For those on the Hawkesbury - where are you cruising?

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bogranjac1

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Joined
Jul 6, 2014
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Location
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If you are planning a few days cruising the Hawkesbury river this easter where would you go to avoid most of the rabbits.
Definitely NOT to Refuge or American bay as I have witnessed the hoonish behavior there.
 
Sorry I missed your post, I suppose the best thing now is to ask where you went.
Some of my neighbours would rather stay on the marina than Refuge or Americas Bay when it is busy.
Too late, but I`d have suggested heading towards Bobbin Head (the old Halvorsen hire base), Waratah, Houseboat and Cotton Bays are nice and have anchoring space near the NPWS moorings, or towards "gaston territory" at Berowra Waters, where we secured a very nice spot over the Australia Day weekend.
 
Hi BruceK,
It would have been grand to catchup with you on the water over Easter.
For us, we just more or less moved between Porto Bay - Dangar Island - The Tanks over Easter depending on the conditions. Went up into Porto Bay for the evenings as it is very protected from the wash of the big boats patrolling the river. Very few boaters venture into Porto.

I have not managed to catch Gaston yet - I missed him earlier when we spent 3 days around Berowra, however I did see his craft 'Barranjoey' .
The mobile just refused to work in those steep little bays so when I was there just impossible to contact anyone.

I am around Brooklyn ATM and going to send you a P.M. with my mobile number. I would like ask you to if crossing over Broken Bay to the north side is worthwhile for a look and about anchoring.
Also have you looked about Middle Harbour- upriver looks nice on google earth with the natural bush for cruising and anchoring.
regards Brett
 
Hi Brett,

I'm no expert on the area but we went up to Hardy's Bay and all the way to Gosford when we took our boat from Sydney to Brisbane. Spent a very enjoyable week in there, Cheers Brett
 
We moor at Pretty Beach, which is the first set of moorings after you go around Half Tide Rocks.
There are visitors' moorings in Hardy's Bay, some nice cafes etc.
You can keep going under Rip Bridge right up into Brisbane Water and Gosford.
Also, in Broken Bay, on the northern side is Maitland Bay which is a delightful day stop in the right conditions. ( NE winds, low sea). Watch the entrance reefs.
If you are entering Brisbane Water, do so on the top half of a rising tide. The channel is quite narrow at present but safe enough with care. Give the ferry room in the channel, especially near Lobster Beach. Watch leeway when rounding Half Tide Rocks.
We live at Pretty Beach, will be back there after the 15th.

Cheers,
Richard.
 
Hi Brett.
We are currently on our boat on our mooring in Middle Harbour. Both Bantry and Sugarloaf have good moorings surrounded by national park. Depending on wind direction both offer shelter.
If you are trailering your boat down there is a ramp on the Roseville river or at Tunks Park in Cammeray both of which give you access to Middle harbour. you do need to be aware of opening times for the Spit Bridge to access the main harbour from here.
Would love to catch up if that would work for you.
Regard

John
 
Brett,good information on the northern shores of Broken Bay and where it leads. Patonga is worth a visit,nice village, pub,fish and chips,etc,but exposed anchoring.
We once anchored in company at Lobster Beach,someone described it as like having coffee at an outdoor cafe on busy 4 lane traffic choked Parramatta Rd in western Sydney. Continue on, it should be worthwhile.
Middle Harbour,around Sugarloaf Bay,is beautiful and well worth exploring.Further up is Bantry Bay with old munitions storage and a number of of NPWS free moorings. Feels remote despite being so close to suburbia.
Mobile phones work very badly in the BB area,as you discovered.
 
Rebel said:
Hi Brett.
We are currently on our boat on our mooring in Middle Harbour. Both Bantry and Sugarloaf have good moorings surrounded by national park. Depending on wind direction both offer shelter.
If you are trailering your boat down there is a ramp on the Roseville river or at Tunks Park in Cammeray both of which give you access to Middle harbour. you do need to be aware of opening times for the Spit Bridge to access the main harbour from here.
Would love to catch up if that would work for you.
Regard

John
Click to expand...

