Retired welder Gary Brodribb, 69, has no trouble filling his time. He’s on his Hobie Mirage Adventure Island, an impressive 114 outings in 18 months.
“My Hobie has really made a difference in my life as every opportunity the weather is sunny and there’s a bit of wind you will find me on the water somewhere,” he says.
Victoria, Australia’s Gippsland Lakes are Gary’s home shores. There’s plenty to explore. “Gippsland is the biggest lake system in Australia. There are over 400 square kilometers of salt water with four or more freshwater inlets that feeds the lakes from the mountains,” he says.
Gary is an adventurer. He can’t stay put in this region of islands and shallows, a place he’s reconnoitered since a childhood spent with his dad on the water. “I do a lot of exploring and overnight stay-overs by myself and go hunting with a light, dip net and spear catching prawns and spearing flounder,” he says.
His romance with Hobie watercraft started with a Mirage Outback. It was a great boat – he discovered his favorite beach aboard her – but a yearning to sail over the horizon had him looking for a vessel with a longer stride. That proved to be the Mirage Adventure Island, with a full-size sail and a pair of stabilizing amas.
“I was proud as punch to receive my 2015 Hobie Adventure Island,” he says.
That favorite spot is a sheltered piece of paradise on the other side of the lake. “No one goes or knows. It’s just me and the kangaroos, foxes, wombats and birds,” he says of the place he dubs Thongbird Beach – named for the feathered flip flop sandals that decorate the trees. “It is so isolated and peaceful, away from it all and back to nature, just me and my Hobie.”
Gary sails his Island in all sorts of weather, from heavy rain storms and through strong wind changes. His boat is well known; Gary says it’s been in the newspaper and featured in the local Australia Day festivities. He’s so well known, he’s earned a fond nickname. “They call me the Hobie Hobbit of the Gippsland Lakes,” he says with a grin.
