WEEK 4: 16 May - 22 May - Lizard to Flinders

Well we have made it up to the Flinders Group of Islands where we are pretty much becalmed and what wind there is is coming from the south west which is not supposed to happen but we have heard that down south is copping some horrible unseasonable weather too.

Day 23: Saturday 16 May - Lizard Island
Listened to the weather, would you believe a strong wind warning for this area! We took it easy and just went for a walk along the beach and checked out the water pump

and the camping sites which are very nice. There were about eight boats in the bay and we all met at 5pm on the beach for sundowners - take your own drinks and nibblies.

Day 24: Sunday 17 May - Lizard Island

Still a strong wind warning. Met Cheryl and Geoff on the beach at 9.30 and headed to the other side of the island to the Blue Lagoon, walked along the beach and then up through scrub, grass and rock and then skirted along sheer rock faces (thank goodness for non slip shoes!) and came to a rope which we used to get to the bottom and came to Coconut Beach where we had lunch. There is heaps of flotsam and jetsam washed up on to these southern beaches. Its amazing how many thongs people lose - always only one though - never a pair! There were lots of floats of assorted sizes, a stainless steel thingy off a long line fishing boat - even a motor bike helmet! Headed back and met at the Marlin Bar at 3 to play pool. The three policemen off the police boat came for drinks too. A good night.

Day 25: Monday 18 May - Lizard Island
Started cloudy but turned beautiful. Went for a snorkel - one reef had good fish and the other had good coral but not as good as we remembered from last year! Went to the water pump for a shower and did our washing - kind of fun under a water pump. Had drinks on the beach again and said our farewells.

Day 26: Tuesday 19 May - Lizard Island to Ingram Island
We left at 6.45 in company with Tookawile and had a wonderful sail. We just went the direct route and Geoff and Cheryl sailed all over the place trying to catch better wind. We went past Watson's Island which is where Mrs Watson floated to shore and died. A huge ship (923 feet long, 103 feet wide and a keel of 11.5 metres) was due to come through Howick Passage which as far as big ships go is quite narrow so we opted to go between the reefs between Ingram Island and Coombe Reef. A little disconcerting knowing that you have reef both sides of you. Anchored in windy conditions off little Ingram Island. Peter spent his evening fishing - got a few small ones.
Miles: 43 Total 1091 nm

Day 27: Wednesday 20 May - Ingram Island to Flinders Group of Islands
What a beautiful day - unfortunately not a breath of wind so we had to motor the entire way. Crossed the shipping lane after three ships had gone through and just motored up the coast which had some pretty awesome scenery. Peter finally caught a large Spanish mackerel so he was very happy! We passed Cape Melville which has a fearsome reputation for very strong winds - in fact people call it Cape Hellville. But it was Cape Smoothsville today. Tookawile opted to go into Bathurst Bay to check it out but I had read that there are heaps of snakes in there so we continued on to the Flinders. We came into the passage between Flinders and Stanley Islands and it was like a millpond. The countryside was awesome - all the reds and greens on the north and craggy hills and bits of mangrove. Very pretty. Anchored on the east side of the sandspit behind the German boat Frejya.
Miles: 47 Total 1138

Day 28: Thursday 21 May - Flinders Island
At about 4.30am the wind turned to the SW and we were rocking and rolling quite a bit so moved to the north eastern side of the sandspit. Tookawile came in at 11.30 and anchored nearby. We took the tender (dingy) - after much trepidation about crocs - and headed about a mile away to a water tank but the tide was too low for us to get in so had a long wet trip back. Went to the other side of the sandspit and joined Geoff and Cheryl in gathering huge oysters (mission accomplished) and trying to find an aboriginal painting (mission not accomplished). We had sundowners and oysters (natural, lime & chilli and Kilpatrick) on Tookawile. Vulcan came in and after a little trouble managed to anchor nearby (they have a broken anchor winch). Anchorage pleasant - no wind so stuck here for a while.

Day 29: Friday 22 May - Flinders Island
I have spent the morning confirming that I have no natural talent for either sketching or water colour painting. Peter has finally started to read his book and Whitby Lass has just come in so now there are four yachts here. We are hoping to get some decent wind on Sunday to leave.

Missing my little dogs and Jessie. Hope you are all well and haven't been blown or washed away!

