sailing, he is thinking maybe a fishing boat is a possibility, depending on what the rest of the family think.

Paul believes that the Cruising Yacht Club is the best Club in at least Australia. He enjoys the easy camaraderie and likes introducing new members to the Club and bringing friends down to enjoy a day by the sea. He does, however, think the Club could be more family oriented and perhaps incorporate facilities for general use, for example, youth sailing, a small gym facility and/or a games room.

When he leaves this earth, Paul wants some of his ashes shot out of the start gun at a regatta – that would really be going out with a big bang!

Gay Footer

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Geoff Catt Commodore

F

Commodore’s Report

riendly competition is healthy and it is in this spirit that the CYCSA and our sister Club, the Royal South Australian Yacht Squadron, have co-existed for the last 37 years. This spirit is particularly important if we are to ensure that the sport of sailing continues to grow and develop in South Australia. It is also the foundation upon which the success and vibrancy of each Club rests – future membership comes from a steady flow of new sailors, both young and old, who are attracted to the sport. Some may come through an interest in racing, others with a desire to cruise. Some are introduced by existing members and some are brand new enquiries. However, they all need a pathway to begin – a pathway to learn, to be mentored, sponsored and encouraged. A pathway to progress from dingies to keelboats and on to blue water classics such as the Adelaide to Port Lincoln and Sydney to Hobart Races.

J24’s and Etchells). CYCSA members of this committee are Rear Commodore Rob Sellick, renowned competitive sailor Chris Tillett and past Marine Academy coordinator Brett Yardley.The committee is to report to the Board by the end of September.

In recent years, the CYCSA has approached this challenge by continual liaison with local schools and off the beach sailing clubs, by investing in and assisting our J24 fleet and by establishing, a few years ago, the Marine Academy. Meanwhile, the RSAYS has put together a very successful youth training program, where young sailors have progressed steadily from Pacer dinghies to keel boats.

In fact, within minutes of being elected recently, most chairpersons were sitting down with me to help plan Opening Day for 2010! We are all determined to make this an enjoyable and memorable day for everyone, so can I please ask you to put 23 October in your diaries now and start your own preparations? Fine weather has been booked!

Through working together, co-ordinating the use of resources and acquiring a fleet of competitive boats, both Clubs see an exciting chance to offer pathways to the sport and create the opportunity for the Clubs to jointly attract major national and international sailing events to South Australia.

Meanwhile, as Summer approaches, on behalf of all members may I congratulate and thank the new committees of the Associations for volunteering their time, expertise and enthusiasm for another year – we do appreciate your committment.

On a sadder note, the CYCSA lost a firm friend recently with the passing of Mr Trevor Ellis. Although he has a long history of assisting the Club in various projects, Trevor and his firm most recently acted as the Club’s technical representative during the design and construction of Marina West - his efforts were above and beyond the call of duty.

Our sympathies are extended to Geraldine and family.

As mentioned above, friendly competition is healthy and so a series of discussions with Commodore Caillin Howard from the Squadron about how the two Clubs could harness rivalry and work together has led to the signing of a ten year Memorandum of Understanding with the RSAYS. Both clubs have agreed to establish a joint Sailing Development Committee to blueprint a viable pathway for the progression of young sailors and adults from dinghy to intermediate keel boats and to offshore sailing. The committee will evaluate and select the most appropriate common intermediate keel boat for training and racing.

Each Club then intends to purchase their own racing fleet and adopt training and joint racing programs to support these new boats in concert with the existing keel boat fleets (specifically including the

Finally, as another financial year closes, on your behalf I would like to thank the Board for their efforts during the past twelve months – it has been a privilege to attend these meetings as a representative of all members and it is reassuring to observe the diligence with which their duties are carried out.

See you at the Commodore’s Dinner and Opening Day! Geoff Catt, Commodore

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NEW BOATS This is another in the series of articles aimed at providing you with a little insight into a few of the ‘new’ boats to the Club over recent months. While not all are newly built, most are relatively new to the Club and others have moved to new owners within the Club. We warmly welcome all these ‘new’ boats and owners.

34’

35’

36’

Milonga

ARIKI Ariki, a Cavalier 28 class yacht, was designed by Laurie Davidson, designer of the New Zealand America’s Cup winner.

It was designed originally as the D28 in the late 70’s, with over 100 produced in Australia. There is still a very strong fleet that race on Sydney Harbour.

Ariki, the New Zealand name for a chief, was campaigned hard and very successfully in its early years by Norm Brown and when David Williams came across her she was sitting in the Pittwater not being used much.

For a short period Jenni and David managed to spend some lovely weekends exploring the Pittwater.

David had done a lot of racing over the years from 420s to Endeavour 24s and JOG in Melbourne, but children and work commitments took their toll. Jenni was introduced to sailing filling in as crew for David in the National JOG championships in 1979 and they are about to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary.

Work brought the family and Ariki to Adelaide (David’s birthplace), but unfortunately there has been little time for sailing due to work and now Jenni has done her back again. Ahead lies some sporadic cruising and ultimately a 35 footer for some serious cruising.

David and Jenni felt they were well looked after by the Club on joining, particularly

by Laura in sorting out berths, such that it became an easy transition. They only wish they were living closer to North Haven and were able to put more back in.

Ivan and Anna Lebedev joined the CYCSA about six months ago. This is their first boat and their family’s first experience in sailing and general boating. They were planning to buy a boat for a long time but could not decide on a particular type. Ivan’s main interest was fishing, whereas Anna, who grew up in Riga and spent her childhood sailing the Baltic Sea, was in favour of a yacht. The suggestion to consider a MacGregor 26 as a perfect compromise was given by Sandy Quin from Quin Marine when Ivan and Anna met her with regards to a motorboat they were checking out.

So far their experience with the boat has been great. Surprisingly, Ivan is finding sailing more and more enjoyable and is almost ready to give up his fishing aspirations. The couple’s four-year-old boy Sasha is absolutely fascinated by the boat and can’t wait for the weekend to get on the water. He has already been on an overnight fishing trip with his dad and older brother, having resisted his mum’s attempts to bribe him with ice cream to stay home.

Since buying the boat in November 2009, Ivan and Anna have tried to take the boat out every weekend and have done two large trips, one sailing around Coffin Bay over the summer holidays and a recent one to Wirrina Cove on the Queen’s Birthday Weekend. Ivan can’t wait for the next season to sail across the Gulf, visit Kangaroo Island and maybe even attempt the Port Lincoln regatta. It must be said that Anna, who once survived a force 11 storm in the Baltic on board a 35-foot wooden ketch, thinks it may not be such a good idea.

The boat is kept on hard stand 56. The name, Milonga, is yet to be painted on the hull and has several meanings. It is a name for a tango party similar to flamenco ‘fiesta’, and a very fast dance, and at the same time a slow lyrical piece of instrumental music, usually for guitar and flute or violin. Anna and Ivan have long had a certain affection for this sort of music and even took tango lessons last year so they thought that Milonga would make a good boat name.

Unfortunately, due to pressing work commitments, Ivan and Anna have not yet become involved in the Club’s social activities, but this is something they would very much like to do in the future.

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37’

devil dog Stepbrothers, Dr Guy Freeman and George Wright, are the owners of Devil Dog, a 6.4m DeHavilland Trojan plate runabout which lives in Hardstand 145. The boat takes its current name from the prior owners’ business, Blue Devil Dive.

Built around 1979, the hull had previously been used for charter work off the New South Wales coast, and more recently was in survey as a dive boat taking clients to observe the annual giant cuttlefish spawning aggregation at Whyalla.

The current motor also spent time in the service of the old E&WS, where it ferried equipment around one of the States’ reservoirs. Despite a hard working life over the years, with numerous repairs and refits, the boat was originally built like a brick outhouse and looks set for many more years of service.

Asked to describe the boat, the owners said “a work horse not a show pony”. Devil Dog can often be found looking for Snapper and Whiting throughout the Gulf, mainly in the Goannas area, Port Vincent and Edithburgh.

The CYCSA was chosen as a preferred central location due to security, the lack of ramp congestion, and the need to store and trail the boat from home. Having used the boat reliably for a number of years, Guy and George are currently on the lookout for a size upgrade for more offshore trips but will always have a soft spot for their rough diamond Dog.

38’

39’

40’

41’

42’

43’

44’

45’

Editors’ Note If you would like your boat featured in this section of Groundswell, please write around 180-200 words and provide a high resolution print-quality digital photo (or ask Gay Footer or Anja Richards to take a photo for you) and submit your contribution to the CYCSA office.

46’

47’

Racing Association Report

Presentation Night

he Port River Marine Combined Winter Series is well and truly underway after an uneventful start to the season. Much to the disappointment of skippers and crews, the first race was postponed due to inclement weather conditions but thankfully we have managed to run the rest of the races thus far, including the Plympton Cup. It has been great to see so many yachts out on the water and crews around the Club during this quieter (and colder) part of the year. A huge thank you goes to Leica Theodore from Port River Marine for her continued sponsorship and endless enthusiasm for this series.

he 2009/10 Season ended with a bang at the annual Racing Association Presentation Night. It was a great evening with interesting and exciting entertainment aimed at keeping the punters on their toes…

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The Short-handed Short Course Series is underway however the second race was postponed as crabs were being blown out of the sand. We rescheduled this race for Saturday 31 July. On behalf of the REX I would like to extend my thanks to the Patten Family for their generous donation of Canegrass Saltbush Lamb Packs for the winner of each Short-handed race and for the barbie after the race – everyone seems happy to have something warm in their tummies after being out on the water in winter! Thanks also go to Mark Williams of Corporate Design Floors Pty Ltd and Flooring Trade Depot for his generous donation and sponsorship of a new laptop computer - a much needed and very welcome addition to our Race Office.

