ZEEHAN IN THE WHITSUNDAY ISLANDS

John Maddox

(John is Port Officer for Sydney and has recently become Rear Commodore Australia.)

The Whitsundays, a group of islands north of Mackay in Queensland, Australia, form a cruising ground worth seeing. I have cruised the West Indies, Greek islands and the Turkish coast, and the Whitsundays should be enjoyed for their natural unspoilt beauty and great sailing conditions. There are between fifty and seventy islands in total -- depending on where you draw the line between a large rock and a small island -- spread between Hayman Island in the north and St Bees Island in the south. The correct name for the area is the Cumberland Islands, which include the Linderman and Sir James Smith groups as well as the Whitsundays. Captain James Cook named the group when he passed through on Whit Sunday 1770, on his voyage of discovery.

The best time of year to visit this magnificent area is from May to November, for the following reasons:

a) The heat is less in the Southern Hemisphere winter;

b) The cyclones that can occur do so in the period December to April;

c) the South East Trades blow from May to October -- stronger from June to September;

d) the wet season is November to March, the Southern Hemisphere summer.

Hamilton Island has a major airport with direct flights from Sydney and the capacity for international jets, and also a grand (albeit expensive) marina. Tourist facilities are particularly directed towards the Japanese.

Mark and Pel Fesq had taken Zeehan north from Sydney to Hamilton Island in May 1992. She is a 45ft cutter, designed by Alan Payne, which Mark and Pel inherited from their father William (Bill) Fesq (OCC) after his sad death a few years ago. Payne also designed the multi-chine steel 39 footer Koonya, on which Bill did his qualifying cruise from Sydney to Noumea, New Caledonia, in 1967 and Gretel, Australia's 1962 challenger for the America's Cup.

Zeehan is similar to the OCC's `Ideal Cruising Yacht' except that she has a centre cockpit and is of composite construction -- steel hull but timber deck, cabin trunk and deckhouse. The centre cockpit has the advantage of allowing for an aft cabin with its own heads. On the deck above is stowed the folding dinghy (see photo), a great idea if there is enough space -- and height -- for it on deck. The dinghy is lifted into the water still folded, using the boom and topping lift, and the bow folded out once afloat. Back below a passage to starboard between the engine and the deep freeze leads to the main saloon, with the navigation area to starboard and the galley to port. Each side of the table there are settee and pilot berths. Further forward there is another heads and shower to port with a locker to starboard, and finally the fo'c's'le with a V-berth.

Mark had to meet French business associates at his vineyard in Tasmania, so he was to meet us at Hamilton on Monday 30th December 1992, after we had watered and provisioned at Abel Point on the mainland. In addition to Mark the crew consisted of Pel Fesq, Huon Hooke, Ian Black and myself. Ian had financial interests on Hamilton Island -- the dinghy hire business for tourists fishing around the island -- so met Pel, Huon and me at the airport after our two-hour flight from Sydney. We were to provision at Abel Point because prices are about 30 percent cheaper on the mainland; also the island water is not as good quality as on the mainland.

We wanted a northerly wind to take us south, but not for the `shopping trip' to Abel Point. We left at 1500, but what should have been a two-hour passage turned into four hours and it was dark when we arrived. The port was so full that we had to spend an uncomfortable night at anchor just outside the entrance. In the morning we came alongside a wharf reserved for charter yachts, and while Pel and Huon went to the supermarket Ian and I filled the water tanks. The wind was with us as we returned to Hamilton Island to pick up Mark.

The next day we left Hamilton Island, stopping at St Bees and Keswick Islands as the wind was light. We anchored in a bay in Egremont Passage on the west side of St Bees Island -- it's an unforgettable experience to lie at anchor in an ideal bay with good company, a great fish meal, the best wine and freshly brewed coffee. Huon is a journalist specialising in wine appreciation, and with Mark taking over the family wine business there were naturally some beautiful whites and reds in the bilges (being steel there was plenty of room down there).

The northerly wind held for five days after we left Keswick, until the following Monday when we reached Pittwater, seventeen miles north of Sydney. It kept in at 15 to 20 knots, helped by the south-going East Australian Current which runs at up to 4 knots. Mark had a few ports, such as Gladstone, in mind in case of a `screaming southerly' since it was definitely to be a cruise down to Sydney rather than a race. He was a good skipper and great to sail with, his only curses being directed towards the satnav and any other bits of electronic or mechanical equipment not performing as they should.

The watch system ran with four watches of two hours each and six hours off between watches. Mark (who navigated) and Pel (who cooked) shared a watch. Mark had said "If there's anyone else who can cook a decent meal I'll re-arrange the watch system", but no-one volunteered! The only problem was that, without dog watches, you're on at the same time each day. The self-steering, an electronic Coursemaster, worked well but drained the batteries, however with Zeehan's 70 hp Ford diesel (a Lees conversion) there was plenty of generating power. While I'm all for self-steering on ocean passages, watches must be kept in coastal waters -- and the argument is that if you're on watch you might as well steer!

Pat Pocock asked me recently "Would you ever sail by yourself?". My answer was "Not if I can help it!". To each his own, and without denigrating the triumphs of singlehanders I personally find that the `camaraderie' of sailing with others, particularly OCC members, is one of the great joys of cruising.

I strongly urge members who are circumnavigating to plan on entering the Whitsunday Islands in April or May and heading north. Landfall from New Zealand, Vanuatu or New Caledonia can be made at any major port on the Queensland coast from Brisbane northwards -- Mooloolaba, Bundaberg (of rum fame), Gladstone or Mackay. In addition to St Bees and Keswick my recommendation of islands to cruise are Scawfell, Goldsmith, Dent, Cid Harbour and Nara Inlet. Whitehaven Bay is a jewel, with a long unspoiled beach. Hamilton Island should be avoided except to take advantage of the airport for crew changes etc, and other expensive tourist resort islands are Linderman, Long, South Molle, Hayman and Daydream. Shute Harbour and Abel Point on the mainland are the best places for fuel, water and stores, with Abel Point is to be preferred since Shute Harbour is the centre for the charter yachts and tourist fleets.