Fair winds
Dell and Peter

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WEEK 3 : 10 May - 15 May - Dunk to Lizard Island

Well we made it to Lizard Island three weeks after leaving Brisbane. A little bit exhausted so will take a few days here to catch our breath and plan the next section of our trip. We feel that our trip is now finally starting as from now on it will all be new. Following is a catch up.

Day 17: Sunday 10 May - Dunk Island to Fitzroy Island
We left Dunk Island at 6.50am - it was overcast and raining and thoroughly miserable. Went through all the Family Group of islands which are just beautiful but it was not a nice day. On days like these sailing is really a slow way to travel!!! Had sardines on toast and a nice bottle of wine for mothers day!
Miles: 65 Total 875nm

Day 18: Monday 11 May - Fitzroy Island to Yorkeys Knob (Cairns)
Left Fitzroy at 7.45 and arrived at the fuel dock at Yorkeys at 11 am. We were fuelled and berthed by 12. Peter hired a car and raced around trying to get a part to repair the wet exhaust hose for the engine. The elbow we had had rusted through. Peter finally found someone who could make another one by 8am the next morning! We spoiled ourselves and had dinner at the yacht club. A bit rainy.
Miles: 20 Total 895nm

Day 19: Tuesday 12 May - Yorkeys Knob Marina
Peter collected his part and got a prepaid modem (no external aerial however). Took him most of the day to fix the exhaust and after all that he bypassed using the new part so I guess we have a spare for future use!! I did the final shop before our push north and we again shouted ourselves dinner at the yacht club.

Day 20: Wednesday 13 May - Yorkeys to port Douglas to the Low Isles
We left Yorkeys at 5.45 in the dark. A rigger in Port Douglas could change our quartz halogen anchor light to LED if we could be in port Douglas around 10ish. (LEDs use a lot less power than quartz). We made it by 10.30 and were instructed to head for the red boat up the river and we would have to reverse in!! Our boat doesn't reverse all that well and Peter had never reversed it into anywhere before. We were heading for the wrong red boat and almost went past when we saw the rigger waving and we really blanched when we saw where we had to go. It was a tiny little inlet with boats tied on both sides of it and double parked on the side we had to go into. We had a go and got in there - I threw the line and missed and threw it again and landed it all over the rigger. We got our back in and then I had to throw the front line and he pulled the front in. It was the sort of dock you had to climb a ladder to get up. It took a couple of hours for the rigger and his sparky mate to change it all over. I popped up the street - we really like Port Douglas. We thought later we should have taken a photo because we couldn't believe we were in there. At 1.30 it was quick we have to get out of here as the tide is going out. Our depth sounder was showing that we were sitting on the bottom but we seemed to be still floating! Luckily the double parked boat left 5 minutes earlier so I pushed off with a long stick and we headed out. Our keel pushed through about 200mm of mud but we finally got back into the main river and headed for the Low Isles. Arrived about 2.55pm. There are three buoys for boats at the Low and we were the fourth boat to arrive! It was a beautiful day and a great sail.
Miles: 38 Total 933nm

Day 21: Thursday 14 May - Low Isles to Hope Isles
We left the Low at 6.45 and motored for an hour and then put the jenneker (spinnaker - the big pretty sail!) out and had a great sail. But we always realise too late that the wind is getting a bit much for the jenneker - it always feels so good racing along at a great rate of knots!! Had a terrible time getting it in. I thought either Peter would get dragged off the deck or we would blow a hole in it!! After much manouvering we finally got it in and had a great sail with just the headsail out. We had experimented with the mainsail up earlier in the day but found it went heaps better with just the headsail. Arrived at the Hope Isles at 2.30. There are two buoys at the Hope and we were the third yacht to arrive!!!
Miles: 47 Total 980nm

Day 22: Friday 15 May - Hope Isles to Lizard island
Weather windy 15 - 20 knots then 20 - 25 a lovely sunny day. Left at 6.20am - the wind howled all night. Had a great run up - put Mr Fleming our wind vane (which does all the steering) on and away we went. Two pilot whales travelled with us for a while - magic. Did 7 - 8 knots - got a couple of knocks where the back of the boat slews around before it rights itself. We came around the corner and there in the bay were our friends Tookawhile. We had to do the go around anchor thing again as the anchor wouldn't go down (when its rough weather the chain gets knocked around and gets a bit knotted up). Anchored besides Tookawhile and Cheryl was so excited. It was so good to see them again and talked till late!!! A great reunion!
Miles: 68 Total 1048

