Brilliant Sunshine and Blistering Bullets 20th - 26th May

We motored out of Abell Point Marina early and hoisted the sail not long afterwards. A 10 - 15 knot S/SE enabled us to tack our way south down Whitsunday Passage without much effort. A delightful sail took us past Long, Dent, Hamilton and finally Shaw Island and into the anchorage at Thomas Island. This was one of our favourite anchorages last year and we looked forward to stopping off here over night again. We explored ashore and took the dinghy to the other little beaches in the bay. No-one else joined us and no lights were visible in the dark. A peaceful interlude after the frenetic tourism at Airlie Beach.

Thomas Island

The 21st dawned clear and sunny so we set off early to take advantage of the flood tide to help us on our way to Scawfell Island, 36nm to the SE. Again the wind was steady between 10- 15 knots from the south so we managed to sail most of the way. It is very satisfying to sit up on the coach roof in the sunshine and contemplate travelling to new places using the only wind as a power source. Off to the west the Smith group of islands stood out in the sunshine - Silversmith, Blacksmith, Goldsmith, Linne and Tinsmith. Brampton and Carlisle lay to the south wearing their cloudy crowns and Keswick and St bees could just be made out in the hazy distance.

We arrived at Scawfell Island mid afternoon and anchored in the middle of the larger side of Refuge Bay. A clear channel lead through the reef to the beach so we took Lily ashore and walked beach and explored the small lagoon behind the eastern end of the beach. There is a national park campsite with a picnic table under a pergola type shelter and an attached rainwater tank. The tank was full and the bush looked green and lush compared to the islands further north. This island has obviously received more rain this season.

 

Scawfell Island

It was such a beautiful evening that Peter and I sat outside for pre-dinner drinks and watched night fall. There was the amazing sound of hundreds of birds and millions of insects getting themselves ready for bed. All at once the singing stopped. Total silence! Who gave the order? Peter and I just looked at each other. 'Did you hear that? They all just stopped?' How does that happen? Not one bird or insect sang on. I wish I knew the answer. It would be a very handy technique in the classroom.

We spent four days in Refuge Bay on Scawfell Island, along with five other boats sheltering from the forecast 25 - 30 knot S/SE winds. Scawfell is a high crescent shaped island and it's shape interrupts the flow of the wind and sends bullets howling and screaming through the bay. The second night was diabolical. The tide held the boat side on to the wind and screaming bullets of wind had us swerving around the anchor. It held beautifully, but the crunching and creaking of the boat along with the noise of the wind kept me awake all night. The next day we decided to move to the eastern side  of the bay and anchor as close as possible to the shore. It seemed to be a little more comfortable there. Four of the boats chose the smaller western bay and they thought they had the best spot in the circumstances.

Scawfell Island is lovely, but I was glad to leave and make the quick, boisterous sail across a very lumpy, messy sea to Mackay Marina for a night or two of peaceful sleep. We have done all the usual jobs; water, dinghy fuel, caught the bus into town to stock up for the next week and do the laundry. From the marina it is about a 10 min drive to town so we took the bus and decided to explore a bit before doing the food shopping. The Pioneer River is a large river that runs through the centre of the town and the levy banks have been landscaped with walking and bike paths, extensive gardens and parks and we walked for several kms and were impressed with how this area has been beautified.

If the wind abates and the rain stops tomorrow, we will begin to head north through the Whitsundays and back to Townsville over the next couple of weeks. If not we might spend another night here and wait for the weather to be a little kinder.



Creek, Scawfell Island

Whitsunday Island & R&R in Abell Point Marina 12th - 19th May

Whitsunday Island

A gentle SE wind enticed us out of the South Molle anchorage and across Whitsunday Passage to Fitzalan Passage, a narrow stretch of water between Whitsunday Is and Hamilton Is, where the currents are fierce at the height of the tidal flow. The tide was still against us here, but was slowing so we only got down to 3.5 kns with the engine. By the time we reached Solway Passage on the eastern end of Whitsunday Is, to go around to Whitehaven Beach, the tide had definitely turned and we shot through at over 7 kns. We had a delightful two nights here along with 15 other boats, walking, swimming, and generally relaxing in the windless sunshine.

