Letter from Canoeing Magazine,
November 1981.

Scribe Sean Dixon
Frank Goodman of Valley Canoe Products passed on an interesting letter from Sean Dixon, a canoeist from Sydney who he met while out in Australia in 1978. Frank comments that it sounds as though he (Sean Dixon) had a fabulous trip, but that he wouldn't be the first canoeist to have a Nordkapp in New Guinea there are several out there already  The letter as below: I’m writing from Cairns in North Queensland after having completed an 800-mile trip by Nordkapp to the top of Australia. It was a tremendous experience for us and I just wanted to share some of the many things we saw and learned with you as it may be some time before we get round to writing a detailed account of the journey.

Last Monday (20th July), Tony Phipps(24), Paul Davis (28), and myself landed at Thursday Island about nine weeks after leaving Townsville. (You will need a good atlas to find these locations). We carried enough food for the whole trip (we estimated 2-months), and equipment that would keep us alive if we were forced to walk out at any stage. This included two rifles, fishing gear, extra knives, three tent flys, and enough tucker for an extended stay in the bush. With a minimum of three gallons of water each the kayaks (Tony and I had Nordkapps, Paul in a North Sea Tourer) were loaded down to the join lines. We knew that the weight of the boats would slow us down so decided to fit small gaff-rigged sails to get added push from the prevailing SE winds that blow almost continuously at this time of the year. Rudders were also used and I'm glad now that we fitted them. The winds are very strong along the North Queensland coast, and were blowing constantly for the last three weeks above the usual 20-knots. The seas are very short and steep inside the Great Barrier Reef and this made steering difficult, even with the rudders.

After. the first 180-miles we decided to change from the gaff-rig to a square-rig sail. This proved a great success and boosted our average speed to just under 5-knots in 20-25 knot following winds.

At 30-knots we really flew and had many hair-raising rides. Above this wind speed the sails should be reefed as there is a real danger of burying the bow and capsizing. Also the only real problem with the square-sail is that you cannot roll easily. The sail has to be reefed while you are upside down and then the roll attempted  . .! Sometimes it doesn't work out (one can well imagine).We had water-logged boats when this happened on two separate occasions, but managed to bail them out without too much trouble. The water is very warm so you can take your time with rescues without any worry.

For most of the trip we didn't touch the mainland. There are islands spaced at very easy intervals all along the coastline and we camped at these each evening. But most of them don't have water and it was only when we needed fresh supplies that we took to the mainland. We found that we could carry enough water for 8-9 days.
Catching fish was easy and was the main reason we finished the trip with a great deal of spare food. Coconuts also boosted our food supplies and was eaten raw or grated into flat breads, stews, cakes, etc.

We took a little dehydrated camper-type foods. Rice, soya beans, chick peas, flour, sugar, milk-powder, dried fruits, dried potatoes and textured vegetable protein were packed in two plastic bags and sealed with rubber bands before storage in non-chafe bags. The food we left with lasted us for the whole journey and it was necessary to pick up extra flour, sugar and dried fruit only three times, We ate well and actually put on weight! We also took plenty of vitamin C tablets and multi-vitamins to help fight infections. It was quite amazing that we didn't suffer any tropical ulcers at all. Infections of cuts etc, were kept down and if persisted were treated with anti-biotic powders or creams. Sunburn was not a problem because there was a great deal of bad weather for much of the trip.

Few sharks were sighted, but we lost count of the hundreds of turtles we saw. Turtles were that numerous in some places that they presented a real hazard. Hitting a big one at five knots could damage a fully loaded boat.

We were warned about saltwater crocodiles but had no close encounters, although Tony and Paul saw some whoppers on a coastal river that was supposed to be clear of them!

From Cooktown on we had only one stop that had any communication with the outside world. Apart from passing ships the last four hundred miles was through very isolated country. Any mishap would have meant trouble without any immediate chance of assistance, if it came at all.

The further north we went the rougher it became. At one point only 90-miles from the top we struck trouble with a double capsize in 35-knots and big seas. We were lucky and managed to come out of it with only minimal damage to one boat and a broken paddle.

We had hoped to cross Torres Strait and land in New Guinea, but after 9-weeks at sea we were starting to feel a bit fatigued. The winds also presented a problem and meant it would be very hard to paddle the eastern route we had picked to Darie.

The currents in Torres Strait are also quite amazing and after striking them enroute to Thursday Island, we decided to call it quits. We sold our boats and tried to get passage to Darie by boat but struck a great deal of red tape. It was our intention to get hold of a native boat in New Guinea and make our way up the Fly River or one of its tributaries.

Alas, this was not to be. We could not get a boat to N.G. even though it is only 80-miles to their coast. After five days on the water-front at Thursday Island we decided to head for home and I should be back in Sydney within a fortnight.

Tony and 1 arrived in Cairns on 24th July, only hours after three more paddlers set out for Thursday Island. Mike Higginson was in the group and I'm sorry I didn't meet him as I have heard from Joe that he was keen to paddle to New Guinea. He may make it if the weather is right.

I have just seen a copy of the May Canoeing Magazine and realise what a big event is taking place in Nottingham this month. We were coming to England to see it but when the Royal Wedding was announced we decided it would be better to come at a less hectic time. May have to leave it till next year, but I will certainly write when we finally set forth.

Will send a couple of prints of sails in action when I get back. Should he some good slides among them - I hope.

Good luck at Nottingham. There are now two Nordkapps on Torres Strait and it won't be long before they make it to New Guinea. Imagine head-hunters coming back from a foray in Nordkapps!