PS Melbourne centenary (Mildura, Australia)

[Excelsior]

The weekend, particularly the social aspect of it, has got me seriously thinking about how to get myself a boat.  I've started looking into the feasiblity of purchasing one of the boats that we were talking about.

[thewharfonline]

We should discuss this more. Have you made it back down to Melbourne? How did your Wentworth leg go?

I must admit I also got out my Parsons to start looking at which boats (in '96 mind you) were potentials for restoration...

[Excelsior]

Yep, back in Melbourne. I ended up leaving on Monday as nothing was happening. Wentworth was ok, had a look through the photos at the little museum they have there. Took a couple of pictures of the Ruby & got on my way.

I'm considering driving up to Echuca on Saturday for the day to have a look at boats.

[thewharfonline]

Tough life! Sounds good.

I liked that little museum in Wentworth- Dad had gone to check out the jail, while the rest of the family looked at the museum. A lot of Parson's photos. Wasn't bad for a small museum though.

[Excelsior]

The pictures weren't bad. I think that they're all from the Godson Collection, but there were some that the State Library of SA don't have online.

Also, found this on youtube. Watch out for Roderick!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJl_hkB1fXE

[thewharfonline]

I'm standing just left of screen to Rod, they filmed it as we were boarding the Marion. They didn't want to talk to me though. 

[Roderick Smith]

Backtracking to the photos not put up when I was away from internet.  I am not sure of the bit on the boiler: Michael did explain it.  Is it the feedwater heater?
Something noted by the crews of other boats: they are all geriatric (most over 60); Adelaide had a youth crew (most under 30).

Today: PS Adelaide on the Mildura - Wentworth sector, on Fri.7.9.

Re the sudden mass enthusiasm for owning a paddleboat: I'll put something up in the full-size thread.

I am back home, but the events continue.
Commercial voyages Mildura - Coomealla on Saturday, and Coomealla - Wentworth on Sunday.
Marion heads for home, but possibly not in convoy (or maybe with Industry).
Oscar leaves on Saturday, and zooms: a Tuesday evening event in Loxton.
Adelaide leaves on Saturday or Sunday for Echuca.
Private Settler is taking the opportunity to voyage to SA.

As I left Psyche Bend on Thursday afternoon, Amphibious and Settler were still moored there.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

Here is the second half of the Wentworth.  It was an exciting and emotional entry: after months of planning, everything had happened, and the two halves of the fleet were meeting.  Adelaide's crew believe that this was the first time in the Darling since the boat was built.  However, it did spend time at  Paringa, and almost certainly would have called at the port during both transits.
Ruby and Marion were together for the first time in decades, and their joint locking may have been a first.
As Adelaide arrived, most of the boats were in port already; Coonawarra came out to welcome the upriver boats; Flender Himmel was coming through the lock solo; Ruby and Marion followed on the next locking.
A large crowd was present.  The levee bank was decorated with words Adelaide, Industry; Ruby; Marion, Oscar W (I couldn't fit them all into one frame).
Gossip was swapped, and crews & passengers moved to dinner in Crown Hotel (filling the function room, and taking over the bistro too).

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[stephenf10]

The big South Australian boats have left Mildura. Oscar left yesterday and Marion and Industry today (Sunday). We watched Marion and Industry arrive at Wentworth late this afternoon along with Amphibious, Kulkyne, James Maiden, Flender Himmel and Settler.

What a great week!

I heard a rumour that Ruby's gear problems have been fixed but she is still sitting quietly in her wet dock at Wentworth.

Stephen.

[Roderick Smith]

I have heard the same story, that the problem has been fixed.  Scuttlebut is firmly against Wentworth Council for not fixing the fault earlier.  It had been quite evident when I was aboard Ruby to Renmark in Mar.-Apr.11.  The consistent story is that it was a lubrication problem with the valvegear.

James Maiden was returning to its mooring, about 10-20 km up the Darling.  Settler is voyaging with the SA boats.  Perhaps Kulkyne is too?  Its normal mooring is at Karadoc, upstream of Mildura.  Rather cunningly, it seems that Oscar provided the Saturday Mildura - Coomealla public journey, and Industry provided the Sunday Coomealla - Wentworth journey.

I continue with my gapfilling photos, with eight for this post, and seven for the next.  I then pick up with the midweek mini rally (12 boats as a reduced fleet: most places in this world can't even muster 12).  I have to finish reporting this grand voyage before the fleet gets home, and before I leave for a USA holiday.

