Port Fairy......Calista tied up left of centre.

Port Fairy Wednesday 14 /4/10

The howling winds of last weekend - it blew a consistent 40-50knots here on Sunday - have happily dissipated but in their train has come a huge and frustrating swell. We would like to be on our way, but before us stands the buttress of Cape Otway and local salts have spoken about this area and large swells in unflattering terms, so we are having to be patient. The problem is that fronts passing to the south of Tasmania are continuing to feed the swell and it may not be until early Friday that we set off for Wilson's Promontory and ultimately to Gabo Is and Eden on the Eastern side of Bass St. This passage is a full four-day exercise with a delicate balance of sea and wind conditions driving our decisions in this notoriously challenging waterway. The only realistic break in the journey is at the 'Prom and that is two sea days from here. Meanwhile we have had a wonderful opportunity to experience the delights of this remarkable little port.

One of the first things that we did was to brave the elements and to embark on the coast walk around Griffith Island, the Shearwater colony with lighthouse that guards the entrance to Port Fairy. Our good friend Andy Haldane, whose family we have got to know at Port Lincoln, had shared with us the remarkable story of the Haldanes at Port Fairy. Andy's grandfather Hugh was the lighthouse keeper on Griffith Island from the 1930's to 1951. He was an outstanding boatbuilder and when not tending the light, built at least two sizeable vessels on the island and launched them on the sandy beach in the lee of the light. By the end of WW2 Hugh saw a need to move on for the future of the family, and so the Haldanes constructed the wooden hulled Tacoma, and when it was finished the entire family steamed away to Port lincoln on board where the Tacoma became the pioneering tuna boat in its new home. Tacoma is in fine fettle to this day and remains a tribute to the master craftsmanship of the Haldanes. Andy has recently shared with us the the Tacoma will soon revisit Port Fairy on a special trip to Port Fairy. It should prove a marvellous homecoming. Sadly nothing remains of the keeper's cottages, although the Lighthouse still stands stoically on the point and tourist info boards pay homage to Hugh Haldane and his family. As we made our way back to Calisata in the buffeting winds, there was one more Haldane legacy to admire. Hugh Haldane when not nautically engaged planted Norflok Island pines. Now they adorn the town and happily are heritage listed. An avenue of these giants stood between us, the tempest, and our anchorage, and these marvellous trees lent their arboreal shoulders into the gale and softened it to a zephyr by the time it reached our halyards. Thank you Hugh Haldane.

Port Fairy Lighthouse

When the GL created Port Fairy as an example of how coastal hamlets might be, He got it just about right. PF is a treasure. For the mariner sliding up the Moyne river to tie up its charms are already evident. A mix of quaint weatherboard of the numerous cottages blends with the heavy stone of the commercial, civic and faith derived buildings, above, beyond and entwined around the port infrastructure. Then as you glide to throw a line the unerring waft of a premier wharfside fish and chippery is torment to the olfactory after a long night at sea. Its allure is overwhelming to dietry commonsense, and the fresh flake with home made tartare, proved to be up to its promise.

The story of our journey really started at Port Fairy, at the spot where we tied up, a number of years ago and it involved a cruising yacht by the name of Koshka - we will share this later. Meanwhile, we found that the town, just a small walk away, has just about all that the weary mariner could desire. A couple of creditable bakeries, bookshops, browseries, a picture theatre and a quaint slatted surf shop head the bill. There are four pubs and one, the presupposing Star of the West has a salad and vegie bar to vault over. Rebecca's Cafe in Port Fairy central has just about the finest coffee and baked delights that one could imagine. Across from Rebecca's, in PF's epicentre stands the imposing Lecture Hall, an impressive and imposing testament to a 19th Century fondness for public learning in the Arts, Sciences and the Natural World. Fashioned to last in the 1880's by the Christian Temperance & Philharmonic Society, it was probable that the song was easier to promote than abstinence, given the rich Irish heritage found in these parts (PF was once named Dublin), the presence of a brewery, the aforementioned licenced premises, and the fact that sailors stepping ashore were unlikely to yearn for lectures. Nonetheless, the Hall has been nicely preserved, and at least acted as a prominent shelter for the market that attracted a throng on Sat last. For cultural variation in town there are a couple of Asian eateries, maybe reflecting the distinctive mandarin connection that local ports once had to the goldfields, once just a day or so by horse from here. They even have a successful footy team - the Port Fairy Seagulls - who, in spite of their purple and gold colours, got the local season away in fine style on Saturday by beheading the South Warrnambool Roosters to the tune of 51 pts. As a result all's well in Port Fairy.

Returning to our tethered ship we have a premier position nestled securely on a walkway in the stream, with all manner of craft, including some charming wooden yachts and 'couta boats offset by the odd visiting commercial craft of the trawling, netting and prawning variety. Not far down the road lies the Port Fairy Sailing Club, and last Saturday on the edge of the tempest we saw a handful of seriously appointed sailing craft head out to sea with clear intentions of mortal combat. One of the PF fleet, Monkey Puzzle has performed with great credit in recent Adelaide - Port Lincoln Classics. The locals can sail. Late the same day we sauntered down to the PFSC with the intention to meet some sea minded souls and we were not disappointed. Trevor off Kelly Down, his trim and spacious 33 footer and Mary and Anton, off their much loved wooden long-keeler Ranger soon had us feeling at home. Mary and Anton have a close connection to Jim Shepherd and Alibi who share berths on B row back at Wirrina. We found it easy to slip into a very comfortable lifestyle at Port Fairy and at $16/night with showers, toilets kitchen and laundry facilities thrown in, it has to be the best value this side of Paris. And, as Anton reminded us, Port Fairy is now a mecca for the well to do of the SW of Victoria, and the well-heeled souls in the apartments across the way would be shelling out over $200/night for the same view and position that we have on Calista.

New friends on Calista

For aquatic souls like us there was just one other must-do before we departed Port Fairy, and that was of course to go for a swim in the sea. Happily for us the Moyne River on which we are snugged curves back parallel to the coast so from our mooring it is only a short stroll across the foredune to East Beach where the Surf club patrols. We are able to report that the ocean at this time and place lacks heat. Then to our surprise, a stroll to the visitor centre revealed that Port Fairy has a heated indoor swimming pool, and a jolly fine 25m one at that. After a lap-session in this really excellent pool we discovered that up the road in Portland, they have one too. We were left wondering why PF can be so well appointed in this area, with a population of 2,500, and why Victor Harbor which proudly struts its City status, can't muster more than a puddle to swim in.

Maybe it was the feel of the warmth of the Port Fairy pool that reminded us that our trip was really in search of warmer waters, and that hence it was time to embark on the challenge of Bass Strait, and thence to turn the corner of the continent and head north. Winter in these parts is clearly on its way.

Night Lights Port Fairy