Sailing the Tasman Sea

Lots of water and a bit bumpy. Well, the Captain warned us. This is a sea I never heard of named after someone I never knew existed. The sea stretches from New Zealand to Australia some 1600 miles, "hopping the pond" or "crossing the ditch"as the natives say. In 1642 the Dutch explorer, Abel Tasman, was the first European to set foot in New Zealand and the island of Tasmania, mapping the west side of New Zealand and the east side of Australia. On his next voyage he mapped the north coast of Australia. Nonetheless the Dutch East India company concluded that he found nothing of commercial interest "only poor naked beach wanderers, often bad tempered, no rice, no useful fruit." He did this some 167 years before Captain Cook's legendary voyages.

Nautical Term: "As the Crow Flies" When lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would release a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest land, thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigation fix. This is also why the tallest lookout platform on a ship came to be known as the" the crow's nest."Read more