Summer Holidays At Rottnest Island

juggernaut1

Well-Known Member
Apr 19, 2015
1,152
Perth, Western Australia
Boat Info
Boatless - sold Searay 38 Sundancer
Engines
8.1’s
Hi All,

Just a few pics of my recent 11 day trip to Rottnest Island situated approx 19klms off the coast of Perth, Western Australia. Whilst the trip takes approx 30 mins from the coast off Perth my boat is penned in Mandurah which adds another 1.5 or so hours to the trip up the coast.

The trip wasn't without incident:

Day 2 - Inflatable floated off when I was walking along the beach with my daughter on a rising tide :smt089. After running 400 metres along the beach/across reef and then started swimming to Africa I soon realised:

a) how unfit I was; :huh:
b) how quickly a 40 klm sea breeze can blow an inflatable out to sea; :wow:
c) how much joy my daughter got out of witnessing the fiasco. :smt043
I can't thank the fisherman enough who retrieved the driverless inflatable exceeding the speed limit through and out of the mooring area. :smt038


Day 7 - Noticed limited water flowing out of the generator exhaust outlet.

Seaweed had been pulled up the the raw water intake and had blocked the intake hose just prior to the strainer as it had banked up against the strainer hose nipple. After clearing the blockage, still not full flow and inspection of the impellor revealed 2 lobes missing. Changed the impellor and all was good.

Anyway without further ado:

Our transport.

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The fleet, admiral and first mate.

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Water clarity in approx 6ft of water in the mooring area. The island is an A-class reserve.

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A short trip to Hotel Rottnest from our mooring.

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Hotel Rottnest looking back over the mooring area.....arguably the best pub in the world....spent many an afternoon here over my lifetime.

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Biggest rats in the world - and how the Island originally got its name which was historically derived from "Rats Nest Island". Actually they are Quokkas and are part of the marsupial group.

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Pinky's Beach - one of the less popular beaches but an example of the bays around Rottnest - family in the foreground.

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Selected pics of Thompson Bay mooring area.

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Tender area in front of Hotel Rottnest - guess which one is mine after day 2. :grin:

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View from the top of one of the operating lighthouses on the island - the road in the centre of the pic leads back to Thompson Bay.

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Boats are predominantly Rivieria flybridge boats in these parts, with a smattering of Searays, Maritimos, Mustangs, Caribbeans and Bertrams.

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Looks Beautiful!
And thanks for the expatiation of how something got the name 'Rottnest'
 
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Wow, what a beautiful area. It looks like the water temp is sufficient for spending lots of time soaking up the rays and staying cool in the water.

Thanks for taking us along with you.
 
GFC,

Water temps average 23C in summer to 19C in winter, an average change of only 4C. Some bays are warmer than others at different times of the year due to their exposure to offshore warm currents. The warm water make snorkelling and diving a favourite pastime due to the tropical fish around the many reefs.
 
Beautiful looking area. I'd love to visit. I'll put it on my bucket list..thanks for sharing
 
Beautiful, thanks for taking us along. Visited OZ in 2013 and snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef. just unbelievable. Will have to visit Perth area if we go again. Thx again.


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Totally awesome, dude! :thumbsup:

Thanks for sharing the pics and your story!

Cheers
 
More than happy to show you guys my part of the world and share a tale.

Britlady, haven't done the Great Barrier Reef myself, so you are one up on me in that regard.
 
I visited Rottnest a few years ago and wished I had my boat in tow.

Instead, I biked around the island and the main thing I remember were the gigantic man-eating flies I kept swatting, as well as seeing "Keep Out: Dugites" signs everywhere. (When the biggest critter I see in the "wild" is a bunny or feral cat, the prospect of a venomous snake is rather frightening to this city slicker.)

That said, the beaches and the mooring areas around the island looked very cool. The water is a remarkable deep blue.
 
Yes I saw a dugite in a tree conveniently outside the nursing post. The Rangers normally move them to the bush on the island. Lizards are also common and the crows will take the eggs out of the packet if you leave the lid open whilst cooking outside on the bbq in the morning when on the mainland. Stingrays are also common in the mooring area. One swam under me when I was snorkelling around the boat, probably within 3 foot of me.
 
Very cool! Thanks for the pics and the write up!

Sent from my SM-J320V using Tapatalk
 
Yes I saw a dugite in a tree conveniently outside the nursing post. The Rangers normally move them to the bush on the island. Lizards are also common and the crows will take the eggs out of the packet if you leave the lid open whilst cooking outside on the bbq in the morning when on the mainland. Stingrays are also common in the mooring area. One swam under me when I was snorkelling around the boat, probably within 3 foot of me.

You're quite a bit more manly than me. I'd be screaming like a little kid.:)
 
You're quite a bit more manly than me. I'd be screaming like a little kid.:)

The stingray gave me a little moment......not that I'm worried about them......but when you see a dark shadow coming from under you....well you always think the worst :smt100:lol:
 

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