Moreton island crossing advice needed please.

[Jakers 69]

Hi, Booked at Cowen Cowen for 5 days over easter and would like to take the boat over for the period. Plan is tow the boat up to port of Brisbane(from the Gold Coast) and launch nearby the ferry launch, leave the trailer at mycat and wife will take the car over.
Anchor boat overnight near accommodation.

Boat : 6.2m Haines
Motor: 175 Suzi
Petrol: 150 L (will take extra 100l).

All depends of the weather forecast closer to the period as well.

Do anyone know of a boat ramp close to the ferry location, and any advise will be welcome.

Thanks.

[Beatsworkin2]

There is boat ramp just down from the ferry

[Jakers 69]

Thanks, will that be past the ferry or before?. will have a look on google.

[Beatsworkin2]

U turn left at servo for ferry just go straight ahead and follow the signs

[The-easyrider]

If there is any hint of westerly winds (not that there should) be sure to anchor well out as the inside of Moreton isl can cop some nasty swell.

[Mike Delisser]

yeh like they said, though it is a little complicated the 1st time you visit the Whyte Isl boat ramp. You have to drive past the ramp (because of no right turn), cross the bridge, travel a few hundred mts, follow the signs and turn around, come back over the bridge and turn left across the railway line and on to the ramp.

[bigjimg]

G'day Jakers
To get to the boat ramp, continue straight through the roundabout at Kite St and after crossing the Capt Bishop bridge veer left and stay on Port Drive.Continue to the roundabout at Bulk Terminal Drive and turn right and go back over the Capt Bishop bridge then take the left hand exit.Go over the train line and follow down to the ramp.A note here that the pontoon has been removed for repairs.
To get to Hawkins,Turn left at the Kite St roundabout and go to the end of Kite St,turn right here and follow Osprey to the left hand bend{Howard Smith Drive} and continue down to Hawkins which will be on your right after the vacant blocks of land. Jim

[Still_Dreamin]

Let me know how you go. The annual boys weekend away is to cowan Feb next year and i am looking at doing the same thing. I have used whytes island ramp a few times. Always worry about the clearance under the bridge between ramp and MI cat/Brissy river. Couple of times have gone the long way around past Manly to get to Mud Island. Only on big highs which funnily enough happen at Easter. Should be SE or NE winds this time of year though.

[Still_Dreamin]

What are you going to do with your boat whilst parking your car/trailer at Hawking?

[mattyd]

I would be careful with your anchoring technique at Cowan if you're there for 5 days. Stern & bow anchor leaving plenty of room for tidal swell. From memory the tide goes out a fair way there & you don't want your boat ending up in the middle of the beach 'highway' at dead low...

I would consider a tender (even inflatable) so you're not swimming with gear/keys etc each time you come home.

[610]

we do this for our annual moreton trip every year. We tow the boat with the vehicle thats going over to moreton on the barge and put the boat in at the white island boat ramp and those travelling over in the boat hop out here. then the people going over on the barge simply drive to the hawkins leave the trailer in there carpark before driving on to the barge. then it is simply a case of picking the trailer up on your return and meeting the boat at the ramp. We always anchor the boat a fair way out as i would prefer to swim to the boat then have it come to grief at low tide as it is amazing how quickly conditions can change from dead calm to rough even though it is the calm side of the island.

[Jakers 69]

Wife will take the trailer /car back to ferry, unhook trailer and get on the ferry over to Moreton.
I will meet her at cowen cowen.
Will take inflatable to get from boat to beach and back, thanks for all the help with the ramp.
Hope the weather plays along for easter and not as bad as previous years.

Is there any good fishing grounds offshore, north of the lighthouse?

[Still_Dreamin]

What orientation do you anchor the boat? Parallel to the shore ie nth/sth or perpendicular to the shore ie east west. Was thinking bow facing west and transom closest to shore. Double anchor. Is there any theft from anchored boats over there?

[Crunchy]

Most people anchor east- west but it would seem more logical north- south same as the current wouldn't it?

But yes there are some D-heads hanging around so don't leave anything in the boat. One DAY a group of D-heads were hanging around the back of my boat and I noticed one drop down into the water at the base of the motor, it then became clear the prick was trying to take the bung out, obviously was going to be a great source of amusement for said D-heads, I yelled what the &@$/ do you think your doing and they just laughed and moved away...normally I would have swum out and dealt out a bit of physical but was outnumbered 6 to 1 so had to suck it up. So yeah, watch your stuff......think about some kind of alarm perhaps.

