2014 Princess Variety Splash

With its lush forests of towering trees, world-class wine and food and stunning coastline, WA’s south-west offers some of the most varied travel experiences the State has to offer.

It is also where the Southern and Indian oceans collide creating a spectacularly rugged coastline and some of the best surf breaks in the world.

But while the powerful surf rolls in from the Indian Ocean and crashes across the rocks and beaches on the west coast, the waters east of Cape Naturaliste, the northern most point in the region, could not be more different.

Geographe Bay, which extends from the Cape north to Bunbury, is serene and calm creating an ideal boating destination with beautiful beaches and secluded bays.

And it is only 107 nautical miles from Fremantle, and for the most part, an easy journey in open waters making it accessible to many Perth boaties.

But heading off on a long-distance cruise to a new destination can be a scary prospect. The easiest, and safest, way to explore new territory is in the company of others who know the area well.

And organised convoys (or cruises in company) are becoming a tool for luxury boat manufactures like Princess to provide their customers with a higher level of aftermarket service.

They are not only a great avenue for demonstrating to new, and not-so-new, boat owners the full potential of their purchase but provide a way to stay in touch with their customer base.

But it also provides a safe and enjoyable way for boat owners to explore the State’s magnificent south-west coast line.

There are a couple of reefs that you need to be aware of, and negotiating your way through Cockburn Sound and under the Garden Island causeway can be a little nerve-wracking for those making the journey for the first time.

For the participants travelling in the Splash, it also provided a first-hand lesson on the importance of being well prepared and carrying a good stock of spare parts, even in relatively new boats.

But with technicians from Princess on hand with a large selection of spares, the issues quickly be-came non-issues. Even an engine failure did not prevent one participant from completing, and enjoying, the Splash experience.

With the help of the Princess technician, the Riviera 60 was up and running on both engines within four hours of the issue (a faulty ECM -- engine control and management -- module) arising.

More than 20 boats, of various brands and sizes ranging from a Princess V70 to a 40ft Sunseeker, signed on for the Splash this year.

And most of them have already indicated they will be back again next year.

“Travelling in company is a lot more fun,” Wayne said. “Getting together with other Princess owners and people who enjoying boating has been a great experience, very entertaining.”

But Greg Poland who owns a Princess V70 and has become a regular on the Splash over the past few years summed it up best. “It is the most fun you will ever have on your boat,” he said.

The 2014 Splash started in Fremantle, with a sail past in Prospect Quay, the new home of Princess in WA with all boats dressed in a Royal theme.

And while there were some impressive costume designs it was the salute to Elvis, the King, that was judged the best.

From there, the flotilla headed south, through Cockburn Sound and onto Mandurah Marina for the night.

THE MANDURAH LEG
While the journey to Mandurah is only a 90 minute cruise, travelling at 20 knots, the Mandurah Marina has several restaurants within the complex making it an ideal stopover to break up the journey.

The trip between Fremantle and Mandurah is also the most difficult part of the trip. After leaving the Fremantle Harbour, the safest route is to head to the shipping channel in Cockburn Sound. It is not absolutely necessary to stay in the channel but there is some shallow water in the Sound and this is the safest and easiest way to avoid it.

After leaving the channel, the flotilla headed due south toward the Garden Island Causeway. With shallow water again an issue speed was reduced to eight knots as a safety precaution.

After passing under the causeway, the flotilla continued to head south toward the Warnbro Sound channel markers. With the markers in sight we steered east heading toward shore and inside the reef.

Once inside the reef, we once again set a southerly course toward Mandurah.

Along this section of the journey, while it is safer to stay close to the reef (it can get fairly shallow closer to shore) you need to keep a watch out for craypots.

Then simply head to the channel markers into Mandurah and the marina.

Once leaving Mandurah, the trip gets a lot easier with craypots just to the south about the only obstacle you have to worry about.

After passing the Dawesville Cut you can stay quite close to the shore for the rest of the journey.

On the day we made the journey, conditions were perfect with a swell of less than a metre and a gentle easterly breeze, which enabled us to cruise at between 20 and 25 knots.

The Princess P67 we travelled in really enjoyed the run with the twin 715hp Volvo engines humming.

It was at its most economical sitting on 2000rpm which had us cruising at 20 knots and each engine using 115-litres/hour of diesel.

The flotilla used the Geographe Bay marina as its base for the duration of its stay but during the day, we visited some of the many bays, including Bunker Bay, Eagle Bay and Castle Bay -- all a short cruise from the marina.

All three bays have beautiful sandy bottoms which makes anchoring easy and swimming sensational. You can also park close enough to the beautiful white-sand beaches to swim ashore.

The trip home was as straight forward as the journey south with a gentle southerly breeze behind the fleet for most of the journey.

Travelling non-stop it took just over five hours to get home but it was a trouble-free end to a majestic five days on the water.

Oh, and The Splashers raised just over $100,000 to donate to Variety.