Anchorage: Gove (Nhulunbuy) NT 

Eastern Arnhem Land, where the Gulf of Carpentaria meets the Arafura Sea

  

Aboriginal Culture....Fishing....Remote Wilderness....Urban Town Services

The Yolngu people have lived in East Arnhem Land for at least 60,000 years with recognised land and marine estates encompassing a phenomenal area.Clans live throughout the region, although for many, their traditional lives of hunting and fishing have now been substituted for town living.Permits must be obtained from the Northern Land Council for visitors who wish to travel outside the special purpose lease area held by Alcan Gove bauxite mine.There are a number of tour operators in the region for those wishing to experience Yolngu culture and arts in remote communities.

 
Fishing is a major drawcard for the region and a popular pastime for locals and visitors.With little chance of these remote fertile waters being over-fished, fish are abundant.Expect to land Spanish mackerel, tuna, coral trout and red emperor without even trying. Cunning barramundi may require a little more effort to entice onto your line.
 
The little known archipelago of the English Company Islands are approx 30nm north of Gove harbour and offer pristine anchorages beneath towering cliffs.Sweeping white sand beaches terminate in turquoise water, with reportedly excellent snorkelling and diving.This writer was not tempted due to the reported prevalence of saltwater crocodiles that inhabit this same water, although local people enthused about the underwater beauty.
 
Nhulunbuy township was established to service mine workers in the late 1960s and offers many services one would expect of a regional centre.Public services include a hospital, schools, shops and a modern public library. Regular air services arrive from Darwin and Cairns, and barges travel weekly from Darwin.Gas refills are available at the yacht club, and the nearby industrial area has most services visiting boats require.Seemingly there are plenty of employment options for those wanting to top up their cruising kitty.

Anchorage
Gove harbour is located south of Cape Wilberforce, on the southern shore of Melville Bay.On approach the towering infrastructure of the massive bauxite plant will become obvious.Shipping wharves are adjacent to this plant; small vessels will enter the harbour south of Dundas Point.

Head east into Inverell Bay anchorage, which is indicated by the scores of moored craft between the mangroves on the south side and the yacht club on the north side of the harbour.Due to an acute housing shortage in the nearby town of Nhulunbuy, many workers in the Alcan bauxite mine live onboard their vessels and commute to shore each morning by dinghy.

Anchor in good holding mud in approx 3mtrs anywhere where there is room to swing. The harbour offers good protection in all wind directions.

The Gove Yacht Club welcomes visitors, and offers the usual ablution blocks and coin operated washing machines.However there is a $50 charge to access these facilities, which are securely locked away behind a mesh cage area.The club has a somewhat desperate look and feel about it, perhaps indicative of its industrial plant location, with clientele predominantly mine workers in their fluorescent overalls.

Anchorage location: Lat 12 deg 12S    Long 136 deg 42E
 
Checklist
Best Time to Go Gove sits smack bang in the middle of the cyclone belt, therefore vessels are at risk from tropical cyclones during the official season from November to March.Coastal voyagers, regardless of heading east or west during the cruising season between April to October will find Gove a convenient re-provisioning stopover in this area of extreme remoteness.
How Long to Get There Located on the northeast tip of Arnhem Land, Gove is 500nm east of Darwin, and 350nm west of Weipa across the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Fuel & Provisions Fuel and water is available from the fuel wharf adjacent to the shipping wharf.Water is also available to vessels tying up to the careening poles outside the yacht club.A well-stocked supermarket in the town of Nhulunbuy is approx 20km away down a sealed road.A taxi fare is approx $30 each way (in 2007); there is no bus service.A short walk from the yacht club will reveal the well-travelled road between the mine and town; locals seem accustomed to picking up sailors who put their thumb out for a lift.
Cruising Guide Northern Territory Coast Cruising Guide by John Knight
Charts: Paper AUS306 Cape Grey to Cape Wessel
Charts: C-Map Cape Grey to Coburg
Destination Info Tourism Top End and Gove Yacht Club
Zoning Land outside the Alcan Gove special lease area is designated Aboriginal
land and permits are required from the Northern Land Council
 
 

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