Miss you all, fair winds
Dell and Peter

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Week 2 - 3 May - 9 May 09 - Montes to Dunk

WEEK 2
Well the disaster has been that we broke our modem - the external and internal aerial! Very bad for us and very bad for the hip pocket. Still haven't resolved our dilemma but hope to do something in Cairns. When we were going past Great Keppel Island we noticed some clouds which according to the Cloud Appreciation Society meant it was going to get very windy within 24 hours (ha Debbie!!!). It actually took 36 hours for the strong wind warnings to start but we have been sailing in them pretty much since.

Day 10 - Sunday 3 May - Cid Harbour to Montes Resort
We left Cid Harbour at 6.30 am in windy conditions heading for Montes Resort at the bottom of Gloucester Island. Arrived at 11.50am and went in to the resort (on the beach) for a shower and a few drinks. Back again for dinner (always delicious and more than you can eat) and then sat by a fire on the beach for a while - magic. (Also first time off the boat since Mooloolaba!).
34nm - total 604

Day 11 - Monday 4 May - Montes to Bowen
Decided to head for Bowen in the hope of fixing our modem. Very strong winds but a beautiful day and a fantastic sail all the way to Greys Bay off Bowen (and the nudie beach!). Mind you at one point I could hear waves breaking to the left and then to the right and then behind and looked back and OMG!!! Dont look back!
13nm - total 617nm

Day 12 - Tuesday 5 May - Bowen to Cape Upstart
No Telstra shops in Bowen so left at 8.30 to head for Cape Upstart. Weather beautiful - wonderful days sail arriving at 2.15 - hoiking along at 7 - 8 knots!!
38nm - total 655nm

Day 13 - Wednesday 6 May - Cape upstart to Magnetic Island
Left Cape Upstart at 6.15am. Two yachts left before us and one cat after us. Strong wind warning still current so we knew it would not be nice! Seas were a minimum of 2.5 metres and to head for Cape Bowling Green (which is just a nasty sand spit preferably to keep well away from) we were getting hit from the side by waves which were kind of big! Quite a bit bigger than 2.5metres but after a couple of screams decided the close the eyes school of sailing is quite good. When you feel the back of the boat sliding off a wave close your eyes and hang on to the "close your eyes and pray rail" we had installed last year above the tiller and when you open your eyes and are totally off course just compensate and when you overcompensate compensate some more!!! Easy!!. Didnt know whether at this stage to mention that it was day 13!!! Anyway motor sailed till Bowling Green and then set a course for Maggie and put Mr Jennings (the wind vein) on and he pretty much steered us all the way to Maggie. We were almost there and wondering what a big 3 masted yacht was doing anchored so far out and then we realised we had reached Horseshoe Bay and whoops had nearly sailed past!!! Arrived at 4.45pm rather tired
Miles - 70nm Total 725nm

Day 14 - Thursday 7 May - Magnetic Island
Caught the bus and ferry into Townsville intent on replacing our modem but it was not to be. A replacement was $320 but they didn't have any (old technology - just over a year old) and the new one was $600! Still mulling it over but will do something by Cairns hopefully - probably wont be as good as what we had but...........
Day 15 - Friday 8 May - Magnetic Island to Orpheus Island
Left Magnetic Island at 6.45am and had a dream sail (strong wind warnings still in place - how good are we getting!!!). The weather was beautiful -the wind was just right and it was lovely. Arrived at Little Pioneer Bay on Orpheus Island (Palm Group) at 2.10pm. Picked up a buoy so didn't have to anchor and had an early night and slept well for a change!
Miles - 40nm Total 765nm

Day 16 - Saturday 9 May - Orpheus Island to Dunk Island
Strong wind warnings continue - we left at 6.15 overcast and windy getting hit by waves on the side thinking oh dear was this a good idea! Motor sailed for two and a half hours and then cut the motor and had a lovely sail albeit a rather wet one. Still didn't get into Zoe Bay on Hinchinbrook Island and Hinchinbrook always seem to have a big cloud over it. Once we got to the top of Hinchinbrook we changed tack and had a quite good sail though it has been overcast and rainy all day. Arrived Dunk at 2.10pm - have showered and feel good.
Miles - 45nm Total 810nm

Missing our doggies and grandson Jessie like mad. Spoke to Jessie through the week (22 months old) and told him we were on the boat and he said where's the boat - what do you say!!! Anyway all good. Hope you are all fine.

