So, a 5:30 start. It’s still dark, but as this seems to be a worker’s caravan park, there is a bit of movement around. As I’m still hitched up, it’s a quick getaway, and I’m on the road just before 6. Even at this hour as I get closer to Melbourne the traffic starts picking up. Fortunately, Campbellfield is right in the north of Melbourne.
I arrive at 7:00 as arranged, but they’re not here yet. Rob, the factory manager lets me know they do the serving at a new factory unit they’ve got around the corner, we drive there and back the van in. The service guy arrives at 7:30 and gets to work.
In this new unit, which seems to be for storage and servicing only, they have some outdoor furniture setup in the corner, so I setup myself up ready for a day of work. This has ended up being a much better option than a roadside rest stop. The van’s finished around 12, but they’re cool with me be being here for the rest of the day.
Finally at 4 I head off for a 5pm, “and no earlier” boarding. The traffic was not as bad as I feared and all but the last k or two was freeway. I arrive dead on 5 and am one of the first cars to queue up.
Through Tasmanian quarantine, then the boarding gates. As I’m an oversized van I get ushered over to a side lane on the wharf. The worker say we won’t be “too” long. Other larger vans join our queue. Car, and trucks trailer from the other end are loading all the time. Over an HOUR later it’s finally our turn.
As the lead van I head up the convoy, and as we board the boat I can see there is a whole lane that is reserved for us. Boy is it narrow, breath in! Finally, I make it to the front (which is actually the rear of the boat). Hopefully that will work in my favor tomorrow.
I spend the next hour or taking a tour of the boat and out on the deck. A quick call back to the family and finally just after 7:30 the boat starts to pull away from the wharf. The boat slowly turns around and I can see a row of red and green lights out into the bay that must mark the channel. In the dark, it looks a bit like a runway.
I decide it’s time for dinner, the queue earlier where too long. At 8pm I can see they’re at the end of the session. They still have everything, but it’s the leftovers. It was fine if not great, and then I hear the announcement that dinner stops at 8:30. Now I understand the rush earlier.
Justine suggested being out on deck when passing through the heads, we figure that about 90min after leaving. I have a beer and decide to spend a few minutes out on deck. There are only a few hearty souls (fools) out here and I get start talking to a couple from Ocean Grove (near Geelong) who do the crossing regularly. The boat seems to be hugging the eastern side of the bay and as we circle the southside we’re afforded a little protection from the worst of the wind and it ends up being cold but nice outside. So, we chat away until we reach the heads closer to 9:30pm. Through the heads the swell starts to pick up and it’s time to say our goodbyes.
Into bed, I can’t see a damn thing out the porthole, so I’m not 100% sure if its worth it. A little reading and writing, but I figure, as it will be a 4:30am start, I better try and get some sleep.
While not a washing machine, the boat is moving around a bit, and it feels a bit like sleeping on a waterbed when the person next you is jumping up and down. I take some tablets and try to sleep, but it doesn’t come easy.
That was a genius move to spend Thursday getting the van serviced much better option than driving around looking for somewhere to spend the day.
Do you have to back into your berth on the boat or is back in drive out on arrival. If everyone is backing in I would have thought it would slow up the loading and unloading of larger vehicles? Probably because I can’t back to save myself.
Nah, it drive on, drive off. So we enter at the bow in Melbourne and exit via the stern in Devonport. No reversing or U-Turns needed. Not like that ferry at River Heads!