St Andrews Bay Boat trip

Friday bought with it Ashley and I's first boating operations into the "extended boating limit".  The EBL is an expanded area where special boating operations are required further from base.  There are afew protocols to adhere to when executing trips further afield.  The normal routine, dependent on requirements, is to take 2 jet boats with DOTTY (the 2.5m tender) for beach landings, or as was the case on Friday a jet boat and one of the Humber RHIBs which can carry out beach landings themselves.

We began at 0800, loading the requisite equipment, including a full field kit to support the personnel should we have to seek refuge due to mechanical failure, or inclement weather, and personal equipment.  The kits include emergency food rations, water, maps, compasses, medical supplies, a Primus stove, matches, goggles, gloves, spare warm clothing etc, as well as the standard equipment for all boat operations; a boat suit, gloves, and Personal Locator Beacons.  The locator devices are beacons which can be activated in the event of a man overboard and transmit a signal on 121.5Mhz.  This signal can be received by the jet boat which uses a radio direction finder and provides the coxswain with a bearing from the vessels head to the MOB.  The waters around South Georgia are currently between 1 and 3 degrees centigrade, so swift recovery is a must, despite the thermal protection provided by the boat suits.

The purpose of the trip this time was to take the invasive flora specialist Kelvin, and the Government Officer Kieran to some site located on the East Coast of SG, so we took a route North out of King Edward Cove, into Cumberland Bay, rounded Right Whale Rock and proceeded South to Ocean Harbour and Cobblers Cove.  The trip is 24nm each way, and takes the ribs about 50 minutes in good conditions to get to St Andrews, and the same to come back.  Ashley took command of PRION, the jet Boat, and I cox'd LUNA, the specced Humber Defender.  LUNA is equipped for longer journeys with an extra jockey seat for crew, and a self righting device on the A-Frame.  The weather was good, but once we rounded the cape of Barff Peninsular the swell was running up to a couple of metres, and it was hard work (although very good fun) driving the 5.5mtr through the seas, and keeping her from getting airbourne!

Once on site, the GO and Kelvin embarked onto Luna and I took them ashore.  Landing personnel on a beach is a straight forward affair, the boat is driven close to the beach, the crewman trims the engines to reduce the draft and the coxswain eases her in, and once the bow is grounded, the engines are engaged in slow ahead to keep her steady.  The guys and equipment are disembarked over the tubes forrard.  Kelp and surf are the main issues, as well as finding a section of beach which is not too populated by Fur Seals or agressive Bull elephant Seals.  Its no good putting the guys ashore safely only for them to end up between two 4 ton males fighting!!