Fair Winds
Dell and Peter

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Week 1 : 24 April - 2 May - Brisbane - Montes

Well it was a lonely figure Amy and our grandson Jessie cut as we sailed away and watched them disappear into the distance at 9.15am on Friday 24 April – finally!!! Leaving so much behind.

Of course we left in a northerly which meant we were beating into the wind all the way to Mooloolaba. Wasnt too bad but the swell started to increase and there were breakers across the river entrance which wasn’t very pleasant. We were advised later to stick to the western side of the wall on approach – well we did this – didn’t really have a choice at the time as that was where we got washed!!! Anyway safely into the river which is where we stayed for Saturday just to catch our breath. Had sundowners with Les off Moonlight Dancer who we met at Lizard last year. – 43 nm

Sunday 26 April we left at 5.30am. A long and boring day with some wind but not a lot. Got to the Wide Bay Bar at 3.30 on a rising tide and were anchored at Inskip Point at 4.30pm. (60nm) The sea was like glass and it was absolutely beautiful for sundowners.

We left Inskip at 7am to go through the Great Sandy Straits on a high tide. Just as we got to the really tricky shallow bit 24 Rivieras (rather large motor boats) passed us without slowing down!! We were practically dipping our gunwales (top edge of the boat) in the water swaying from side to side – a rude and arrogant bunch – and then the real estate agent rang and was a little alarmed!!!!

Anyway we got through there about lunch time and the weather was beautiful, the seas were flat so decided to continue on to Bundaberg. The weather was so lovely when we got to Bundaberg at 9pm that we decided to keep going and try a night sail. The seas actually came up a bit through the night and it was a little unpleasant. Got Peter’s tracksuit and beanie out and left it on the lounge but when I checked on him he had a towel over his legs and a winch cover on his head – couldn’t find his tracksuit and beanie!!!! The seas were pretty sloppy and we got into Cape Capricorn at 1.50pm on Tuesday 28th and had a very welcome sleep. (206nm)

Left Cape Capricorn in calm weather heading for Great Keppell. We put the jenniker out and having a lovely sail so decided to keep going (trying to make the most of the good weather). It was a beautiful day – we did 3 hour shifts through the day. Got up towards Port Clinton, took the jenniker down and put the head sail out and the seas were so lovely we just kept going and the currents were also with us. This was the section which caused us so much grief last year. We motored sailed through the night – put the autopilot on and just kept checking the radar, course and anything else that was about and sat back and enjoyed the ride!!! Everything at night is amplified. The land which looks like we could almost touch it is actually 6 miles away and the stars were so bright. We were heading for Curlew Island but got there around 9.30am and the seas were so lovely and it was a beautiful day so we just kept going!! Rounded Double Island and got the jenniker up again and had a dream run all the way to Scawfell Island arriving at 5.10pm. There were three other yachts there and it was a beautiful anchorage and we decided to stay a day. ( 208nm)

However, Friday 1st May we decided to keep going – after all what would we do all day on a beach in the middle of nowhere!!!! So left at 8.45am and arrived at Shaw Island (well and truly in the Whitsundays by now) at 4.15 pm after a wonderful sail. Still no fish – obviously Jack is not here to supervise! (40nm)

Saturday 2 May left Shaw in around 20 knot winds at 7.45 and flew along with the wind up our tails with just the headsail out. Have caught lots of fish in the past trolling but never a shark on a lure trolling. Hooked onto one going past Hamilton Island at 7.5 knots. Took a bit to stop the boat to haul it in. Arrived at Cid Harbour at 11am which is where we sit catching up on all our chores. Winds are starting to come in a bit stronger now so we are happy we moved along as quickly as we did. Will head to Montes Resort (Gloucester Passage) tomorrow and will see how we handle the winds. Hope this finds you all safe and well.

Total miles so far 575. Last year it took 5 weeks to cover what we achieved in 7 days

Fair winds

Dell and Peter

Pre Departure

The month of April was spent in a flurry of activity preparing for an 18 April departure. We packed up all our furniture and managed to squeeze it all into the size of a normal garage - it was stacked to the rafters. Next we took a road trip to Mt Bryan in South Australia to take our beloved dogs down to live on a sheep station with Andy and Robyn, Dave, Katie and Kym. Jack and Rosie took to it quite well trying to chase down a few sheep and a kangaroo and are being well looked after. We miss them terribly. The road trip back without them was hard.

