Aaron Tarbit completes week-long Bass Strait jet ski adventure

It's the second time the Griffith businessman has taken to the ocean, with the trio completing an even bigger feat last year.

The 1100-kilometre journey took a week, with a three-day holdover on Flinders Island due to bad weather.

Mr Tarbit, along with his friends Andrew Thompson of Canberra and Brendan Whitty of Victoria, did it as part of what is known as PWC endurance riding.

"We had a really good time with the first trip so it made sense to do something like it again," Mr Tarbit said.

While mingling with dolphins was certainly a highlight, embracing the island experience during their stop on Flinders Island was, for Mr Tarbit, the most memorable experience.

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"We were there three days in this small island community with one pub, one service station, and many wonderful people," he said.

"One notable moment was discovering rescue wombats on a school bus. As amazed as we were, it was just another day on Flinders Island for the local school kids.

"People there bend over backwards to help you and it was good to immerse ourselves in the local atmosphere.

"In addition, seeing the dolphins again was also pure magic. When the weather's good and the sea is as flat as glass, that's when they show up. You might end up with 20 following you around, with plenty leaping through the air at any one turn."

Amid the highlights there were also challenges, adverse weather being the primary culprit.

At one stage visibility was reduced to 100 metres and Mr Tarbit said preparation was key from the start.

"Along with plenty of safety gear and fuel, picking the weather was the most important aspect of the trip," he said.

"Identifying gaps in the weather and how long they will last as well as discerning where the weather comes from was the key, and I had full faith in Brendan who did research into the weather patterns beforehand.

"We only took as much fuel as we needed, including 100 litres on the back. The last thing you want is too much weight. Roughly, we work on one litre per two kilometres travel, so if we do 100 kilometres we know we'll need 50 litres."

Already the trio are brainstorming their next trip.

"Although we've now been to Tasmania twice, it would be hard to say we're not going back again," Mr Tarbit said.

"The golden ticket would be to circumnavigate Tasmania but it's hard to get good weather conditions all the way around, especially on the west coast. It's a dream of mine but as to whether it actually happens we'll see."

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