Reef Knot, our 40ft Bruce Roberts sloop, became a part of our seafaring adventures over 12 months ago when we acquired her in Yamba nsw. We sailed her down the east coast of Australia, bringing her back to our home club, the Western Beach Boat Club, located in Geelong, Victoria.
For the past six months, we have been preparing Reef Knot for a voyage across Bass Strait and exploring the beautiful east coast of Tasmania. In late December 2023, we said goodbye to Geelong and set sail for the challenges and delights of Bass Strait and Flinders Island.
Navigating the mist-shrouded waters of Port Phillip Heads around midday, our crossing of Bass Strait commenced in challenging conditions. The fog, accompanied by sea mist, reduced visibility, creating a nerve-wracking atmosphere, particularly given some boats, including commercial ones, chose not to activate their AIS. Despite this obstacle, we safely traversed the Heads in a light southerly breeze.
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For this journey we decided to enlist the expertise of meteorologist Met Bob for passage planning proved invaluable. Although seasoned sailors familiar with applications like predict wind, having a professional guide was reassuring, especially as we prefer to sail with the wind behind us or in lighter conditions.
Following Bob’s suggested route, we sailed southeast for the first 12 hours. As promised, the westerly breeze emerged the next morning, prompting us to adjust our course towards Prime Seal Island just to the west of Flinders Island. The wind intensified throughout the day, reaching averages of 30 knots with gusts up to 35 with seas ranging between 3-4 meters with the occasional 6m waves. Reef Knot, true to her seaworthiness, adeptly handled the challenging conditions. Upon reaching Prime Seal, we secured a mooring provided by Tasman Ports, marking the successful completion of this leg of our journey.
