Handling open ocean

[storms72]

Hey guys...I know little bout this topic but thought it would be a good one to help those who arent too experienced and may wish to venture outside the heads on a calm day.....

All I know is Safety gear required....Marine radio, flares, V-sheet, EPIRB, and be sure to have plenty of fresh drinking water.

Who wants to hand out some info, I know I have missed a lot.

[netic]

First thing i can say is always check and recheck the forecasts and always log in with the coast guard if your heading out.

It could be the difference between you never coming back and getting a home safely.

Also plan your trip according to the conditions...

eg;

If i wanna head to browns and the forecast is for a south easter in the after noon, i will head out from Sydney heads so if the wind does pick up from that direction it will be behind me rather then in front of me, i will ride the chop home and hopefully it wont be a rough ride.

If it is coming from the NE...i will head out from botany heads for the same reason....

This can be applied to all fishing offshore.....when chasing marlin i will decide my destination after seeing the forecast then decide where i will head...strong nor easter will see me head to the Baitstation so i ride the after chop home, Southerly will see me head to browns so i ride that chop home...

Just a simple thing to do to ensure if the weather turns to sh.it you will not be heading into the chop, instead you will be travelling with it

[quintrex101]

u can also take some back-up fuel, becasue wen u are in open waters and got no fuel u can't row in and go buy some, also make shore that u r near a reeef to not go to close because it can suck ur boat in and there will go ur boat washed on the reef, rocks, and u prolly be dead ( by saying this i mean a reef that is shallow and can break waves ) u must have a least 1 liter od freshwater on the boat for each person, also it is a good idea to take a sea ahchor so if u r in 70 meters of water and the motor breaksdown and u only got 30 meters of ahchor rope, and call coast guard to come and get u, u can throw it out it will slow your boats dift down, it is a idea to take a fire Extinguisher so that if the motor gos up in flames u can get the fire out quicky, also a idea to get a Bilge Pump so if u take in water u can turn it on and all the water will go out,

i hope this helps :headbang: :headbang:

[xtosea]

Take all necessary safety equipment, apparently fisheries have been offshore checking these lately.
Better to go with 2 boat sometimes depending on distance going for safety.
No fish is worth risking yours or anyone elses life for!

[Haji]

Check Seabreeze.com.au for a detailed forecast of wave heights and direction, wind speeds etc. Very detailed info and well worth setting up as a favourite site.

Running before a sea can be particularly hazardous if your boat has a shallow deadrise (angle of the hull at the stern) which can lead to the boat broaching which is where the following sea pushes your boat sideways leading to you losing control of the boats direction which can lead to swamping the boat or even turning it over.

Alluminium boats being light and usually of shallow deadrise are particularly vulnerable to broaching.

In my youth I learnt how to deal with following seas in the early Quinies by deliberately running downhill on waves and "surfing" them. Not for the fainthearted but a sure way to learn.

Definitely suggest that newcomers to boating do some downhill running on small waves and get a feel for what can happen and how to get out of trouble.(before you venture offshore) We used to accelerate down the waves to maintain steerage but scary when you hit the bottom of the wave and bury the nose of the boat. That's when a full bow with plenty of lift in it helps to keep you on track.

It's too late to learn when you are 10 K's offshore and you strike a rising following sea.

[fishinf]

my tip is
if in dought dont go out i think a lot of people get there and say
we have come this far there is allways next time
you dont want to be on the news

[imnotafish]

be sure you have all req equip for offshore - listed at nsw maritime

http://www.maritime.nsw.gov.au/safetyequipment.html#openwat

[gazza]

Mate see if someone with experience can go with you,if you make a mistake they can set you right straight away.PLUS ALL OF THE ABOVE.
Good luck

[nimrod]

Nobody can learn how to handle a boat at sea from a book or a web site, you can gain hints and clues but learning to drive a boat is a FEEL thing you must learn by doing it.
I agree with Hagi about learning and teaching yourself by picking small waves at first and getting to know what happens at different angles.
It is good to have an experienced person with you so you don't keep making the same mistake, you will make mistakes, it's natural when learning anything.
It's important to learn early where the best trim position for the motor is.
Also sometimes it's safer to completely take the throttle off and let the wave roll under your boat ( but best to learn when ).
What I done to learn was each time I ventured out I got a little braver and tackled harder conditions, till eventually i was confident in tackling some pretty rough conditions.
These days I have converted back to my learning days and come in early.
( for comfort these days ) although I know if it does come up bad and I'm still out there I know I will be able to handle it.
Take things easy and you will learn, rush into it and get too gun ho and you may come unstuck before your time.
Frank

[quintrex101]

i other thing, make sure u got the right boat for outside,

[storms72]

Quinnie what is the right boat for outside? I would think the making sure conditions are right for you just about covers the boat side of things.....When I was your age I was driving my parents boat to box head to fish, it was only a 12ft tinnie/6hp(2hp aux) but I picked my days and took it easy.
Just as Frank said be sensible bout it and don't go too hard if you're not real experienced.

[nimrod]

i other thing, make sure u got the right boat for outside,

Even in a 60 footer you still have to respect the sea. An experienced skipper in a 15 ft tinny is safer then an inexperienced skipper in a 30 footer.
Frank

[TomMc]

agreed, i witnessed that out near lion island, 30ft+ versus our 5.5m tinny
they came of 2nd best. they where drifting us anchroed ran straight into the front of the boat.
they ended up with a pretty big whole in there fibreglass hull!