Hey John,
Awesome to get ur message and you are in Sydney too..........we are both a long way from were we met in Perth.
Early next week I am going to go over to the north side of Broken Bay for maybe a week for a look about.
Regarding middle harbor,I looked at the boat ramps situation.....Roseville is in in the Nat. Park so the fees rules that one out, however Tunks may be an option as some comments on google say it's free parking......will have to look more deeply into that. Also it would entail a very early morning drive to avoid this hideous traffic (just a country Perth boy's opinion).

For how long will you be in middle harbour? weeks ?
regards
Brett
 
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BruceK
Got back to Porto bay today after spending a few days in Mooney2 Creek. No mobile there, kinda nice.
We went back there just to listen to those gloriously crystal clear calls of the Bellbird. We anchored at the some what inappropriately named 'pig farm '. Regards brett
A lovely spot
 
Hi Brett.
We are not tied to a time frame as I am refurbishing the shower and head in the aft cabin at the moment and there is still a bit of work to do on that. At the moment we are at anchor in Blackwattle Bay near the Fish Markets and will be going to the Wooden Boat Festival over the next couple of days. In terms of Tunks in Cammeray there is indeed free trailer and car parking. The weekends are very busy but weekdays there is generally a park somewhere even if you put the trailer in one bay and your vehicle in another. We often take our boat in to fill up with water but there are no other facilities there. The minimum depth is about 1.4m at dead low tide. My phone is 0402919294 if you want to give me a call and we can discuss the possibilities for you.

JJ
 
Just rereading the posts and of course there is plenty of room under the Spit Bridge for you. Silly me!! You wont need to worry about opening times.

JJ
 
If you come past Pretty Beach, you are welcome to give us a ring on 43602218. We live there so you can do your washing or whatever if you need.

Cheers,
Richard.
 
bogranjac1 said:
BruceK
Got back to Porto bay today after spending a few days in Mooney2 Creek. No mobile there, kinda nice.
We went back there just to listen to those gloriously crystal clear calls of the Bellbird. We anchored at the some what inappropriately named 'pig farm '. Regards brett
A lovely spot
Click to expand...
Just sent you a SMS text suggesting lunch on our boat at Dolphin marina this Sunday, that avoids missed contacts.
Enjoy the stunning Autumn weather. Mooney and Mullet Creeks are gaston favourites.
 
DD 44,
Richard thx for the offer. I do hope to be over your side of BB within a week or two. Really I suppose preference would be for a day with an east/northeast wind and slight swell. Have you ever been into Patonga creek? I wondered if I could get in there on a high tide as I draw 0.8 MTR. Draft. Regards till later Brett.
 
I doubt if you could get into Patonga Creek in anything more than a tinnie if that.
In good weather you can anchor off the beach there and go ashore for fish and chips or a beer and meal at the pub.
 
We had the pleasure of meeting up on the Hawkesbury with Brett(bogranjac1)and his Finn8 vessel, visiting from WA. One of the problems on the River is poor phone service due to waterways encased by steep sided hills, but we managed it.
The boat is well set up as a pocket cruiser for one or two people. Brett has fitted his own flopper stoppers, with remarkable affect on wake reaching the anchorage. Ample refrigeration and 300 watts of solar makes it a very independent comfortable boat for remote area exploration. Full displacement design means the boat cuts through the water with minimal horsepower and fuel required to reach hull speed.
We wish Brett more good cruising, before the weather cools as winter approaches. His next destination is Middle Harbour, accessed from Sydney Harbour, where he plans to meet up with TF member Rebel. Happy cruising, it was good to meet you.
 
Brett/bogranjac1 called to say he enjoyed Sydney`s late summer but now autumn is arriving (almost 2 months late),he`s heading for warmer climes in northern Queensland.
That means he will miss catching up with some other Sydney TFers, but keep a lookout for the Finn8 exploring up north.
 
A Houseboat Record?

