We will organise the following buses at the start and end of the tn17 Raid:

• Wednesday 1^st February - we will organise two bus runs from the LBT Shed in Franklin to Cockle Creek. People dropping off boats and then doing the trailer shuffle back to Franklin will have preference for the later bus.
• Friday 10^th February Constitution Docks, Hobart to Franklin – times for bus run(s) will depend on demand

You can book places on these buses on-line at: https://goo.gl/XWDqmz

If you are joining the Raid on Sunday 5^th February because your boat was assessed as not suitable for doing the more exposed parts of the Raid south of Dover we can provide some assistance but you need to sort out the details with us. We assume you have a car and trailer and that you need help to get your trailer back to Franklin. If you are an early riser and are very efficient at rigging your boat you could plan to join the fleet in the morning in Dover in time to rig, launch and sail with the fleet during the day but that will be very rushed. A less stressful alternative would be to take a leisurely drive to Randalls Bay, enjoy a peaceful day there rigging and testing your boat before the fleet arrives in the afternoon.  If you are joining on 5^th February you need to contact the tn17 Coordinator to confirm your details. Email to:  info@tawe-nunnugah.org

If you think you have arranged for us to help with transport that is not covered above and you have not yet discussed this in detail with the Raid Coordinator, you’d better contact him because he’s probably forgotten – that’s why we have a preference for people doing the whole Raid. Email to: info@tawe-nunnugah.org

If you need transport at other times, your options are:

1. Put out a request using our ‘Info Exchange’ tool available on line at: http://bit.ly/1U0b8rZ

2. Public transport – TassieLink Buses provides the bus service between Hobart and Franklin, their time-tables are available on-line at: http://www.tassielink.com.au/timetables/huon-valley-hobart-cygnet-dover

3. There are several options for getting from the Hobart Airport to Hobart and back.

A maximum of 23-25kgs including all your camping gear should be enough for anyone. Packing in two or more lighter bags is better than cramming everything in a very heavy single bag and hoping no-one will notice. Stuff you are bringing to Tasmania but don't need during the Raid should be packed separately and left in Franklin. We will organise for it to be transferred to Hobart on 10 February.

You will not need to bring camping chairs – chairs are provided. There will be a marquee at each evening stop over which could be used to dry clothing. Water will be available at every site but is limited. At some stopovers basic washing facilities will be available.

This was the list put out for tn15:

Sailing/Rowing Gear

1.       Wet Weather Gear, Wet Suit, Dry Suit

2.       PFD 100/150

3.       2 Pairs Polypropylene or woollen thermal underwear – long sleeved top and long johns.

4.       Polar fleece jacket (preferred) or woollen jumper

5.       Sailing Boots or Wet Suit Booties or shoes that you don’t mind getting wet – you may have to wade ashore over oysters

6.       Beanie and Sunhat and Sunscreen

7.       Sunglasses

8.       Shorts or light-weight/quick drying long pants if you want to keep the sun off

Evening Wear

1.       3 Warm long pants – evening camp

2.       3 Shirts / t-shirts – 3 recommended

3.       Socks – 3 pairs recommended

4.       Underwear  (Leave that up to you!)

5.       Lightweight footwear

6.       Polar fleece jacket (preferred) or woollen jumper or Light Rain Shell

Personal Gear

1.       Toiletries

2.       Towel or body chamois – light and quick to dry

3.       Swimming costume

4.       Water bottle – at least 1.5 litres

5.       Camera, small torch, binoculars

6.       Tent, sleeping bag and mat.

If you would like a female perspective, the following list is from a Raid-Regular from overseas – she has a reputation for packing light but wishes to remain anonymous

Footwear.

Rowing footwear with strong soles (oysters!)

Walking or trek shoes

(You might get away with the same pair for rowing / trekking)

Flip flops (because they don’t take up much room)

2 -3 x pairs of socks – to keep your feet warm at night or for trekking

Legs

1 pair of lightweight long trousers (which can be washed and dried quickly)

1 x cotton leggings (can be worn under shorts to keep legs warm)

Shorts

2 x swimming shorts  (dry easily, also reduces the need underwear!)

2 x campsite shorts

Underwear

3 – 4 pairs (1 for wearing, 1 for washing / drying, 2 x spare)

Bikini tops (which also double as bras, ladies – or gents!)