In other news, the racing program for the upcoming summer season will be ratified at the Racing Association AGM on 30 July 2010. We will be working closely with the RSAYS this coming season to share on-water assets and combine to produce larger racing fleets. Our versatile program this year includes an Inshore/Offshore series and some races which should specifically attract more cruiser-racers. If any “cruisers” are interested in learning more about our racing program, the REX is happy to provide mentors and offer any assistance. We will do all we can to encourage racing participation at all levels. If you have friends or relatives who may be interested in learning to crew aboard a racing yacht please advise the Race Office, we will make them feel most welcome.

The REX has also implemented an updated racing membership and participation fee structure for the coming year. The onus is on all skippers to ensure that their crew are covered under this membership and race participation fee structure and as such, listed in our database.

With the Yachting Australia restructure and new banding systems, REX has recognized, much like most other sailing clubs in Australia, that for safety and insurance reasons we need to know the names and contact details of everyone out racing on our yachts. Boats carrying unfinancial crew risk protest and penalties. Complete details can be found on the Club website. This season we have instituted a pro-rata system and other fee levels which should make it easier than ever for new racing members to join. If you would like more information, please contact the Race Office.

Finally, congratulations to John Gibson, who has received his certification as a Race Officer and will join Neil Burford, Ray Evans and David Saies to conduct our races this coming season.

Jess Hargreaves, Racing Manager

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Guests were scratching their heads at our new hospitality staff – including a waitress, Maitre-d and head chef who were clumsy and didn’t seem to have a clue what was going on. When an announcement was made that the entertainment for the evening was delayed by an accident on Lady Gowrie Drive, the ‘new hospitality staff’ stepped in to give an impromptu floorshow, with impressive results. They worked the crowd, with the pretty waitress sitting on the laps of the gentlemen in attendance and the chef drinking from people’s glasses (even stealing an entire bottle from our Penfold’s Rep). The singing was amazing, with songs including “Phantom of the Opera, “Don’t Leave Me This Way” and “My Way”. It was a funny, interactive floorshow – which everyone enjoyed.

The layout of the presentations was similar to previous years, with MC & REX Chair Traci Ayris ensuring that the formalities proceeded efficiently, leaving plenty of time for guests to socialise afterwards.

As always, the Racing Association welcomes feedback and suggestions from those who attended to ensure that next year is a bigger success - and be sure to tell those who were not there what they missed next year will only be bigger and better!

Many presentations were made during the evening including: CYCSA Yacht of the Year Two True - Skipper: Andrew Saies Crew Person of the Year Donna Marshall Commodore’s Shield The RSAYS won the Commodore’s Shield and it was presented by CYCSA Commodore, Geoff Catt, to the RSAYS Commodore, Caillin Howard.

Donna M

arshall

s Busines

s 3.5

Another P

lanet Cookie M

onster

Andrew Saies accepts the CYCSA Yacht of the Year trophy from Commodore Geoff Catt

Two True

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RACING ASSOCIATION

Secret Men

narrow boating in United

W

e found it inspiring travelling under an iron foot bridge near Bath and reading that it was built in AD1800, quite amazing considering Captain Cook arrived in Botany Bay in 1770.

The United Kingdom currently has approximately 5000 kilometres of navigable waterways. Some canals have locks that are just over seven feet wide. With narrow hire boats ranging from 40 feet to 72 feet overall and all being seven feet wide, even a two inch diameter solid rubber fender must be lifted.

Other canals have locks that can accommodate two boats side by side or wider barges.

The first thing that impressed me was being welcomed aboard with a vase of flowers set up on the dining table which remained upright and with us for the full time. I was surprised at the smooth sailing, being able to see the land on both sides of the boat and knowing if I fell overboard I wouldn’t necessarily drown, although I may have caught something.

We collected our small 47 footer and had a very short lesson on how to manage it. On setting off we ran aground, my efforts with a tiller failed, and my role as helmsman was terminated.

The position of chief lock operator became my new vocation.

For our second trip we travelled along the Llangollen Canal which is 46 miles in length. It begins from a feeder above Llangollen and flows to its junction with the Shropshire Union Canal. It passes through a spectacular and varied landscape including the meres (lakes) around Ellesmere, the low lying wetlands and rolling pastoral areas. The Pontcysylite Aqueduct was 126 feet above the River Dee, with a tow path on one side and a sheer drop on the other. The view below was really spectacular. The canals form a corridor of different wildlife and the range of vegetation changes around each bend.

Country paddocks with cows close enough to touch, trees 10

overhanging the canals in so many different shades of green and sunshine threading its way through the branches to give a feeling of tranquillity. On this canal we passed through the Chirk and Ellesmere Tunnels. The views were extraordinary. Imagine being on a narrow canal of water on top of a hill and looking down into a valley and seeing the chimney tops of the two-storey houses just below.

Tunnels, some up to a mile in length require the use of headlights and there is not much fun in trying to back out, and there isn’t any way to pass each other. In days gone by, the horse travelled over the top of the hill and teams of leggers lay on the cargo of the boat and used their feet on the roof of the tunnel to propel the barge through. Lucky for us we had a motor to get us along the way. A tunnel with a curve makes one very wary. We were lucky enough to be second in the queue and travelled in convoy through to another terrific view.

After a day’s cruising, (at a maximum speed of walking pace) we would settle for the night, with Phill slowly gliding the boat to the bank where I would step off and hold the boat steady while he drove the oversized tent pegs into the towpath to moor the boat.

Very quickly Phill organised himself a glass of red while I started in the galley. It’s great being able to cook without the “rock and roll” The narrow boats have the comforts of home with central heating, electric loo, shower over a bath, full kitchen with stove, microwave, fridge etc, comfy lounge and a TV. We rarely had TV reception and played DVD’s instead. We were in the UK in summer so the extra daylight enabled us to enjoy the long evenings, either watching the squirrels playing under the trees or feeding the white swans that were forever looking for something to eat.

Locks!!! Now, there is a right way of using the winch handle at the locks and, yes I learned the hard way and received a very nasty

Kingdom Canals

Sandra and Phill Richards’ first holiday on a canal boat started with a four day trip from Hilperton to Bath and return on the Kennett and Avon Canal.

bruise and egg on my forearm, which I was very lucky not to break. Still, I did master the art. A single lock required me to open two gates and close them behind the boat, then go up to the gates at the other end and either winch to open sluices or close them depending on whether the water was filling or emptying. You then needed to do the reverse to keep the lock in readiness for the next boat. After a few locks I got into a routine which made the operation easier.

Most narrow boats were decorated with beautiful designs, decoupage on the kettles etc, gardens growing on the roofs, flowers, vegetables, even some “suss stuff”. How did they do their washing? Well, I saw clothes horses on tow paths, also a small “Hills” hoist turning around on the roof of one boat. Our boat was centrally heated and I made use of the radiators to dry our washing. Many had pot belly stoves for heating and cooking.

Phill‘s job was to keep the boat steady while the water poured in or was emptying, most importantly keeping the boat away from the lower gates.

It’s an eerie feeling being in a lock and the boat sinking or rising up to 20 feet at a time, I was glad to be on the bank and watching.

Some local people live permanently on their boats, travelling to work on bicycles, motor bikes or cars parked in villages along the canal.

Mooring along the canals for hire boats was free in most cases, with 24 or 48 hour sections. Permanent moorings were well marked and required a licence from the British Waterways.

Staircase locks have a lockmaster overseeing them as it would take forever if the boaties needed to operate them. We encountered lift and swing bridges where roads led to a local farm or village. I learned to hop off the boat, and yes, while the boat was still moving, run up ahead and start winching the bridge open. When the boat motored through, I then lowered the bridge and ran like ...... to catch up.

I discovered the locks were a good place to chat with fellow boaties. It’s a slow procedure and usually it takes around 20 minutes. Some of the boaties were also from overseas and with the many retired couples (or grey nomads) and holiday makers sharing the chores, I was only required to open or close one set of gates. After two weeks of operating 114 locks, swing and lift bridges, I considered myself to be competent.

We had strip maps of the canals we travelled which contained information about bridges, (all numbered, so you could keep track of where you were) villages, local interest, and important things like the pubs and shops. They also showed all the twists and turns, narrow parts of the canal and whether we needed to walk forward to see if other boats were approaching. This was my job, shame I couldn’t manage the tiller!!

We met up with a local couple who advised us to change our minds about going up to Chester on the Shropshire Union Canal and to travel through Middlewich to the Trent and Mersey Canal and Anderton instead. Here Phill was in his element with a boat lift to take boats to the River Weaver 50 feet below the level of the canal.

The Anderton Boat Lift, the first of its kind in the world, built in 1875, with a restoration in 1908 and again in 2000-2, enabled barges with cargoes of salt, coal and clay to be transported between the canal and river without having to unload. This hydraulically operated lift works with each caisson supported by a giant ram. One tank would be raised to the top of the lift while the other went to river level. On the River Weaver we went under the world’s first electric swing bridge at Northwich.

