'Nautical Alby Mangels' sail toilet to Kangaroo Island on homemade barge

'Nautical Alby Mangels' sail toilet to Kangaroo Island on homemade barge Tue 21 Jul 2026 at 4:33pm In short: Two men built a barge and used it to transport an outhouse-style toilet to Kangaroo Island. The duo crossed the stretch of ocean between Cape Jervis and Kangaroo Island on the homemade vessel, which also included a barbecue. What's next? They duo say they are planning future adventures. An "old school" toilet is not a typical mode of transport on which to hit the high seas but that did not deter friends Alex Craig and Paul Graham from giving it a go. The duo crossed the stretch of ocean between Cape Jervis and Kangaroo Island on a homemade barge complete with an outhouse and a barbecue. The apparent brazen act of Aussie larrikinism was actually a solution to a problem. "Alex has a block over on Kangaroo Island and he needed a site toilet," Mr Graham told 891 ABC Adelaide. "The portaloos were way too expensive so we just made one." "We basically wanted an old school, retro outhouse dunny so we went for it and stuck a nine horsepower Johnson on it and sailed it over." The journey, which took place in May 2025, took four hours to complete. "It was treacherous," Mr Graham said. The journey typically takes 45-minutes aboard the SeaLink ferry from Cape Jervis to Penneshaw. "We were being adventurous," Mr Graham said. "And a little bit of 'we're not paying for the ferry' because to take the toilet over was more than $2,000, plus building it." Footage of the journey posted to Mr Craig's YouTube channel on July 11, 2026, shows the pair crossing Baxter's Passage and arriving at Kangaroo Island's Christmas Cove. The pair also enjoyed a cook-up aboard the vessel. "We had short ribs, pork ribs and some gourmet sausages," Mr Graham said. Not for the faint-hearted The Backstairs Passage is a strait between the Fleurieu Peninsula and Dudley Peninsula on the eastern end of Kangaroo Island. While beautiful, the stretch of water can be dangerous. The duo said they waited until conditions were favourable before attempting their mission. "We had to find that window with the light breeze, the swell down and the right tide," Mr Graham said. "It looks stupid and it looks crazy but we did try to time it as best we could. "We've been tuna fishing out there a lot so we know it quite well but you never know what could happen." The duo were surprised by the attention. Mr Graham his phone was "blowing up" after the video was posted to social media. When 891 ABC Adelaide suggested the pair could be the new 'Nautical Alby Mangels', Mr Graham said the World Safari documentary maker had "actually been in touch with Alex." Mr Graham said this would not be their final adventure. "The next instalments are coming up," he said. ABC News contacted SeaLink for comment. "Due to the age of the event, we'll refrain from comment at this time," a spokesperson said.