Tops

Rowing tops, vests t shirts (lightweight fabric so wash / dry quickly)

2 x long sleeved tops (1 for wearing for sun protection / windproof when rowing, 1 for campsite at night)

1 lightweight fleece / jacket

Waterproofs

1 x pac-a-mac waterproof jacket

1 x pac-a-mac waterproof trousers (good for warmth over shorts)

Head

Sun hat

‘buff’ neckwarmer  (has a multiple of uses)

Additional clothing

2 x lightweight outfit for evening use on-land e.g at the boat festival or a restaurant visit (although you could easily wear a combo of the stuff above J)

Camping stuff

Tent

Sleeping bag

Sleeping mat

Small dry bag (can be stuffed with clothes to make into a pillow)

Head torch

Solar shower (there are plenty of folk with these, so you might be able to borrow a shot of one)

Toiletries

In general, things which can be multi-use are best

e.g Bar of soap (can wash you and your clothes and reduces in size as the trip goes on!)

Shower gel (that can be used as shampoo and also for washing clothes)

Sunscreen

Toothbrush and toothpaste

+ other personal items

Other stuff

Lifejacket and ideally a spare cylinder

Camera + charger  (USB / car lighter charger are best)

Pen and paper (I never travel without these!)

bin bags (to put wet kit in etc)

Any personal medication

Sweeties / candies etc

A pack of cards

Ear plugs – there’s always a snorer nearby

A big smile J

You may be wondering how the allocation of people to boats will work for those not bringing their own vessel on the Raid. Now that you have all responded to our little survey on Rowing/Sailing preferences we have a pretty good idea what you want and we will do our best to provide it. In general people fall into one of the following categories:

1. Dedicated rowers who want to row all the way and don’t want a sailing rig on their vessel

2. Dedicated sailors who want to sail all the way and don’t want to touch an oar unless necessary

3. People who want to try a bit of everything

I don’t want to spend every night drawing up rosters and adjudicating disputes about who is in which boat. The plan is to make the boat allocation process self-organising. Every evening we will put up a sign-in sheet for each boat. Once all the seats in a boat are taken, if you really want to be in that boat, write your name in the reserve spot and go and speak to someone already in the boat and see if you can swap with them. The rules around this:

1. Be nice to each other

2. The sign-in sheet is part of our Safety Management System as it forms the manifest of who is on which boat

3. No-one is to erase or change the sheet without the agreement of the other person

4. No-one is to swap boats without informing the Beachmaster

5. If you find you have a preference for a particular boat, don’t be greedy about it, others may also want to experience it

6. Skiffs with sails are in short supply – if you indicated you want to row all the way don’t monopolise the one skiff that has a sail (Imagine)

7. Be nice to each other

Our tn17 fleet of LBT-owned/managed boats consists of three whaleboats and five St Ayles skiffs each with an experienced skipper in charge and 4-6 crew (that's you). All the whaleboats have sails and two of them (Swiftsure and the Montagu Whaler) have both sails and oars. The third whaleboat (Capricornia) has sails but no oars. The St Ayles skiffs are principally rowing boats, with only Imagine having the capacity for an optional sailing rig.

Everyone is encouraged to try a range of different boats. If there are any disputes over places, people who identified themselves as wanting to row only or sail only will be given preference for the rowing or sailing boats respectively. Those who said they wanted to try a bit of rowing and a bit of sailing will be given preference for swapping among boats to experience the full range of vessels in the LBT-owned/managed fleet.

A few people (a boat full) identified themselves as wanting to go on a skiff without a sail only – they will be easy to accommodate as we have four skiffs without sails. More people (two boats full)  identified they would like to experience a skiff with a sail – unfortunately we have not been able to rig a second St Ayles skiff with a sail for this Raid but with a bit of flexibility everyone who wants should get the chance for a sail on a skiff at some point.

Some people indicated they would like the opportunity to take one of the LBT’s smaller sailing boats. None of these boats are suitable for the most exposed southern legs of the Raid. We may have a one or two of the LBT Grebes available from Randalls Bay onwards, however, I am sure you will understand that with a small band of helpers our priority for preparing boats has to be those that can carry 5-7 people for the whole Raid rather than a Grebe which can only carry two people for the second half – but we will do what we can. The tn17 Safety Committee has decided Syrah is too tender to participate in the Raid.

The camp sites are generally fairly simple. The road crew bring portaloos, a mobile kitchen and a professional chef - so we always have the essentials, and at 2 or 3 of the sites there may be the chance of a shower.

