tophatyachts.com

Here we are flying the flag at Queenscliff Cruising Yacht Club!

We had a few days off so sailed down to Geelong and moored at Royal Geelong Yacht Club overnight. It was a quick trip down from Brighton with sheets sprung.

Sailed to Portarlington next day and dropped the pick for the night, the new LED anchor light a boon for the battery. Next morning we motored over to the pier and bought a generous kilo of mussels from the Musell Lady for a princely sum of $5 with a big lump of ice thrown in.

Off to Queenscliff then with just the number 3 up and no main making 5 knots in the brisk conditions.
Rounding the corner at St Leonards the tacking was tough into 20 knots plus and a rising chop so we motored the next 3 miles up the channel with the mighty 6hp doing its duty manfully.
A nice meal of moules et provence with a drop of red in the QCYC club house and a sleep you can only get on a boat!

We have been taking it easy the last couple of days on the island. Scrubbed the hull and read a book.
Heading home on a nice reach (I hope!) tomorrow.

Port Phillip is a big place (about 35 times the size of Sydney Harbour) and a great place to spend a few days. We log about 650 miles each year including racing and the odd excursion into Bass Straight.

The Top Hat is a brilliant light weather boat and loves flat water but can take a beating with the Port Phillip chop and the not-to-be-underestimated Bass Stait and get you home with the feeling that you really did buy the right boat.

All the best,

Tom and Alison

Tales

Tom & Alison,

I am very happy to see that Top Hat Burgee Flying, shouldn't have been at the head?

Phillip
SEAKA

Hi Phillip,

I’m afraid that Flag Etiquette precludes always putting one’s favourite at the top!

Forgot to mention ‘Lionheart’ was tied up behind us at Queenscliff. One of my mates bought her a couple of months ago.

Cheers,
Tom

Sorry folks,

See

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Mart ... avigations

Cheers,

Tom

I came around to Port Phillip a few weeks back and was waiting a few miles out for slack water at 9pm when I watched a couple of other yachts make it in okay ( must have been Melb to Devenport boys or something) I made the mistake of coming through after them. The rip on an ebb with a 6ft SW swell and I swear it was further to the trough of the wave than to the bow the way they were standing up, and it took an hour to get through the 50m of washing machine. Not to mention drifting from Losdale wall across to corsair in front of 2 ships. I was doing all I could just to stop her from broaching. Lesson learned and undies changed I spent the next couple of days off Rosebud then some 30kt Northerlys were coming so I made a run home to Yaringa. Three reefs in the main and a hanky on the front I was still doing over 7knts in Bass strait at 20 to 30 degrees. She's a good sea boat and I love her to bits, I did want a Walker H28 but now I'm so glad to be a Top Hat owner.

Rob, sounds like a pretty hairy Rip experience.

I'm interested to know which channel you were using - usually the Four Fingers West is much better than the shipping channels.

I've been through about 6 or 7 times, and the only real bumpy ride was on the way out, a bit late into the ebb, also into a SW swell. I used the West shipping channel, as it was 4.30am and dark and the leads were easier to see than FFW. We got the nose up in the air a few times as the current pushed us in to the swells, but went through ok (but of course we had the current plus diesel in our favour unlike you).

My copy of the ORC Rip Guide, and the relevant pages from "Victoria's Waterways" have earned their keep manifold. The latter has been out of print for many years, but is a wonderful resource. Anyone wanting copies of parts, just let me know I already have the pages on traversing the Rip as pdf's which I can email, and it has excellent detailed coverage of the Bass Strait islands. Somebody ought to publish it again.

Cheers, lockie

I entered on the west side outside the shipping lanes, I was going to go in over the top of lonsdale wall. I have done a lot of diving there and I know theres an easy 10m over the top of the wall but once I got caught up in the rip I drfted across the shipping lanes to the east side, I couldn't alter course or I would have broached.

I've been through heaps of times but this was the first time under sail. I was sitting 5 miles out waiting for slack water when I saw a couple of other yachts go in I thought it must have been okay. They went in on the east side and they were much larger yachts. (melb to Devonport boys I think)

I left on slack water and it was a piece of cake. Although the wind in the paddock was getting up to 30kts and made for a fast ride home.

I know it's an old thread, but another suggestion for the Rip-inclined amongst us is to take the ORCV's RIp Tour, which they run a couple of times a year. We did it recently and it was very enjoyable and infomrative. They take you all over the Rip in a very large commercial motor boat and the commentator points out all the leads and tells you about what happens out there. You also get a copy of their "Rip Guide".

One of the scenario's he described was exactly what happened to Rob.

Cheers, Graeme

+1 on the rip tour, I did it after my adventure and found it worthwhile getting all the leads from a stable platform. Also go a great laminated chart for navigating the magic mile.