Howdy Folks,

Over Six months ago, we started toying with the idea of a steep point trip and taking the tinny for a few days of camping. After navigating the DPAW system, we managed to book a few days in Shelter Bay for the week before school holidays. With school holidays coming up, we ended up booking 4 nights across three different sites as we were unable to get the same spot for consecutive nights. Pain in the arse but so be it.

As timing got a little closer, we opted to sub out the tinny and take the big boat and follow the Shelter Bay swagging holiay with a few nights on the boat. Its good to have options.

Day 1 - Casual departure from home and arrived at Cliff Head after not exceeding 90kmh. We were very heavy with all the food and drink we needed for a week onboard. I was suspect of the trailer brakes which randomly pulsated so we went slow so things didnt get hot. 

Day 2- the worlds slowest drive from Cliff Head to Geraldton going throgh Dongara and pretty much every road that went to the coast between. The hubs were getting warm but nothing to worry about. 

After lunch, we push through to Nerrin Nerrin for the night. Kids were sick of stopping so we got there early afternoon which was regrettable but thankfully we did as the hubs got real hot and spat a bit of grease out. I called all the mechanics in Denham asking for someone to take a look at it but couldnt get anything until after the school holidays. 

Day 3 - Up early while it was cool and after a fuel top up at Billabong, we arrive at Hamelin Pool to drop the boat off and move swags and food into the car.
It took us about 4 hours to get to our campsite (Blackies) though we went via the blowholes. When checking in, the ranger told us of a few cancellations so we managed to consolidate our booking to 3 nights at Blackies. I was happy with that. The wind was absoloutely pumping so we set up for the night and managed to see a few shooting stars. 

Day 4 - Out to Steep Point we went for the iconic photo and a look at the fishing spots. I had a few quick flicks but there were people fishing and lines going everywhere and without wanting to interfeer, we didnt stay for long. Didnt see anyone catching anything. It was still blowing
I forgot to take bait so we managed to take a chunk off a piece of steak and used that to catch some butterfish which would be hopefully turned into something else. 

Day 5 - Took the track to the Nor 6 memorial and got a few drone shots there. Poor little drone was battling maintaining its position with 20 knots blowing up the cliff. We walked through another couple of bays before heading back to camp to catch some more bait. Still yet to see anyone with a fish.

Day 6 - Really casual day. Daughter had managed to pick up a cold so we did a little more driving around before planning to watch the sunset at the point and having tea out there. We forgot to tell the clouds our plans so ended up having tea at The Oven while I was fishing with the chunks of butterfish that didnt even get touched. 
The mass of fishers at the point and their marquees had cleared out and all that remained was huge amounts of rubbish. Its really dissappointing the amount of shit these folks left behind, weather it be broken bits of fishing rods, leader, line, terminal tackle packets, glass etc. Its really shit. 

Yeah its difficult to get the rubbish back out but the amount of cars out there would suggest that someone had room to pick it up. 

Anyhoo

Day 7 - Time to go back to the boat and up to Denham for a re-stock. The track was really so easy. The big hills were not remotely boggy, just dug up and undulated due to people going too fast. It took us 2.5 hours almost to the minute from leaving camp to turning off Useless Loop Road, including airing up.

Day 8 was in Denham and Monkey Mia to tick them off the map

Day 9 - One last kick of the footy on grass before concerning the bank and fuelling up the boat. Ouch!
The weather forecast had been on mind as it was going to be atrocious with a strong wind warning issued for the next two days. The plan was to go to Useless Loop for the first night but not wanting to transit across to DHI in what was going to be 30-35 knots, we opt to go west. 
We head out with mandatory lifejackets on for all just while I got used to the boat fully loaded and with a new extended canopy. Wind is 10 knots from the south so it is a fairly effortless drive across to Cape Herrisson at the top of useless loop. We're looking for somewhere to stop for lunch but canont find anywhere to tuck in so we head across to the next headland being Cape Bellefin and once past there, the seabreeze is blowing 25 knots. Wife not very comfortable and we have to punch into the wind to keep the water out of the boat. Wife had to open the scuppers due to the spray and move anything that shouldnt get too wet, forward.  Initially, we aim for Tumbledown Point but ended up going into Homestead bay and dropping the pick for lunch. We ended up spending the night there after moving a couple of times before sunset to find the right spot. 

We managed to pick up a couple of scallops/pippies/muscles and cast them out picking up a gardie which would become bait. 

Day 10 - With two anchors in, we did move at night even though the boat was shuddering in the wind which was into the 30's. I had read a suggestion that Notch Point was a good anchorage in a blow after brekkie and a stroll on the beach, we pick up anchor(s) and head north. I dropped in a 6 inch soft plastic that gets immediately bitten in half by what I think was a tailor but have to give up fishing as the wind is so strong, the lures are skipping along beside the boat due to the wind, and us only doing 8-10 knots. 

The charts up that way are horrendous in close and in more than one spot, C-map says I am in 3.5m but i am infact dodging coral bombies. 