[Dog Catcher]

One Word Only

Expirience

None of this Bullsh*t **I've been driving boats for 30 years cr*ap**

I mean quality time behind the wheel of a boat.

All that stuff about safety gear is irrellevant if you use common sense & if you've used common sense then you wont be putting yourself & crew in the predicament where the safety items are ever required.

I get very pee'd off when I hear twits & that what they are boasting how they venture out to places like browns etc in a 5 meter boat & if that's not bad enough I've seen them out there with 2 of their big FAT mates on board as well.

Found 3 such FAT IDIOTS drifting on the shelve one day when they let off a flare in a bloody 5 meter quinney of all things.

Conditions were good but it dosen't take much for them to turn they had a radio & were waiting for the water police but didn't know their location, I had to Radio through with co-ordinates then wastes anothe 2 hrs trolling their vicinity cause the wind had come up untill the cops got there.

I have good knowledge of motors if ever I had probs out there + I run twins & can still limp home on one motor pulling over 20 knots & that's what I call a good outside boat.

Back in the days when I had a 18 ft tinny with single motor I wouldn't go out wide no matter how calm the seas were unless there were 2 boats these days everybody has gone stupid with GPS's & think they can go anywhere.

Getting there is not the prob that's the easy part it's the getting home thats the worry

[Haji]

HI Dogcatcher.
I could not agree more with the following parts of your post:

Back in the days when I had a 18 ft tinny with single motor I wouldn't go out wide no matter how calm the seas were unless there were 2 boats these days everybody has gone stupid with GPS's & think they can go anywhere.

Getting there is not the prob that's the easy part it's the getting home thats the worry

I have also seen lone tinnies on the shelf when the 43 Ft Mariner that I was fishing on was rocking and rolling and wondered at the sanity of the tinnie crew.

As to smaller boats, I had a 5.2 M Kevlacat that I was quite confident to take out to the shelf knowing that if the weather came up it would get me home no problems. By contrast an 6.5 M Aussie Whaler that I had I would not trust on wet grass 60 klicks inland let alone offshore.

Having said all of that, you can only get experience by sea time and the best way to do that ( providing that you have a sound boat) is to go out with another boat. That is what I will be doing when I get my 17 Ft Seafarer back in the water, and yes, you may even see me and a friends boat out wide on a good day but rest assured that we will be watching the weather and regularly checking with the Coastal patrol.

[Dog Catcher]

Well I have to admit that I dont check on the weather a great deal butthats just me.

To many times they are wrong & I've sat @ home or gone out when the forcast has been for good weather only to be blown out of the water.

Suppose I can get a wee bit cocky @ times but I always feel safe in my boat & that's a key factor in my book, I know it's limits & will fish when most boats have headed in.

Very stable handles very well no broaching etc & can carry load without the fear of tipping & that's my biggest criticum of smaller boats esp the ones which overcrowd with crew.


About 2 weeks back snuck out to Browns for a fish B4 going away for a week ride out wasn't that pleasant & probally only pulled 12 - 16 knots all the way out & that's very slow for me, but that's all the conditions allowed not alot of wind but we had the tail of some cyclone from up nth & the sts were one right behind the next punching into them all the way ended up putting the lures out once we hit 80 fathoms.

Now this was mid week & when we got to Browns I shook my head cause there was around a 17 ft tinny there bloody centre consol of all things with 3 guys on board they would've had a bastard of a time getting out there & were very very very fortunate that the wind never came up with the swell the way it was.

By the way Seafarer's aren't a bad tub they've been proven over the years.

[Haji]

I forgot to mention that people who take a small boat from Port Hacking down to say The Hump in front of Stanwell Park are just as vulnerable if the wind/sea comes up as those who travel the same distance straight out.

Punching back into a black North Easter for 15+ Ks is no fun and not for the inexperienced. That is why experienced boaties check the forecast and if the prediction is for a Southerly later in the day they will head South for their days fishing to avoid the possibility of having to run into instead of with the wind/sea on the return journey. Still hairy but easier.

And anyone who thinks that staying close to shore will be safer if a Northerly or Southerly wind/sea comes up have never experienced a long run home. The furhter offshore (within reason) the greater the options for picking the best and most comfortable angle to the sea to run home in. In close you have only limited options to choose a line home.

And finally I have heard some people say that sticking close to shore is safer as you can swim ashore in the event of an accident/capsize etc. They clearly have never tried to swim into a rocky shore in rough conditions where unless you are experienced via spearfishing from shore in rough conditions you will be lucky to survive and will definately sustain some serious injury.( spearo's have the advantage of flippers and protective wet suits and learn how to both pick the best spot to get back on shore and judge the waves to act for their benefit in lifting them onto shore then hanging on as the wave recedes before trying to clamber further. I know this from 30 years of spearfishing experience)

[Dog Catcher]

Actually travelling up or down the coast is far worse than going out wide.

Most times when heading out wide the seas become flatter with swell virtually disappearing @ times.

Unlike travelling up or down the coast where you have to cotend with the backwash off the coast & this backwash can extend out to 5 - 6 miles out to sea.

Many a times I've hammered it home from out wide sitting on 25 - 30 knots then whacko I hit that backwash I refered to & have had to drop speed.

Dont get me wrong the swell is still out wide but longer between peaks which makes it virtually non existant same swells hit the coast & reflect back making shorter swells in that backwash I refered to.

Back in the old days b4 they moved the sewer outlet out to sea for about 2 miles out depending on current you would get thick water to heavy to have any backwash in it & if you could stand the smell then you went right though it cause it was smooth sailing.