Inland waterway passage to Gold Coast
Quartermoon
Mike Share & Sammy Byron
Tue 24 May 2011 09:33
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Big Decision - To head to Gold Coast
via the Inland Waterway. If we do get stuck at Jacobs well then its a long way
back out so lets hope if we time the tides right then we will make it through
with no issues.
The Inland waterway was a really nice
surprise. It was absolutely stunning and although we had to motor the whole way
it was flat calm and serene. The whole way is buoyed but it is not exactly
relaxing. Depths in the channel are rarely more than a few metres and
alarmingly less than 0.5m quite often. It certainly demands your full
attention!
  The scenery allows you to forget that
you are not far from Brisbane, mangroves and sand islets, hardly any habitation
except small towns along the water with shoal draft boats moored up.
It took quite a time to motor down to Woongoolba where we decided to spend the
night just before dusk. We hunted around for a deep spot that would keep us
afloat as the tide eased but it seemed a bit pointless as we would swing
around with the tide change anyway. Sure enough we awoke next morning
firmly stuck in the mud but still upright! We waited for the rising tide and
re-floated soon enough but held off leaving until we were on a rising near high
tide for the shoaling stretch just ahead. Underway we passed dredging barges and
watched the depth gauge getting worrying low, then deeper, then low time and
time again. We got to a sign saying "Shoals to less than 1m" which doesn't bode
well when you draw 1.9m! We carefully picked our way through the buoys and heard
another yacht had gone aground.... Shit! We edged along and suddenly came to a
sliding halt. Hmmm. Incoming tide but what's ahead? We shifted all the water and
fuel cans to one side and Mike swung out on the boom to get heeled over and
decrease our draft, as the tide came in we bounced our way across the mud bank
and continued. Then again.... and bounce and off. And again.... Then past the
grounded yacht and once more nearing high tide and finally into deeper water!
Neither of us wanted to wait for a nigh time high tide and attempt to get on our
way during dark or even worse go all the way back up out of Moreton
Island.
   After the shoals we motored onwards
past South Stradbroke Island to the Broadwater, near Surfer's paradise and the
Gold Coast. We could see the high rises in the distance over the mangrooves and
it looked surreal. So peaceful where we were with civilisation so evident and
close by. The tranquility was abruptly stopped as we came across some of the
tackiest and ostentatious houses you have ever seen. Welcome to Sovereign Island
- proof that money does not equal taste! This was our sign to hang a right up
the Coomera river towards City marina where ewe had decided to get QM's butt a
makeover, having been 21 months since she was hauled and much longer since she'd
had an antifoul. We navigated the river for what seemed like an eternity, past
smaller, nicer houses on the water, boats aplenty until we passed Riviera's HQ
and docked at the work marina ready for our haul-out next day.
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