Notch Point wasnt half of what it was meant to be and after 30 minute of pondering, we agree to make the 4 nautical mile punch back to where we came from. Scuppers open and everyone straps in. Down to 6 knots for most of it as the boat got smashed but due to the wind angle, it got better every minute we got closer. 
Back at homestead bay, we beached the boat knowing the tide didnt have much more to go out and spent the arvo buggering around on the beach, walking the boat up as the tide came in. Got a few more shells for bait and fished for a bit unsuccessfully.

Day 11 - i woke up early as i felt a wave hit the boat and spray me in the swag. Rude....but then i notice the land behind the boat. I had forgotten about a southerly swing with the wind so thankfully the boat had taken up on the second anchor which was more east than the primary so the boat was sitting paralelle to the coast and swinging into 400mm of water. Almost buggered that one up.

The wind was meant to moderate so we waited until mid morning before head south to Tumbledown bay and waited there until lunch before heading south to Shelter Bay. Had a quick fish just out of the exclusion zone before heading south admiring the view of the land. We stop just beside Sunday island and fish a hole there and find millions of small pinkies which proove entertaining for a bit before heading south. 

Shortly after lunch, the wind is pumping again so we make our way south and find a spot for an arvo snooze before heading out to some weed patches to try to get some squid for bait. Without luck, we anchor just out from Kel's 2 anticipating an easterly in the morning. The young bloke, now with proper bait managed to catch a heap more butterfish and charlie court, one which we kept for a taste. 

God damn did it blow that night! It must have gotten above the 30's again and held on until ~3 in the morning where it didnt go east, just moderated. 

Day 12 - After a rough night with the boat whipping around on anchor, we head over to try for squid again before heading west. My fuel gauge was showing that i had a little of half a tank of fuel (but only used less than 1/3 litre wise) i was anxious about fuel. We trolled around for an hour watching the world and whales whilst marking a couple of spots. No luck on lures so we went back to one of the spots I marked and instantly we are on. Charlie court...bugger. 
Still fun for the kids and i hand the wife our only heavy rod and I dont know what happens but the next second she is lunging for the gunnel as it hits the water...some how she dropped it and we all watch it slowly sink down. oh well. 

After being forced to swap rods, we only have the small rods and proceed to bugger around for the next hour and manage to bag out on baldies, pick up a stripey tuna and a blue lined emperor...all before brekkie, and all with the kids in PJ's. Out of all of that - i caught nothing!

Bearing in mind we have one license onboard, and I wanted to try for snapper elsewhere. we pull the pin on fishing there and beach the boat to fillet the catch + have brekkie. 

It has absoloutely glassed out at this point and had been around 5 knots since we picked up anchor. It was a glamourous day and you could essentially select the fish you wanted in 12m of water. 

After cleaning up the catch and having a bit of a swim, we loaded up, strapped everything in and proceeded to make our way around to useless loop (Eastern side of Herrison Prong) at around 25 knots. After a stop to watch a tigershark, look at dolphins and try for swuid, we arrived at a bay north of the salt jetty for lunch and a snooze.

After being rudely awoken by a work call, we drift around catching a few squid to go with dinner. 

We dropped a few baits on the salt jetty for some pocket sized snapper before anchoring just inside Ant Island, south of Useless Loop townsite for fish and squid for dinner.

Day 13 we wake up to an absoloute glass out and silence from the boat. Almost eery. I pull up the anchor because there is the slighest south westerly wind which will push us out as i drag out the dunny and cast for squid while we drift at .003 of a knot doing the morning duties...

Once the chores are done, we moved over to the ship loader and have a bag of bait + squid heads to use. A snapper a cast explains the next hour and a half, again, with kids still in PJ's. 
We manage one size pinky out of it to the young bloke and I thought i was onto the fish of the trip before pulling up a gold spot trevor. Still, a first for me. 

After using all of our bait, we head back to the anchorage at Herrison Prong to clean up preparing to head back to Denham. 

Brekkie was had, town clothes put on and again, 25 knots most of the way to Denham after 4 days, 23 hours and 25 minutes living out of the boat. The most consecutive amount of time on the boat was 41 hours. 

We leave Denham after a quick re-stock at lunchtime and make it as far as Cliff Head at 19:30 at night after taking an extended brake at Billabong to let everyhting cool down (hubs) which were no longer getting hot (had turned the brakes right down on the controller). It was 24 in Denham, 39 in Billabong and 24 at Cliff Head. We contemplated just driving home but figured we wouldnt be getting home until midnight and didnt need 3 full days at home. 

Dont need to bore anyone with the last day of driving but we were home just after lunchtime.

Overall a challenging trip wind wise but still an awesome trip none the less and ticked up a couple of things off the list. 
The kids got pretty board on the boat and we forgot a few card games we had planned to take out. They were good when we were fishing but when it was blowing 35 knots and there wasnt much else to do, the parenting was outsourced to iPads. 

Fish wise, for two x 400gm bags of mullies, we did OK. Took lots of gear but boat wise, 3.5 out of 5 days were unfishable. 

Ranger did great. I am glad there was no one with scales between the fuel station and the boat ramp....I average 17.4l/100 on the way up with a tail wind doing 90/95 and on the way home with very favourable winds (nil), sitting on 100, we did 19.9. 

The boat ran faultlessly. The only thing that broke was a screw holding the lock into the glovebox fell out. We ended up back at the ramp with 120l in the tank so over 1/3. 

Image Upload: