Malcolm Douglas - Australia - Bass Strait Adventure (1986)

[Music] [Applause] [Music] do [Music] hello i'm malcolm douglas and most of my adventures takes me to the top of australia cape york arnhem land the kimberleys and of course the western desert but there's another part of australia that's always fascinated me and that's the island's about straight so on this adventure i'm going to run from port phillip bay and the large inflatable dinghy dana wilson's prometry crusted the kent islands flinders island cape baron island and all the way down the coast of tasmania to hobart it's going to be a great trip reasonably dangerous but i'm really looking forward to it what i have to do now is pack up the boat try and get a permit from the police to get this whopping great dinghy through the traffic of melbourne and launch you to port phillip bay after countless phone calls and hours of deliberation malcolm eventually obtains a wide load permit and within days arrives in melbourne the flashing light blazing headlights and red flags indicating excessive width keep the other vehicles well clear malcolm and his team waste no time launching the boat in port phillip bay it's a seven metre zodiac inflatable with a specially constructed center console malcolm's anxious to give it a test run after the journey south from sydney [Music] with a top speed of 35 knots when empty it handles remarkably well he's satisfied but it's a long way to hobart in an open boat the big inflatable must be packed and repacked until all the equipment's securely tied and covered mark anderson and mark stratton who'll accompany malcolm's crew load on a total of 650 litres of fuel for the first leg of the journey for a start it's a pleasant run south towards the entrance of port phillip bay but when a southerly change chops up the water it's cold and bleak and the men soon realize that it's going to be a rough arduous journey by late afternoon the adventurers arrive at the entrance to the bay known simply as the rip it's a dangerous unpredictable opening where the rolling bass straight swell curls and breaks pushing against the outgoing tide from the relative calm of port phillip the men look for an anchorage to shelter until morning there are some tense moments as malcolm powers the inflatable over the chop and heads for deeper water where the bass straight swell is less dangerous it's a perfect day and as the cray fishermen head out to check their pots there's little wind and clearing skies [Music] following the coasts out they pause for a few minutes off cape shank a notoriously dangerous point then it's a bumpy ride to seal rocks off phillip island surrounded by dangerous seas the small rocky islets are the home of the australian fur seal with the arrival of the inflatable boat the seals rush into the water and keeping an eye on the visitors perform a spectacular aquatic display the seals seem to appreciate an audience as much as the men enjoy watching the comical antics of the sleek animals shortly after european settlement of australia the seals were hunted close to extinction in many parts of bass strait for their skins and oil they're now totally protected and once again the colonies are flourishing fur seals are gregarious literally crowding together the females are very protective of their young each group is dominated by a huge powerful and experienced bull who keeps all the young males away from his harem these young pups are three months old and will remain dependent on their mother for food and shelter for a year [Music] during the night the wind swings around to the north bringing calm seas offshore the boat hugs the coast and the men enjoy the ideal conditions [Music] by late afternoon they reach the islands off wilson's promontory the most striking in the answer group is skull rock a local name given to this massive granite outcrop because of its skull-like appearance dominating the western side is a massive cave from a distance it's even more [Music] spectacular the boat edges through another seal colony [Music] the australian fur seal has strong well-developed flippers enabling it to climb steep slopes seals are one of the most appealing creatures in the animal world the nights spend in sheltered over on bay and in the morning with the weather conditions still stable the men prepare for the first leg of their bass straight crossing it's bitterly cold and traveling in an open boat windproof clothing is essential the blue tarpaulin a tent by night keeps the gear dry and gives the crew shelter from the wind and flying spray on all of his adventures malcolm must remain constantly alert for any mishap an accident can happen so quickly only seconds from now mark could easily have drowned the rubber ties snaps and he loses balance fortunately he instinctively maintains a grip on the boat with so many clothes on he may have gone under icy winds dry and crack the skin so a solid coating of cream is essential playful dolphins join the inflatable as it swings south into the unpredictable waters of bass strait the men head for the kent islands in the middle of the strait rugged and spectacular they're the peaks of ancient mountain ranges submerged when bass straight flooded at the end of the last ice age the kent islands are a group of three deel dover and earth a deep