The 18 April departure time came and went, we handed our house to the real estate agent, tied up a few loose ends and moved on to the boat. Then we had to sort the boat - we could hardly find the bed there was so much stuff in there. Took a few days to clear the decks so to speak and then the shopping - took three hours to stow it all away. Peter very relunctantly went up the mast again to change some light globes and then it seemed finally we were ready to leave on Friday 24th - it was a manic month.

Christmas 2008

December saw us having a few days in Yamba with my sister who looked after Jack and Rosie while we drove to Sydney for Christmas. We had a wonderful time. We stayed with Debbie and Phil while Amy Pete and Jessie flew in and stayed with Brett. We had Christmas dinner in a lovely park not far from Brett's place. We had the full Christmas dinner, turkey, ham, red cabbage etc and then played soccer. A good time was had by all. Peter and I did a little bit of sight seeing and photos are below.

Happy Christmas

From Debbie and Philip

Nearly home

Hullo Good People

Am writing this from Mooloolaba (nearly home) during a gale warning (11 Nov) – yes it is really blowing!! To recap – had a wonderful two weeks on Lizard (have since found out that they call it Blizzard). Actually apart from the wind the weather is beautiful. A lovely heat which really doesn’t seem to burn – unlike the sun further south. The snorkelling on Lizard is absolutely fantastic – octopus, 10ft shovelnose shark, nimos and water really clear. Also we heard the Research people on the radio saying they could see the crocodile that lives there! We left on a day (17 Oct) when the wind was “only” blowing 15 – 20 instead of 20 – 25 but still from the SE so we were beating into it all the way. Four full days to arrive back at Yorkeys Knob (Cairns) where we spent a week restocking the victuals, fuel and water then on our way again. The weather was against us going down the outside of Hinchinbrook so went down the inside again – will get to Zoes Bay on the next trip. Had quite a good run down with an enforced stay at Goldsmith Island (which wasn’t a hardship! – despite winds up to 40 knots). Rosie had lost her ball (presumed it rolled overboard) but lo and behold while walking on the beach at Goldsmith, there hanging on a dead branch on the beach was a round dog’s toy which had seen better days – but it was pink and perfect as far as Rosie was concerned! Of all the things that you could find on a beach!

We had a quick call into Mackay and there was a barbeque on for the marina guests so we tied Jack and Rosie on their short leads on the deck and off we went for an hour and a half. Jack and Rosie met us at the gate when we were coming back to the boat. Their leads and harnesses were hanging over the side of the boat. Rosie had made a small hole in the netting around the deck and Jack had shredded it! How they slipped out of their harnesses and landed on the dock and not in the water is a bit beyond us – close call number 2!!!!

While on the subject of Jack and Rosie – we are looking for a foster home for these two adventurous dogs for next year. Anyone vaguely interested – let us know.

Celebrated my birthday at Pearl Bay sitting in the cockpit with a tablecloth consuming pork roast with crackly and fresh apple sauce and baked veges with a good bottle of wine. A wonderful day.

We finally made it out to Lady Musgrave Island for three nights. The water wasn’t as clear as the last time we had been there – it was still a good snorkel but we have been to Lizard.................!!!

We left Lady M at 5.30am and arrived at Warthumba Creek off Fraser at 7pm – it was a very long day and we actually had some northerly winds which were supposed to go SE in the evening so we anchored in the surf waiting for the winds to turn but they never did so it was quite an uncomfortable night. Our bed is at the pointy end of the boat so we cant get thrown out which is just as well!!! (Not as bad as Hummocky though!!!!)

Tossed up whether to stay a few days at River Heads in the Sandy Straits but knew the weather was closing in so headed on down to Inskip Point and left at 5.15am with about 10 other yachts. It wasn’t the ideal time to cross the Wide Bay Bar but it was a very calm morning and it was actually the best crossing we have had – mind you they have changed the way points so it is a little deeper. Just for a change we had some northerlies so we put the jenniker out and off we went. Had a great 10 hour sail down to Mooloolaba and here we sit in a gale warning! But Friday is looking good and we should sail into Scarborough late Friday afternoon (14^th) having completed 2,256 nautical miles.