Phill and I have enjoyed this boating experience twice now and we are currently planning our next holiday in 2011 on the Grand Union Canal from Northamptonshire to London and return.

Sandra Richards Editor’s Note: For more Anderton Boat Lift information see www.andertonboatlift.co.uk 11

In seach of the O

ur ever helpful and knowledgeable Club member friends had advised us that March was the best month for cruising in South Australian waters so for the past year we had been planning our March 2010 getaway. We set sail on Sunday 28 February around 3pm after we had packed the beach tent and lots of books and sunscreen lotion. Our plan was to get to Kangaroo Island as soon as possible, anchor at Hawkes Nest (King George Beach) and undertake much swimming, sunbaking, reading, and walking on the beach.

As we sailed out of the marina entrance the wind was a touch strong, around 30 knots, coming directly from the east, so the first night we got to Marino around 6.30pm and decided to take a bit of shelter till it inevitably settled down in the morning.

We woke the following morning to the sound of the dulcet tones of VMR American River on the VHF radio mentioning something about a ‘strong wind warning’. We thought he had to be wrong and set sail for Second Valley. The wind was south-east, 23-35 knots gusting up to 40. We had two reefs in the main and a very small amount of jib unfurled. The wind direction forced us to sail out into the gulf rather than along the coast so we had to tack back in from time to time to stay closer to shore. Off Myponga some big gusts hit and our trusty bimini started to blow apart. The top just lifted off out of its frame, threatening to take our fancy solar electricity system with it! While I steered, Len dismantled the canvas and rolled it up, re-securing the stainless steel frame with ropes. After this bit of drama we headed for refuge at Myponga.

When safely anchored the pooches and I retired below for a snooze and to generally regroup, thinking we should probably stay there for the night. However, Len, forever keen about reaching the planned destination, suggested he at least motor us to Second Valley so that we could get closer to our ultimate destination of Kangaroo Island. Hence, while I snoozed in the main berth, clutching the pooches for comfort, the wind howling about the boat as it cut through the turbulent water, Len started to motor towards Second Valley. Next I heard the distinct sound of a sail flapping and what was suspiciously like the jib being unfurled and winched in. I dozed off again. We made it to Second Valley, although as we motored in to anchor, darling Len was muttering something about the autopilot making a funny noise.

Anyway, this was our first time at Second Valley – it’s a great place to stop in easterly winds. It has a small beach, friendly to tenders and pooches, and a jetty which seemed popular for fishing. Just up the road is a caravan park and great little shop with bait, milk, bread and newspapers. On Tuesday 2 March, we tried fishing off Second Valley but caught nothing. The weather forecast was still for strong winds and possible gale force over the next few days.

The following day we cut across Investigator Strait and got to Boxing Bay for shelter. A good sail in strong winds (funny the autopilot seemed to be broken!). With poor fishing at Boxing Bay and the weather forecast getting more ominous, we headed into Kingscote. Again, it was a first time visit for us having previously only been to American River and Christmas Cove. It’s a cute tourist village with lots of coffee shops, a supermarket, park, and the mandatory pub on the waterfront. The annoying thing about

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the weather forecast was that the gale warning kept being moved a day further away all the time. The sky was really clouding up so after cadging the use of a mooring from a local sailor, we decided to stay for a couple of days till the poor weather and the forecast rain passed.

Friday 5 and Saturday 6 March at Kingscote – we became regulars at the local café, got drowned in Saturday’s downpour and did lots of reading, eating, shopping (mainly for edible commodities), eating and wine appreciation. While it was a bit bouncy at Kingscote, the gale force winds still hadn’t arrived so we became a bit cynical and decided to head to Emu Bay. We arrived at Emu Bay and caught our first full meal of fish at the northern end, all tommy ruffs but lovely eating fish. Then as the wind freshened we moved to the southern end of the bay, near to the jetty and the small community of houses and set the anchor.

The winds came up strongly so we sheltered at Emu Bay Monday night as well. On the morning of Tuesday 9 March we set off determined to reach Hawks Nest hoping that the forecast sunny weather might finally eventuate. Arriving at Hawks Nest on Tuesday evening it was still cloudy and the gulf was very bumpy. It took a while to find a sheltered spot to anchor, a few bays south of Hawks Nest beach. Taking the pooches ashore was a real challenge as there was a deceptively strong surf breaking on the beach and we were lucky not to capsize the dinghy.

We woke after another bumpy night with still no sign of sunshine, the water was still rough and the idyllic swimming/snorkeling beach we remembered from our last visit was being pounded with waves.

In disgust and also with concern for the rapid expansion of our waistlines from overeating and lack of exercise, we gave up on our dream of the ‘lying on the beach holiday’ and set off for Edithburg, arriving at 8pm on Wednesday evening – again in strong winds. We took up the last mooring with our depth sounder showing ‘zero’ at mid tide. The poor pooches had to cross their legs that night because we couldn’t see a clear place to go ashore in the gloomy dusk.

Thursday morning and the pooches were looking desperate for land so we thought we’d try the shore closest to our mooring. It looked like a harmless little beach from the boat, even if a little muddy. Did I say mud? I jumped out of the boat first as we approached the shore only to sink into the mud about one foot. I immediately jumped back into the boat yelling “quicksand!” and telling Len to reverse but it was too late. The wind was taking us in so we eventually both got out and had to drag the dinghy ashore, both of us sinking around twelve inches into the slimy mud as we walked. It was disgusting! At least the sand on the beach was a bit firmer and we walked along it with mud slimed up to our knees, swearing never to beach there again. At least the dogs appreciated the effort. It was an equally slimy experience leaving the shore, at one stage Len sinking up to his thighs in the mud and lucky not to lose his beach shoes. We all had a good wash off on the transom before going below.

On Thursday night, 11 March, we made it back to the Club. We had a broken autopilot, a mangled bimini, no suntans, and both of us in desperate need of joining a weight loss program. But like all our sailing trips, there are lots of good memories.

Libby Stephens,Equanimity

sun...

Kangaroo Island in March

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News from the Slip Master Boat Mooring Just a friendly reminder that Club by laws prohibit boats hanging over the walkways. This is in the interest of member safety so please ensure your boat does not hang over no matter what the conditions.

Take a walk down the marina and you, like I, will be amazed at the poor quality of some mooring lines and the variety of strange knots used. Remember the secret of knot tying is being able to undo it easily and quickly. If you are unsure how to tie up your boat see the diagrams opposite or ask one of our friendly staff. It is recommended that both ends of the lines have an eye splice and be of the correct length to keep the boat secured in its pen while ensuring that the boat is not able to come in contact with the marina pontoons.

At least one fender should be rigged on each side of the vessel. If moored in a twin berth, care should be taken to ensure that the outboard fender is rigged to prevent damage to the other boat in the marina berth.

It’s good seamanship to have an easily accessible spare line on your vessel in case of bad weather or mishap and this also allows us to act quickly if a problem arises within the marina.

Maintenance Speaking of good seamanship, it’s an excellent idea to regularly check and operate all the sea cocks and not to leave the boat with them left open.

It’s also a good idea to have a switch gear installed to prevent batteries being flattened should connection to shore power be lost or interrupted.

Spring will soon be on us, so it’s time to think about maintenance and gear checks to ready your boat for a hassle free summer. If you are going to need to slip your boat, now may be a good time to get in before the rush and save yourself 10% off the normal fee until the end of September.

Have fun on the water!

Tim Went, Slip Master

Southern Diesel and Marine Kabota, Perkins, Volvo, Cummins, Mercruiser, etc.

Petrol and diesel - diesel fuel injection • Specialists in pleasure craft - power and yachts.

• Diesel engineer - over 20 years experience.

• Insurance work welcome.

• Fully insured repairer.

• We come to you at the CYCSA. Southern Diesel and Marine Unit 11/76 O’Sullivan Beach Road Lonsdale

tel: 0408 803 766

• Discuss your job or quote with Scott

- ring on 8326 14

7075.

Seafood Experience

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embers and guests of the Fishing Association received a red carpet and champagne welcome to this winter’s night event.

There were 119 members and guests who enjoyed a night of gourmet seafood and entertainment in the form of a professional fish filleting demonstration. In a collaboration between the CYCSA Fishing Association and Club Chef Andreas Bauer, an extensive menu of delicate entrees such as sashimi tuna, natural oysters, prawns, chevice tuna and salmon dumplings was followed by beautifully grilled fresh King George whiting, garfish, tommy ruff, gulf prawns, chili crab and baked snapper. I heard a number of comments that some people were full by the time we completed our entrees. The entrees were served to our tables on platters while guests needed to collect grilled food direct from the BBQs under the patio.

It was great to have Andreas talk to us about some of the dishes so that we had an appreciation of how he specially prepared them for us – such as the chevice tuna, prepared by cold cooking generous serves of bluefin tuna (wedged in ‘chop sticks’) in a marinade of lemon juice and coconut milk. Our Food and Beverage Manager, Mario then introduced a complimentary white wine matched to the food we were eating.

Academy as a trainer in fish filleting as well as elements of marine safety and survival at sea. Having attended Jeff’s filleting workshop (a hands-on event) and watching his demonstration again on our “big screens” during the night I continue to be amazed how he makes it look how easy filleting every species of fish we are likely to catch in our local gulf waters.

