Mariner 34 test drive #1
October 13th 2006 20:01
Mariner 3400 test drive. Sydney to Gold Coast.
We picked up a Mariner 3400 at Brooklyn on the Hawkesbury River to deliver to the Gold Coast in Queensland. The boat had been recently purchased and the new owner was keen to get the delivery done during a specific week between Christmas and new year. He would be on board with two teenaged boys and I had another professional crew along to assist. I had been assured the vessel would do around 18 knots and looked forward to a quick trip offshore. I originally figured that we would be happy with around fifteen knots overall for the approximate four hundred nautical miles we planned to cover. Fuelling was to be a bit of a lucky dip, as we had to try and arrive at each port in time for fuelling. My experience is that port fuel is definitely not available twenty-four hours a day.
The boat had been well cleaned and the two Volvo 200 hp turbocharged engines had been serviced to within an inch of their lives. We were fuelled with what we believed was six hundred and eighty litres of diesel over two tanks. The generator also used diesel and was used not sparingly to drive an Xbox, microwave and sundry bibs and bobs. The small bar fridge and freezer was battery powered and the pressurised hot water was heated via the engines. Along side, shore power cut out the need for the generator, which was noisy and tucked under the rear floor. Inspection and work on the two Volvos was pretty simple with pretty good space and I had the advantage of having been introduced to a similar engine prior to departure.
Our first day was an easy run up the river to Lion Island that stands in the entrance to Broken Bay. We pointed our nose out of the heads and quickly put our tails between our legs and opted for a night alongside. The weather was not predicted to be very good with southerly winds up to thirty-five knots and seas around four and half metres. Safety was paramount but we did want to see how the boat would behave in that. We did not feel safe enough to depart. In fact it was not until early morning on the third day that we got away. At eight knots in about three metres of wave that was a bit uncomfortable on our starboard side we managed to get along ok. We were driving rather tenderly and occasionally ran up to ten knots but soon came down to a more comfortable speed for our conditions. We were not riding the waves and they were passing us quickly giving the helmsman plenty of work steering a straight course. After a very uncomfortable crossing of Stockton bight, we opted to pull in to Port Stevens for fuel; beer and the lads took in a local movie. It had been a slow uncomfortable start. No seasickness and the boat was going well with the engines burbling along quite nicely. We did not have a lot of experience in this kind of hull [which I believe is a copy of the Savage 34] and the weather was still rather atrocious but an improvement was imminent.
We slipped out of port Stevens about two thirty in the morning. There was good moonlight on the water and the wind was around fifteen knots and the sea a bit flatter at two point five metres. After a while we had her up to about twelve knots and by playing with the trim tabs managed to stick her nose down a bit and she bit into the waves a lot better. It was a bit freaky when we started to surf our way north! I think our record for the trip was one ride lasting around ten minutes at twenty knots!
We refuelled at Port Macquarie, also buying a few refreshments to celebrate New Year’s Eve, which was that night. We were putting in around 360 litres at a time. Everything on the boat was working well but the port engine was kicking out a fair bit of white to dark grey smoke. The grab rails of the ladder going up to the bridge were getting slippery with what I thought was salt spray. The next refuelling was at Yamba and the marina agreed to stay open till we arrived even though it was New Year’s Eve. We were guaranteeing a good load of fuel to be sold. We took on around four hundred and fifty litres there.
Continued tomorrow
We picked up a Mariner 3400 at Brooklyn on the Hawkesbury River to deliver to the Gold Coast in Queensland. The boat had been recently purchased and the new owner was keen to get the delivery done during a specific week between Christmas and new year. He would be on board with two teenaged boys and I had another professional crew along to assist. I had been assured the vessel would do around 18 knots and looked forward to a quick trip offshore. I originally figured that we would be happy with around fifteen knots overall for the approximate four hundred nautical miles we planned to cover. Fuelling was to be a bit of a lucky dip, as we had to try and arrive at each port in time for fuelling. My experience is that port fuel is definitely not available twenty-four hours a day.
The boat had been well cleaned and the two Volvo 200 hp turbocharged engines had been serviced to within an inch of their lives. We were fuelled with what we believed was six hundred and eighty litres of diesel over two tanks. The generator also used diesel and was used not sparingly to drive an Xbox, microwave and sundry bibs and bobs. The small bar fridge and freezer was battery powered and the pressurised hot water was heated via the engines. Along side, shore power cut out the need for the generator, which was noisy and tucked under the rear floor. Inspection and work on the two Volvos was pretty simple with pretty good space and I had the advantage of having been introduced to a similar engine prior to departure.
Our first day was an easy run up the river to Lion Island that stands in the entrance to Broken Bay. We pointed our nose out of the heads and quickly put our tails between our legs and opted for a night alongside. The weather was not predicted to be very good with southerly winds up to thirty-five knots and seas around four and half metres. Safety was paramount but we did want to see how the boat would behave in that. We did not feel safe enough to depart. In fact it was not until early morning on the third day that we got away. At eight knots in about three metres of wave that was a bit uncomfortable on our starboard side we managed to get along ok. We were driving rather tenderly and occasionally ran up to ten knots but soon came down to a more comfortable speed for our conditions. We were not riding the waves and they were passing us quickly giving the helmsman plenty of work steering a straight course. After a very uncomfortable crossing of Stockton bight, we opted to pull in to Port Stevens for fuel; beer and the lads took in a local movie. It had been a slow uncomfortable start. No seasickness and the boat was going well with the engines burbling along quite nicely. We did not have a lot of experience in this kind of hull [which I believe is a copy of the Savage 34] and the weather was still rather atrocious but an improvement was imminent.
We slipped out of port Stevens about two thirty in the morning. There was good moonlight on the water and the wind was around fifteen knots and the sea a bit flatter at two point five metres. After a while we had her up to about twelve knots and by playing with the trim tabs managed to stick her nose down a bit and she bit into the waves a lot better. It was a bit freaky when we started to surf our way north! I think our record for the trip was one ride lasting around ten minutes at twenty knots!
We refuelled at Port Macquarie, also buying a few refreshments to celebrate New Year’s Eve, which was that night. We were putting in around 360 litres at a time. Everything on the boat was working well but the port engine was kicking out a fair bit of white to dark grey smoke. The grab rails of the ladder going up to the bridge were getting slippery with what I thought was salt spray. The next refuelling was at Yamba and the marina agreed to stay open till we arrived even though it was New Year’s Eve. We were guaranteeing a good load of fuel to be sold. We took on around four hundred and fifty litres there.
Continued tomorrow
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