Since I was in Williamstown delivering the 25kg of olives I had been harvesting the last few days, I thought I would get the bike out for a Tassie IV boat hunt. How hard can it be, large ship twice as big as the old one. I was skirting the coast line and there it was again, the submarine was following me from Geelong and was now heading in towards Port Melbounre. I turned a corner and bumped into the Tassie boat then went out onto one of the piers for a better look. Very impressive.
One of the interesting things here is the water view and what can happen out there. We have seen big ship situations where small boats are often getting in the way, this time a big ship is in trouble. This one was heading in when a malfunction has occurred. A tug has since come along and had a rope attached to the stern and in the mean time the anchor has been dropped forward. So that means it can be turned on its spot completely around the anchor point at the front. This operation took an hour or so as I went down to the beach while it was happening. It seems the main problem is manoeuvering as it is now limping back where it came with the tug as escort.
I have featured the breakfast nook position before but now I have found the video version. After Debbie started doing some of this, the neighbour next door was seen for the first time ever on her deck. It is a good spot. Ahh the serenity. I spied something never seen before. What happens if a slower mega ship is approached from behind by a faster one? Well it seems the channel is wide enough for a passing lane. I have seen them passing in opposite directions but never an overtaking manouvre.
If you need another sign that Winter is over then look no further than the Tassie ferry starting up again after a Winter hibernation. We spied that boat heading out as we were riding down towards the jetty area. This was not the only water action. Yesterday a yacht squadron came passed as they were racing into Geelong and as is always the case, were racing back again this morning. Not a lot of wind but there was a lot of tacking. I got the video camera out in time to catch some of it and used the still shot button on it for the first time. These photos seem to work although there was no Sun out earlier today.
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| these are coloured photos not B&W |
James and Heidi were up at 5:30am so Estelle could get some brekky and repack the car for the drive around to the dock. They left at 6:45am but were there in a quick 35min with no traffic around. We had desribed the channel markers and which ones to be on alert for. I was not sure if you could pick anyone out as it passed but it is possible. The telescope was clearer when you know where to look. So at the top level, at the back of the boat, below the stacks and emerging from a line of dark glass windows you can pick out Heidi and Estelle in the video but it is brief and near the end of the film as I put down the video then and switched to the telescope. I could clearly see them and spied Heidi raise her one arm, with Estelle in the other. James made it out then as well. For them it was hard with the eyes only, to pick individual houses on the shore.
There was a bit of rain around this morning so I got back to unloading some videos. These were all mostly small clips but I have pieced a couple together. The Pelican cottage is rustic and creaking but has character in a scenic location. I must say we see pelicans on a daily basis at home but did not see a single one near the cottage, as I think they are primarily sea birds, although there are thousands of salmon that have been introduced into these lakes. We did see them on the walls of the cottage. I have attached an authoritative list of birds that was seen by some people who stayed and must have been on their "Big Year".
