Captains Log Date: Sept 22 - Oct 4 2008

Cape Bedford 22/9/08

We have spent the last few days doing day sails for the community out of Cape Flattery but today is special. We are doing a memorial sail out to Lizard Island. Since we started the Pelican Hope Vale Project in 2004 a number of people who have been involved and who have sailed on Pelican with us, have passed away. Today we are sailing to provide an opportunity for their families to experience what their loved ones had talked about. Sailing on Pelican and visiting sea country had been an important experience for them.

In perfect sailing conditions the crossing to Lizard Island takes just under two hours. At Watson’s Bay we take people ashore where they stay for several hours visiting the sites their loved ones had spoken of. Death of course touches all families and one of our own wangarr crew (bama word for white person) sadly also mourns the loss of a family member who had sailed here with us in 2004.

Pelican 1 bound for lizard Island

23/9/08

On return from Lizard Island last night we had noticed the generator leaking fumes into the engine room. The workshop at Cape Flattery Mines kindly make repairs to the manifold and we are fully operational by lunch time. Brad Gibson from Hope Vale is the resident welder /boiler maker at the mine. He fixed the same piece of equipment for us last year and this year he redesigns the mount and does another remarkable fixit job under difficult circumstances. The Cape Flattery Mine has been a strong supporter of the project for the last three years and we greatly appreciate all the support they have given us.

That afternoon we do another day sail with community members and AFL staff who have joined the camp to provide activities and training for the young people on the beach. By 1700 we are loading kayaks and equipment aboard Pelican for tomorrows trip to Lizard. The loading continues until well after dark and I am amazed to find that we easily fit the eight kayaks, six doubles and two singles, on Pelican’s trampoline.

24/9/08

Tim Trehearn and Graeme Walton from Northern Outlook (Qld Dept of Communities) have joined the camp to lead the kayaking expedition to Lizard. For the last two days they have been conducting training and safety drills on the beach. The paddlers will follow the track taken by the ancestors on their annual journey to fish and hunt in the islands. From Cape Flattery there is a series of short hops, Rocky Islets, North Direction Island and finally Lizard Island.

This will be the first time for more than a hundred years that the bama have made this journey. For the participants it will be a huge personal achievement to complete the journey. It will also create a strong sense of connection with the ancestors and we hope, will be talked about for some time.

Kayaks and Pelican 1 under sail just North of Two Isles

Due to continued strong SE trade winds we have decided to start the kayak journey from Two Isles which is about 7 miles South east of Cape Flattery. This will enable the paddlers to travel down wind and avoid the hazards of working across the waves which is very difficult for the inexperienced. By 1100 hrs we are at Two Isles and unload the kayaks. The paddlers set out about two hours later, after capsize training in the croc free waters and lunch on the beach. They look incredibly small and vulnerable as they paddle out of sight their yellow hulls and even upraised paddles disappearing completely behind the waves. Pelican shadows them from a distance eventually leaving them to make their own way to the first rendezvous point at Rocky Isles.

Rocky Islets consist of three rocky outcrops perched on a horseshoe of coral reef about two miles long. The largest of these supports a bird rookery and requires a permit even to set foot on the beach. We surmise that the bama ancestors, traveling from the mainland in dugout canoes, probably stopped here and perhaps feasted on birds eggs, Torres Strait Pigeon, turtle, fish and whatever else they could find. We were given permission to land here by Qld Parks & Wildlife on the condition that we sleep and eat on the boat but they allow us to leave the kayaks on the beach.

Jansen Bowen day 1

The kayakers arrive shortly before sunset. Their route has taken them through a maze of shallow reefs and included a rest break at Eye Reef, a sand cay that covers completely on spring tides. After stashing the kayaks ashore the paddlers join the rest of the crew aboard Pelican and we fire up the barbie. They have caught enough fish for everyone to share and we combine that with a generous supply of sausages, baked spuds, salads and even custard and fruit for desert. With 29 people eating, showering and sleeping aboard, Pelican’s resources are stretched to the limit. Colerige plays for us as dinner is cooking, everyone pitches in and the cental deck positively hums with energy generated by a very successful first expedition day. Not even a tropical downpour at 4 am which sends all those who were sleeping on the decks and trampoline scurrying for cover dampens the spirits of the company.