The 8km round trip walk to Chance Bay on the southern side of the island is an easy, pretty, forest walk mostly in the shade of trees. On the way we saw the biggest bush turkey nest we have seen, at least twice our height, with a girth to match. A walk in the evening along Whitehaven Beach in the gentle sunshine lets you know that paradise has been found. I thought I'd wear the bathers and catch a bit of a tan, however what I did catch without realising it, was a rash of sandfly bites. Now like an itchy plum pudding I realise that even paradise can have it's downfalls.

Bush Turkey nest Whitsunday Island

A strong wind warning had been issued for the next five days so we decided to make the most of the 13th by motor/sailing around the northern shores of Whitsunday island to seek refuge in Cid Harbour for a few days. On the way we managed to secure a mooring in Tongue Bay where we had lunch and then we took advantage of an ingoing tide to pass through Hook Channel and on to Cid. The whirlpools and currents swirling in Hook Channel buffeted the boat at times and it was reinforced that it is a good idea to go with the tides around here.

Obviously other people had the same idea as us and on the four nights we were in Cid around thirty boats joined us in it's security. The wind came in at 3.30am (the forecast got it wrong - it said 4am) and for the three days we hung there in gusty, blustery conditions that at times were trying. Apparently Hamilton Island, just around the corner, had 43kn gusts. Some of the gusts here felt like that! We watched several boats having trouble with anchors letting go and having to re-anchor after drifting down the bay. Peter anchored us this time closer to Sawmill Beach where we had better access to the walking tracks on the shore. It seemed a little more exposed here than in Cowards Corner, but not uncomfortable as we still pointed into the wind and the fetch was not far enough to stir up too much slop. We climbed Whitsunday Peak again, a steep, rocky walk that lets you know that you have done some exercise, and the lovely 1km walk to Dugong Bay. During a lull in the wind we took the dinghy and explored the bay.

Sawmill Beach, Cid Harbour

A very nice Beneteau 40 anchored next to us on the second day and Peter met the couple on board and next thing we were on 'Another Dimension' having morning tea. John and Jenny are from Melbourne and have taken a year off work to make this trip up the east coast. Jenny made us fresh muffins - I was very impressed. A confession later informed us she had not done that before. When they came to Rene for morning tea at Abell Point Marina I cheated and visited the local shop for the goodies. I hope we meet up with them again on the water.

Abell Point Marina

The wind abated on Sunday so we took the opportunity to make the short trip across to Abell Point Marina for a bit of R&R.The staff at the Abell Point Marina have been very friendly and helpful and made us feel very welcome. More work has been done here in the infrastructure and it is a very nice place to stay for a few days. All the usual stocking up jobs need to be done for our next journey, hopefully south to Mackay and the Percy Islands - wind permitting.

Back To Airlie Beach 8th - 11th May

 

Rene in Moonlight Bay South Molle Island

 

We left Gloucester Passage with the intention of motor/sailing into one of the Double Bays or Woodwark Bay for the night. These bays are approximately10nm north of Airlie Beach and we hadn't visited either of the Double Bays before. However the forecast was for up to 20kn SE so we left our options open. The wind came in strongly as we passed Saddleback Island and with the wind against tide, lumpy seas pitching us around, we decided to explore the possibility of overnighting in one of the bays on the north side of George Point. Our trusty 'Lucas' informed us that Jonah Bay was the best anchorage here and as we drew near it looked calm and peaceful. We anchored in 4m
quite a long way out and took Lily ashore so we could walk along the beach. What a beautiful beach! One of the loveliest in this area, with hard sand to walk on. A dozen or so rough camps have been built under the trees behind the beach and many of these were occupied. Jonah Bay is well worth a visit.

On Saturday we had another go at motoring to Airlie Beach and this time were successful. The wind remained light for the whole trip, although still on the nose from the SE. We anchored in our old position outside of the yacht club rock wall and signed in, paid our $7 and took advantage of the dinghy dock and hot showers. The rest of the day was taken up by the mundane chores of clothes washing and stocking up the larder.

Early on Sunday morning we motored Rene around to the Abel Point Marina to top up the water and buy some fuel for both Rene and Lily. The public jetty here is in need of repair and maintenance as the fender strip has fallen off in the middle and was lying in the water. We had all Rene's fenders out and managed not to bump the jetty. The pontoon is also on a lean which made positioning the Rene's fenders a bit tricky.