Jeff conducted 2 sessions of fish filleting demonstrations during the evening covering species such as whiting, tommy ruff, garfish, snapper, flathead and shark. He even made oyster shucking look easy! Guests were welcome to chat with Jeff throughout the evening. To help us view Jeff’s handy skills we were fortunate to have the assistance of a very impressive audiovisual display courtesy of Glenn and Tracy Spear and their business Central Audiovisual. Our function room looked great with a white backdrop and “blue light wash” behind the stage where Jeff’s filleting bench was set-up. With a zoomed-in camera tracking Jeff’s activity, everyone in the room had a good view of his filleting work. The visual display was almost as impressive as the food! A great night was had by all.

Peter Schembri

Particular mention needs to be made of our special guests for the night, Jeff Wait and his wife Charmaine. I have known Jeff for many years now and always enjoyed talking with him about fishing in Gulf St Vincent as he is a highly experienced mariner and fisherman. In addition to being a professional net fisherman, Jeff has spent the last 20 years involved with the Australian Fisheries

Jeff Wait, a trainer with the Australlian Fisheries Academy demonstrates filleting techniques

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A spectacular venue

for your wedding day...

“The CYCSA ensured that our wedding day was one to remember. Our day was wonderful, the service and food was fantastic and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.”

Emily and Jared

Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia

JOHNS MARINE TRANSPORT Yachts, Cruisers and Trailer Boats

Contact Robert Johns est.1988 PO Box 2591 Regency Park SA 5942 Email: johnsmarinetransport@bigpond.com

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Tel: 08 8242 4000 Mob: 0418 818 676 Fax: 08 8242 5098

CYCSA achieves a new Environmental Standard

M

arinas across Australia and the Asia/Pacific region now have a new environmental standard and the CYCSA is one of the first of three marinas in Australia to achieve this new environmental benchmark. Other South Australian marinas, Cape Jaffa Anchorage, and The Marina Hindmarsh Island also achieved Level 4 ISO 14001 Clean Marinas status.

The Hon. Pat Conlon, SA Minister for Transport, Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Energy presented the three marinas with their accreditation at the Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia on Wednesday 28 July. The function was attended by 50 industry and government representatives.

Called Level 4 ISO 14001 Clean Marinas, the three marinas are recognised for achieving the world standard for environmental management systems. The program was established in 2002 by the Marina Industries Association of Australia (MIAA) with the objective of protecting the nation’s coastal and in-land waterways.

The Hon. Pat Conlon congratulates CYCSA Executive Office Craig Evans at the completion of the ceremony.

MIAA President Andrew Chapman said the creation of the 4th level of Clean Marinas provides marina businesses with a practical environmental accreditation pathway. “Well managed club and commercial marinas recognize the importance of providing environmental leadership. For millions of people, the Australian marinas are the gateway to our marine environment. Therefore it is essential that industry is continually improving its environmental management. MIAA’s Clean Marinas Program provides the vehicle for continual improvement and a means for marina users to identify marinas that set high environmental standards.”

Leica’s Ladies

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or the last 9 years Leica Theodore has revived the “Ladies that visit Sanctuary Cove” and taken them shopping. It all started some years ago when Leica recognised the ladies visiting the Boat Show had really explored all the floating marina displays and many of the marquees that housed an array of engines, electronics and epirbs.

Leica came up with the idea of getting a small bus to take the ladies to Harbourtown, Pacific Fair and Marina Mirage, three of the major shopping centres on the Gold Coast. In earlier years it was agreed that Pacific Fair and Marina Mirage were favourites.

Leica also sought sponsorship for the cost of the bus, negotiated discounts from the major centres and even got one of the Coast’s major jewellers to jump on board; so to speak. Very early in the piece the “Ladies Shopping Group” became well established and grew in numbers. The ladies all meet at the Hyatt Sanctuary Cove, where

they are greeted by Hyatt staff with champers and orange at around 9.00am and where Leica handed out goodie bags with samples of various “ladies’ luxuries”, including miniature bottles of champers, glitter straws, chocolates and discount cards. First stop is Pacific Fair where the girls are greeted by Mark Paradise of Paradise Jewellers with more champers and to have their rings cleaned complimentarily. Mark draws a lucky name for a substantial gift voucher. The girls shop and meet up with the bus at lunchtime for their onward journey to Marina Mirage, enroute they are served a light lunch and more champers. At Marina Mirage they receive their VIP Gold Passes, valid for the year, and sometime in the afternoon all meet back together for coffee.

Around 5.30pm it’s back to the Hyatt Sanctuary Cove for a drink at the cocktail bar. Next year is our tenth birthday and it is powering up to be the biggest “retail release” yet. God help the bus driver!

Back Row: Trudy Richardson, Glenda Smyth, Jenny Tymons, Bev Green, Cathy Quin, Marion Cole, Tess McGrath, Edith Lazonde.

Front Row: Genni Barlow, Mary Watkins, Carol Adams, Janette Haygarth, Glenda Hausler.

Front: Leica Theodore

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Gay and Graeme Footer continue their travels on board their yacht Jemmaroo and decide to call their journey this time...

Our ‘spot’ in the Kaleci Marina in Antalya

Turkish fishing boat

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We had to buy five new flags for this odyssey and travelled between seven countries in just eight weeks as North Cyprus (TRNC), Syria, Lebanon, Israel and South Cyprus were added to the countries we visited.

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e arrived at the Marmaris Yacht Marina in Turkey on Wednesday 5 May and proceeded to put Jemmaroo into cruising mode. It smelt a bit musty as there had been a lot of rain so pillows etc needed washing but generally speaking, things were in good shape. The volcano eruption in Iceland affected many people not least the cruisers wanting to get to their boats and put them in the water so the travel lift was working overtime and the biggest limiter was the number of wet berths available to put the boats into. We were fine however as the boat had stayed in the water so we watched with interest as the two travel lifts disgorged boat after boat and continued working till midnight on occasion.

The moused sheet lines had become tangled and one had broken so they created a bit of work sorting them out and the wind did not help.

We found we needed four new batteries as the bow thruster, anchor winch and electric winches would not respond so that all had to be organized and, after a big shop up, we were ready to leave on Sunday 9 May. Ekincik and then Fethiye were our first ports of call and we managed to sail for quite a bit of the time. Kalkan was an interesting port and we moored within the harbour between two dive boats. We were in before we realized we hadn’t dropped our anchor but it made no difference, we were in so tight there was no way we were going anywhere.

Meeting other people is a great aspect of cruising and we had a rollicking good time with Tim and Sherry, a couple from Louisianna.

Swapping countries was on again so up went the Greek flag and we anchored off Kastellorizan, the most eastern of the Greek islands. The Greek towns are just different and have a lot more colour than the Turkish ones but I guess they all have their own charm. The population of the island was said to have been 20,000 at one time but their permanent population now is 250 Greeks and 190 Albanians so there were plenty of empty houses. We had dinner at a local restaurant and the owner told us he had been to Adelaide and that Con Polites came from the island – you live and learn!! The next day we took Jemmaroo around to the east side of the island to look at the Blue Grotto and as it was very deep, took it in turns to dinghy in – it was very impressive.

We stayed another night at the anchorage spending some time with a couple from Fremantle.

Back to Turkey and into the Kekova Roads, a protected waterway between the mainland and several islands. We anchored in the north west corner at Polemos Buku and although the wind was quite strong, there was no sea. Bob, our New Zealand mate and fellow cruiser, had brought a whiz bang movie system with him so we spent some time working out how to plug it all in and then “went to the movies”. We moved anchorage within the Roads to a small town called Ucagiz and found the boats from the Middle East Rally moored and anchored there. We met up with many of the Aussies and Kiwis participating in the Rally and joined in their cocktail party on shore, buying our own drinks of course. We motored through more of the Roads, checking out anchorages for when we return in August, before going in to the marina in Finike. We wanted to check it out as we plan to leave Jemmaroo there when we return to Oz in July. Some weather came in so we stayed a few days and hired a car and travelled to Kas and Demre where there was a bishop called St Nicholas. This is apparently where the story of Santa Claus comes from and the church was well preserved with good frescoes. There was a cocktail party put on by the Marina on the breakwater so we had another party that night and drove further inland and checked out the thousands of glasshouses and plastic covered greenhouses growing tomatoes, aubergines, capsicums and zucchini the next morning.

At Kemer, the Rally boats had taken over the marina so we anchored off and were entertained until 3am with the rather loud disco music

emanating from the hotels lining the shore. The town itself is lovely and possibly the cleanest Turkish town we saw.

Antalya, the third largest city in Turkey, was next along the coast and we called the marina which was some distance out of town and were told that it was 80 Euro a night – too expensive we said so we called the Kaleci Marina in the Old City and were told they could fit us in and it would only cost 35 Euro!! Going in was quite an experience as it was a tiny harbour, basically a hole in the cliff. It was crowded and we were told by several boats to go back out as there was no room but we insisted we had a booking and yes, they found us a spot. Reverse and a turn of 60 degrees and straighten up and we were in – great steering by Graeme. There were only two other private boats in there, the rest were local fishing boats and trip boats for the tourists. We were absolutely in the middle of it all and it was great fun. We had dinner at a very touristy restaurant overlooking the harbour and spent our saved money – ah well, easy come, easy go. Discos were at it again so a bit of a disturbed sleep. The next day we had a good look around the Old City and took a local bus for a ride around the district, getting off for lunch but unfortunately catching a different bus back. Many extra miles and Lira and we made our way back to the boat and this time I laid down the law about going three streets back to find a dining spot. It was fantastic, we were the only foreigners and it was hilarious. They only had red wine, no white wine, so Graeme, with the waiter in tow, found a shop that sold white wine. They negotiated the mark-up to serve the wine, much to the amusement of the rest of the diners, and we settled down to a great meal.