passage divides them and to one side is a tranquil bay a safe anchorage and haven from storms for professional fishermen and yachties such a magic place is totally unexpected in the middle of bass strait aerith islands leased by the stackhouse family of flinders is a cattle run their small cottage nestles in the scrub and is used by everyone during bad weather across the passage is deal island its highest point dominated by a lighthouse 300 metres above sea level contact's soon made with stan day the keeper and it's up the steep winding track to have a look at the light wallabies normally nocturnal feed here all day unafraid stan and his son-in-law are the permanent lighthouse keepers the men working shifts to ensure the light never fails painstakingly built with immense effort in 1847 using bullock teams and convicts it's now been signaling every night for 140 years on such a glorious day the view from the top's absolutely breathtaking stan's been on deal island for nine years and believes that he's the luckiest man in the world to be able to enjoy such solitude close to nature in the elements at the heart of the light are two 1000 watt globes only one is lit the second is a spare huge panels of glass prisms rotate slowly at night converting the 1 000 watt light into a million candle power every light in australia is unique and a navigator can establish exactly where he is by checking the information on his charts and counting the flashes the deal island light on a clear night can be seen 50 nautical miles away during the day the prisms are scrupulously protected from the rays of the sun [Music] taking advantage of the perfect weather malcolm decides to keep moving and it's a good run from deal south to kilacranky bay at the top of flinders island it's been a long day while the crew came for sure malcolm always sleeps in the inflatable so if the wind springs up during the night and conditions deteriorate he's instantly awake ready to move clearing sufficient room he just rolls out his swag it's not very comfortable when it's rough and to stay dry he just pulls the tarp over his head [Applause] the killer cranky bay is the first safe anchorage after crossing bass straight from wilson's prometry via deal island the killer cranky bay is one of the most beautiful spots i've ever been to killer cranky bay is famous for the giant crayfish and the killer cranky diamond well they're not diamonds it's actually topaz but once it's cut and polished only the experts can pick the difference between killer cranky diamonds and real diamonds i've been walking along the beach and i found two or three pieces with a bit of luck i'll be able to get it cut and polished to make a beautiful stone not far from here there's a guy the locals call the killer cranky diamond king and his name is alan wheatley allen has found more killer cranky diamonds than anyone else and i'm just about to visit allen now alan the killer cranky diamond king who has lived on flinders island all of his life has developed a unique method of locating gemstones during the winter when the seas calm for a few days and clear he dives in the freezing water with a large homemade vacuum cleaner to suck up topaz from the rock crevices each stone is checked for floors or cracks and is graded before being sent to the cutter once the topaz are cut and polished they take on their diamond-like appearance their value varies from a few dollars to several thousand depending on size shape and colour from killer cranky bay the boat continues southwards skirting the bays and inlets of flinders island before spending time on flinders they head for cape baron island the second largest in the furno group an island of mystery and intrigue stamped with history it's rarely visited by outsiders nearby is one of australia's best preserved early wrecks the farsund on the 12th of march 1912 the farsund under captain abrahamsen was 59 days out of bunazari's heading for sydney to pick up cargo loaded with 600 tons of ballast sand she was pounded by a southeast gale and ended up on an even keel and three metres of water anchors were put out and the captain headed for launceston for assistance on a boat visiting cape baron island a tug was sent to tow the farsund to deeper water but by the time it arrived another southeast blow had pushed the bark further onto the sand where it's remained for over 70 years it's rusting badly and soon will disintegrate and disappear like all the other wrecks around these stormy islands [Music] in the morning as usual it's cold and bleak mount monroe shrouded in cloud as the men head for the tiny settlement on cape baron of the 126 islands between victoria and tasmania only seven are permanently inhabited although close to the densely populated mainland few australians know that these spectacularly beautiful isles exist the cape baron settlement spreads around a tranquil bay sheltered from the bass strait gales only 70 people the cape baron islanders live here now many of them are descendants of the original white sealers and their aboriginal women cape baron's famous for its wildfowl the big cape baron geese these geese are unique to australia and among the rarest waterfowl in the world the handsome birds were once shot as agricultural pests their eggs were destroyed and they were in danger of