The Long Downwind Leg

 By Tony Saunders
 

After the great trip away, in my Jabiru J160, with the Bundaberg Aero Club to the Gulf, Adel’s Grove, Katherine, Kakadu & Darwin in June/July I decided it was time to make my first “Long Solo Nav”.

I had always wanted to visit the Northwest of Australia as this was the only area of mainland Australia I had not been.

Two weeks after I returned from the Bundy trip (I came back the long way via Ayers Rock, Coober Pedy, Port Pirie, Cootamundra & Sydney) I took off alone to do the “Around Australia Mainland” circuit.

Leaving my base in Caloundra I stopped at Bundaberg for an oil change & fuel before going on to Emerald for the night.

The plan for the next day was to fly all the way to Cooktown, refueling at Atherton. During this leg the clouds started to build up on the Western side of the ranges & I decided to go over the ranges and see if it was better on the Eastern side. This was a mistake as the clouds were worse, thicker & lower, on the coastal side.

I decided to land at Ingham & stay for the night.

Next morning the weather was worse with very thick, low, cloud cover (about 500ft) & no prospect of getting over the ranges.

A local told me that it would clear up in an hour or so. After waiting three hours the clouds had lifted and thinned slightly & I took off.

About an hour later, after three attempts, I got over the mountains & headed for Cooktown.

The flight to Cooktown was incident free and pleasant although this changed once on the ground. The taxi fare from the airport to town was $35 one way & then the cost of  a tent site was $29 for the night (there goes the budget). Cooktown is a small bland coastal village.

The next day I flew on to Normanton. Uneventful flight but around halfway I realized I had a fuel problem. I had filled up at Ingham & should have had plenty but my gauges were showing otherwise.

By the time I joined the circuit at Normanton I was a bit “Twitchy” as I had no fuel coming out of either of the wing tanks & was running on the header tank. I had only flown six hours since Ingham so this did not make sense.

When I refueled in the morning I was surprised to discover that the left wing tank still had 25 litres in it. I imagined that the rear fuel outlet on that side must be blocked. I made a mental note that my total fuel was now about 110 litres rather than 130 litres.

I had originally planned to go to Adel’s Grove from Normanton but decided to go to Borroloola for fuel & then Daly Waters.

The Daly Waters airstrip is large & sealed although neglected & obviously not used much. I was surprised to discover that Daly Waters was the first International Airport in Australia. It was a refueling stop on the Sydney-London route.

I spent the night in the Daly Waters pub (an outback icon with great food & entertainment).

The next day I flew to Kunnanurra. I walked into town to save the taxi fare (I regretted this as it was 4 klm & hot). I had decided not to camp as it was just an overnight stop (another mistake). I eventually found a “Budget Motel Room” for $90 after being told at the pub their cheapest was $160.

Kunnanurra is a typical small outback town & appears to have “Aboriginal/Crime/Alcohol” problems.

Next morning I took off for El Questro (a place I have always wanted to visit) via Lake Argyle & the Bungle Bungles. Lake Argyle really is enormous & I am told it holds about 60% of all the fresh water in Australia.

I was not overly impressed with the Bungle Bungles & think they may be better seen from ground level.

I landed at the El Questro Township airstrip which was smooth & level. The walk to reception is only about two hundred metres. Tent sites are $15 per person per day (or you can stay in the Homestead for $1,000/night). The amenities are excellent & so is the location. The township is located on the Pentacost River with shady camping sites and several swimming spots.

The next morning I flew to Emma Gorge (part of El Questro) where there is another airstrip. I did the walk to the top of the gorge which is not that difficult & gives you a good idea of the “Real Rugged Outback”. There are several areas around the Cockburn Ranges (of which Emma Gorge is part) that have never been explored.

The following day I got a transfer to El Questro Gorge & planned to do the “Half Way” walk as I had only given myself three hours. As it turned out I got to the half way mark quite quickly & decided to go the whole way. This involves wading chest deep through water & a lot of climbing/clambering over very large boulders/rocks. I had a cooling swim in the pool at the top of the gorge & hurried back to meet my lift.

The Chamberlain Gorge cruise was the activity for the next day. It was OK but if you have seen Katherine Gorge or Lawn Hill Gorge it falls well short.

