Old charts and inexperience brings yacht undone

by Bree Fuller & Sail-World on 29 Dec 2014 It was the maiden voyage that dreams were supposed to be made of, but Melbourne skipper Damien Smith got more than he bargained for when his new yacht, All That Jazz, lived up to its name.

Less than 24 hours after setting sail from Sydney, the 30-year-old found himself stranded on Stanwell Park Beach with his stricken vessel, drawing the attention of crowds as he tried to manoeuvre the small yacht back into the water.

He had run aground on the northern Illawarra beach at 4am on Sunday morning, following some difficulties with his sail and outboard motor.

It was far from how Mr Smith envisaged his first foray into sailing, after snapping up the $7000 vessel for a bargain $2550 on eBay. The Dandenong man had planned to spend the week sailing back to Melbourne.

'I've been looking for a long time and I've had the dream for a while, of buying my own yacht,' he said.

'I actually sailed fine at first. The weather was very calm - perfect seas - and I came in at Cronulla but I was told to move because the ferry was due.

'I had enough fuel to continue ... so I continued on but I started having a bit of trouble with my outboard motor and I had a tear in my sail.'

Using old charts he tried to head towards a non-existent jetty at Coalcliff before deciding to turn in at Stanwell Park, mistaking it for a cove.

It suffered a cracked keel and minor damage to the hull on Sunday afternoon, as Mr Smith tried to manoeuvre the vessel back into the water with the help of some bystanders.

Mr Smith hoped the incident wouldn’t spell the end of his dream of owning a yacht.

‘‘All is not lost, it’s still a boat, even if it’s damaged,’’ he said. ‘‘I’m not in any trouble with police and I didn’t lose my life, so that’s something.’’

A group of bystanders attempted, unsuccessfully, to help Mr Smith manoeuvre the yacht back into the water as the tide rose during the afternoon.

The group eventually heeded safety warnings from Surf Life Saving Illawarra director Anthony Turner to abandon rescue efforts, after a series of dangerous shore-dumpers.

Surf Life Saving members cordoned the yacht off on Sunday and stood guard, concerned about the safety of beachgoers if the mast snapped or the vessel broke free.

Mr Smith said it was not the first time he had struck trouble trying to bring a 'project yacht' home from NSW.

'I haven't had a good run of luck getting them home [by land] which is why I thought I'd sail this one back,' he said.

Maritime NSW have arranged for a crane and excavation equipment to begin the removal of the 22-foot vessel from the northern Illawarra beach after 10.30am. The salvage bill is expected to reach $8,000-$10,000.

Taken in by a Stanwell Park family overnight, Melbourne skipper Damien Smith was in good spirits on Monday morning, despite his predicament.

He said he was grateful to the community for their offers of help and well-wishes.

Facing a broken keel and extensive salvage operation on Monday, Mr Smith said: 'I think I might call it quits on the boat - or any boat altogether. They say less is more so why do I even want a boat?'

All was not lost for the hapless sailor, who fielded several offers of dinner and accommodation from bystanders.

Update: An operation to remove a stricken yacht from Stanwell Park beach is expected to begin soon.