being wiped out now with careful management their numbers have increased dramatically there's continuing controversy among the local farmers as to whether the geese should be allowed to breed up again many believe that they eat too much improved pasture especially in the dry summer months when the geese congregate on flinders island to feed it's hoped that these magnificent birds are never again hunted to the point of extinction franklin sound divides cape baron island from flinders island and a number of smaller landforms add to the magnificent panorama [Music] lady baron the deep water port for flinders and the center of the cray fishing industry nestles at the top of adelaide bay this will be the next stop for the travelers we've just arrived at flinders island and what a top spot beautiful scenery lots of history and delightful people now before we leave flinders i want to get all the gear out of the boat take it over to the main wharf where the crow fishermen come in and lift the boat up on the wharf just to check it all out check it all out underneath before we run down the cape baron island clark island and the other places crossbank straits and then down the east coast of tassie to hobart um just while you're there just have a look around and i'll tell you a little bit about the boat we've got the 270 horsepower uh johnson outboards uh double motors of course of the safety feature all the fuel is in these inflatable blow-up bags each of those takes 65 liters so we've got 450 liters another 200 liters in the drum under under that bag there now under the center console here seat lifts up we've got three radios another safety feature all the dual controls compass here the big drums all sorts of gear and air life jackets and bits and pieces another one here all our clothes are kept in these waterproof drums uh my camera gear is in this big fiberglass box here an aluminium box there and a bit of water and doors and paddles and a few other things the driver of course sits up here and the passengers well they get first-class accommodation they sit here on this nice bit of spun rubber if it's calm they go to sleep under the tarp but if it's rough well they just hang on due to the size and shape of the inflatable it must be lifted high from the water for a thorough hull inspection south of flinders island the weather conditions will be a lot rougher and malcolm must check the boat thoroughly before they continue it's divided into separate air compartments so if there's any leakage only one section will deflate this is a vital safety feature after a detailed examination it's back into the water before they set off there's plenty to see on the island first of all malcolm arranges to join the fishermen catching the big tasmanian lobsters [Music] jack shores had his boat out of the water too repainting the hull but now he's heading out again to check his pots the young deckhand prepares the fresh bait and two hours run from lady baron the first markers are sighted pulling pots is a team effort the skipper maneuvers the boat the decky retrieves the ropes and boys there's strict industry control and jack measures each cray to make sure that it's legal size even one millimeter under and it's thrown back elsewhere in the world these crustaceans are called spiny lobsters but in tasmanian waters they're crayfish or more often just craze crayfish are a major money spinner for the skipper he gets an average ten dollars per kilo and his deckhand a percentage of the catch the number of pots a cray fisherman's permitted depends on the length of his boat jack shaw's allowed 38 pots and the license for each pot costs four thousand dollars so that's 152 000 for the total pot license add on at least 100 000 for the boat and equipment plus years of experience and it's only a certain tough breed of men who can take on crayfishing today it's calm and warm most days it's rough windy and cold the pots are rebated and jack studies the echo sounder it's his knowledge of the seabed that'll decide where the craze should be the pots must be dropped right next to a crevice where crayfish hide the men check their pots every day unless it's too rough to leave port all fishermen have their favorite type of pot bruce grino another lady baron crayfisherman always makes his own the woods collected deep in a melaleuca thicket the shafts have to be long and reasonably straight they're steamed for several hours to make them pliable bruce begins with cane building up the neck where the craze enter the pot when it's the preferred height the shoulders are formed and the pot takes on its distinctive shape the steam shafts are now supple and bend easily to complete the sides a well-made pot would last at least two years heavy cable and wire is used in the bottom so that the pot will sit correctly on the seabed now it's ready to catch craze a continuous supply of bait is their biggest problem so the men always have their trolling lines ready [Music] [Music] bruce is working the east coast of flinders island where it's usually more sheltered at this time of the year but it's still bitterly cold around these waters the weather's so changeable that it can be calm and fine then within minutes the winds blow up the temperature drops and rain squalls make conditions miserable but the pots still