Our next stop, Side, is a town full of ruins and we spent several hours clambering around them and looking over the colosseum etc. Once again in Alanya we moored in the Old Harbour and found ourselves the object of much interest. We traipsed around the castle at the top of the hill and found a Chinese restaurant, a rarity in Turkey, to have dinner at.

We had spoken to the people organizing the Middle East Rally and they suggested we go across to North Cyprus to Girne and to make our way across to Lebanon from there. The Pilot book said that Bozyazi Limani was an exit port for Turkey so we sailed around there only to discover that it was not so. At great expense we caught a taxi to the next exit port, Tasucu, in the hope that they would sign the papers for us. No, we had to take Jemmaroo there so we spent two more days getting there and back, without them even looking at the boat, in order to leave Turkey.

We motor-sailed across to Girne to Delta Marina and entered North Cyprus, called the TRNC or the Turkish Republic of Cyprus. The TRNC, as it turns out, is a pariah country only recognized by Turkey. They do not stamp your passport as you can’t enter Greece with a TRNC stamp so you receive a bit of paper for your entry. It was a great spot, the latest place being invaded by the Brit’s looking for their bit of sunshine as it is still relatively cheap. The Old Harbour is quite spectacular and scenic and we spent many hours there as well as taking a bus to Nicosia, the capital. Nicosia has an old walled city section and right through the middle of it is the division of North and South Cyprus with immigration check points etc – a bit like Berlin.

We called a marina in Lebanon to check that they had room for us and naturally they asked where we were coming from. No, we could not go from TRNC to Lebanon as they don’t recognize it and would turn us back.

We asked where we could go to be told that we could go back to Turkey and enter from there or go to Syria. Our course was set, Syria was it. We anchored off for a couple of nights to have a bit of a relax and a few swims and headed off for Lattakia where there is the only marina in Syria.

It took us nine hours to finally clear customs and immigration – the system is very agricultural – and we were finally free to move around. We booked train tickets to go to Apella the next day, had dinner and then a good nights sleep.

The train ride, which took three-and-a-half hours, cost $20 for the three of us and was a very enjoyable trip. The main attraction at Apella is the old Souk so we booked some accommodation within it. Finding the hotel was continued over page...

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Wailing Wall, Jerusalem, men left, women on right

British Hotel at the Old Harbour in Girne

a challenge as the taxi dropped us outside the Old City wall and said go ten metres inside and you will be there – he lied! Eventually we found the hotel, quite old, quite cute and quite expensive! We made our way out of the Souk to an authentic local Syrian restaurant called Al Barbour – no alcohol (due for a rest anyway), lots of salads and very low cost – and better still, we found our way back.

Discussing life with the butcher in Aleppo

a restaurant recommended in the Lonely Planet as having great food and views. The reality was very different; we overlooked the roof of the Souk and the food was very ordinary. We wandered around the Old City after dinner and cached upon a coffee shop where the last remaining ‘storyteller’ was relating stories of old. It is the way legends and history are related but it will all soon pass. A walk around the Souk and the city of Damascus plus a ride on one of the local buses filled in the next day and our driver picked us up at 6pm for the drive back to Jemmaroo.

The next morning we went exploring and within the Souk were accosted with the wonderful sights of tripe flapping in the breeze and bulls testicles hanging up at the butchers so we quickly made our way out to the other side and while I enjoyed a rare cappuccino, the boys climbed around the Citadel. The Souk was well and truly buzzing by the time they finished so we walked through again making a side trip to the local Mosque.

We cleared out of Lebanon ($US400 plus $US120 per night for the mooring) calling Oscar Charlie as we departed. Our stated destination was Limassol in South Cyprus and we steered the obligatory 270 degrees to the west for 14 miles before changing course for Tel Aviv in Israel. We had called the Herzilya Marina to let them know we were coming and were given the all clear. A UN warship contacted us around 8pm wanting to know our destination and details and wished us a good trip and around 11pm the Israeli Navy radioed and gave us the third degree for about half an hour before directing us to enter Israel at Haifa. We were given no choice as our last port of call was Beirut and before that Lattakia in Syria, so to Haifa we went. As we approached the coast a Navy gunboat appeared behind us and quizzed us again with all the same questions and near the breakwater at Haifa we were met by a large rib complete with machine gun and gunner in the bow. I waved to the young man in charge of the machine gun and he didn’t know what to do – wave to this lady about his mother’s age or hang on to his machine gun – he waved. We were escorted right through the harbour to an area where some yachts were moored and directed into a concrete pen, bow first, and the rib parked across the back of us. Graeme was asked to go ashore and he was quizzed by a bloke we assume was a Mossad agent whose task it was to check that we had been where we said we had. We passed the test, a Customs person gave the boat a cursory once over, our details were taken and we were told to have a lovely time in Israel. No stamp in the passport and no bit of paper to say all was okay – we were told we were in the system – so we left it at that. We arrived at Herzilya Marina, just north of Tel Aviv, about 4pm and proceeded to tie up on the Customs wharf as the marina office was closed.

We caught a bus at 2pm to Hama, renowned for its creaking water wheels. We booked at a supposed 5-star hotel with a swimming pool and outlook over the river and the wheels – good pool, great view, definitely not 5-star. A walk through the Old City and then through the newer part of town and we settled down to dinner at what appeared to be a very toffy restaurant in the Old City. Imodium was on the must have list the next morning as both Graeme and Bob came down with Syrian stomach.

A sleep-in helped a bit and we then caught a bus down to Homs to visit the castle, Crac Des Chevaliers, which was described in the Lonely Planet as not to be missed and like a fairy story. Why do they exaggerate so much – it was okay but the Citadel in Aleppo was better. A taxi back to Lattakia as the boys were suffering and a very quiet night on board.

We booked ourselves into the Joseph Koury Marina just north of Beirut, organized an agent to process our arrival and departures for Lebanon, and set off for an overnight passage at around 6pm. Murphy was at play again and it was on the nose all the way. About 15 miles out we called Oscar Charlie and were directed to continue southwards until we were 12 miles directly off the port of Beirut at which time they called and said we could make our way to the marina. The facilities at the marina were great with a full size Olympic pool and a gym. The agent entered us as ‘seamen’ so we didn’t have to pay a fee, a bit of a bonus, as the marina was $US120 a night. By now, my tummy was playing up, so we were all miserable together but managed a light dinner at a local restaurant.

World Cup fever was in full swing and giant screens were everywhere around the marina which was part of a large shopping/restaurant complex. The boys partook of a few ales at Murphy’s Pub and after some ‘calamari in the middle’, we had dinner and watched the game. The next morning we shifted to our allocated mooring and caught a bus to Jaffa, the Old Port of Tel Aviv.

A walk around there and the centre of Tel Aviv, down to the waterfront to have dinner and booking an Avis car for the next morning, filled the rest of the day.

We met up the next day with Ben, the son of friends in Adelaide, whose wife is working at the Australian Consulate in Beirut, and he showed us around the sights of Beirut including the most fantastic supermarket I have ever seen. Beirut is, in parts, a very sophisticated, almost Parisian, city and a lot of it has been rebuilt after the war several years ago. We organized a car to take us to the Cedars of Lebanon the next day and had dinner with Ben and Lee-Anne at a very nice French Restaurant near the city centre. The Cedars were a bit disappointing, they were just a small copse of trees in the hills, and we returned to the boat via Byblos and Jounieh. Bob, an Aussie we met at the marina who lives in an apartment close by, joined us for a BBQ on board that night and I was one very unimpressed girl when confronted with the results of their regaling the next morning. No-one was allowed out until it was cleaned up – I well and truly got the stick out. We had a driver organized to take us through the Bekker Valley, do a winery tour and then on to Damascus in Syria as it is much closer and easier from here than where we were in Syria. We all seem to associate the Bekker Valley with Hezbollah but when that sort of activity is not taking place, it is a very rich fertile valley, intensely cultivated and with several wineries dotted about. We visited the Kryst Winery which is built on top on tunnels built by the Romans where the wines are stored. Unfortunately there were two in our group not up to appreciating what the winery had to offer. On entering Syria we discovered we had not been issued multiple entry visas, did we really think we had, but they let Graeme and me off and made Bob pay another $A135 entry fee. We found a hotel in Damascus and after checking in made our way to Leila’s,

Formalities completed with the Avis people, we set off the next morning for Jerusalem and the beginning of our travels around Israel. The infrastructure in Israel is excellent; it is definitely first world, with Lebanon second world and Syria third world. We found our hotel in Jerusalem eventually, there were three with the same name, parked the car, booked in and set off to explore the city. We took an organized tour of the Old City and it was absolutely fascinating with all its different quarters, including the Wailing Wall. It was very special walking through and the history, as we know it, was incredible.