Karla and Lucy at Rocky Isles

25/9/08

A difficult day. As the wind backs and freshens a little, the kayaks are forced to make their way to North Direction Island in a steep, choppy, beam sea, in around 25 knots of wind. A couple of capsizes occur which are managed with support of the whole team. This means that other paddlers gather around and the people in the water use the support provided by their kayaks to climb back into their own. Everyone stays together as requested and all boats arrive unassisted at North Direction by about 11 am. We tie Pelican to a mooring just off the beach but I am cautious in these conditions where a broken or dragged mooring would put us on the reef within seconds. I dive in to inspect the mooring and am not willing to trust it overnight without a full-time watch . The other option is to place another anchor of our own but I decide to return to lizard and pick up the paddlers tomorrow. I figure this will give us a better nights sleep. A wise decision as it turns out, as we are buffeted that night by wind and rain as we lay at anchor in Watson’s Bay.

26/9/08

We return the following morning, punching through a nasty chop directly on our bow, to discover that the paddlers are unwilling to risk the crossing in these conditions. This raises all kinds of questions in my mind. How will we get the kayaks back? Loading them aboard Pelican in these conditions would be hazardous to say the least.

North Direction Island is a high dome of rock providing just a tiny area of shelter on the North West side. The winds part around it, meeting in turbulent tugs of war in its lee. Exaggerated gusts collide in rapid succession form each side of the vessel, creating miniature water spouts, twisting and turning into the air. Sheets of spray are lifted from the surface, virtually vaporized and carried away. Sitting on the beach watching this, some of the young paddlers, are given time to consider the wisdom of proceeding. I try to convince them that the conditions further out are relatively moderate but without success. After much deliberation and debate we reluctantly take everybody aboard and return once more to lizard. The kayaks are left abandoned for the moment on the beach. Traditionally of course this journey would have been made during the wet when conditions would be far more favourable but had they encountered conditions like we are experiencing they would have happily stayed put, feasting on fish, turtle and birds eggs until conditions improved. modern schedules do not allow us the same degree of flexibility.

Sand spit in the lee of Nth Direction. The paddlers snorkel on the reef.

We pull in to Mermaid Cove at the northern end of Lizard after a scheduled stop at the research station where our team is given a guided tour. (Many thanks to Anne and Lyle who manage the station and who are ever ready to provide support and information about their work). Mermaid Cove has only a single mooring and we are fortunate to find it vacant. We tie up there for the night and load all the kayakers and support team ashore with their camping gear. Lizard is notable for its clear waters, pristine reefs and abundant marine life and Mermaid Cove is a stunning example. While most of the party are diving several of the young men leave quietly and disappear over the hill. When we meet that evening to discuss plans for completing the paddle their absence is noticed. A quick radio check reveals that they are at the Marlin Bar in the resort on the island. This is some distance across difficult terrain and the lack of a moon does not boost confidence that they will return in time to complete the paddle. Spirits are very low at this point not only because the success of the whole expedition is in doubt but also three of our young community leaders have gone off drinking (they are all of drinking age) in the middle of an alcohol fee expedition where the younger members are looking to the example set by them. We go to bed in low spirits fearing that the expedition will fail. My own feeling is that many community members have a history of failure and the last thing they need is another one to reinforce an already well established pattern. I fear that if the expedition fails we have also failed and have contributed to making an already difficult situation worse.

27/9/08

I drag myself ashore next morning braced for bad news. To my amazement we are informed that the young men have returned in the early hours. Their return is a feat of navigation and endurance in itself. They have had virtually no sleep but after a short conference with Des they agree, without complaint, to make the paddle.We are away from Mermaid Cove by 0630 taking only the paddlers and Des. The others will pack up the camp and be ready to load everything aboard Pelican on our return. On the north side of Lizard we are immediately hit by 30 knot winds and a nasty two meter chop. I am hoping that conditions will moderate but fear they may be so bad that we will be forced to abandon the crossing.

We punch our way back to North Direction for the third time in three days. Conditions there are the worst we have seen and we are unable to maneuver safely in close proximity to the islands fringing reef or pick up the mooring. The wind is gusting to 45 knots, first from one side then the other. I decide to hold Pelican a little way off and we transfer the paddlers ashore in the inflatable. Tim makes the decision that conditions are too difficult for one of the crews who have little experience and have not completed his training and safety drills. So we are forced to load one of the kayaks aboard Pelican. The remaining seven kayaks will attempt to make the crossing. The paddlers huddle on the narrow beach while Jazzmin offers a short prayer for their success and safety.