My selection is designed to give a cheap version of the holiday which would otherwise have cost GBP1000 in airfares alone.  Clearly, I am not just putting up portraits of the many participating boats, but am trying to give a vision to overseas readers of our Australian river conditions, scenery and history.  In this selection, the Wentworth water tower is a distinctive setting, and shows the achievement of PS Adelaide.  I also include a better view of the apex of the Darling & Murray junction, where two mighty rivers form one larger mighty river (think Mississippi Missouri, or Rhine Maas, or Irrawaddy Chindwa).  It is one of the few places on the river where there is a cardinal marker.  It was here in 1956 that two mighty floods became a mightier one.  It was also a site considered in 1901 for the future national capital, being almost the epicentre of the existing state capitals.  The final one in this selection shows the boats bunching because they were early for the opening of the lifting-span Abbotsford bridge, linking Yelta (Vic.) & Curlwaa (NSW).  In mid frame is a floating raft: this houses a salinity-measuring device, powered by a solar panel, and feeding back to Murray Darling Commission for analysis, and comparison with data from numerous such devices along the river.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

I have to keep the pace up, in order to finish before the voyagers are back home.
This concludes the Sat.8.9 coverage, and the last few of this infill interleaves with the opening few which I posted at the time.  This day concluded at Old Mildura Homestead, with a major dinner for crews and passengers.

Pumpouts exist at lots of places along the river: important for environmental protection, and well accepted by the river community.  Vacuum hoses are used on large vessels; there is also a simple hopper for smaller boats using portaloos (eg mine), or even fishing tinnies using just a bucket for the day.  They are less common on other waterways, but now exist on Lake Eildon (popular with houseboats) and the Gippsland Lakes.  Rules for retention have changed in SA.  Hitherto only blackwater had to be retained; greywater could be discharged.  Now greywater may have to be retained as well (AFAIK, a requirement on Sydney Harbour).  Because of short hoses, there were problems for some of the boats this time.  PS Adelaide had to skip the Euston pumpout (hose length of the pumpout), and made a downriver entry to the Mildura one in order to get the outlet tap within reach of the pumpout house.  I did watch a novice with a hired houseboat make a downriver approach to one near lock 6, and overshoot completely; he rounded up and made a proper upriver approach.

I am also including modern houseboats with paddle propulsion.  None appeared at the Sunday festivities.

The helicopter photo was prepared for an aviation group.  It seems to be a privately-owned Robinson, but must have been carrying a tv crew.  It added to the sense of occasion, and provided some good photos for tv and local newspapers.

Without being identical, Rum Runner is very similar to my Jessie II: same motor, hull, handling and sound.  The current owner is converting it from poptop to full cabin.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[ljhall]

I must admit that the PS Melbourne Centenary was the first such event that Iv'e attended, despite working on the Pevensey for a few days in May last year, I still didn't make it to her Centenary.
It was good to catch up with other PD's also, although it was hard trying to squeeze a few years of goss into just one night.
One of the highlights of the Melbourne Centenary for me, was bringing the Industry back under the bridge on the downstream run, she's very heavy on the steering, much harder to control than the Melbourne - which I steered when I was probably about nine (under the watchful eye of the late Eddie Hazelman).
Purely from a spectators opinion - it would have been good to see all 24 Paddle Boats out for the grand flotilla, but after a stint at the helm of the Industry, I can appreciate that the 19 or 20 Paddle Boats that were out, was quite enough.
Although it looked like a slow river, the current was surprising, being stronger than I first thought, so we had to keep a close eye on the boats immediately behind us, particularly when rounding up.

We didn't go to Wentworth on Mon 10th, but started driving back east via Swan Hill, Echuca, Cobram, Yarrawonga & Albury.
(Off topic news)
Swan Hill - the Gem is afloat in her pond, but is leaking and being pumped regularly, her deckhouses look quite good, hopefully the hull will be given some TLC soon.
The Pyap looks very smart, but the evaporative air-con. on the roof looks a bit grandiose.

Echuca - 100912
Emmylou, Canberra & Pevensey cruising,
Pride of the Murray on the slip (bow first and further up the rails, because the Ada Barge has been shifted , didn't see the Eclipse (hull & paddleboxes), but she is still there somewhere.
Tooraloora, Britannia, D26 Barge, Struggler, Perricoota & Ivy - May all moored in the Wet Dock, whilst the Billy Tea was out for a paddle.
Perhaps the biggest news at Echuca at the moment is that the Etona could be steaming again soon, - fingers crossed. I heard on good authority that there has been some work done already, and that her owner hopes to have her steaming in time for an All The Rivers Run 30 th Anniv. event sometime near the end of the year, apparently held down near Perricoota.
The other news that's been talked about lately, is the fate of the PS Edwards hulk.
I can confirm that her steam winch was purchased but as a condition of sale, the rest of the boats remains went with it, some of the machinery is being donated to the Port of Echuca, with the Hull apparently being offered to the new landowner, it will be interesting to see what happens from here.