A much needed break at Roma Pt

We had decided to motor over to South Molle Island, one of our favourite spots, for a night or two. There are great walking tracks here and in the afternoon we did the hour walk to Spion Cop and back. The views are amazing. This morning we thought we needed a decent bit of exercise so walked to the southern end of the island to Sandy Beach. It took most of the morning as we decided to walk along the beaches as well. By the time we arrived back at Moonlight Bay my feet were letting me know they'd done a good walk. Peter thought we had probably done about 10km. One interesting sight along the way were thousands of pretty blue and black butterflies. The tops of the wings were brilliant blue with a black lace pattern, but the underneath were not as bright. They are of medium size and were feeding on the flowers of the blackboys.

We have checked the weather forecast and it looks like we have two more days of lovely weather and then sometime during Wednesday night a 30kn SE wind blows in. Cid Harbour looks like a good option as it appears that this wind hangs around until Sunday. Meanwhile we will keep a close eye on developments and maybe spend a night at Whitehaven Beach.

Moonlight Bay

Gloucester Passage 7th May

We have had two beautiful days anchored in the Gloucester Passage, about 12nm S/E of Bowen. On Tuesday (5th) we packed up our gear and had morning coffee with Andrew before leaving on the ferry for the island. On arrival we happened to notice that a gentle wind had breezed in from the north east. Time to go! With the anticipation of an almost full moon and clear skies we decided to make a start and if the wind turned S/E we would tuck in behind Cape Upstart if necessary. It wasn't. The moon made it's huge orange appearance early in the night and accompanied us for the rest of the trip. The winds remained light and variable and we sailed and motor sailed the whole way arriving 22 hours later in Gloucester Passage and anchored off Montes Resort.

Montes Resort

 

Before leaving Magnetic Island Marina we spent several days at Virginia and Clive's farm caring for two dogs and six horses while they had a few days off in Darwin visiting Virginia's son. Clive wanted some help establishing a vege patch so after they left we got stuck in watering, digging and applying copious quantities of compost purchased from the local landscape suppliers. Upon returning with the compost we found Bella, or was it Sophie? (identical big hairy white dogs) had decided that the 'nice lady' had made them a lovely cool patch to bask on in the early morning sunshine. It didn't take long to make them see the error of their ways.

 The next day, after we had bought the baby vegetable plants, we arrived back at the farm to see two large ibis strutting around on our cultivated ground stabbing beaks in to dine on tasty morsels beneath our mulch. I wondered if this was going to work! We planted the veges and the patch looked great. Peter brought an old table we found outside and I put some dead palm fronds over it to shelter the new plants and hopefully dissuade all animals from venturing there. It seemed to work. The farm is in a beautiful setting, backing onto a rugged, steep range of hills and has a lovely parkland landscape. We enjoyed our stay there looking after the animals and watering around the house.

Cobber gets a treat

 



Now in Gloucester Passage we hear that Clive is tending his new garden diligently and we hope to see good progress in six weeks time when we sail back to Townsville. No pressure!!

We have walked the beaches in both directions from Montes, had evening drinks at the outdoor bar and a flat white at the Eco Resort next door. Relaxing and enjoyable. A huge turtle resides nearby and we continually hear it exhaling as it comes up for a breath. It is huge. Fish seem to be plentiful, but as yet Peter has not been allowed to fish - too much food on board at the moment.

 

Edgecumbe Bay

 

After dark the scene here is truly magnificent. There are lights all around. Along the beach lights shine from the few beach houses and the resorts. In Bona Bay on Gloucester Island and both sides of Passage Islet various boats are anchored with their anchor lights shining to alert any night travellers of their whereabouts. The little port hand channel marker behind us blinks it's warning and keeps us company and it's friends blink to light up the way through the channel. Bowen can easily be seen twinkling in the distance and the lights of Abbot Point and the ships anchored off are beyond that again. To top it all off the *'Sparks and Wildfire' (read Parks and Wildlife) have initiated a controlled burn on Gloucester Island to help eradicate weeds such as lantana. Every so often a patch of fire flares up along the fire front and looks spectacular.
*quote from a fireman we met at the bar.

Peter and I have swum here. This is the second time I have had a swim since we left Albany in 2013. Amazing, but true! A little black and white dog from Montes Resort joined us and frolicked in the water with us. We thought he was so cute until he ran out and stood right next to Peter and shook himself dry. Peter was texting at the time and was covered in a shower of salt water. He was unimpressed.