[Jakers 69]

Now I am getting confused, thought I drop my Sarca anchor out and another sand anchor both from the bow, as the tide change it will just swing around.
Plan is to park the boat in about 2m of water high tide( almost 70m from shore). As Cowen Cowen is restricted from any cars on the beach and it is almost closed off I would hope the boat will be safe on the water, as I don't think any "normal" person would like to swim out to the boat in the dark.
Maybe put some shark traces out around the boat.(Alarm)

[marto78]

You will find bugger all current over there and what there is, is all tidal so it is constantly changing. If you don't mind swimming out to your boat Jakers what are you are suggesting with two anchors off the bow is your best option and just letting the boat do its own thing as long.

We camp over there a fair bit just north of Cowan and use a two anchor system with one long rope, about 150+ m long. It is tied off at the bow then runs through the chain of the main anchor which is dropped out in the deep water, then run through the chain of the 2nd anchor which is left on shore and then run back to the boat and tied off at the stern.
At the land anchor you can pull on the rope attached to the stern to pull your boat in to shore or you can pull on the rope that goes out through the main anchor and is attached to the bow to pull your boat out to deep water. Once you have the boat sitting out far enough just tie a knot between the two ropes at the land anchor.

Although this is a great way to anchor and retrieve your boat it is a bit of a pain if you want to go fishing and want to anchor your boat while out there as you have to change the whole setup again.

[The Woo]

Security wise Cowan is fine. There's usually people watching from somewhere so we all watch each others backs.
One good anchor is fine, and if you leave the boat overnight anchored in line with, or just inside of, the line of moorings, you'll be fine in all but a westerley blow. Remember the riding light.
It's a beautiful place. Enjoy it, might even see you there.

[TheRealAndy]

Always anchor bow out at moreton unless behind the wrecks at tangalooma or in the blue hole. The wind always blows from the west overnight, and can make a shitty swell. I would chuck a small anchor out thee back too, just to keep the bow facing out.

[oldjoe]

I stayed at Cowen Cowen for many years and would recommend taking your trailer..yeh I know $$$, but I have done both.
There is a ramp onto the beach for lauch/retrieve at Cowen, it is a prick of a place to achor if the weather comes in and as said there are fleas around, particularly at Easter.
Much more relaxing to bring your boat in, more secure, less chance boat/motor damage from weather or vandals...have a few drinks and relax mate, it is worth the bucks.

[oldjoe]

6m Haines will be an issue launching from the beach though, sorry didn't read your post fully.

[The Woo]

Yeah too big to be launching daily unless you're well experienced, have a couple of decent helpers, and can daisy chain two vehicles together. Even a 5.5m platey is hard enough, and is very tide dependent.

If you anchor in deep enough water but not past the drop off where the tide does scream along, you'll be fine in anything up to 20 knots of westerley, which you don't get at that time of year. This is assuming you have a good anchor with ample heavy chain, and have ample scope/rode out.

I'm not sure what angle the guys are coming from by suggesting a bow and stern anchor. Not something I'd do if leaving the boat on anchor overnight. Bow/stern anchor when you bring it closer to shore for easy access during the day, sure. But not overnight. Too much drag when the boat inevitably gets side on to current and waves. My 2 cents.

[cormorant]

Are any of the mooring buoys over there commercial and able to be rented instead of anchoring? Do any come with the accomodation or other accomodation?

[JulianDeMarchi]

I camp a lot at Wavebreak and other islands. The boys I go with use these:

http://www.reeltackle.com.au/index.php?option=com_ixxocart&Itemid=115&p=product&id=16853&parent=25&vendorid=2

Maybe this could help you mate?

[The Woo]

Are any of the mooring buoys over there commercial and able to be rented instead of anchoring? Do any come with the accomodation or other accomodation?
Only 3 permanent moorings there. The Cowan residents maintain them at their expense and obviously have first dibs. Peak times of year typically see resident's own boats on the moorings, and rightly so.
FWIW, I know that only TWO of the three are properly maintained (by the residents who use them most often). The 3rd is a lucky dip. I'd trust a good anchor setup over a poorly maintained mooring.

[Argle]

I camp a lot at Wavebreak and other islands. The boys I go with use these:

http://www.reeltackle.com.au/index.php?option=com_ixxocart&Itemid=115&p=product&id=16853&parent=25&vendorid=2

Maybe this could help you mate?

I use a very similar setup to this for overnighting - they are the ducks nuts and you can bring the boat back from the deep when needed without getting soaked, a great idea

Cheers

[Chimo]

Sleep on the boat to avoid DH issues and theft but anchor in deep water first. Or use the endless loop anchor set up as discussed on here previously.