The lure of Rottnest

There is something magical about Rotto. As you pass from the deep blue ocean into the clear crystal waters that surround the small island, the stress and pressures that come with city life are left behind.

While it may be on the doorstep of the city, its outline remains a clear reminder of just how close to the city you are, pace on the island is a very different.

Nothing needs to be done straight away and in many cases nothing needs to be done at all, except to sit back and enjoy the magnificent crystal-clear water.

Rottnest is surrounded by some of the most stunning water in the world teeming with more than 400 species of fish and 20 species of coral. There are also 135 species of tropical fish.

Around the island, 20 bays provide calm, protected anchorages as well as offering protection from the wind, which regularly blows over 25 knots, especially when coming from the south-west.

But the same reefs that created these idyllic anchorage areas also make the waters around Rotto extremely tricky to navigate, especially for the inexperienced.

Produced by the WA Museum and the RIA, it has become part of a “museum-without-walls” concept. The wreck sites also are marked on navigation charts and all of the wrecks are protected under the historic shipwrecks act.

The passages into many of the bays are often no more than a narrow track of clear water cutting through the reef. While all are well marked with navigation aids, boating insurance companies in WA still pay out large sums of money each year to repair boats that have run up on a reef.

For those boat owners who are not registered users, there are several moorings, scattered around various bays that are owned and operated by the RIA and can be booked online. For more information go to: www.rottnestisland.com.

For those planning a long stay, especially during the peak summer holiday period, it is advisable to ensure you have two anchors (one set for the easterly breeze and one for the sou-wester) to limit how much your boat swings.

There are also beach moorings for owners of smaller boats who either visit the island for the day or want to stay on the island and still take advantage of the spectacular fishing, diving and snorkeling.

MORE THAN 60 BEACHES
The island, which is 11km in length and 4.5km at its widest point, is a first-class nature reserve with 63 beaches, holiday accommodation, and all the facilities you need for a great holiday.

The most popular facility on the island is the Rottnest Hotel which boasts one of the most spectacular beer gardens in the world with a view across the water to Perth.

There is also a general store, a variety of restaurants, cafes and a bakery. The more energetic can hire a bike for the day to explore the island, and there’s even a golf course for those days when it is just too windy to go out on the water.

Standing just 30cm tall, the Quokka is the island’s most famous inhabitant and with around 10,000 on the island they are fairly easy to spot.

But for most who visit the island by boat, Rottnest is all about the surrounding water and the wide variety of marine-based activities available.

During the summer months many divers turn their attention to West Australian crayfish which can be found in abundance in the reefs around the island.

Fishing is another favourite pastime for island visitors. The fish life is so diverse that everybody from the youngest novice to the most serious fisher is catered for.

Travel just a few kilometres and the more serious angler can come home with demersal favourites like dhufish, pink snapper or baldchin groper.
Pelagics like tuna and mahi mahi are also caught in waters close to the island.

But you need to remember that in WA you require a licence to fish from a boat and you need a separate licence to catch crayfish. Both these licences are relatively cheap and can be easily obtained online at www.fish.wa.gov.au.

A developing tourist attraction in recent years between September and November is watching the annual migration of humpback whales. 

Mature humpback whales weigh roughly 40 tonnes and grow to 19 metres in length. They have been protected from whaling in the Southern Hemisphere since 1963 and the population in Western Australian waters is believed to have grown to around 3000. They spend summer in the Antarctic and migrate north each winter towards their tropical calving grounds.

The unpredictable seas, along with the rugged reefs that surround the island, make it essential to know what you are doing before heading off on the 11nm journey.

A safe way to venture to the island for inexperienced skippers is to join the Rottnest Island Safety Convoys, organised by the Boating Industry Association (BIA) WA, to learn the safe routes to the island getaway.

The convoys are led by experienced mariners from government maritime agencies such at the Water Police and Department of Transport Marine Safety and now only show how to get to the island but how to access the more popular bays.

Once armed with this information, most boaties find the lure of the island, its majestic bays and bountiful seas very hard to resist.