Australasia

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WorldAustralasia
Australasia
25°00.000'S, 148°00.000'E Chart icon.png
lat=-25 | lon=148 | zoom=3 | y

Australasia is a region of Oceania which excludes the majority of the mid-Pacific islands of Micronesia and Polynesia.

The two largest countries in the region are Australia and New Zealand, and Australasia is often defined using words such as Australia, New Zealand, and their immediate neighbours. That includes both northern neighbours such as Papua New Guinea and eastern parts of Indonesia but also eastern neighbours including the island states of Vanuatu and New Caledonia.

The main cruising routes in Australasia include routes up and down the east coast of Australia, cruising the islands and bays of New Zealand, and passages such as the Coral Sea Passage and passages in the Tasman Sea.

Charts

Australian Hydrographic Service
AUS4060 Australasia and adjacent waters (1:10000000)
Land Information NZ
NZ223 New Zealand and adjacent ocean areas - northern sheet (1:3500000)
NZ224 New Zealand and adjacent ocean areas - southern sheet (1:3500000)

Australian Hydrographic Service Chart Agents

LINZ Retailers Page.

Also see individual regions.

Weather

A large range of weather conditions are encountered in Australasia, from tropical in the north of Australia, to bordering on the sub-antarctic at the lower end of New Zealand. Consult the weather conditions for each individual country for more details.

Sources for weather information:

The two largest weather bureaus in the region are the Australian Bureau of Meteorology and the New Zealand Met Service. Each of Vanuatu and New Caledonia also have their own weather services which have varying degrees of accuracy, but cover local conditions pretty well.

Consult the weather pages for each country visited, and in particular Australia Weather and New Zealand Weather. Especially in waters that aren't covered by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, cruising sailors may wish to consider a commercial weather service to provide greater accuracy. Alternatively a radio service such as Gulf Harbour Radio can provide more accurate information.

Currents & Tides

Tide levels vary a lot throughout the region -- consult the various meteorology services for each country for a guide.

The dominant current in the region is the East Australian Current or EAC which runs southwards down the east coast of Australia. It impacts currents throughout the Tasman Sea as well as influences currents in the rest of the region.

Passages

List popular passages/routes, timing, etc.

Posted by Peter Edington of The Ocean Sailing Club (http://www.theoceansailingclub.org)

New Caledonia to Coffs Harbour NSW Australia: 845 miles, Yacht Loquax 6 days, 21/7/2015 and 27/7/2015.

The route chosen from Noumea Lagoon to Coffs was the direct course which takes you quite close to some sea mounts about half way where the depth rises to under 50 metres with strong currents and lumpy overfalls.

The wind was mostly behind the beam, being Trade Winds - unlike the trip from to Noumea from Coffs Harbour was almost entirely up wind. We used the PredictWind App for weather routing and found it to be really useful as it positioned us in the right places when there were wind shifts.


We had originally intended to arrive at Southport Queensland but there are no immigration arrival facilities there. The Coffs Harbour Border Control team are helpful. The marina at Coffs is very helpful but at the time of writing, they are not open due to storm damage in mid 2016.

The Chesterfield Reefs (north of New Caledonia) are part of New Caledonia and well worth a visit for seeing wildlife.

Communication

Also see World Cruiser's Nets.

Navigation

See notes for each individual country.

Health & Security

Australia and New Zealand have high standards of public health care. See Australia Health and New Zealand Health. Standards in the remaining countries in the region vary highly -- see the health guides for each country.

Malaria is endemic in both Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea, and precautions need to be taken. Other mosquito borne diseases such as Ross River Virus and Dengue Fever have occasional outbreaks in the region (even in Australia).

Countries, Ports, Anchorages, and Islands

Australia Icon.png Australia
New Zealand Icon.png New Zealand
New Caledonia Icon.png New Caledonia -> See also France
Papua Icon.gif Papua -> See also Indonesia
Papua New Guinea Icon.png Papua New Guinea
Solomon Islands Icon.png Solomon Islands
Vanuatu Icon.png Vanuatu

States of Australia

New South Wales
Northern Territory
Queensland
South Australia
Tasmania
Victoria
Western Australia

Bodies of Water

Friends

Contact details of "Cruiser's Friends" that can be contacted for local information or assistance.

Forums

List links to discussion threads on partnering forums. (see link for requirements)

Links

References

See the individual countries, in particular:

Comments

We welcome users' contributions to the Wiki. Please click on Comments to view other users' comments, add your own personal experiences or recommend any changes to this page following your visit. Personal experiences?



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SailorSmiley.gifContributors to this page

Names: Lighthouse, Haiqu, Delatbabel


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