THERE was a reunion of sorts on Saturday (25 February) when Sorrento-based couta boats sailed alongside their counterparts from Queenscliff.
Sailors from both sides of Port Phillip came together for the first time in several years to compete in the two-day Couta Boat National Titles.
The fleet of boats from Sorrento sailed the 12 kilometres to Queenscliff to compete races organised between the Couta Boat Association, Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club, Queenscliff Lonsdale Yacht Club, and the Queenscliff Cruising Yacht Club.
Couta boats were developed for these waters at the start of the last century and during the 1920s and 1930s, more than 50 would set sail from Queenscliff to fish in Port Phillip or head out into the ocean through the Rip.
Skippers on Saturday navigated tides, currents, and each other around the buoys and channel markers in Port Phillip before mooring overnight at Queenscliff.
First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 28 February 2023