Dick and Helen Fidock were also staying in Jerusalem so we met up with them for dinner and organized to meet on Jemmaroo in a few days. Graeme wanted to go into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre so he visited it the next morning and on our way to Bethlehem we took in the Holocaust Museum, a very moving memorial. We were thwarted in our attempt to visit Bethlehem in that it was in the Palestinian territory and we would have had to pass through several checkpoints but the major obstacle was our hire car. We were told by a Palestinian waiting to re-enter Bethlehem that it would not be wise to take it in as not much would be left of it in the morning and on ringing Avis, were informed that the insurance would be void if we went 20

The castle Crac Des Chevaliers

Cool drink salesman, Damascus

there. We gave that away and set off for the Dead Sea where we were told there were some lovely hotels on its banks.

Wooden waterwheels at Hamra

wind came up and there was a strong wind warning so we returned to Larnaka keeping a very watchful eye on the instruments. The lights played up but everything else was okay. When we moored back in Larnaka we mentioned what had happened to be told that everyone turns everything off going around there but there were no notations on the chart etc.

The maps and the Lonely Planet guide were silent on the hotels but we eventually found the enclave of large hotels. By elimination, no vacancies and price, we found one that suited. It was great, so good in fact, that we shouted ourselves two nights and a bit of a rest. Swimming in the Dead Sea is something I guess you have to do if you are there but it is really quite yucky. We looked around Masada, a historic battle site near the Dead Sea and eventually made our way to the Sea of Galilee, visited a fabulous winery in the Golan Heights and found some accommodation at a Kibbutz Hotel – very expensive and not very good. Down the mountains and into Acco or Acre the next day, then Haifa from the land with its Bahai Gardens. By the end of all this we were toured out so made our way to Herzilya Marina where Dick and Helen had already made themselves comfortable on board Jemmaroo.

Dick and Helen left us here to fly back to Istanbul and Graeme, Bob and I set off for Limassol. It was a long uncomfortable sail and we had to moor in the Commercial Harbour as there was no room anywhere else.

We tied up around the corner from the new Rainbow Warrior, behind a “drive-on, drive-off” ship. We shifted the next day to another spot as there were much larger container ships coming in. Limassol was a great town with numerous bars and restaurants and great food and wine.

We decided to give Pathos a miss as the harbour is very small, crowded and quite shallow so we set off around 11am for Finike in Turkey, a passage of some 230 miles. We sailed most of the way but during the night the gremlins were at work and the GPS and autopilot both cut out and we had to hand steer and used our hand held GPS. The AIS system and radar were also down so we had to keep a good watch out for passing traffic.

We cleared out of Israel the next day and headed for Larnaka in South Cyprus.

The Israeli Navy contacted us to check where we were going and wished us a good trip. The weather was kind to us and we had a great sail across arriving at 4pm on Sunday 20 June. We moored on the outer harbour wall, ploughing our way through the sand as it was quite shallow. Formalities complete, we wandered into town and found a restaurant for dinner. Larnaka is a relatively new town and caters very much for the Brits, many of whom have houses there. We decided to try a spot of cruising instead of touring and made our way to an anchorage on the south east corner of the island. Going around the corner we were confronted by a large array of radio masts in an area controlled by the British Army. We were about a mile off shore when the lights, which were not turned on, starting flashing, the wind instrument went around the clock several times, the GPS went out and the autopilot cut out.

We immediately went further out to sea and eventually everything reinstated itself but it was very spooky. We anchored in a lovely bay and spent two nights there swimming and generally doing the things that cruisers do. The

The next two days were spent cleaning the boat up and dealing and talking with the Raymarine technician about the situation. Of course, it all worked when he was there and half and hour later, failed again.

We will definitely keep clear of any radio masts in the future as it would appear this will be a very expensive exercise.

It was an interesting trip but we grew weary of being tourists and having to negotiate for everything. We very much look forward to returning in August and becoming ‘just cruisers’ again.

Gay Footer

Jemmaroo moored in the Commercial Harbour in Limassol

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Louisiades Archipelago

in Papua New Guinea

Andante is a Fleming 55 Pilot House Motor Yacht 18 m long with 2 x 500 hp Cummins engines. The hull is semi displacement with a max speed of 18 knots. The comfortable passage making speed is 8–10 knots. Fuel capacity is 3800 litres that can be extended to 5400 litres with two 800 litre fuel bladders. Geoff offered any members interested in cruising across the Coral Sea to the Louisiades are welcome to call him on 0418806911

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Tess McGrath and Geoff Gowing take their Fleming 55 Pilot House Motor Yacht, Andante on a 1300 nm return passage from Cairns across the Coral Sea to the Louisiades Archipelago Papua New Guinea.

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he Louisiades Archipelago is a string of coral islands that trail off the eastern coast of Papua New Guinea out into the Solomon Sea. Most of these islands are populated by the local PNG natives who are English speaking, Christian, educated, and friendly. They lead a classic idyllic tropical island lifestyle living in coconut palm thatched single room houses on above-the-ground supports. They live at an almost subsistence level of existence. Money is not very important and on many of the islands the locals have little use for the Kina as there is no store nearby to spend it.

The locals maintain their level of subsistence by fishing and cultivating home grown produce (bananas, paw-paw, coconuts, sweet potato, taro etc) as well as keeping chickens and sometimes pigs. Some of them dive for beche de mer (in season) and dry them together with shark fins for the Asian market. But they are paid very little for all their hard work, diving and fishing, so it is not really a sustainable income, just a little bit of cash to purchase some essentials from mainland PNG whenever someone from the island can get there. At this stage they have not yet been exploited by western style tourism so it is refreshing to encounter friendly happy people who in spite of their simple living conditions do not yet aspire to our or need our western comfortable lifestyle.

Bartering with visiting yachts and the occasional power boat provides a welcome boost to their level of existence. Power boats are usually limited by their range but a passage making boat like Andante is an extended range vessel so we were able to make the whole passage without having to refuel, in fact we arrived back in Australia with over 1000 litres of fuel still on board. We took with us all sorts of goods; knives, machetes, hammers, fish hooks and line, clothing, rice, pens, pencils, books and magazines for bartering, which we exchanged for fruit and vegetables from their hillside gardens and also some handmade artifacts. On most occasions we were also able to help supplement their food supplies with fish we had caught when moving from island to island. As we had caught the fish (usually Spanish Mackerel, Tuna or King Snapper) in their own local waters we would hand them over as a gesture of goodwill, always much appreciated; the local people often returning with gifts of coconuts or bananas.

Compared with their dugout canoes and outrigger canoes with lateen sails (called ‘lakatois’), the Fleming was a source of great interest and admiration to the locals and, being men of the sea, they were always very appreciative and understood the beautiful seaworthy lines of Andante. The engine room was a source of great fascination and they were certainly very impressed with us having crossed the Coral Sea from Australia to visit them.

The 500nm passage across the Coral Sea with the prevailing 25–35 knot trade winds from the SE on the starboard beam with 2.03.5m seas was one of the more challenging passages for Andante and crew. 3.5 days at this angle had the stabilisers working at their limits most of the time. Without them the passage would have been very uncomfortable and would have required waiting for the trade winds to moderate before starting out.

As with our Bass Strait passages in SE Australia, Andante met all the conditions with ease. Many times on this particular passage we remarked on how the robust design and the wonderful seakeeping qualities maintained our already high confidence in our vessel. Both this leg and the return run back to Australia were in identical conditions. It certainly is reassuring knowing that you have a solidly built vessel designed exactly for the conditions.

Wherever we anchored in the Louisiades the swim platform soon had children on board just watching us go about our day. Except in very special circumstances, we did not allow them beyond the

transom, because of the numbers. Always well behaved though the children would often bring shells or produce with them to barter for a pencil or a book, and very canny barterers they were too, on many occasions I am sure we often paid too much for a cowry shell or a hens egg – but it was always good fun and an enjoyable encounter.

Ice from the icemaker, drinks of pure water from the water maker made from their ‘own’ local seawater were very much a novelty and a stamp on their arm with the ship’s stamp was a ‘tattoo’ to be worn with pride around their island. The kids were all very well behaved, whenever we needed space we only had to tell them that it was time for them to leave and they would go back to shore in their pint sized canoes, to return later with more shells or coconuts to trade.

On a couple of occasions we had some of the elders and their family from various villages on board for afternoon tea and in some cases an evening meal. Not surprisingly, as they have all had a mission education their manners and respectable behavior made it a pleasure and delight to have them on board as our guests.

On one occasion the island representative and his family prepared a meal for us in appreciation of our visit, subsequent friendship and support for his island. This meal we also had on board Andante.

The meal was a chicken coconut curry prepared from the slowest rooster on the island that still must have taken 3 days to catch, a fish curry with local spinach and taro root and local chilli and spices. We provided the rice because it is not grown in the Louisiades and so not readily available locally. The curry had a unique smoky flavour as a result of it being cooked in open pots over a coconut husk fueled open fire. The smoky flavour enhanced the curry and coconut flavours and made a unique gourmet meal: how good is that. You won’t get that at the Grange!

With the archipelago only 500nm from Cairns, cruising the Louisiades is a must for any sailor who aspires to takes his vessel overseas. The region is well charted and the charts are accurate although some of the ‘bommies’ appear to have moved since they were charted so, as always, care needs to be taken when near the fringing reefs. In addition there are a number of books written by other cruisers with ‘mud maps’ of various anchorages. The region is constantly bathed in 5–15 knot tropical breezes, warm tropical sunshine and often with a refreshing afternoon shower of rain. The temperature is mostly in the mid to higher 20s.

The local people are friendly and extremely hospitable, they are intelligent and they are honest. They will come out in their canoes to help guide you in through their surrounding reef if you wait outside.

Local protocol and politeness requires that you ask permission to go ashore on each island. And all things on any island are owned by somebody, so it is not there for the taking (e.g. shells, coconuts etc).

Customs and quarantine formalities are easily managed both in and out of each country. Be aware though that your vessel must be an Australian Registered Ship.

This voyage being our first venture out of Australian waters in Andante made it one of our epic voyages. As with all passages preparation is essential and we are preparing now for our next adventure.

Geoff Gowing, Andante Contact Details Australian Maritime Safety Authority - www.amsa.gov.au Australian Customs - www.customs.gov.au Relevant foreign mission in Australia - www.dfat.gov.au/embassies.html Travel Advice - www.smartraveller.gov.au Government Health Authorities - www.health.gov.au Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service - www.aqis.gov.au List of foreign embassies and high commissions, consulates, multilateral missions and representative offices in Australia – www.dfat.gov.au emabssies.html 23

club NEWS NEW MEMBERS

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ver the last three months the following people have joined the Club. Please make them welcome.

John Baker Vincent Barry Nicholas Bice Joris Broeders Betty Clark Geraldine Cox Aaron Draxler Makis Ellinas Kay Godfrey Ashley Halliday

Rod Herbert Mark Jenkinson Bernard Kasza Brittany King Kevin Mann Alex Morrison Robert Nichols John O’Connell Leon Perre

Laura Petre Christopher Russell Bruce Tasker Flavia Tischendorf Desmond Treloar Adrian Wait Douglas Watson

CYCSA Annual Report for 2009/10 published 18 August

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24

BOAT YARDS in CHINA Don and Anja Richards take up the opportunity to look at various boats under construction during their visit to two boat yards in China.

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ver the years Don and I have been fortunate to have been invited on board many cruising boats during our travels, as well as checking out boats at numerous boat shows.

However, despite seeing so many lovely glamorous boats, it was the boats we recently saw in the process of being built that most held my attention. We had taken Gary Zheng up on his offer to visit the Seahorse Marine factories, a family business, and were not disappointed.

Although it rained the whole time we were there, the uncharacteristic downpours did nothing to dampen our spirits, instead helping to reduce the temperatures during the hottest part of the year in Zhuhai, China. Gary began our tour at the factory where Seahorse Marine manufacture their fibreglass boats – both the 52’ displacement trawler and motor sailer vessels. We saw a number of boats in various stages of construction with each one quite different.

The plant was small enough to be able to comfortably provide personal service and custom products at very reasonable costs unlike the larger plants with higher turnover rates and throughput where the same flexibility seems to result in much greater costs.

After enjoying some of the local culture, visiting markets, orchards and some of Gary’s favourite eating spots, we met the rest of the family and were shown over the steel factory. Fido, who manages the steel factory, showed us over the infrastructure for the diesel ducks

382 and 462, the Oceaneer 55 and a new Coot 35. I really enjoyed seeing just exactly how the major boat components and bulkheads were constructed. It certainly filled me with confidence.

It was lucky Don had made sure I realised we were not in the market for a steel boat as I just loved the space on the diesel duck 462 and would otherwise have given her serious consideration.

Gary, Fido, Stella and Bill made us feel very welcome and we enjoyed our introduction to China: we would certainly like to return to explore there further. Real estate development seems to be going along in leaps and bounds with skyscrapers abounding where just a few years ago only a simple fishing village could be found. We saw ships already converging to begin construction on a 29 kilometre long super bridge linking Hong Kong, Macau and the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai, estimated to cost $A4.5 billion.

During our Hong Kong stopover on our way home, central park fills with tai chi moves at first light, the skyscrapers reflect the first rays over the harbour as the low clouds clear and Victoria Peak pops out a little before we take the cable car to the top and retrace our steps from our honeymoon 30 years earlier. Just then I watch as a trawler turns in little more than her length and reflect on what travelling with this sort of vessel must be like.

Anja Richards

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cruising Association Cruising Association Update

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would like to thank Mark Charlesworth and his company Charlesworth Nuts for their sponsorship of the Cruising Association for which we are very grateful.

This past year has been another busy and enjoyable one for the Cruising Association and we have been fortunate to gain more new members. The change to having our barbecue get-togethers once a month on the second Saturday has been very successful and we look forward to them commencing again on 10 September and catching up with everyone.

During this last year we have decided to change our direction a little and achieve some long lasting benefits for Club Members. They are: • In conjunction with the Management committee and the other associations to promote and contribute to the building of a barbecue and pergola facility at Port Vincent.

• To seek approval and lay some more CYC moorings for the benefit of all members. We have recently received approval to place some at Edithburgh which we hope to achieve later this year.

• To enter more cruising information on the Club website which is an ongoing project.

• To co-operate more with the other associations for the benefit of the Club and members.

I believe we have made a successful beginning in all of these and we look forward to the future.

Thank you to the Cruising Association committee, both past and present, and the cruising members, we look forward to another successful year. We have just had our annual general meeting and the following people are on the new committee: John Sibly Chair Keith Degenhardt Deputy Rob Perrin Secretary/Treasurer Terry Denham Committee Roger Flint Marty Heffernan Len Stevens John Sibly, Chairman

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effluent disposal from boats in SA There is something very incongruous about us cruising around coastal seas for the sheer natural beauty of it and, all the while, leaving a trail of our own waste water.

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part from the immediate risks to human health, how will we explain it to future generations when nutrient build up causes algal and jelly fish blooms, robbing them of the pleasures we enjoy.

Some people may say that the waste is natural and it eventually breaks down in the great expanse of the oceans – so what is the problem? The problem is that the amount of bacterial pollution from one weekend boater’s discharge of untreated sewage is equal to the bacterial pollution resulting from treated sewage of 10,000 people over the same weekend!(1) We do not have the right to continue doing this.

Fortunately for CYCSA members who have holding tanks on their boat, there is a very simple solution: storing the waste in the holding tank and emptying it at the vacuum effluent disposal facility at Marina West. This single action will eliminate a large proportion of marine pollution we are responsible for.

At a Glance It’s a messy subject but our Club is leading the way by making it simple for us. The CYCSA has a simple vacuum effluent disposal facility to enable you to empty the holding tank on your boat (see Figure 1). It is located on the seaward jetty of Marina West. This is the most socially acceptable way to dispose of waste water (“black water”) from the head on your boat. It is free and we should all use it! You may need to buy a cam fitting for your deck outlet for less than $10 (see Figure 2).

If you are away from the marina for an extended period and need to dispose of black water at sea, South Australian Environment Protection Agency regulations state you must do so more than three miles from shore or any aquaculture facility. The effluent must pass through a macerator (not just a pump). While not required by law, it’s a good idea to add a chemical sanitiser to the holding tank and let it work for an hour or so before discharging the black water.

Figure 1. The CYCSA vacuum effluent facility at Marina West

Disposal of “grey water” (from showers and sinks) is not permitted unless your boat is more than one mile from shore or three miles from an aquaculture lease and, especially, not in the marina.

Community expectations demand that these rules are only going to get tougher in future. The Murray River is now a zero effluent zone. Standards for new boats require, or soon will require, holding tanks for black and grey waters to be included in all new boats. New marinas must also install effluent disposal facilities.

Guidelines and Regulations For marine and inland waters in South Australia the key document is the EPA Code of Practice for vessel and facility management (marine and inland waters), 2008(2). This document outlines what must be done and what is recommended to be done by marina operators and boat owners to prevent pollution due to sewage, refuelling, boat cleaning, anti fouling, sanding, painting, etc.

Figure 2. The camlock pumpout coupling

It is the Code of Practice that sets the rules. The Code contains “required outcomes” that are legally enforceable by the EPA. To assist boat owners to comply with the Code of Practice, the South Australian EPA has produced a guideline called Managing vessel wastewater for black and/or grey water, 2008(3).

Black water is any waste from a toilet. Here are the rules for black water, copied directly from the Code:

Figure 3. The pumpout hose connected to a deck fitting via the camlock coupling

Marine waters vessel operators must: 1. Only discharge untreated black water provided: a. the vessel is underway on marine waters b. the vessel is more than three nautical miles from the nearest land, an aquaculture lease or people in the water c. black water has been macerated into a fine slurry. Pump valves on hand or electric pumps on a marine head are not considered as macerators.

2. Not use formaldehyde based chemical treatments as a sanitising agent for toilets.

The Code of Practice also contains a number of recommended practices, which in due course may become required outcomes. Some of the most significant of these are: continued over page...

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effluent disposal from boats in SA ...continued from over page

Marine waters vessel operators should (recommended practices): • use land-based amenity facilities • retain black water on board the vessel for disposal into a land-based wastewater collection facility • install an onboard wastewater treatment system that surpasses the discharge standards outlined in this code to reduce even further the impacts on the marine environment.

Grey water is waste water that has been used for washing, laundering, bathing or showering. The Code of Practice states that grey water is less of a risk to human health than black water. The rules for grey water are: Marine waters vessel operators must: Only discharge untreated grey water provided that: • the vessel is more than one nautical mile from the nearest land or people in the water • the vessel is three nautical miles from the nearest aquaculture lease • there are no visible solids.

All the information above applies to untreated sewage as defined by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. The authority has also defined three grades of treated sewage for commercial shipping. Type C treated sewage is the lowest level of treatment and consists only of sanitising the waste water to kill bacteria in it prior to discharge.

