A Trivial Pursuit

Problem: Once we get a stamp in our passports to leave Australia from Thursday Island we are not allowed to touch land again until we reach PNG, a paddling distance of nearly 300km, largely into the prevailing wind and current.

Solution: Locate a similarly crazy pair of adventurers who have a boat big enough for us to sleep on at night, therefore avoiding the need to sleep on land at the end of each paddling day across Torres Strait.

Paul and Coll (aka Ma and Pa) departed Cairns several weeks after we did in a boat that is only just big enough to make sure that crocs can't bite through the hull. Their 25 foot yacht, Trivial Pursuit, is only about 2m longer than one of our kayaks!

While Lain and I have been building up our paddling skills, gaining strength and confidence with our gear and making sense of tides, currents and navigation in our kayaks, Ma & Pa have been doing exactly the same in their 'pregnant guppy". The intrepid sailors have raised a few eyebrows along the way for attempting such a big trip in such a small boat.

For the most part up the QLD coast we have been on parallel adventures, however Trivial Pursuit has provided us with opportunities that other paddlers may not have had in this region. For a couple of nights all four of us crammed into the boat so that we could stay in the lee of reefs where there was no land that sat above the high tide mark. Also as the islands of the north became more densely riddled with croc slides, Trivial Pursuit offered Lain and I welcome relief from the threat of being eaten during the night.

Are Ma & Pa enjoying themselves? Well I haven't seen too many retirees who climb coconut trees, paddle a tiny inflatable dingy right near a huge crocodile, bake sandy bread on a perfect beach, play hopscotch, make hats from palm leaves, stuff themselves on seafood, dodge supertankers, and spear a fresh fish for dinner.

Trivial Pursuit is not huge, but it is big enough. All four of us can get a comfy night's sleep (most of the time), drink tea, play cards and laugh at life for long enough to see that Lain and I make it across the border. We'll then head north while Ma & Pa have to turn around and sail their little vessel back down the coast, and find their way back home.

Thanks Ma & Pa. This adventure would have been much more challenging without your help, and we're thrilled to have provided you with the motivation to get into a boat and get sailing.

Photos: Our camp on Morris Island, Inside the spacious belly of the pregnant guppy.