As they enter the water a sea eagle passes low over their heads. It soars above them as they make their way across the reef and out to sea. Everyone notices this and a shiver goes up my spine. I know that this will be seen by the bama as a good omen. The ancestors are with them. If they can paddle this last part of the crossing they will be the first of their people to do so in well over one hundred years.

A sea eagle watches as the paddlers depart North Direction Island.

The last of their ancestors to make this journey did so in around 1880 when they were accused of murdering Mrs Watson,s Chinese servant and pursuing her, her infant and a second Chinese servant to their deaths by exposure on nearby Watsons Island. (see Captaions Log 2004 for details) Mrs Watson was the wife of beche-de-mer fisherman, Robert Watson, who was said to be away at the time. They lived in a stone hut on the bay on Lizard Island that now bears their name. These events are surrounded in mystery and unanswered questions but there is no doubt that reprisal killings of local bama by white troopers and others put an immediate end to any canoe voyages out to Lizard by the bama. This is a very dark period of our shared past and research by bama historians may soon rewrite the official version of history.

There were several massacre sites along this coast. One of them was here at Cape Flattery where a large group Of Guggu Yimitharr, men women and children were taken unawares by troopers. As we sat in the camp before our departure I had tried to imagine the scene as it may have been played out. I attempted to sense the outrage in the trees, the dunes and the spring water bubling out of the sand but all I heard was the wind in the trees, waves lapping on the beach and the laughter of children as they played in the water. Hearing the story of the killings direct from some of the elders on the beach at Cape Flattery lends a perspective to this scene and to our work here. It is also significant that Mat, a policeman from Hope Vale is participating in the voyage as a paddler. We would like to make such participation a regular feature of the camp at Cape Flattery and believe it can only help to have such people directly engaged in the community.

I feel more than ever that it is vital that the kayak journey be completed . This will be just one of many steps to healing by the Guggu Yimitharr but it will provide a symbol of achievement and connection with a past where their culture was whole. On the night of their camp at North Direction the paddlers decide to give themselves a name. The Guggu Yimatharr Kayak Sea Warriors. They will make T shirts and excitedly discuss designs and colours.

In open water on the Northwest side of the island the wind is blowing a steady 25 - 30 knots. The waves are in excess of 2 meters and breaking. The kayaks are disappearing behind the waves for substantial periods of time. The group stays close together and slowly eats up the distance between the two islands. Tim and Graeme have worked with the paddlers on techniques for staying upright and they need them now. There is clearly fear amongst them. Fear of wind, waves, water, sharks and crocodiles. Later Des writes about the “white teeth of the waves” in a poem about the journey. The dangers are very real but it is the way the fear is overcome that counts.

Approaching Lizard. Half of the Kayaks are hidden by waves

I have promised to shadow the paddlers in Pelican and to pluck anyone from the water if necessary. From my perch in the wheelhouse I can see that they are all focused on their task. No assistance is required from us and in less than two hours they arrive at the reef outside Lizard Island’s lagoon. There are some nervous moments as they locate and negotiate the entrance, a narrow gap in the coral which is surrounded by breaking surf. Finally they are all through safely. Cheers go up and are blown away on the wind but I can see paddles raised in celebration.

We return to Mermaid Cove to retrieve the rest of the team and meet the paddlers at the resort where the kayaks will be loaded aboard the barge for their return to Cairns. The achievement is written on their faces. Tiredness, relief, and a warm glow is evident as details of the expedition are re-lived over lunch.

Lizard Island at last. Paddlers and support crew at Lizard.

28/9/08

Back on the beach at Cape Flattery the camp is in full swing. The “Styling Up” gang from Speak Out have teamed up with Tamara Pearson (a Hope Vale local currently studying dance and choreography at NAISDA in Sydney) and are conducting dance and music workshops. William Brady a Guggu Yalanji neighbour and dancer is working with Cyrril McGreen to teach traditional dances to the kids. The weavers group have arrived from Hope Vale Cultural Center to conduct weaving workshops and the Digital Storytelling team is working overtime to complete a fabulous collection of stories being put together by everyone from 7 year olds to elders. This is an incredibly important element of our work here as it empowers people to tell their own stories and create their own history. The technology and the process have been embraced by everyone and I anticipate some exciting material to come out of the process.

Young participants mix sound on their digital story with help from one of the Speak Out crew.