Has anyone heard any news on the PV Babbler ? - built by Peter McLeod about 10 years ago, originally named the Elizabeth, and sold to Russell Anderson during 2004.


 

 

[Roderick Smith]

I have covered the Monday and Tuesday laydays in earlier posts.  The visiting boats were wooded; schoolgroups came aboard for inspections.
Wednesday reminded me of my theatre hobby: the excitement of final night, leading the stripping of the set and the theatre bare.
The lawns were empty; the moorings quiet.
Even so, the midweek adventure mustered 12 paddleboats moving: 11 left Mildura, but Melbourne was on its normal public cruise and rounded up; Miralie joined in at Red Cliffs.  It had not been part of the weekend action, because its owner  was skippering one of the larger vessels.
The plan was for the Ruby & Marion to take overnight passengers, with lunch at Trentham Cliffs winery, and Industry and Oscar W to take day passengers, with lunch at Gol Gol Hotel and a bus return to Mildura.  Ruby was out of action; its passengers went aboard Industry.
I was aboard Oscar W.

Today's set shows most of the midweek fleet in action, and docking at Gol Gol Hotel.  18 months earlier, I had planned to moor there for lunch with Jessie II.  The water was much higher, but not sufficiently high to tie off to the bistro verandah.  There was no place to tie up and climb off, so I skipped lunch there.
I also post to and write for pub groups, and have been building a folio of pubs which look over waterways, with top priority to those which are on the water, or have only grass (not roads) separating them.  This is one such.

I include one of an Australian waterbird which we take for granted, but with which overseas readers will be unfamiliar: a black swan.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Swan

Post edit: There are pictures around of the 1956 floods in Mannum.  Mannum Hotel had the bar flooded, and was trading from the upstairs balcony.  A boat is tied to it.
This video shows the pub, but not with a boat.  It does show a boat at the rear of Pretoria Hotel.
<www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhHbxJmY3AE>
This site shows the flood and the verandah, but without a boat: <www.hotelmannum.com.au/history.htm>

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

Already the rally is taking on an air of unreality: did this really happen?  As I post, it was a week ago that I was still on Oscar W arriving back at Mildura, for a bus back to Psyche Bend, then set forth for home after 18 great river days.

After lunch on Wednesday we continued past various moored vessels, then beyond Psyche Bend to Red Cliffs to round up, then back to Psyche Bend.  The group which restored and maintains the steam pump there had it in action.  There was just one complement of overnight passengers: from PS Marion.  This was a night for crews to relax and mingle.  There was a catered dinner under a picnic shelter there, followed by a quiz night, and then games testing boating skills (mainly ropes).

Post edit: The Bruces Bend photos show PV Merlin (which didn't participate in the events), and barge Reliance.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

This selection concludes my participation in the centenary events.  I was offered a day spot on Marion while it was so remote from home.  We docked at Gol Gol with ease, but had trouble getting off.  Docking at Mildura was also tricky.  Upon the return to Mildura, I caught the transfer bus back to Psyche Bend to collect my car, and exit via Red Cliffs to Calder Hwy and home.  I will have a few gap filler photos to post yet, and some scans of the newspaper coverage.
As I post, Oscar W isn't quite home.  A message on the Facebook site: into Renmark Tuesday, and out Tuesday afternoon.  That would put it through the early afternoon bridge opening, and still an afternoon locking, but at best Berri for the evening, and not Loxton for the planned event.  I rang lock 1 (Blanchetown): Oscar was through at 15.00 on Friday.  That hints at a bit more on Friday, a long Saturday, and a Sunday crossing of the lake, to be home for school-holiday cruising.
Marion is either on Berri slip, or positioned to go up.
Industry is home.
Ruby is reportedly fixed.
Checking with lock 15: Adelaide hasn't left Mildura yet, probably still waiting for a crew.
Private boats are at home in the Mildura area, or setting forth to SA for their own grand adventure.  Iron Dry is sticking with Adelaide.

Owners of smaller boats are swapping emails to organise a Christmas - New Year mini fleet from Echuca to Tocumwal & return.

Post edit: even as I was typing, Adelaide was away from Mildura, and made 60 km in 9 h on the first day.
That hints that it could make a grand entry into Echuca on Sat.6.10: into the heart of the heritage festival, with a suitable audience to welcome the return.  Equally, it could be slower and miss.  However, as compensation, the gossip is that PS Etona will be running for this year's festival, marking a major anniversary of the filming of 'All the rivers run'.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor