Safe Boating for Summer

summer boating safety

Hurray for Summer!

If last year was anything to go by, this summer holiday season will have a lot of people out boating on the Broadwater. It is a timely reminder to be safe and considerate to those around you. Ensure your safety equipment is up to date and suitable for your vessel and number of passengers on board.

Below are a few key areas to be mindful of at all times when on the water:

  1. Watch your speed.
  2. Watch your vessel wash.
  3. Be respectful to and considerate of others.
  4. Keep an eye on young children at all times.

Have a very merry Christmas and all our best wishes for the New Year!!!

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Prawn & Chilli Fettuccine

Beau the trawler man is now back and selling his fresh prawns to the public again. Make sure you arrive early to avoid missing out!

Once you get your delicious prawns why not try out our Prawn & Chilli Fettuccine recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 350g fettuccine pasta
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 600g medium raw Crystal Bay prawns, peeled and deveined, tail on
  • 2 shallots, finely diced
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 1 fresh red chilli, finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 2 tablespoons parsley, roughly chopped
  • 4 medium vine ripened tomatoes, diced
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Method:

Step1:
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions.

Step 2
While pasta is cooking, place 2 tablespoons of oil in a large fry pan with high sides over medium-high heat. Add prawns and cook for 2 minutes stirring often. Season with salt and pepper.

Step 3
Add shallots, garlic and chilli to prawns and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Step 4
Add white wine to the pan and simmer for 2 minutes.

Step 5
When pasta is al dente, drain in a colander and add pasta to the prawns and toss gently to mix.

Step 6
Add parsley, tomato and lemon juice to the pan with the pasta along with the remaining tablespoon of oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper and toss well to mix.

Step 7
Using a two pronged carving fork, swirl a quarter of the pasta around the fork. Slide the pasta off the fork, letting it mound in the centre of the pasta bowl. Repeat with remaining pasta.

Step 8
Spoon prawns and remaining sauce from the pan over and around each bowl of pasta and serve.

Juvenile Humpback Whale Found On Gold Coast Beach

It was a sad sight that greeted the team from SeaWorld on Sunday the 9th of November when they responded to reports of the remains of a dead whale at The Spit. Upon closer inspection the whale was identified as a juvenile humpback whale which had significant sized bite wounds believed to be caused by sharks, although it could not be determined that this was the actual cause of the whales death.

With the stench keeping many onlookers at bay, the SeaWorld team handed over the reigns to the Gold Coast City Council who arranged for the removal of the carcass. Due to the weight and size, heavy machinery was used to remove the whale.

Jellyfish season is here!

The jellyfish season has well and truly arrived in South East Queensland. This weekend the foreshore at Paradise Point was littered with hundreds of ‘Blue Blubber’ jellyfish which had been washed to shore with the tide. Whilst most of the jellyfish were dead it was still necessary to be cautious of stings.

The Blue Blubber (or Catostylus mosaicus) is a native species of jellyfish to Australia and most commonly found in the waters of southern Queensland. The Blue Blubbers can be found in the waters off Sydney and Victoria but their blue colouring is diluted to a white or brown colour due to the plant cells in the substance of their body.

As we saw today on the beach at Paradise Point, the Blue Blubbers move just below the surface of the water in dense swarms. Their sting is still painful but not to the extent of a blue bottle. An ice pack will be all that is needed. Sea lice were apparently a big problem today in the water also.

Days like today, the best way to be in the water is on a boat!

Gold Coast's Beached Whale

It was keeping the nation on the edges of their seats as the 36 hour ordeal to save a juvenille humpback whale from the sands of Palm Beach unfolded in front of hundreds of concerned onlookers, camera crews and of course the Seaworld rescuers.

After numerous set backs including tides, harnesses snapping and a some well-intended-but-damaging interventions by onlookers, the 20 tonne male humpback finally made it back out to the ocean. Although he was exhausted he managed to almost ‘wave’ good-bye to his tireless rescuers as he rolled through the waves stretched his flippers.

There was certainly a sense of community spirit as the good news of the whales freedom made it’s way around the country.

Photo Credits: Gold Coast Bulletin

Gold Coast’s Beached Whale

It was keeping the nation on the edges of their seats as the 36 hour ordeal to save a juvenille humpback whale from the sands of Palm Beach unfolded in front of hundreds of concerned onlookers, camera crews and of course the Seaworld rescuers.

After numerous set backs including tides, harnesses snapping and a some well-intended-but-damaging interventions by onlookers, the 20 tonne male humpback finally made it back out to the ocean. Although he was exhausted he managed to almost ‘wave’ good-bye to his tireless rescuers as he rolled through the waves stretched his flippers.

There was certainly a sense of community spirit as the good news of the whales freedom made it’s way around the country.

Photo Credits: Gold Coast Bulletin

Migaloo Makes a Splash for the 2014 Whale Watching Season

What better way to open up the official whale watching season on the Gold Coast than with a visit from the world famous all white humpback whale, Migaloo. The magnificent whale was first sighted off Port Macquarie several days ago, then Byron Bay waters lit up with excitement as Migaloo swam through through Cape Byron before paying the Gold Coast  coastline a visit as he makes his way up to the Great Barrier Reef.

Migaloo was first sighted in 1991 off Byron Bay and was named ‘Migaloo’ through it’s translation into ‘White Fella’ from the Queensland Aboriginal Community and is part of the east Australian humpback population.

Migaloo has his own Facebook page and website and is one of the most photographed whales in the world and is protected under Australian law.

The team at Getaway Sailing have reported an amazing start to the Whale Watching Season with so many pods of whales travelling through the Gold Coast waters, they have lost count!

If you are wanting to see all of the spectacular Whale Watching action first hand, Getaway Sailing has Whale Watching Sailing Tours leaving from the Runaway Bay Marina, so call today!

 

 

A Very Interesting Visitor

We’ve had a few interesting visitors over the past few weeks in the waterways of the Runaway Bay Marina.

One of our team spotted what we initially thought was a Box Jellyfish but was later confirmed by the Qld Fisheries Department as a ‘Morbakka Fenneri.’ Although not ‘dangerous’ they still give a nasty sting so best to give these guys a wide berth if you come across them.

If you spot something unusual in the waterways and need help identifying it, drop a line to the Fisheries department and they are more than happy to help. www.daff.qld.gov.au/fisheries.

 

 

 

 

 

Flipper and Friends Visit the Marina

We have had quiet a few sightings from boaties, guests and staff at the Runaway Bay Marina of not just one or two, but sometimes up to a dozen dolphins cruising in and around the waterways of the Marina.
With calves in tow, our guess is they are more than likely feeding on the large number of mullet that regularly congregate around the marina piers.
A few of the locals informed us there was a large pod of dolphins – perhaps the same one – sighted last weekend traveling around the waterways just past the Bayview Towers Marina at Runaway Bay which is great to hear!
So for all of the boaties, please take extra care when moving your boats in and out of the Marina, just in case our surprise guests pay us another visit soon!

Marina Operations Manager Awarded International Certification

Runaway bay Marina Operations Manager Michael Grundy was today awarded with his Certified Marina Operators Qualification (CMO) by Steve Sammes Australian director of the Global Marina Institute. Michael a long time employee at Runaway Bay Marina has been working towards this qualification for the last 3 years and now joins a small but well respected group of internationally recognised managers who work in the  marina industries. To find details about Mick’s new qualification see: http://www.globalmarinainstitute.net/section_3.aspx

Michael Grundy (R) awarded his CMO by GMI director Steve Sammes (L) at Runaway Bay Marina