Small Tinnies

Hey Doug,


Seems like 5 guys from Melbourne didn't read your post about tinnies on Cape York either, if the crocs don't get you the coppers will.



Regards

Barry H

G/Day Doug, when we move to Darwin in 1975, dad bought a 12 foot tinny, today I go out in a 5 metre tinny.

Those lizards are just a little bit bigger and a lot less scared.

Steve.

I believe we are going to find a bit more to this story as time goes on. A bit like the last guy attacked on the Daly, that changed their story and then didn't want to talk to the press anymore. http://www.ntnews.com.au/news/northern-territory/witnesses-say-anzac-day-croc-attack-victim-camped-less-than-5m-from-waters-edge/news-story/f35568a2cb3f1dbe80c1f9acb4e74bf1
Call me a sceptic but if a boat overturned wouldn't your spanners and spark plugs be the first thing to sink? or did he swim under the upturned boat to get them?? I know there are plenty of crocodiles in that river and I was fishing there last week and I can understand being terrified of them if in the water, however I not sure if there really any crocs involved here.
Sad that someone drowned and condolences to friends and family

3 meter tinny with 2 blokes and crab pots! Sounds a little too cramped. I know there are lizards in the creek but this story sounds a little suss at the moment. Pulled the spark plugs out of the motor!! Crap....

The pic the ABC showed of the supposed boat indicates it was not a tinnie as we understand it (a basic aluminum with a tank and outboard) - it was a more substantial boat but with news reports these days who knows.

Likewise the 50yo guy drowned and was not taken by a croc - with all the crocs around attacking the body was not taken. Again all a bit strange.

Saw a film of the boat on news report. Certainly not made for top end creeks. Kitchen chair for one seat and large esky. Bugger all room to move. Croc didnt take anyone. Still sounds suss to me. Just a pity that bloke lost his life when in reality if they had of been properly prepared and in a decnt tinny they both could have spent this evening eating fresh mud crab. Shame .

Having seen thousands of lizards in dozens of various river systems, creeks, seas and billabong I wouldnt go anywhere on the water unless the boat had high sides and a minimum 4.5 meters..

Apart from the need, as always, to wait for all the facts to come out; my view is you can't protect people from themselves.
If you provide a Salty with a feed he get's it. Simple as that.
The Croc breeding season is at the tail end with territorial issue's still full-on.

Like the story of "Sweetheart" that lifted Tinnie's up by the Motors dumping the contents into the creek.
It done that on many occasions but ate no-one - territorial behaviour again.

I've seen Car-Topper type 3m Tinnies in Croc area's and just shake my head. The poor old Croc must be shaking his head too, but for different reasons.

And it's not just the Top End; we were coming back from an outside fishing trip into Platypus Bay at Fraser Island with fading light on the Plotter, when the wife noticed a small red light to Port. Turned out to be a cigarette.
I shut down and idled over to a 3.5m tinnie with about a foot of Freeboard.
I called to the two blokes fishing what the **** were they doing 4nm from shore with no navigation lights? (I could have cut them in two if we were not vigilant) They just laughed and offered me a Rum. The silly buggers were camped at Wathumba Inlet with the Midgees and go well out into the Bay each year. "No worries" they assured me.

Most people do the sensible thing but you don't hear about them.
You cannot legislate to protect people from themselves to cover the rest.

Such is life.

Cheers

dad

Looked like a punt, got to wonder if there was any beer involved.

There was also a report that pro crabbers warned them about going out in that small boat of which was ignored.

You would think had the thing capsized that all the tools and everything else would be at the bottom of the river, sad for the bloke that drowned but seems to be a lot of inconsistencies

I think the boat may have been over loaded and is too small and has little freeboard. It also looks like a flat bottom tinnie which wouldn't help. I would think a deep v tinnie around 4.2 metres with high freeboard would be the minimum for me.

http://www.news.com.au/national/survivor-ray-mccumber-tells-of-using-spanners-fists-to-keep-crocodiles-away/news-story/4c65ead1b78d164919efab4a6234dcde

The whole story does seem a bit wrong. If a big croc bumped the boat and tipped them out, one would think it would have grabbed the first bloke in the water and took him away.

Maybe the 2nd bloke thought a croc bumped the boat, when it was just his mate falling over.
I've known of several instances (including a former farmer client) of blokes who had heart attacks in boats, and consequently fell overboard.
As you get older, it becomes much easier to lose your balance.

Found this out just the other day when I was standing on the back fence lopping trees.
I had been putting one foot on the top of the Super Six fence and one on a Cape Wedding bush trunk that had been lopped level with the top of the fence.

I shifted position and put my foot out to stand on the Cape Wedding bush trunk, and it shifted a little, and I did a swan dive into the ground! - went down like a bag of sheep manure!

Couldn't believe how easily it happened, normally I'm as sure-footed as any fit bloke. Luckily, I landed in a pile of dirt and thick leaf litter and very little damage was done.
Makes you realise how much more careful you have to be about balance as you get older. I've already learnt the lesson about wearing good quality footwear!

Standing up in a tinny is risky for boat balance at the best of times. Add in lugging crab pots and whatever else he might have had - lost his footing - doesn't even need to be a heart attack.

Cheers, Ron.

But that tinnie came with its own dining chair.Maybe the Croc was just coming for Dinner .DRONGOS ...
SORRY RIP OLD FELLA I AM NOT THAT MEAN.
Maybe warning now to others be Crockwise and have a decent sized boat.....

Not sure I'm on board with many of the comments here. I've used my 3.7m Porta-Bote in many croc inhabited waters and felt completely safe. Admitted, I do feel the Porta-bote has a stability advantage over small tinnies (more flexible, it bends rather than tips if it bumps anything- though the flexing takes some getting used to). The Porta-bote has a low freeboard but the seating is low, it is incredibly tough and stable.

If the boat (punt?) pictured on most news sites is indeed the one in question I'd say the problem lies more in how it is used and the gear on board. High seats, standing in a rigid boat, poor quality fittings. I wouldn't go out in that. I used to hire tinnies from Nobbies at Coroboree (before I purchased the Porta-Bote) and have been around some pretty impressive (large) lizards in both types. Caution and common sense mean more than an extra metre on the boat.

Mind you, this year I'm taking my 5.8 metre Whittley! Anyone want to suggest how it will fare in the shallow waters of Coroborree?