Darwin-Ashmore Reef

Passage

As anticipated, the night arrival into Darwin Harbour was easy. Darwin would be our last mainland Australian port. We handed the harbour master our sample of the oil(?) we had collected just west of Thursday Island.

It had been two and a half years since Darwin had been flattened by Cyclone Tracy, and to my eyes, there was very little evidence of the destruction. Although we were told some terrifying stories about it.

Our three weeks here had been delightful, with the locals, as always, making our stay. The local ferry driver, Peter, took us on a trip to Mandorah on his ferry and loaned us his car to get around. He also took us for a day visit to Humpty Doo and Berry Springs. Pig shooting was also on the agenda, and our freezer was stocked with pork!

A locally built yacht, Nimrod supplied two young girls to play with. It had been a while since Kap and I had the company of peers. We spent many nights on board while the adults were on Franda II.

Kap and I joined the local library and finally had a range of kids/young adult books to read. However, as we had been reading many adult books, surprisingly for me, I tended towards adult fiction in the library.

Among other activities, we updated our vaccinations by adding cholera and typhoid to our vaccination record book. Also, Kap and I caught up with the painting and varnishing. Items from the doghouse and stern windows to the oars. With sailing every day for the last 14 weeks, this type of maintenance was not viable as the above deck was always covered in a layer of salt.

We first met the Australian yacht Alcheringa here, starting on a world cruise. The two daughters, Fiona and Tina, were of a similar age to Kap and me. Unfortunately, we did not get much time with them as they arrived just before we left, but they were heading west as well, so we would most likely see them again.

In late August 1977, we finally left Australia. We arrived in Sydney in late October, spending 6 months there. Followed by three and a half months of sailing 2700nm (5000km) up the East coast, arriving here, in Darwin, late in July. We had an incredible time diving, fishing, pig shooting, dancing, and sailing. We anchored most nights and averaged 27nm (50km) daily. But now, the Indian Ocean beckoned us.

On our way out of Darwin harbour, Peter circled us in the ferry, saying goodbye, then continued. There was little wind, so it was a languid start to our voyage to Ashmore Reef, some 463NM to the West.

As the seas and wind were calm and Franda II was drifting, Kathryn figured she'd have some fun, so she sailed Franda II in a circle. The breeze was so slight that the sails didn't even notice that they were on the wrong side of the wind. Better yet for us was that Dad, below, didn't even notice! The things we girls thought up to entertain ourselves onboard!

We had heard many stories about how rough the Indian Ocean could be, but the passage was calm and very slow for us. With very little wind, Franda II just drifted along. Four knots was the record for the first day. However, the wind continued dropping, and Franda II was only drifting by midnight. The sails hung limply from the mast. There was not even enough wave motion to make the sails slap to and fro. It was so eerily still. Finally, the sails were dropped, furled, and "made secure" with all hands on deck. For the first time, we all went off to bed for the rest of the night.

It was unusual for Franda II to not have anyone on watch. But for some other yachts, namely "single-handers", it was a regular occurrence. Captain Doug deemed it safe that day, as they had not seen any vessels since leaving Darwin. It is certainly not something done in or near a busy shipping lane.

At 7am, when the crew woke, a gentle breeze was blowing. With hope, the sails were hoisted. But sadly, by midday, the slight wind had deserted us again. So we dropped the sails furled and secured them for the second time in 24 hours. It must have been a record for Franda II.

The sea was glassy with no ripple, so it was an excellent time for baking. An apple pie, a three-layer cake, and chocolate muffins kept us girls busy for the afternoon.

A very monotonous voyage. Nevertheless, we sisters did achieve a fair amount of school work. The weather was hot and close. However, on Doug's 51st birthday, the weather changed. A cool front had passed.