29/9/08

The last three days of the camp also feature the turtle tagging project run by Qld Parks and Wildlife scientist Ian Bell. Ian is well known at Hope Vale. He first started working with them in 1996 but has been a vital part of this project since 2005 and has also involved trainees from Hope Vale in other work with turtles up and down the coast. He describes himself as a turtle researcher turned conservationist. In his words “the results are in”… turtles are under serious threat in northern Australia from a variety of causes. Habitat loss, commercial harvesting in other countries, chemical runoff, climate change, feral pigs eating their eggs, boat strike, commercial fishing by-catch and indigenous hunting, (in particular the practice of targeting pregnant females for the pot as the extra fat they carry at that time makes them very delicious). Ian works directly with community to catch , measure, tag and release turtles and to monitor turtle numbers. We share his view that involving local community in these monitoring and education programs is the best way to negotiate positive outcomes and ensure that subsequent generations of indigenous people will continue to harvest turtles. The young men love to work with Ian which involves leaping out of speeding boats and wrestling turtles to the surface with their bare hands.

In Des Bowen’s words the 'Hope Vale Turtle and Dugong Management Plan' has been sitting on the shelf gathering dust for too long. It is time that we involved the whole community as well as scientists and government agencies in updating Hope Vales policy, strategy and implementation for turtle and dugong conservation and management.

Oct 2

The last official day of the camp at Cape Flattery finishes with performances, displays, talks and showing of digital stories on the big screen in the camp. The main camp has been raked and tidied. A tent has been erected to shelter the projector and screen. The kitchen has produced a feast of curried chicken, fresh prawns from a trawler anchored in the bay, roast pig caught by the young men, salads, rice, pasta, sweet potato and more. The weavers have created a giant Pelican out of found objects which sits near a fire on the beach. The centre of the camp has been converted to a stomping ground planted out with palms and saplings where the traditional dances will be performed.

Pelican of found objects watches Pelican afloat.

Pelican drops anchor off the beach after the final community sail. Her crew come ashore tired but happy. Not having been involved directly in any of the preparations or performances in the camp I sit as an observer throughout the evenings proceedings. What I witness exceeds all expectations and leaves me speechless and grinning. The digital storytelling crew screen a selection of stories that have all been created from start to finish on the beach at Cape Flattery. They not only document all aspects of the project form the participants point of view but in many cases have told their own stories about family, place, country or any of the small adventures that may have absorbed them during their time on the beach. They have completely taken control of the technology and created a milestone in community media. This has no doubt been aided by such engaging stories unfolding before them. The story of the kayak voyage narrated by Des Bowen is a particular favorite. Ian Bell who has come to deliver a talk about his turtle work finds it unnecessary to do so as a digital story about the tagging says all he wanted to say. They have taken ownership of the process of creating their own history rather than having it told for them by someone else. The significance of this happening on a site of such historical importance is not lost on many who witness the event.

Young dancers perform under the direction of William Brady

The dancers appear in full body paint and costume and present a series of dances in the prepared area. William Brady is a natural teacher combining history, philosophy, cultural pride, encouragement and obvious inspiration for the young dancers who have developed an amazing performance from almost nothing in just a couple of days. He is ably assisted by Tamara Pearson and Cyrril McGreen who as locals also participate as dancers. They hold the crowd spellbound to the last moment of their final dance. The feeling in the camp as people drift away to bed or to other fires to talk or play music is that they have witnessed a remarkable evening.

3/10/08

The following morning a community debrief is held on the beach with many people taking the opportunity to contribute ideas for next years program. Overwhelmingly the response is positive. But for now many of us are too exhausted to be thinking too much about next year. Images of showers and fridges and beds are likely to take priority in our minds. We agree to extend the program for the coxswain trainees who have all expressed a desire to help us sail back to Cairns and to clean up the boat.

4/10/08

After extended farewells on the beach we transfer everyone out to Pelican and prepare to set sail for Cairns. We have 13 POB (people on board) including Colerige’s daughter Caroline, and Jazzmin’s girlfriend Karla, who has expressed interest in a trainee position for next year. Lara Crew who has worked so tirelessly to manage and resource the Cape Flattery camp is here with our son Finnley as well as the 5 Pelican crew and four of the trainees. We are a happy crew as we round Cape Flattery and point Pelican’s bows into the relentless Southeasterly chop. I’m thinking perhaps we can shelter behind the inner edge of the outer reef and maybe pick up a few mackerall near the dropoffs. We may anchor overnight somewhere to break the journey. Everyone aboard has certainly more than earned a little down time. We have plenty of food, a good supply of Dvd’s and several days to make the trip.

PS. Watch out for the digital stories from the camp that will be posted on our web site soon.

Happy sailing

Garry Mckechnie