The Five Fathom Bank is a special part of Western Australia's coastline, running for more than 100km from Mandurah to Rottnest Island, it passes 5km off Garden Island with braking waves sometimes marking what lies below. Coventry Reef is a part of the bank and is a home to many shipwrecks.
I sail to the Bank often in summer from Shoalwater Bay before turning to run into Safety Bay, but yesterday was worth a bit more exposure to the ocean. Coventry Reef is about 10km directly up wind from my launch point, like about 30km of windward sailing with a wave board and weed fin. Equipped with an EPIRB and flares the first tack took me out offshore, and over top of the Orizaba, a 200 metre P&O ship that foundered on the Bank in the 1890s, the next was a long 15km leg thru Penguin Island sand bar across Warnbro Sound to the Nuddy beach close to Long Point. Sadly the sun worshipper were wearing spray jackets, the wind was so strong. Coventry is 10km off shore from the beach, and another tight windward work thru the offshore islands.
Coventry Reef is always conspicuous, it always breaks. On this day after persistent Southerly winds the swell was big and everything was breaking, it made it difficult to identify, despite my hard windward work I was still half a kilometer below it, but close enough to hear its roar.
Turning for home and there were some big waves to ride, there is nothing more satisfying than a downwinder after you have done the hard yards up wind! After a while fatigue started to make me clumsy, sailing angles hardened up for control, it was to be a long sail back and I nearly aborted in Safety Bay when the wind went funny in the late arvo. Finally I pitched up on my Shoalwater beach after a solid 60km, 3 hour sail.
My allotted three score years plus ten is way past, and, when on a long sail I consider my mortality. For an epitaph no words could be better than those of the Old Bard, I did not know that he was a sailor!!!
Full fathom five thy father lies;
Of his bones are coral made;
Those are pearls that were his eyes:
Nothing of him that doth fade
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange.
Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell: .
William Shakespeare
Thanks Jonsey it was a special sail,
Does not seem to be much of a chart on the net,
will see if I can post a track tomorrow.
I think i seen someone out there yesterday Think you were out pretty far out (only seen the one sail aswel) .. (always take a buddy champ)or in my case follow a random !!!Good to get the background on the fads. Been surfing that area for so long but never had the courage to go out that far incase of gear breakage. ! Ill follow you out next time if i can catch you!.You can see the waves out there just never had the balls to go out that far !