Everything has to be loaded and unloaded from the truck many times so we ask people to limit the amount of stuff they bring for the camps. We will send out detailed advice on this later but as an indication, you don’t need to invest in a super lightweight trekking tent, a normal 3-person tent is reasonable for a couple but a massive family tent would be considered over the top. Chairs, tables, cutlery, crockery, glasses etc are all provided so no need to drag these along. We will also bring a range of beer and bottled wine for people to buy on a tab system, so please don’t bring your personal cellar unless it can be stowed on your boat and doesn’t need space in the truck.

One indulgence that many find makes the whole trip more comfortable is a thick (9cm) self-inflating sleeping mat - they're a little bulky but not heavy and definitely worth it. A change into dry clothes after a day on the water is always welcome. We've never been particularly bothered by biting flies but it’s always possible and we suggest bringing repellent just in case.

There are a couple of places where some people choose to rent a holiday house for the night rather than sleep in their tent. If you decide to book your own accommodation, you will need to organise how you are going to get to it as we can’t provide transport. You also run the risk that adverse weather will force changes to our itinerary so we may not get to the place for the day you book.

A typical day sees us getting up for breakfast at about 8am then breaking camp and being on the water between 9 and 10am. We probably sail for 4 to 5 hours depending on the distance for the day and of course the weather.

Unlike some raids in Europe and the US ours are not timed events, there's no formal race, only the friendly rivalry inevitable when two or more boats are heading in the same direction.

Previously we have tended to set a course directly to the next camp site but in 2017 we plan to create opportunities for the fleet to meet up for lunch – this will help keep the boats together and makes for a sociable break in the day's sailing or rowing.

We generally get to the camp site mid-afternoon. Because of Tasmania’s long summer there’s plenty of time for lazing around, swimming and exploring as well as getting the tent set up. Of course in Tassie everything depends on the weather but we have been very lucky in the past (except for a few days in 2015 but it had to happen sooner or later) - actually it’s not just luck as the Raid is timed for February which typically has the most settled weather.

The Raid is fully catered - breakfast, packed lunch and dinner - so no need to cook in the evenings. We do expect people to muck in and help with general camp set up, clearing up after meals etc but if everyone takes their turn it’s not too demanding and not everyone is needed every day.

At this stage we’re not planning to organise additional entertainment as we’ve found that with the number and variety of people involved the Raid tends to become its own very sociable travelling event. We are hoping that communal singing of sea shanties may become a feature of the 2017 Raid so if you have a favourite please bring along the words – who knows, we might even have an informal tn17 sea shanty performance at the Australian Wooden Boat Festival when we get there.

Yes – the Living Boat Trust has several boats that will be doing the Raid and are available for people not able to use their own boats. There is a place to indicate this when you fill out the Expression of Interest form.

The Raid is principally a small boat sailing/rowing expedition. The fleet consists of small craft supported by larger vessels and fast safety boats. Sailing craft must be seaworthy and capable - slow and steady is more suitable than a sprightly, thoroughbred day-racer. The ability to reef sails quickly is essential for when the inevitable squall comes through. Rowing boats have ranged from a 6-oar whale boat, several 4-oar St Ayles Skiffs to single-person expedition skiffs.

To be accepted for the Raid boats must be assessed to be suitable by the tn17 Raid Safety Committee. You will be required to carry some safety equipment - final details to be advised but the tn15 gear list accessible from the tn17 web site provides some guidance. If you can demonstrate your boat meets a recognised standard, such as one of the Yachting Australia categories for racing boats, this will assist the Safety Committee in their decision.

If the Safety Committee decides your craft is not suitable or your boating experience not sufficient to do the more exposed legs at the start you may be invited to join the tn17 fleet at Dover on Sunday 5^th February.

The Raid is one of the main sources of income for the Living Boat Trust, but in return the Raid uses many of the LBT’s facilities. If these weren’t available from within the organisation the cost of the Raid would have to rise considerably. The Living Boat Trust is only able to run the Raid if it is financially viable throughout the year.

The people who organise the Raid do so as volunteers and give their time willingly because they believe in the LBT. They love being part of the Raid so much that they not only organise it but happily pay the full fee to participate in tn17.

To qualify for the reduced charge you will be required to take responsibility for additional support tasks that for several days will take you away from sailing or rowing as part of the tn17 fleet. Tasks may include cleaning Portaloos, being a dedicated kitchen hand, driving vehicles, moving camp, on-the-water safety support etc.

If we are oversubscribed, people electing upfront to pay the full fee will have priority, so this is the option to choose if you wish to be certain about securing a place on tn17. There are limited opportunities for part-time workers at the reduced daily rate and these will be allocated down the track by the organising committee to people taking additional responsibilities for specific essential tasks – so there is a risk that you may miss out.