North of Moreton Bay the Queensland coast becomes a chain of experiences every cruising sailor talks about. Mooloolaba is the first proper harbour, a trained entrance with a marina and a fuel wharf. Beyond Noosa and Double Island Point lies the Wide Bay Bar, the crossing that leads into the Great Sandy Strait, 40 miles of shallow, tidal, mangrove-lined channel between Fraser Island (K'gari) and the mainland, where the tide floods from both ends and the height of water decides everything. The strait emerges into Hervey Bay, wide and sheltered, where humpback whales rest with their calves from August to October. Bundaberg, across the bay, is the departure port for the Pacific. Passages here are measured in tides as much as miles.
The waters
Mooloolaba
A trained river entrance that is safe in most conditions and rough in a strong easterly. A marina, moorings and a yacht club; the standard first stop north of Brisbane.
Noosa and Double Island Point
Noosa’s bar is for shallow-draught boats in calm conditions only. Double Island Point offers a lee anchorage in southerly winds, used while waiting for the tide at the Wide Bay Bar.
The Wide Bay Bar
The entrance to the Great Sandy Strait between Inskip Point and Fraser Island. Crossed on a set of waypoints published by the Tin Can Bay volunteer rescue base, on the flood, in modest swell. Straightforward when respected; deadly when not.
The Great Sandy Strait
Forty miles of channel, banks and creeks. Tides flood from both ends and meet near the middle; drying banks and shifting sand require constant height-of-tide awareness. Anchorages at Garry’s Anchorage, Kingfisher Bay and the creeks.
Hervey Bay and Bundaberg
Wide, sheltered water; Urangan’s marina; the whale sanctuary. Bundaberg’s Burnett River, across the bay, has a marina and the customs and quarantine facilities used by the Pacific rallies.
Training here
Passage-making courses run north from Brisbane through Mooloolaba, the bar and the strait: bar crossing, shoal-water pilotage, tidal planning and remote anchoring in one week. The strait is the finest tidal-height classroom on the east coast.
What an exam here looks like
Passages for the logbook
| Passage | Miles | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mooloolaba to Bundaberg via the Wide Bay Bar and the strait | 110 | Qualifying passage with a bar crossing and shoal pilotage; often broken by a night at Garry’s Anchorage, which would make it two passages. |
| Mooloolaba to Bundaberg outside Fraser Island | 160 | Overnight round Breaksea Spit; the offshore alternative. |
| Bundaberg to Great Keppel Island | 110 | Overnight north into the tropics. |
| Bundaberg to Noumea | 780 | The traditional rally departure and Ocean qualifier. |
Conditions
| Tides | Semi-diurnal, range 1.5 to 2.5 m at Mooloolaba rising to 3 m at the northern end of the strait and in Hervey Bay. Streams of 2 to 4 knots in the strait and at the bar. |
|---|---|
| Weather | South-easterly trades from April to October; summer northerlies and storms. The Wide Bay Bar is exposed to the south-east swell; the strait and Hervey Bay are sheltered. |
| Facilities and rescue | Mooloolaba marina and yacht club; Tin Can Bay and Urangan marinas; Bundaberg Port Marina; volunteer rescue bases at Mooloolaba, Tin Can Bay, Hervey Bay and Bundaberg. |
Boat licence
Questions about Sunshine Coast, the Wide Bay Bar and Hervey Bay
Where do I get the Wide Bay Bar waypoints?
From the Tin Can Bay volunteer rescue base by radio or phone before you cross; they are updated as the sand moves and should never be taken from an old chart or a cruising guide.
Can a deep-draught yacht transit the Great Sandy Strait?
Yachts drawing up to about 2 m transit regularly on the tide; deeper draughts need careful timing at the shallowest sections near the middle. Plan for the height of tide, not the charted depth.