In a potential sign of things to come, the Great Barrier Reef Authority has made it mandatory for boats within its jurisdiction to only discharge treated sewage. See On Board Waste Water Treatment Systems below.

Black Water Disposal As mentioned in the introduction, for boats with a holding tank this is not a problem if you are close to a waste collection facility, such as the one at Marina West. Look for the green coiled hose attached to a hydrant on the seaward dock (Figure 1).

Most boats will have a hose connecting the bottom of the holding tank to a deck fitting with a screw cap. You will need to by a Camlock Pumpout Coupling that screws in to the deck fitting and has a “cam” connection at the other end (Figure 2).

This cam fitting locks neatly into the hose of the vacuum collection system (Figure 3). Then simply turn the tap on the shore facility that activates the vacuum. It is about as simple and mess free as you can get! Boating suppliers have plastic Camlock Couplings for about $10 and brass fittings for around $35.

Editor’s Note: For more detail see the full article in Cruising Notes on the Club web site.

Unfortunately, the one weakness of this solution to pollution of South Australia’s marine waters is the lack of collection facilities at ports used by recreational vessels. At the time of writing the only other facility like the one at Marina West is at the new Cape Jaffa Marina. The facility at Wirrina is currently out of service and the Port Lincoln facility is only for commercial vessels with fresh water systems. Hopefully, like the system of thirteen collection points along the Murray River, there will soon be more collection points at popular points around the Gulfs - a worthwhile investment of boating licence fees!

Consequently, if you are on an extended cruise, there is no other option than to dispose of the 28

holding tank contents at sea according to the regulations previously mentioned.

If your boat does not have a holding tank, the only solution is to “hold on” until you are three miles out!

Hopefully this article will set you to thinking about installing a holding tank. In response to the increasing stringency of waste water disposal regulations, commercial suppliers are offering a range of solutions, including custom designed tanks to fit your boat.

It is likely that at some stage in the future we will be required to carry out primary treatment to kill the micro-organisms in black water before it is discharged from the holding tank. This is usually done with a chemical treatment, as long as the chemical used is not itself toxic and the amount used is sufficient to treat the sewage but not kill everything else in proximity to your boat when you discharge.

There are several commercially available chemical treatments for this purpose, but note that some treatments only clean the system and do not kill the bacteria. A commonly available product is Portasol (glutaraldehyde plus quarternary ammonium compound).

Grey Water Disposal Very few recreational boats on South Australian marine waters have holding tanks for grey water. That means when we are anchored overnight in a beautiful bay somewhere close to shore (not in the marina!) the water from your washing up goes straight out the side. Fortunately the EPA guidelines, while clearly not permitting this, do acknowledge that grey water is a much less significant cause of pollution than black water. Perhaps we should be holding the water in the sink until far enough out to sea.

On Board Waste Water Treatment Systems Commercial boats have on-board systems to hold and treat both grey and black water prior to discharge.

This is an area for professional water treatment engineers. However, the cost and effectiveness of these systems is improving and they are now installed in many new recreational boats, particularly in Queensland where the Great Barrier Reef Authority requires primary treatment of sewage prior to discharge.

A Brisbane based company, Nautical Waste Solutions, produces a range of Aqua-san marine toilet systems.

These systems use electrolysis of sea water to make chlorine which is then used to treat the contents of the tanks prior to discharge. Another Brisbane based company, Sani Loo, also produces a range of systems.

References (1) Using Your Head to Help Protect Our Aquatic Resources. United States Environment Protection Agency. www.epa.gov/owow/oceans/regulatory/ vessel_sewage/vsdpflyer.pdf (2) Code of Practice for vessel and Facility management (marine and inland waters). Environment Protection Agency South Australia (September 2008) www.epa.sa.gov.au/xstd_files/Water/Code%20of%20 practice/vessels.pdf (3) Managing vessel wastewater for black and/or grey water. EPA Guideline 709/07 (October 2008) www. epa.sa.gov.au/documents.php?cat=9&subcat=26&q=& x=13&y=10 Len Stephens, Equanimity

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Can to create an excellent diving 39. The place promenade aboard thelocation Queen Mary 2 41.create Looksan after you on diving a cruise 40. Can excellent location 41. Looks after you on a cruise

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1. The cruise boats have least one 1. The bestbest cruise boats have at at least one 2. Global positioning system 2. Global positioning system 3. Hire a boat 3. Hire a boat 4.

Sail far enough south to encounter this 4. Sail far enough south to encounter this 5. Type of canoe to paddle on holidays 5. Type of canoe paddle on 6. Deep water to anchorage onholidays KI, --- Bay 6. Deep water anchorage on --- Bay ------7. True North offers luxury KI, adventure 7. True offers luxury adventure 10. A North professionally crewed yacht is a------real -----10. A professionally crewed 11.

Well-liked charter boatyacht is a real -----11. Well-liked charter boatLincoln ---15. Pt Lincoln Marina, 15. Pt Marina,need Lincoln ---17.Lincoln What yachties for passage making 17. What yachties need for passage making 18. Hiring without a crew 18. Hiring without crewhome on board 20. Home awayafrom 20. Home away home on board 21. Ideal spotfrom for summer holiday 21. Ideal spotfishers for summer 22. What mustn’tholiday forget 22. What fishers 27. Water busmustn’t or waterforget taxi in Venice 28. Start foror Whitsunday 27. Water bus water taxi charters, in Venice------ Beach 29. Sometimes the only way to get ashore 28. Start for Whitsunday charters, -----Beach 30. Means ofthe getting on canal trip 29. Sometimes only around way to ashore get ashore 31. Remember to ---your ashore holiday on with traveltrip agent 30. Means of getting around canal 32. Being ontoholidays is holiday time to ----31. Remember ---- your with travel agent 33. Marine radio is time to ----32. Being on holidays 34.

Trip or cruise 33. Marine radio 34.toTrip or cruise Crossword 6 Answers crossword that appeared in Groundswell May 2010 1

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Answers to appear in the next edition of Groundswell.

Puzzle question and answer contributions are welcome from readers. Please send to Groundswell editors via the Club office, email reception@cycsa. com.au

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1. Spinnaker [KITE] 2. Pier [DOCK] 3. Watermaker [DESALINATOR] 4. Direction toward which current is flowing [SET]

FOR SALE Marina East

8 metre twin: C05, C09, F01, F02 10 metre single: A02, A07, F07 10 metre twin: A09, F04, F10, F13, F18 12 metre single: E11, E33 12 metre twin: E13 13 metre single:C18, D01 14 metre single: A46, C28 15 metre single: B26, B31, B35, B36

Marina West

15 metre single: M08 17 metre single: J05, J14, J18 20 metre single: K06

Hardstanding Berths

 9 metre: 11, 18, 25, 37, 51, 52, 54, 71,94 10 metre: 33, 133, 137, 140, 144, 146, 147 12 metre: 111, 115, 127

from $62,000 from $90,000 from $67,500 from $110,000 $90,000 from $130,000 from $170,000 from $175,000 $155,000 from $150,000 $240,000 from $6,500 from $5,000 from $8,000

FOR LEASE Marina East Berths

8 metre twin: C09, F02 10 metre twin: F14 12 metre single: D12, E11 (D02 available for sublease 3 months from July 10, E20 available for sublease) 12 metre twin: E14 13 metre single: D01* 14 metre single: C26 15 metre single: B15, B35 16 metre single: B20 (B17 available for sublease)

Marina West Berths

Note: All berths in Marina West development are single berths 12 metre: M05 15 metre: M08 17 metre: J04, J08, J10, J13, J14, J18, J19, J20 20 metre: K01, K02, K05, K06, K07, K08 22 metre: K15, K18 25 metre: M14 30 metre: K16

Hardstanding Berths

9 metre: 09, 21, 24, 43, 50, 51, 52, 54, 84, 89 10 metre: 33, 34, 130, 133, 137, 139, 140, 141, 147, 150 12 metre: 124 (available June 2010)

Berths for sale or lease For up-to-date information on all sales and leasing, log on to the Club website www.cycsa.com.au or contact Jenny Krogdahl for sales or Laura Cowley for leasing at the CYCSA office on 8248 4222.

As per the Marina Berth Agreement, a 10% commission is payable by the vendor on all berth sales. As of 22 October 2007 Board meeting - If you are selling your berth and buying a berth of equal or greater value then your berth sale may be subject to a 5% commission payable to the Club (in lieu of 10%). This will be at the discretion of Management. The sale and purchase must be effected on the same day.

PORT VINCENT For berth leasing at Port Vincent please contact Rob Marner (Port Vincent Marina Manager) on 0414 611 110.

CYCSA Port Vincent leasing rates For berth leasing overnight, weekly and during off-peak times, the Club will lease out berths with the owners agreement, at the owner’s rates below.

10mt 12m 14ms 15ms 18ms 20ms 22ms 24ms 30ms

O/night

$25 $30 $40 $45 $55 $60 $65 $70 $80

FOR SALE Port Vincent Berths

Weekly

$125 $150 $200 $225 $275 $300 $325 $350 $400

12mt: C60 12ms: B26, C48, C68 14ms: D70, D71, D73, D78 15ms: D83, D85, D86, D87, D89 20ms: A12, B35 (*also for sale)

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Off-peak weekly $60 $80 $110 $125 $145 $160 $175 $190 $200

$42,000 from $50,000 from $65,000 from $65,000 $200,000

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