have to be checked all crave oats have a large well continuously circulating sea water the crayfish are kept alive in the tank until they're sold most of these craze will go to the top restaurants in sydney and melbourne some of the craze are huge these monsters will bring sixty dollars each bruce shows malcolm a peculiar balancing act tickle a large cray on its underside and it stiffens completely rigid and other strange marine creatures also end up in the pots hermit crabs are the scavengers of the sea and this prehistoric looking shark can stay alive for hours out of the water [Music] every day is a hard day on a cray boat but at least there's a reward a good feat of tails at the end of it all a group of men who earn even more money than the cray fisherman and toil under rugged conditions are the abalone divers they swim all day below the surface among the swaying seagrasses in the freezing water collecting the elusive abalone from the seabed there's always the chance of a shark attack and a number of divers have been taken by white pointers they surface whenever the bag's full the incentive is great the diver's grossing up to three hundred thousand dollars each year abalone is exported to the usa hong kong and japan where it's esteemed as a delicacy uh because it's a lifestyle one old skipper remembers a shark attack well a young new south wales surf lifesaver working as a cook decided to swim ashore from the boat for some exercise and he got halfway and he decided to rest and float and what happened then as soon as he went over his back for a spell he shark grabbed me yeah they're not sure what sort of shark i think of the white pointer we uh he was lying on his back we were in the motorboat going to go out about two by that so where the ship was learning to pull these spots yeah and he yelled shark he's just swimming ashore off to keep fit if he could swim another 10 or 20 yards you get a walk to shore and this white pointer or a thing of the white pointer came up grabbed him on the behind and you managed to go and pick him up yeah we picked him up and he was still alive he was still alive laying in one great big pool of blood and they ended up at yam hospital yeah for about what about six months in hospital with 280 stitches yeah and he's still alive to this day today he's married and he gets around a little bit of a limp that's what we've left him with i've never heard that story before and the doctor was dr martin from the time we got bit we were in got himself at 3pi that's worse for sure station yeah and i kept in touch with dr martin all the way and then we hit washbowl through the night the docks were there they got him straight to the air the thing is about this story is that the fishermen never believed that the sharks would come into the shallow water in the winter and i proved they were wrong flinders island named after the brilliant navigator matthew flinders now has a population of eleven hundred those who don't carve a living from the sea are farmers exporting their livestock to the australian mainland the island lies in an atmosphere of peace and tranquility dominated by the brooding stress leki rangers back in the 1830s one of australia's great tragedies occurred here at wybolena when it became the home of the last of the tasmanian aborigines the only building standing today is the recently restored chapel a george augustus robinson with immense missionary zeal traveled throughout tasmania gathering together the remnants of the tribes 160 dispirited and homesick people were shipped to this area within a few years 115 had died and in 1847 the last 45 were sent to oyster bay near hobart to die in peace the last tasmanian aborigine to die was tragenini a fine woman who pleaded in vain that her bones be buried with dignity and not used for scientific study at weibelina today all that's left of this sad period is an empty church where robinson failed miserably to christianize this ancient race the inflatables repacked and malcolm prepares for the crossing to tasmania he's surprised to learn that his crew have some reservations about continuing their finding conditions too miserable so i've decided to head back to sydney 21 year old stephen eastwood from hobart joins malcolm and being used to the coal he revels in the rugged conditions good-sized flathead are common in all the bays and it's easy to catch a feed malcolm and stephen head for kent bay at the southern end of cape baron island another of australia's historic sites still so remote and isolated that few people come this way we've just arrived at kent bay and this is a very interesting place because in 1799 captain bishop and his crew on the ship the nautilus arrived here to set up a camp and this was the first settlement outside of sydney and they came here for one reason and that was to hunt seals and in five months they clubbed to death 9 000 first seals and scunned them and sent the skins out through sydney and they got 14 shillings each in 1799 for the skins can you imagine it 14 shillings that was a lot of money and of course that started a rush and in three years there are over 200 sealers and some whalers hunting the seals around these islands from reports all these little rocky points were crawling with seals but between 1800 and 1806 the sealers clubbed to