Really getting into outback mode I went horse riding the next day. I checked to make sure I was not going to re-do anything I had already done. It was good and involved a deep river crossing (you do get wet). One of the girls on the ride fell off but was unhurt.

I decided to fly back to Kunnanurra for fuel and took Carmella, a Swiss backpacker, with me. She really enjoyed the ride but was a bit grey by the time we got back as it was pretty rough.

After a wonderful stay at El Questro it was on to Broome. I had a nice tailwind & was making 135 knots over the ground.

I called in at 30 NM (as per ERSA) but forgot which side of the country I was on. My call was “Broome Radio, Jabiru 4939 30 NM West 4500 on descent inbound Broome”. After the tower had confirmed my call & given me local conditions there was silence for 3-4 minutes. Then the tower called me back & asked me to confirm that I was 30 NM to the WEST OVER WATER – OOPS Sorry I meant East. Landed without drama & got a taxi to the Cable Beach Caravan Park ($12/night).

Broome was exactly as I had imagined, a small Darwin (I lived in Darwin for 2 years), except that it was full of English & Irish backpackers.

I spent a week in Broome, partly waiting for the weather in the South to improve & partly due to the socializing with the backpackers.

Next stop after Broome was Port Hedland for the night & then Geraldton the following day.

From Geraldton I flew to Bussleton to visit one of my sisters, Carol, & her husband, Dennis. There were several active restricted areas around Perth so I decided to go via Northam.

I had lunch with Carol & Dennis then gave them each a “Joy Flight” over Bussleton. I think this made their day as they didn’t even know I was coming.

Then back to Northam for the night.

My original plan from Northam was to fly non-stop to Port Pirie “The Long Downwind Leg” but due to the fuel issues between Ingham & Normanton I scrapped that idea.

Plan “B” was to fly non-stop to Ceduna.

I arrived at the Northam airport at 6 am to discover the Jabiru was covered with 2mm of ice! Also the engine would not start. I got a bucket & poured water all over the plane & then changed the spark plugs. After getting the plane started I found that the water I had poured over the plane had turned to ice, I now had 3mm of ice over the plane. A local guy, Ivan, got another bucket and together we poured water over the plane to eventually get the ice off.

I finally got into the air at 8.45am & headed for Ceduna.

I realized I had not filled the oil to the top & decided to land at Forrest to check the oil (which was OK) before going on to Ceduna.

“The Long Downwind Leg” to Ceduna was 892 nautical miles (1,650 kilometres) and took 8.1 hours (tacho time).

Flew to Port Pirie the next day for fuel (credit card bowser – very sensible) then onto Goolwa to meet up with another of my sisters, Sue & husband Ian (I have six sisters).

The trip to Goolwa was quite bumpy as there was a strong wind blowing the whole way. As I got close to Goolwa I noticed there was a lot of activity there (which surprised me). On landing I discovered there was a funeral in progress in one of the hangars.

Sue & Ian picked me up at the airport & we ended up going out to a dinner party which included another two of my sisters, Barbara & Maggie, & their husbands, Nigel & John.

The next morning I was doing “Joy Flights” for relatives in very windy conditions. They were all happy & got photos of Goolwa, Victor Harbour & also several whales close to shore.

That done I was off for Geelong. I stopped at Horesham for fuel where I met several other Jabiru pilots & their planes (they are everywhere).

The forecast for the following day stated more settled weather & lighter winds.

I took off from Geelong with strong winds but fairly clear sky. Once in the air however it was a different story. There were several bands of heavy rain moving West to East across my track. I flew around a major rain band & found a way through.

I landed at Bairnsdale for fuel & then coastal to Taree. I passed through East Sale Military Zone (Active) & also Nowra without problem (no transponder). I used the Maitland VFR route at Williamtown.

After a restful night in Taree I took off for “Home” Caloundra. The visibility all the way up the coast was bad due to back burning/bush fires but from Taree North it was shocking. It was like thick fog.

Cruising up Moreton Island I could not eve see Brisbane or the coast but I knew I was “Home”.

A few photos taken on this trip can be seen at:

www.city-pages.com.au/around-aus-2006.htm

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