Last weekend we saw 2 competently helmed houseboats, well maybe 1.5, one dragged anchor, but they were in 12 meters+, with massive windage, so let`s not be hard. They maneuvered into shallow water to save 3 obese men of their complement,no life jackets, rowing a dinghy so badly all 3 risked being flipped into the water.

We probably saw dozens, but these 2 stood out. Not approaching a mooring like a bull at a gate from upwind is a good start.
The other saw us on the foredeck preparing to drop our National Parks mooring. They sneaked in and sat nearby, nicely holding station. Making sure of their prize, a free NP 24hour mooring in Pinta, the best bay in the Hawkesbury system.
 
BruceK said:
Pinta, the best bay in the Hawkesbury system.
Click to expand...


Bruce, I'll see your Pinta and raise you a Smith's Creek (far end on a Sunday night), or the top end of Yeoman's for an overnight stop & a quick outboard ride to Cottage Point Kiosk for coffee.

Also,D Duck 44 FWIW, you can get across the bar of Patonga Creek at high tide. It's navigable for about 800 meters (4-5 feet) then you run out of water. Actually it's surprising, there are some reasonably large craft moored on your starboard side about 150 meters inside the channel.

The Patonga pub has some nice (pricey) food & beverages, though the anchorage is very ordinary in a South Easter/Southerly, shallow & exposed.

The mighty Sarawana will be out & about over Easter & the not so mighty captain probably cooking up a storm on the BBQ, or doing the washing up! :rolleyes:
 
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I'll watch out for you Andy....Aquabelle will be out on Pittwater and Cowan from Good Friday for 7-10 days. AIS on and TF burgee flying so pls call us up if spotted.
 
Andy G said:
[/B]
Bruce, I'll see your Pinta and raise you a Smith's Creek (far end on a Sunday night), or the top end of Yeoman's for an overnight stop & a quick outboard ride to Cottage Point Kiosk for coffee.

Also,D Duck 44 FWIW, you can get across the bar of Patonga Creek at high tide. It's navigable for about 800 meters (4-5 feet) then you run out of water. Actually it's surprising, there are some reasonably large craft moored on your starboard side about 150 meters inside the channel.

The Patonga pub has some nice (pricey) food & beverages, though the anchorage is very ordinary in a South Easter/Southerly, shallow & exposed.

The mighty Sarawana will be out & about over Easter & the not so mighty captain probably cooking up a storm on the BBQ, or doing the washing up! :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
I'll watch out for you Andy. Aquabelle will be cruising Pittwater and Cowan from Good Friday for 7-10 days. AIS on and TF burgee flying so pls call us up if spotted.
 
Unfortunately we`re not going out this weekend, but have a great cruising Easter, Andy and Aquabelle.
Andy, the far "hook" end of Smiths Creek is beautiful too, same goes for Castle Lagoon off Yeomans Bay. I also like the bay to starboard shortly before the "hook" in Smiths too,? called Stingray. All the better on a quiet night.
The joys of Pinta for me are the protection, and the difficulty of boats anchoring in addition to using the NPWS moorings which tends to dissuade. You get lots of anchored/stern tied boats in Castle Lagoon and the end of Smiths,leading to some crowding, but rarely in Pinta,the few I`ve seen do it really know what they are doing.
I recently learned a name used for the bay just beyond Akuna Bay, it`s "Mushroom Bay", probably because of the circular shape. Never tried it, but we will one day.
 
I knew Mushroom Bay, though we never called it that, quite well from my days working at Akuna Bay. It's a lovey spot for a swim.

Another good spot, is some of the small bays tucked in on the starboard side going toward Bobbin Head. As is, if the tide is up, exploring the creek beyond Bobbin Head,it's great fun. You can get quite a way up.We managed to get to the walking bridge that crosses the creek, it's quite an impressive walking track if you have the time and inclination. Of course this has to be done in RIB or kayak.

Well, we are coming into the back half of Autumn and the temp is a balmy 25 degrees, with the water temp hovering on 21 at Balmoral. So, enough from me, it's time for my morning swim, then back to pack up and down to the boat.