death over a hundred thousand seals scunned them and exported the skins and in 20 years the industry failed because of course the seal population was virtually exterminated and even today there are still very few seals in these bastard islands malcolm and stephen anchor between two islands that are of particular interest rum island and preservation island granite topped they've changed little in twelve thousand years since the flooding of bass strait the soft light and pastel colors are found nowhere else in australia well here we are on preservation island it's a beautiful calm day but back not long after the first fleet had sailed into sydney cove there's a sailing ship coming through here with the name the sydney cove it's coming through these islands from calcutta in an easterly gale and on board with 7 000 gallons of rum and other cargo because in those days there were no charts on these islands and they smashed themselves up on this little island here and miraculously all the survivors got ashore and that's why it's called preservation island today there's also a little point that's called rum island anyway when they got ashore here the captain ordered the long boat with 18 men aboard to row from here all the way north to sydney well they battled the elements of bass strait for two weeks and they finally ran ashore on the 90 mile beach between port albert and lake's entrance the longboat was smashed up so all i could do was start walking north to sydney you've got to remember that it was completely unknown coast but within four weeks nine of them had died some of them from exhaustion and some of them had been spared by the aborigines and for another four weeks remainder continued north all the way along the coast towards sydney after another month there are only three survivors they're staggering along the beach near botany bay exhausted close to death when they're picked up by a boat from sydney cove taken to sydney and of course a rescue boat was sent down here to preservation island to pick up all the survivors and i just bet that they also picked up a lot of that rum seven thousand gallons of it these islands are the breeding grounds of one of the world's most amazing birds the short-tailed sheer water or as they're commonly called mutton birds every year in september they return to breed to the same island and usually to the same burrow where a single large eggs laid it's now well into the breeding season the adults are at sea feeding the chicks underground are silent all the eggs are laid at the same time so that the chicks hatch within days of one another they grow rapidly until the end of april when they leave their burrows ready for the flight north and this is why the mutton birds are so remarkable they complete an annual migration to the northern hemisphere flying via new zealand japan the arctic circle and the west coast of the usa before returning to the same burrow year after year one banded chick took off from here and it was found by an eskimo four weeks later in the bering straits it had flown 12 000 kilometers it's believed that mutton birds live for at least 30 years spending most of their life at sea they dive below the surface of the water to feed on the rich marine life with the annual arrival of the mutton birds to breed among the tussock grasses a peculiar industry has developed the muttonbird harvest the mutton birders live in huts along the beaches the interiors simply furnished creating an atmosphere of bygone days many of the sheds are operated by cape baron islanders the others are outsiders who arrive each year for the harvest the first requirement for a catcher is a strong stick to carry the birds rubbed well with mutton bird oil it's now ready for work the commercial exploitation of chicks is strictly controlled by the national parks and wildlife service and each team works in a predetermined area a shed operates with a team of about eight the catchers collect the birds and carry them back to the sheds [Music] the extremely valuable stomach oil used for pharmaceutical products is squeezed from each bird's stomach before it's thrown into the plaque house the placards work all day a metre deep in down the birds are passed into the scalding room where the last of the feathers are removed before the carcasses are cleaned and packed years ago the mutton birds were salted now they're frozen for sale they have a strong and very distinctive flavor in former times everything revolved around the mutton bird industry even the schools were closed for their holidays during the season instead of at christmas [Music] in 1933 over 800 000 birds were taken but now the numbers have dwindled to a few hundred thousand there are pressure groups trying to stop mutton birding but it's a contentious issue as it's still a traditional vacation of the islanders many of the islands have been declared wildlife reserves stock have been removed and mutton birding stopped this unique bass strait industry is dying out as families are less willing to work at such a demanding job down in front of the sheds the gulls congregate picking at the muttonbird remains along the beach stephen notices a peculiar shape and investigates it's the jaw of a large whale according to the locals the whales swam into the shallow waters of franklin sound about 