Woodduck....Between work, childcare duties to his beautiful daughter and actually looking for a tinnie to use for this trip he decided upon the latest pickle fork front Quintrex Explorer. A 390' ,although a little bigger than mine, has the wider beam measurements that gives so much more space.
He has been busy personalising with fore and aft decks, carpet and lockers to give some comfort and appeal to a very shiny new tinnie.
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| Woodducks pride and joy |
http://www.quintrex.com.au/Aluminium-Boat-Range/390Explorer1?particulars=390%20Explorer
I however purchased a second had tinnie a few years ago. Its a Quintrex 350 Traveller with a 1.5 metre beam so quite a compact boat for a journey like this.
http://www.quintrex.com.au/Aluminium-Boat-Range/350Explorer
I bought it with a 15hp yamaha as standard kit. This lasted a while until number one son had mastered the art of training ski's and tried to get me to go faster. Sorry boy.. I was flat out.
Fortunately a good mate offered me a 30hp Yamaha that he knew of and what a treat. I mainly use the tinnie for the kids to wakeboard, tube and kneeboard. The '30 is a perfect match to this boat giving it plenty of kick when required and still being well balanced. Reinforcing was done by a local craftsman in Renmark providing the strength to the transom. After years of being ridiculed for my little tinnie, I always dreamed of maybe just getting a bigger craft as the kids get better at their water sports... I have succumbed to budget limitations at the moment to remodel what I have. Now added a fore-deck area and also an aft-deck to the same height as the seat at the rear. These have been carpeted and added padding under the carpet for the bench seats..... makes all the difference for my observers when the kids are prompting us to "go faster, go faster", while towing a tube looking for those bumps and waves for the thrill.
For next weeks trip I have put the plastic folding clamp-on seats to the bench offering us some back support along the way.
The fore and aft-deck areas could be used as a casting deck if inclined. These decks offer storage and protection at the moment for the battery and wiring to allow for the tunes on the trip (cause I can't sing real well) so drowning out my dulcet tones and to catch up on the race results, weather reports, a bit of campsite melodies at night at each stop will truly come in handy over the ensuing week.
To the battery I have added an am/fm radio and the obligatory cigarette lighter that you must have these days as we intend on charging our phones via usb adapter along the trip.
How else will we be able to update you on our adventure.??
Also the fishfinder / depth sounder which may also come in handy as I have heard that the Murray is shallow in parts. Will be interesting to watch.
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| Fishfinder, radio and ciggy lighter plug for interest along the way |
First mate Drewby is busy finalising and scheduling work commitments before trying to relax over a weeks worth of sunsets and sunrises, melded together with some awesome campfire stories and sing-alongs. Plenty of phone calls back and forth and some nights in the shed packing so its not all left to the last minute.
This week will involve packing and preparing, a little bit of shopping and heading off to Border Cliffs SA, via Murtho Road near the Old Customs House.
http://www.murrayriver.com.au/customs-house
Launching at Customs House in South Australia we intend to traverse upstream for a bit to find the literal border between states and return to a campsite for the evening having ironed out some seating arrangements.
More to follow.
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