Bring Flinders back to his spiritual country?

bob, 50 cents each & she could have been ours.

But I didn't know did you?


Ex-Navy minesweeper HMAS Curlew's new mission as floating backpacker hostel - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

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Originally Posted by 4bee

bob, 50 cents each & she could have been ours.

But I didn't know did you?


Ex-Navy minesweeper HMAS Curlew's new mission as floating backpacker hostel - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

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We couldn't afford the money just to keep it afloat, let alone run it.

Maybe I could have sold a Kidney or my bollocks.[biggrin]

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Originally Posted by 4bee

Maybe I could have sold a Kidney or my bollocks.[biggrin]

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Redundant bits don't sell. [smilebigeye]

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Originally Posted by bob10

Redundant bits don't sell. [smilebigeye]

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Nor do worn out kidneys. [wink11]

Kidneys appear to be ok but the other are definitely clapped out. Not clap as in clap but clapped out, you understand.[smilebigeye]

[QUOTE=bob10;2878235]

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Originally Posted by JDNSW

Undoubtedly Flinders had a strong natural aptitude for navigation, but there is a wide gap between navigation and hydrographic mapping. Flinders certainly improved on Cook's mapping methods, but the standards and general methodology were inherited from Cook. Mapping a coastline in sail powered ships, navigating by sextant and chronometer, measuring water depths by leadline requires enormous effort, discipline, and meticulous adherence to planned methodology.

As an indication of his insight into navigational methods, Flinders was responsible for the "Flinders Bar", the first practical method of correction for soft iron in a ship. He was also an enthusiastic mapper - not a matter of skill but of attitude.

It is difficult to think of any other near contemporary who would have had the perseverance of Flinders to complete the mapping of the Australian coastline. To give examples of captains who were not up to it, a generation later were Pringle Stokes who suicided, and his successor as Captain of the Beagle, Fitzroy, who was so afraid of following his precedent that he took a young Charles Darwin on the second voyage of the Beagle to try and maintain his mental health. Then there is Owen Stanley, who died from illness that may have been suicide while mapping PNG - and was so afraid of the coast that his mapping was very substandard.[/QUOTE

Ever sailed around the N. G. coast? even with an Admiralty Chart, you have to be on the ball. EG, AE 1.

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I've impacted the N.G coast! wooden boats, alcohol, young women and reefs are a potent mix [bigwhistle]

If you want to talk about lucky - consider Torres; He sailed almost the entire south coast of New Guinea, in a small wooden vessel, with no maps, and no possibility of help if anything went wrong. Or consider Bligh, who sailed through there in a small, overloaded, open boat, with no maps - but at least he knew it could be done.

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I've impacted the N.G coast! wooden boats, alcohol, young women and reefs are a potent mix [bigwhistle]

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[smilebigeye]So what you are really saying is that you ran aground, half shot, while endeavoring to seduce?


I get it.[biggrin]

Charts of many of coastal areas of remote Northern Australia were based on chart work by Cook on the east coast and Flinders and others on the north coast.

While the coast line of the western side of Cape York was well charted and pretty accurate, it was not until the mid 70s that navigators found that the entire coast line on the west side of Cape York was 6nm either further west or east (I cannot remember which) from where it should have been - indicating the original chart maker had a consistent error in their deck watch (local time from GMT helps determine longitude).

Navigating down the coast using terrestial marks was not an issue as they were accurate relative to each other but if using astro navigation the error would start to show up - now you would not normally use astro navigation so close to land and it would normally be assumed the navigator had the issue not the chart.

The error was finally accepted sometime in the mid to late 70s and the charts corrected - would have consistently showed up once GPS became common place.

Garry