15 months ago and ended up on the beach surprisingly after so long a large piece of blubber is still lying on the sand the islands have a long history of whale beachings this massive vertebra and other bones were collected by the locals from beaches nearby it's now well into autumn and the weather's deteriorating malcolm must keep moving steven shelters under the tarp malcolm tries to keep warm while checking the charts as he moves along banks straight the stretch between the ferno group and tasmania is notoriously rough and dangerous [Music] malcolm's relieved when they reached the east coast of tasmania and passed the lighthouse at eddystone point [Music] for a day or two the weather clears as they travel south past the small fishing port of bishnow and onto wineglass bay the most beautiful reserve on tasmania's east coast [Music] it's still relatively isolated because the road from hobart finishes well inland and the bay can only be reached by walking for an hour or more along a bush track tasmanians still have large areas of forest these woodlands are rich in wildlife many of the species unique to tasmania the wilderness areas are at times referred to as tiger country because the tasmanian tiger once roamed the region [Applause] yes this is tiger country the remote wilderness areas of tasmania now is the starter thing or the tasmanian tigers it's commonly called extinct well nobody really knows but there are continuing sightings by all sorts of people british walkers travelers along the roads saw millers and it's just hoped that in some remote pocket of tasmania there just may be some tasmanian tigers still roaming free when europeans arrived in tasmania the thylacine was common early this century the numbers were dramatically reduced over the whole of its range it's thought that an epidemic disease was the main cause but many were also killed by hunters as the animal was blamed for attacks on sheep and poultry before 1900 a government bounty was introduced and between 1888 and 1909 over 2000 scalps were handed in the hunters were paid one pound per scalp the last tiger was shot in 1930 and the last captive thylacine died in hobart zoo in 1933 this film of the captive animal shows its considerable size the massive jaws and its very distinctive stripes hence the name tasmanian tiger it's actually the largest marsupial carnivore in the world it would be a tragedy if the thylacine were now extinct in tasmania it died out on the australian mainland several thousand years ago when the aborigines arrived with the dingo a dominant predator tasmania still has a lot of wild country and respected authorities believe that the tasmanian tiger exists let's hope that they might be right wallabies an important source of food for the thylacine are common [Laughter] late afternoon and it's very cold but this is the time of the day that i may see another one of tasmania's famous marsupials and this is the bad tempered and what some people say ugly little tasmanian devil i reckon they're great they sleep all day come out at night i don't know why they come out of me when it's so cold but it's almost sundown and if i'm lucky i may see one or two of them the tasmanian devil eats carrion and this dead kangaroo attracts a group of young ones snarling and growling about the time that the tiger became extinct the devil population also dropped dramatically now once again their numbers have increased the biggest problem boating in tasmanian waters is the changeable weather after a day or two of calm a cold front arrives and the mornings are bitter [Music] as they leave white glass bay rain squalls and wind pound the inflatable and it's heavy going until the depression passes and the weather clears [Music] so after the rough trip down the coast there's a welcome break in the sheltered waters of blackmore bay so [Music] pushing on malcolm and stephen reach tasman island at the southern end of the tasman peninsula these fluted cliffs of are an awe-inspiring spectacle only fishermen and yachties ever pass so close to these remarkable rocks [Music] it's a wild lonely part of the tasmanian coast so it's not wise to stay too long the next stop is port arthur once australia's most notorious convict colony now it's only a grim reminder of an infamous past founded in 1830 to cope with the enormous number of convicts coming to australia it earned a reputation as a brutal and dreaded prison when it finally closed in 1877 12 000 convicts had served time here in 1835 the guard tower was constructed as extra security for the military barracks because the commander feared a mass revolt today port arthur attracts visitors from all over the world and every effort is made to stop the ruins deteriorating further [Music] leaving the sheltered waters of port arthur malcolm and stephen moted towards storm bay the notorious water leading up to hobart they stopped to admire the majestic beauty and grandeur of cape rowell even more spectacular than tasman island [Music] [Music] uh [Music] four hours later they're in the derwent river and tie up for the last time at the hobart wharf for malcolm it's been a long hard trip but it's a journey he'll never forget [Music] [Music] you

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Length: 46min 15sec (2775 seconds)

Published: Tue Dec 01 2020