Tipples Passage and the Gold Coast

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January/ February 2022

When we weighed anchor for the last time in the Great Sandy Straits all we could feel was utter relief and joy that we were finally on our way south once more. By this point we had been stuck for six weeks in the Great Sandy Straits behind Fraser Island and although the place is lovely we were starting to go a little stir crazy from not moving for so long. But the moment we crossed the bar and started heading south once more the frustration of the last month dissipated and left us feeling excited for the sailing ahead. The day we left we had light southerlies and had left about midday to use the last of the incoming tide to cross the bar. So given the wind and the late hour by the time we reached Double Island Point we decided to anchor behind the sandbar until the morning. That night we had an absolutely stunning sunset and enjoyed our first sight of clear blue water in many weeks.

The following day we were up at 4am and weighing anchor just as the sky was lightening. That day we had just under 60nm to make to the entrance to the Moreton Bay Channel and 80nm to a safe anchorage. However with barely a breath of wind and a calm southerly forecast it meant that we had a long day of motor sailing ahead making long tacks with the occasional light breeze to reach our destination. Given that it was a day of motor sailing into a light headwind we only made an average speed of about 3.5kts so it was a little after sunset when we finally made our approach for the channel into Moreton Bay.

Although this approach was when things began to get interesting as we dodged small fishing tinny’s and had large cargo ships play chicken with us in the dark. Due to our small draft we hugged the coast and were able to stay just out of the shipping channel to keep out the way of the big ships. However even with these measures a big ship or two did their best to scare us by making the occasional course alteration to point straight at us. Which had the effect of getting our blood pumping and heart racing as these were huge 200m long vessels travelling at 12kts. Although none got to close as either one or both of us made hurried course changes to prevent a collision. That night we navigated through the channel in the dark and dropped anchor a little after three in the morning at the Tangalooma Wrecks behind a small cities worth of anchor lights. When we woke the following morning we were finally able to make sense of the lights which we’d seen only a few hours before.

It was Australia Day and the anchorage around the wrecks was absolutely packed with about a hundred yachts, tinny’s and large motor boats all squeezed in and around the wrecks. Originally we’d had plans to go for a swim along the wrecks but after seeing the chaos we decided to give this spot a miss and so after a late breakfast weighed anchor once more and continued our way deeper into Moreton Bay. That day we were aiming to get as close to the small channels between Moreton and Stradbroke Island as possible within the tide and so ended up anchoring off the northern tip of Macleay Island just before the change of the tide.

We ended up spending just the one night in this anchorage as the moment the tide changed in our favour the following morning we weighed anchor and continued south. That day we wound our way through the narrow channels behind North Stradbroke Island and anchored off the small town of Jacobs Well. While in Jacobs Well we refilled our diesel tank by using our trolley and legs to walk to the local petrol station and even had time to enjoy a lovely lunch in town from the local bakery. However not long after this the tide changed and with our errands complete we decided to continue on and ended up in Tipplers Passage. Once again we were amazed by the sheer number of boats which although was less then what was at Tangalooma Wrecks was still packed. Thankfully though we snagged a spot in the tight anchorage. This was a lovely spot with only a very short dingy ride to the shore and many easy walking trails to the outside of the island.

However without realising when we first arrived this was to become our new home for the foreseeable future while we started the wait for northerlies all over again. With only the occasional foray away from Tipplers Passage to visit Boatworks for future slipping supplies and trips to Runaway Bay for groceries and water this became our new home. All up we spent a little over two weeks anchored in Tipplers Passage off Stradbroke Island. While there we enjoyed many walks along the islands sandy tracks to visit the ocean side of the island. Each day that we walked we took a different track to the beach and as such no two days on the beach were the same depending on the wind and track we chose. Some days we were scoured by sand blowing off the sand dunes watching menacing clouds form out at sea while others were spent ambling down the beach while dodging piles of Bluebottle jellyfish which washed in with the tide. However eventually our little holiday on Stradbroke Island came to an end with the arrival of a good set of northerly winds, meaning we could continue our journey south. We had decided that we wanted to head back to Tasmania so from now on we would we catching every favourable wind and making best speed down the coast.

*** The pictures above are only a small portion of our stay in Tipplers Passage Stradbroke Island, to see the rest head to my gallery page ***

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