Mate , how often have you sailed and or motored her? You need a couple of shake downs before the trip, as many as possible . What does the engine look like ? Are there spares for the engine , do you know anything about engines ect ect . If you've done the above and are asking for specific passage advice , best ports , anchorages ect then there are many people on this forum who will no doubt respond soon who have a wealth of experience. Give yourself as large a departure window as possible.

Thanks, some good advice there. It'll be my first time on the boat. I'm hoping just sailing south down the Brisbane broadwater will suffice as a shakedown sail.

Good suggestion to check through hulls and extinguishers etc. I'll do that.

I have the cruising guides, happy to jump from port to port as I head south, if the weather is favourable maybe even do a bit of night sailing too.

shaggybaxter said..
Check your halyards and run a mouse if you can. Nothing worse than the closest safe water being a long beat sans sail/s as you:
- stare forlornly up the mast wondering how on earth you're going to rig a new one;
- turn off the wind display as the TWA is now depressing;
- turn off the log because you're better off not knowing;
- sneak a peek at the gps and realise the current is against you and ripping along; and
- notice how little the fuel tank really is and how many revs you're doing.

And the engine area is covered in a fine mist of oil from an unknown source
and the fan belt is loose
and there's a whisp of smoke from a tangled wiring loom
and the engine temp warning light/alarm starts
and the sun is going down.

To be fair and with much respect, Ramona, that definitely depends on the cat in question. Or perhaps whether it's a catamaran or a roomaran.

Gday Nick,

Lots of good info above - of your boat is a Seawind 1000 it will be a little different from a Windspeed 31 stretched to 33ft. Let is know the boat and we can help some more.

Some general notes - cats are fabulous bar running boats. We don't usually play the tides like mono sailors do when coming into or leaving bars. We have been kept in a bar a few times - Camden Haven and Moruya come to mind, but most reasonable bars, in a reasonable seaway are easy to cross in a cat. If you have not sailed fast boats before you will need to be on your A game when bar crossing and head straight down the wave - don't get diagonal on the nasty part of the bar - straight in is key. A good cat will easily get up to 15 knots in perfect control as it sits on a wave crossing the bar. I like to have full sail up and have the motor ready to run if required, or down and ready to go as we near the break walls.

Coming back out can be more problematic - be prepared to wait. Maybe a day or two. I have often just sat inside a bar looking for up to 20 minutes - just observing and then when all looks good - we blast out of there and into the safety of the deep ocean.

Be flexible with your timing. The best deliveries are the ones where you get to have choices. Get ready to put some extra hours in when conditions are good and wait when conditions are not good. And never, ever tell someone you will be somehere at a specific time. You can meet them at a place at a range of times, or at a time in a range of places but NEVER make a timetable.

Let us know the boat and we can help some more

Phil

stray said..

Jode5 said..
If you are totally new to the boat and unaware of what issues the boat may have, hire a four man life raft and take it with you and have a throw bag handy with safety gear and EPIRB. A Satellite phone and good VHF radio wouldn't go astray as well.

Better to make sure the boat is 100% up to the task first. Never go to sea with safety gear and expecting others to risk their lives rescuing you, as your backup plan.

Safety gear is everybody's last backup plan no matter what. No body can guarantee their boat and crew are 100% up to the task, the sea will make sure of that. I believe my boat is in excellent condition but I still carry a vast array of safety equipment including a life raft, personal EPERBs and even personal AIS location beacons

Thanks Ramona, yeah if it's blowing strong from the south i'll probably just wait. Although lately its been nothing but southerlies!

Good tips, thanks Kankama, yeah the bar crossings do worry me. "Keep it straight", gotcha. If there's a decent swell I may opt to skip any sketchy looking bars (assuming I have the energy/crew to continue through the night)

Renting a life raft is an interesting option, hadn't thought of that.

Good advice Kankama, the boat is a Seawind 1000. Been sailing it for a few days already. Seems to be an endless parade of fronts racing up the coast preventing us from getting a good window of opportunity. We've only been managing 30NM a day so far, but we are starting late etc.

Midnight start sounds like the only way to smash out a 96NM leg.