HMAS MORESBY TRIANGULATION

 Ye olde  map for  1934  HMAS  Moresby hydrographic  survey  which included part  of  the area  near the early , ill- fated  Escape Cliffs  site , recently  visited  by  an  intrepid  Darwin  party , led by  Dr  Lloyd  Browne , looking  for  relics, which  found the remains of  what is believed to be  a Nellie Bly steel oil drum, possibly from  HMAS  Moresby . A long length of thick  rope was  found  tangled in a tree and brought back to Darwin along  with a  corroded  metal  object  dug up. The above graphic received by agronomist  Robert Wesley-Smith after  the  expedition.

PICASSO'S TRAGIC MISTRESS BOBS UP

 Exclusive  from  the  Left  Bank  of  Magnetic Island  

Sacre bleu! This  French profanity was uttered several times by our Shipping Reporter  when he stumbled across  this  yacht , Le Reve ,from Coffs Harbour, New South Wales. 

Not only  is  it an obvious  French  moniker , translated  it  is the name -The Dream-  of  a  famous sexy oil painting by  Pablo Picasso , which he  whipped off one afternoon in  1932 , of his 22-year-old mistress, Marie-Therese  Walter.

Poor Marie-Therese  vainly hoped that Picasso would marry her  one  day  and  had  a daughter by him ; she hanged herself  four years after  his  death. Another of his lovers also suicided . The   painting  sold  for   $155 million  in  2013,  enough  for a  down payment on  a  French submarine . 

Our  francophile Shipping Reporter  says  the sighting of this yacht , behind which there is a  great story , is typical of  the   media  in Townsville, Cairns and  Darwin  which  fails to  tap this  source of colourful yarns  right under  their  snozzles.

It is a  tailor made situation for  a regular  waterfront  column/report  by a  reporter actually  discovering  the large  fleet , commercial and  otherwise, which  pass  through  the  ports , or  are  based there  .

The motor yacht moored at  the end  of  the  above pontoon on the island is named Sassy , not  thought  to  be  due to  any association  with  the  co-founder of Cubism who  treated  his  women  appallingly

A panoramic view  by  Abra , our Aeronautical  Correspondent,  above of  just  a  small  portion  of   the  yachts  in  Cairns 

EARLY MORNING MARINE REFLECTIONS

 

LORIKEET PICKERS

 

SPEEDSTER DISTURBS SLOWPOKE

 

Jetski zooms  by  German  cargo  vessel  Sloman Neptun  Discoverer  , flying under the  flag of Antigua and Barbuda,another  interesting   member of the Townsville  Ghost  Fleet  which comes and goes without mention by the mainland media. This photograph taken by our restlesss  Shipping Reporter , the only one north of  Mount  Kosciuszko.Unlike the bloke on the jetski , the  vessel travelled at a steady 13.2 knots on  its way to Townsville .

As far as we know, it did not unload a secret new German U-boat for the  Australian Navy .  

AFTERMATH OF A HARD DAY'S NIGHT

Bleary-eyed face on Townsville's  Castle Hill  photographed by Shipping Reporter  , perhaps  looking  haggard  because of  the crew aboard a nearby yacht   named   Live Louder.  

PROWLING LIZARD