Dell and Peter

Pacific Express

Yorkeys Knob - near Cairns‏

Well here we are at Yorkeys again. We left Lizard in 20-25 knot SSE winds (it always seems to blow that up there!) We headed East around the Island to get a better run with the wind. We managed to get a bit of wind in the sails and had the headsail half out (one reef in the main) and motor sailed to Cape Bedford. It was pretty rough - Rosie threw up once. Managed around 6 knots - left at 7.00 and got in at 1.30. We dragged anchor twice so ended up staying where we ended up!!! Pretty shallow in there.

Left Bedford at 7.50 and headed for Hope Island. Put the autopilot on and headed with a bit of wind as far as we could and then had to beat directly into it to get to Hope Island. rough old trip - plenty of water over the sides. Got to Hope at 3.30 and managed to pick up the only buoy there (there should have been two). Stayed two nights - recovery time!! Autohelm proving its worth!!

Left Hope heading for Low and did a 10 hour day. Copped a beauty over the port side which neither of us saw coming!!! Washed the cushions off the back - I was sitting on the opposite side and I also got soaked!! Have harnesses on the dogs - were glad they werent sitting on the cushions!! A 30cm wall of water coming down the decks is a lot of water with a lot of force. really need to tie things down well on the deck Got into Low and knew the weather was improving on Tuesday but we really dont like the Low so left in 20-25 knots again to make the run to Yorkeys. Got in around 2.00 on sunday. They gave us a berth which is huge - meant for two cats and we thought beauty this should be easy - not!!!!! Peter is really good now at getting in and out of small spaces and Yorkeys is a tight marina. But given plenty of space he doesnt have a reference point so cut the corner badly and seeing as how I am not an olympic long jumper I couldnt get off! So he reversed out and cut the corner even more - by this stage we are almost sideways! Reverses out and almost takes out the Bavaria as we go. All the brooms were tied down so they wouldnt go over the side so managed to find some sort of stick which promptly broke so we are both pushing and just managed to get back out past it. Third time lucky and we managed to get in ok. Who would have thought!!!

The dogs are loving the walks though it is extremely hot and they run up and down chasing the fish which swim up and down. Have the shade cover over the top and the fan in our bedroom. Staying here at least a week - doing some work on the boat and will have to reprovision up - getting the hang of that and the fridge and freezer are great so we have pretty much been able to keep up with our fresh vegies. Hoping also to get Rosie clipped here - she has got a bit out of control.

Of course today the sea is like glass - would have been a very comfortable motor down but we are pleased to be here. And pleased to be heading south although Thursday is forecast to be 25 - 30 all the way up the coast. We can island hop for a while from here so will wait for the good weather and hopefully provision up well enough that we can stay out of the marinas for a while.

Peter has lost heaps of weight - I havent and today he looks like Prince Valiant!!! Usually he looks like Doc (out of the future) but a nice shower and shampoo!!! I am tying my hair in a pony tail and Peter's isnt far off it!!!!


Dell and Peter
XXXX

Lizard Island

Hullo good people
We made it!! Sailed into Lizard Island on 4 September – almost four months to the day since we left Scarborough (5 May).

We spent nine nights at Yorkeys Knob waiting for the winds to calm. While it is a very nice place and we hired a car and had a lovely drive up to Kuranda it was certainly time to move on. The next stop was a very pretty little Island called the Low Isles, however it is totally overregulated and overrun with tourists and we were very pleased to be able to make a run for Port Douglas after six days of 25 – 30 knot winds. We met some lovely people at the Low on a yacht called Tookawile and have travelled to Lizard in their company.

Port Douglas was a great place to hide out. Went up the river in the mangroves and could motor down and use all the yacht club’s facilities. We anchored up behind a little yacht called Doris. We spent five lovely days at Port Douglas. We had asked the lass in the yacht club if there were any resident crocs in the area and she said not. However on the second last day we were there we finally saw what the tourist boats were stopping to look at just across from where our boat was – yes you guessed it – a resident croc! Peter had managed to get himself two lovely mud crabs here though!

We left Port Douglas in 20 – 25 knot winds with two reefs in the mainsail. It was pretty rough and not the most pleasant sailing. The clutchjammer holding the outhaul gave way and we ended up with three two foot long tears in the mainsail where the reefs were so we had to pull it down in fairly rough seas and heaps of wind! Made it into Hope Island at 1.30 and steamed in at the same time as Tookawile so we anchored side by side as both the moorings were occupied. One evening two whales with a baby came in and went right between our boats and one flapped its tail when it went – awesome sight.