I'll keep an eye out for you Aquabelle, though the radio is currently kaput,a cabling issue methinks. So if you see this tall handsome bloke with a natural sea going air to him waving in a naval fashion --- it's not me.

Have an enjoyable Easter break to all you boaties out there.
 
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We will be around Berowra Waters area for a couple of nights. Currently at Joe Crafts Creek (will stay here tonight and decide tomorrow if we’re moving).
 
Well, that was fun!

Got down to the boat, unpacked all those goodies bought to sustain us for the next three days, did the engine room check. topped up the water. Started the engines......make that one engine. The port motor refused to turn over. Very much a flat battery senario, the starboard engine started fine and as they share a common battery bank I was flummoxed.

An hour later after much tinkering I have admitted defeat. We packed up the boat and came home.

I know, very much a first world problem, and small beer in the great scheme of things. But I was looking forward to my early swim off the boat, a cooked breaky, puttling down the bay for morning coffee, that new book I have just been given, a glass of something interesting as the sun goes down.

As the French are wont to say 'c'est la vie'
 
As you say Andy very much a first world problem but frustrating for you never the less.
Ill raise you on the plans:) We are on the boat for 3 months and planning a trip to the Hawkesbury from Sydney to start the engines and find the port muffler leaking water and fumes into the boat. 3 weeks later a new fibreglass custom made muffler arrives from Taylors in Brookvale and we are good to go. $1350 for the muffler plus labour and our plans changed to sticking around Sydney harbour. At the moment on the Roseville River where life is very tough:):). Sun shining coffee in hand and B&E coming up.
Sorry no images as it wouldnt be fair to you:angel:
John
 
Andy G said:
Got down to the boat, unpacked all those goodies bought to sustain us for the next three days, did the engine room check. topped up the water. Started the engines......make that one engine. The port motor refused to turn over. Very much a flat battery scenario, the starboard engine started fine and as they share a common battery bank I was flummoxed.
Click to expand...
From memory, the IG handbook says the 2 batteries parallel when you operate the start button,so it`s unlikely to be battery. Any clicking sounds at the starter motor? Is it trying to turn over? Tried "tapping" the starter motor body with start button pressed? Tried bridging the starter motor poles with a screwdriver?
There will surely be electrical/mechanical experts who should come in with way better thoughts.
BTW, we carry a handheld VHF. A Uniden,cost about $120,good for backup and for ship/shore/dinghy communication.
 
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Rebel said:
As you say Andy very much a first world problem but frustrating for you never the less.
Ill raise you on the plans:) We are on the boat for 3 months and planning a trip to the Hawkesbury from Sydney to start the engines and find the port muffler leaking water and fumes into the boat. 3 weeks later a new fibreglass custom made muffler arrives from Taylors in Brookvale and we are good to go. $1350 for the muffler plus labour and our plans changed to sticking around Sydney harbour.

OK, you win, a slightly less first world problem than mine. Well I hope so! :blush:
Click to expand...
 
Rebel said:
As you say Andy very much a first world problem but frustrating for you never the less.
Ill raise you on the plans:) We are on the boat for 3 months and planning a trip to the Hawkesbury from Sydney to start the engines and find the port muffler leaking water and fumes into the boat. 3 weeks later a new fibreglass custom made muffler arrives from Taylors in Brookvale and we are good to go. $1350 for the muffler plus labour and our plans changed to sticking around Sydney harbour. At the moment on the Roseville River where life is very tough:):). Sun shining coffee in hand and B&E coming up.
Sorry no images as it wouldnt be fair to you:angel:
John
Click to expand...

Hi rebel (john),
sounds nice on the Roseville (is that Middle harbour?) we had an awesome time last year on the Hawkesbury right up till end of April. bruceK said it was a perfect late autumn and the weather was warm. Hawkesbury is truly sensational waterway and my favourite was this attached video clip.
P.S. sorry about the first mates head getting in the video,but she wash washing the dishes after B&E's.
And I WILL be unfair and post an image:devil:

https://youtu.be/XpjIJzO8m_M

regards to you both also to bruceK and 'Bert........brett
 
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