Franda II drifted through a significantly "populated" area. It could have been where two ocean currents met up. First, we noticed a lot of jellyfish floating past, followed by trillions of eggs. Kap and I were fascinated by all the different shapes and sizes and could only wonder at the species. So, out with a bucket to catch some. I was amazed at the feel of them when held in my hand. Firm but squishy, just like handling jelly. The eggs ranged from 3mm to 1cm long. The jelly cases had a tiny black spot within and were all rafted together to form rafts that looked a meter long. However, they would break into smaller "rafts" when captured in the bucket. Even those tiny rafts in the bucket comprised 30-40 eggs.

A birthday dinner for Dad and the iced chocolate muffins ended a fantastic, informative day. A tremendous hands-on "laboratory" biology lesson for us girls.

Another quiet, hot day. Late evening, a gannet came and perched on the dinghy and preened his feathers. Amazingly, he was still there when I got up the following day, but he flew on at about 0800 hrs. He had obviously needed the rest.

We anxiously watched a tornado or water spout cross our path about five miles ahead, feeling grateful we were not in its path. I imagined it sneaking up on us at night, unnoticed until the roar of the wind would be heard, but not knowing what it was. I became frightened.

Fishing had not been good. Maybe Franda II was travelling too slowly. Finally, we did catch a mackerel, but as Dad started to fillet it, he noticed worms. Most fish have a few worms in their flesh, which Dad would typically cut out. However, this Mackerel had so many worms Dad decided it was not worth eating, so he threw it overboard.

On day six, we sighted land. However, it was hardly land, just a few very low-lying sand islands. Once again, Mum navigated us to islands only visible within a few miles. Franda II slowly and carefully made her way into Ashmore reef and anchored in the lagoon.

The following day, we weighed anchor and motored closer to the island, anchoring within rowing distance. Surprisingly, we met some Indonesian fishermen on the islands. We did not expect to see anyone as their small fishing boat was hidden in the anchorage on the other side of the island. However, they were very friendly and gave us a bailer shell and then took Dad in their canoe out to their boat. Later, my siblings went in the dinghy with the seagull outboard to pick up Dad, but they met the fishing boat delivering Doug on the way. The fishing boat anchored close by Franda II, and the whole family was invited onboard her.

The fishing vessel Sah Banger was only 7m long with nine crew on board. Small fish, gutted and splayed, were on drying racks that overhung the sea. Once dried, the fish were stacked in the aft hold. The centre hold was 2/3rds full of firewood bought out from Indonesia. The "44-gallon" freshwater drum was stored forward, and the fisherman slept on a platform on deck. A very crowded small vessel, but with enough provisions for two weeks.

Amazingly, they only have the stars to navigate by. No compass, no charts, no sextant and no engine. Just local knowledge. Admittedly, they are only 60NM from Indonesia and probably make the trip empty in an easy daylight sail. But, going back fully laden with two Tons of dried fish, it may have been an overnight sail.

Their cooking arrangement was an open fire off the stern quarter of the deck. Which is why firewood was carried. I guessed they lived on seafood, fish and shellfish, which is why they had shells to give us.

Next, they all piled onto Franda II. I felt that Franda II was just inconceivable to them. She was more luxurious than their houses, with running water, gas stove, flush toilets, etc. Dad gave them two old charts of the area and a handheld compass I had won as a prize in New Zealand. They returned the gesture with more Helmut, Nautilus and Olive shells.

Mike Stu and I went for a dive the next day at low tide. Dad was our boatman. The water was amazingly clear. The way to tell if the water is clear is not by looking down into it but by looking through it. Here, the horizontal visibility was outstanding. We saw a couple of sharks. We thought one was a 12-foot stingray shark(shark ray). There were a lot of sea monkeys and sea snakes. Terrifyingly for Stu, the sea snakes tried to hide in the speargun he carried. We only caught 3 crayfish and traded them with the Indonesian fisherman for 13 small fish.

Leaving Ashmore Reef that evening, we continued our voyage to Christmas Island 200NM south of Java and 1020NM Westward of Franda II.