Two Men in a Boat "Bass Straight Crossing"

[Adrian Dale]

That's what I am hoping John, but the island hop would be a great trip, plenty of planning time there and I will stay in touch with the thought and join in the fun in 2021... Should still be kicking!!

AJ

[Rob Ripley]

Interesting discussion re the boat type/size for a Bass Straight crossing -
I would think the hull (length/hog etc) should be matched to the wave or swell pattern that Bass Straight is known for.
I know of an attempt to come down the Queensland coast into a swell where the propellor was often out of the water, excessive free running eventually did the motor in !

[Adrian Dale]

That is a very good point. on the Round Bruny trip with a 14ft Dingy the prop stayed submerged due to the ratio of the swells v length, however as boat length goes out the bow and stern movements are increased. The boat will be too stiff for hog and Sag to have effect but pitching over the long length will rise the stern, conversely it will also require more buoyance to avoid pooping. Having said that the swells in the Bass Strait will be in the 10's of meters long so I can't see them causing too much problem. Steep wave patterns superimposed onto and across the swells we be a different matter. To get the speed up though we must go long.

AJ

[Niander101]

Looking fwd to the video..is this gunna be island hopping?
Brave in an open boat

[Horsley-Anarak]

Looking fwd to the video..is this gunna be island hopping?
Brave in an open boat

There is a great book written by Frank Dye, Whose trips in an open Wayfarer dinghy will take some beating.

Well worth the read

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ocean-Crossing- ... =Frank+Dye



http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/j ... us-journey.

H-A

[Niander101]

As the Guardian sums it up....

Sailing into hell: two men, a dinghy and a Seagull[ok I added that bit]
and one of the luckiest escapes ever !

In July 1964, two men set off in a dinghy to sail from Scotland to Norway. Fifty years on, Bill Brockbank tells Charlie English how he and Frank Dye, 'the madman of the Atlantic', capsized four times, braved gale force winds and survived to tell the incredible tale of their 'holiday' on the high seas

BE good it they made the movie!

[Niander101]

BTW I did buy the book..worth a fiver

[Horsley-Anarak]

BTW I did buy the book..worth a fiver

Enjoy, the guy must have had a screw loose to try the trips he did.

But it does prove that a small boat with adequate boyancy, can be swamped and still carry on.

If you plan to build a boat Adrian, make sure there is plenty of built in boyancy, then wear a dry suit and you will have no problems.

H-A

P.S. EPIRB in your pocket might be a good idea.

[Adrian Dale]

It will be a great armchair read!!

Our effort will be escorted so not very dangerous really in comparison with those hardy soles!!!. We will have full Australian required Nav lights, radar reflector and safety gear that includes epirb, we, will also have personal epirbs attached to our life jackets.
Australian rules re buoyancy require the boat (There are length restriction) to remain buoyancy with rated load on board. But for older boats I am not sure, of course a wooden dingy will have natural buoyancy. Guess I need to re-read the up to date rules on this.

Re the dry suit or emersion suit; we probably won't go that far good layering for warmth and ocean wet weather gear will be sufficient.

Island hopping, that will be for a different trip in the future, it is rather appealing though as many of the islands I have not visited.

AJ

[Rob Ripley]

Interesting you say that a wooden boat a natural buoyancy, can I suggest you test that statement.

[Adrian Dale]

I have Rob, many times over the years with dinghies, to take up the seams after a layup we would flood them and leave on a mooring for a few days for the planks to swell.
Of course these were simple wooden dinghies with no engines or metal parts. If left for too long the wood will saturate and of course they will eventually sink. It also depends on the wood, Ebony, Oak and African Mahogany and the like have an sg of 1 or greater but generally the Tasmania timbers used in boat building such as Huon pine and King Billy are quite buoyant.
This buoyance is taken into consideration when calculating the additional buoyancy that is required by AMSA as the minimum floatation that must be added to a boat. AJ