In the footsteps of Flinders … Where’s Quentin got to, now …? In MAINSHEET 2024 (pp.64-65) a feature by Member Quentin Granger titled “In the footsteps of Flinders” canvassed how you prepare yourself and your boat for a mammoth circumnavigation of the “big island.” “Since then,” wrote Quentin in Update #1, “I was fortunately able to recruit some greatly adventurous RQYS sailors as crew for the majority of my 16 legs around Australia. This article covers only legs 1–5, Brisbane to Darwin, where Lalapanzi (our Seawind 1160 Lite catamaran) was going to sit out the 2025-26 cyclone season.” I own a Seawind 1160 catamaran named “Lalapanzi” and my wife Barbara and I have sailed her for the last nine years. We have been members of RQYS since 2013 but, most importantly, been active members of the SCG for the last 10 years. Being a part of this Group enabled us to meet likeminded people, to share stories, to gain experience in cruising and it also provided a forum in which we could learn and ask questions about cruising. We have now sailed over 10,000 nm in Lalapanzi up and down the Queensland coast, and also undertook an epic trip down south as we circumnavigated Tasmania in 2022. These cruises were predominantly done ‘in company’ with other Squadron SCG yachts. Having already rounded the ‘small island’ it is now time to be more adventurous and undertake the circumnavigation of the ‘big island’ — so how do you go about preparing for your dream adventure? Clearly, planning and logistics play a large part and then I need to find crew to participate in what turns out to be a 16-leg journey spanning some 500 days, or two years (as the boat will be left for six months in Darwin during the cyclone season). Knowing your boat — especially her capabilities — is key, as this dictates what weather conditions are suitable and when you need to hide. Understanding her performance is also critical as this plays a large part in the planning for such a lengthy trip. Lalapanzi now has a new mainsail, and a new screecher to assist in light wind sailing, plus new outboard engines to improve reliability. Being close to 10 years old, she will have her rigging changed before we depart. There are some remote areas (especially in the Top End, the northern WA coast and of course the Bight) where reliability, fuel efficiency and having sails for all conditions is of paramount importance. “I grew up sailing dinghies, but advanced to big boats only in 2009,” recalls the former Co-Chair of the RQYS Sail Cruising Group (SCG), adding that “now that I have retired, sailing is my passion and it has always been a dream of mine to sail around Australia. Well, in 2025 that dream will become a reality.” In the footsteps of Flinders … Just how do you go about planning a circumnavigation of Australia? Quentin Granger shares his 2025 plans . There’s also lots of ‘snappy-things’ up north, so replacing the rubber duck with an aluminium tinny has also been prudent — you don’t want to be sitting in a croc’s teething-ring! Having made all these changes, it was time to set out on a ‘shakedown’ cruise which we undertook in September. We took Lalapanzi away for four weeks up through the Great Sandy Straits, to Hervey Bay and as far north as Lady Elliot and Lady Musgrave Islands. The humpback whales were all starting to migrate south and there were some awesome whale encounters, especially at Rooney Point (top end of K’gari / Fraser Island) where the whale highway was no more than 100m away and the whalesong which was reverberating through the hull was amazing! Sunsets, walks on tropical islands, photographing wildlife and the sailing itself — let’s not forget! — were all part of that cruising life. But the main reason for this shakedown cruise was to test the new sails, check the fuel efficiency of the new outboards, determine water and gas usage amounts, test the water-maker and undertake many other chores to make sure that the boat was cruise-worthy. All this information feeds into the logistics and planning for the circumnavigation and helps answer these and many other vitally important questions: 1. What boat speed can be achieved in certain wind and tide conditions? This naturally helps determine how far you can travel in a day and the crucial corollary: is there a suitable anchorage within striking distance or will I have to sail overnight? 2. If I have to motor sail (or even motor if there’s no wind), what fuel supplies am I going to need? The remoteness of the Top End, coupled with some significant tidal variances, makes fuel management critical. I am going to need some 15 extra jerrycans of fuel to get from Darwin to Broome, for example — where do you put them, what weight does this add to your boat and effects on trim, etc? 3. Provisioning (again in remote areas) also requires thought and planning. Where can I provision, how many days do we need to cater for and for how many crew? Through experience we’ve found we can manage for four weeks without reprovisioning — and if I was catching fish we have pushed it to six weeks, but you can’t always rely on your fishing skills! Finally, there is crew. Barbara won’t be with me the whole way and I need to find some like-minded sailors prepared to share my dream. Their safety is a massive consideration, so ensuring all the safety equipment is up to date is one thing, but understanding how to use it is another. Pre-departure safety briefings, onboard procedures, drills and exercises are all part of keeping everyone safe. My dream is about to become reality, but I could never have contemplated doing this without the guidance and experience of SCG members. I can’t encourage new cruisers enough to join this Group and increase your skills, so that you too can venture further afield. n Competent crew are still being sought for the WA & SA coastal segments in Q3/Q4 2026. If you are interested, please contact Quentin by email to: svlalapanzi@gmail.com PICS: Supplied: Quentin Granger Mainsheet 2024 Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron Yearbook 64 Anti-clockwise around AUS! 65 Mainsheet 2024 Anti-clockwise around AUS! Darwin • 5 Broome • 6 Fremantle • 7 Busselton • 8 9 • Esperance 1 • Hamilton Island 15 • Port Stephens RQYS 14 • Sydney Thursday Island • 4 Adelaide • 10 11 • Melbourne 12 • Hobart 13 • Lakes Entrance 2 • Townsville 3 • Cooktown So where, actually, IS he now? When the MAINSHEET team checked in with Quentin in June 2026 for a progress report for this edition, he, together with wife Barbara and Lalapanzi’s Leg 6 crew were deep in one of The Kimberley’s many craggy gorges, inlets and plethora of islands and coves — for three months, as it transpired! “There was so much stunning scenery to discover,” Quentin reported, “but it was also largely fuel-dependent with the amount of motoring involved in and out of the coastal inlets, slowing our progress along The Kimberley coast towards the south. “Eventually, we made it down to Dampier, spending a week there and visiting the Montebello Islands, about 130km off the coast, just north of Barrow Island.” Just after Season Opening Day 2026, we phoned Quentin again, finding the merry mariners in Shark Bay, after experiencing the joy of watching whale sharks off Ningaloo Reef but having exhausted the (limited) delights of Monkey Mia ashore. Darwin • 5 Broome • 6 The Kimberley • Dampier Shark Bay • Montebello Islands • L 58 Anti-clockwise around AUS! Mainsheet 2026 Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron Yearbook
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