We managed to get the main off and down below in very windy conditions and Peter repaired it and then we had to get it back up again – still blowing like mad. Challenging but achieved!

We had four nights at the Hope waiting for good weather and on Sunday 31st August it was forecast 15 – 20 knots so we upanchored at 6.30am and had a wonderful sail to Cape Flattery arriving at 4pm. Tookawile had run out of gas so they had to go into Cooktown. Caught a small mackerel on the new spoon lure which we bought in Port Douglas but shortly after the grand daddy mackerel bit the line off (100lb line). Obviously lost the new lure

Cape Flattery was really pretty and the tide was way out which left lots of beach so we let the dogs run and run. We did the same the next day (another strong wind warning in place!) and when we came back we noticed some aborigines spearing fish on the beach so the next day we saw a 4wd on the beach we went in to talk to them. It was the same three young aboriginal lads and their parents. We had hoped to walk around the beach and see if we could get to the mining town around the point. They said that was ok but be careful of crocs with the dogs as a fairly big one sleeps in the fresh water springs through the day (about 50 yards away). We stayed on the boat the next day but when Tookawile came in we ventured back to shore and walked to the other end with the dogs securely on leads. It is a pretty little anchorage with very murky water but we really enjoyed it. All Peter caught off the back of the boat were reef sharks. Jack loves to fish and Rosie is getting into it too and it is very hard to stop Jack attacking whatever Peter pulls in – he just goes feral!

Anyway after four nights at Cape Flattery a beautiful day dawned and at 9am we upanchored (actually Peter had to pull the anchor up by hand as our anchor windlass broke, the electric motor had given up) and arrived at Lizard Island at around 12.30 after a wonderful sail.

We had called our chandlery in Brisbane and told him we needed a new motor for the windlass and a couple of days later the new engine was delivered to the resort for us. It is very comforting to know that you can get spare parts sent to such remote areas and we were very grateful that it was just one phone call and they did the rest – finding out where to send etc.

The colour of the water here is just beautiful. Yachts have come and gone but mostly there have been about 16 boats in the Bay. We have snorkelled, walked to the Blue Lagoon, attended a lecture at the Research Station, had drinks at the Marlin Bar (which is the staff of the resort’s bar), and walked to the highest point called Cook’s Look because that is where Captain Cook climbed to find a way through the reef. The snorkelling is fantastic – lots of fish (even saw 3 clown fish (Nimo), and there are lots of giant clams about one and a half metres long.

The water is crystal clear and we have lots of fish swimming around out the back including a metre long Sweetlip (not allowed to fish!!!!!). The dogs go berserk chasing the fish up and down and Jack has fallen in once and we have lost count of the number of times Rosie has fallen in. At night there are really big fish swimming out the back of the boat

Today is a little bit exciting as we found out yesterday a seaplane is flying up from Cooktown empty to pick up a couple of guests so we all put in an order for supplies and it will be arriving about 1pm today. All the yachts put in an order to make it worthwhile for the pilot to bother to collect the grocery orders (freight is $1.85 per kilo)

The winds are going to be pretty strong for the next few days so we will do some more snorkelling – it is pretty awesome – and wait for the winds to die down a little. It will be a really hard slog back to Cairns we think but after that the winds seem to be coming quite favourable with the northerlies starting to come in down there.

Forgot to tell you a funny thing that happened in my last letter. We had been going along quite nicely when we noticed a huge rock off to the port side and we were panicking because it wasn’t on the chart plotter and didn’t show up on the chart. Were thinking how difficult night sailing would be with unmarked rocks in the middle of nowhere when it moved – it was a whale which had just been basking in the sun!!

It was shortly after this that the police came alongside in their boat to check all our safety gear!! Came out of nowhere but were very polite and friendly but we certainly weren’t expecting to have anyone come alongside out there!

Anyway we had a lovely lamb roast for father’s day and Peter opened the present which the kids put on board for him and we had a lovely day. By the way we drank the very expensive French wine the day we arrived – thanks for that.

Anyway enough rambling. Hope this finds you all well and not working too hard!!

Much Love

Dell and Peter