From here we intend to travel south to Airlie Beach and beyond, depending on the wind. We don't intend to make it hard by punching into the predominant trade winds from the south east.

Eco Resort

Back to Townsville, Rene and Magnetic Island 14th - 24th April

 

Picnic Bay Magnetic Island

 

Peter and I flew into Townsville in the late afternoon and were met by Andrew, Peter's dad. Caught up with all the news and installed ourselves into his unit ready for the next few days. On Tuesday we took the ferry to Nelly Bay to find out how Rene had fared over the long, hot summer months. It has been a very dry summer here with no wet season to speak of. Apparently Magnetic Island usually has 800 - 900 mls of rain from December to March and they have received 40mls. Unfortunate for the locals, but obviously good for boats, as when we opened her up there was no dank smell of a long unaired interior or any sign of mould. The hull was barely covered with a fuzzy green slime and the propeller edges sported a rim of prickly barnacles. Peter removed these quick smart and the slime dropped off as we motored to Horseshoe Bay a couple of days later. This year we can give a miss to the haul out and anti fouling rigmarole, a considerable saving for us. Peter used Altex 5, (8 litres) which provided two coats and we are impressed.

For the last ten days we have spent time socialising with the family, restocking Rene ready for our 2015 sailing season and taking her for a shakedown trip of five days to Horseshoe Bay. The family are all well and enjoying their busy lives, Rene is ship shape and the short stay in Horseshoe Bay was perfect. We even had a lovely dose of rain one evening. The next morning we found about four inches of water in the dinghy. The rain was persistent and heavy as it can be in this part of the world. A welcome relief for the vegetation here and a distinct cooling of the temperature, which I have enjoyed.

Maud Bay Magnetic Island

Before we left Albany one of the teachers at a school where I was relief teaching asked me what we do all day. Of course there are all the usual jobs that one associates with a home: cleaning, washing, food shopping, cooking etc. Then there are the maintenance jobs on the boat. Periodically we need to refuel and take on water which usually requires some research to find out where this can be done and in what time frame. Research on chart plotter and paper charts as to where the next trip will be, anchorages, weather forecasts and blog etc take up more time. Peter and I spend much of our time keeping fit by walking either on designated walks for fun and health or to the shops, which are not always close, to purchase stores. Reading, socialising and for me stitchery projects fill in any gaps.

Most of these activities take longer on the boat. 'Shanks Pony' is not a quick form of transport. On Wednesday we decided it was time for a proper shower. Bucket baths in the cockpit are good, but eventually one feels the need of a hot shower. We are paying for the facilities at Magnetic Bay Marina so we thought it would be a good idea to make use of them. This involved an hour and a half walk, over a small mountain range and around two bays on the south side of the island to reach our destination. It was one of the best showers I've had, but it took time to get there. To be fair we took care of our exercise for the day at the same time.

I lost my morning tea apple to this mum and her friends at the old ferry wharf at Arcadia, Magnetic Island

Horseshoe Bay was beautiful as usual and we had a perfect few days there. An interesting walk took us along a sandy ridge next to the mangrove creek running parallel behind the beach. The paperbarks and pandanas palms were huge and provided welcome shade as we walked. Bird and reptile prints criss-crossed the path and one of the slithery tracks lacked the claw marks of a lizard. It was huge!!! Luckily we didn't sight the maker of that track.

For the next week or so we will be back in Townsville for 60th birthday celebrations and four or five days farm sitting for Peter's brother Clive and his partner, Virginia while they have a few days holiday. When we get a weather window we intend to sail/motor south to the Whitsundays to explore the places we missed last year.

We discovered this interesting letter box in Horseshoe Bay. Maybe they're trying to keep the bills at bay.

Goodbye Sydney, Back to Townsville and Rene 8th - 13th April, 2015

Lake Macquarie 8th & 9th April

Peter and I have been listening to the radio (no TV on Rene) and the continuing commentary on the foul weather conditions being experienced in NSW in the past 48 hours (23-4-15). We were there two weeks ago to catch up with our friends Roger and Carole at Toronto and to look in briefly on one of our favourite sailing grounds. They met us at the Fassifern train station and took us back to their place for lunch and Toronto news. In the afternoon we drove into Newcastle to see the Maritime Centre. We were all interested in the various shipwrecks in Stockton Bight and the horrendous weather that accompanied them. I'm glad we weren't there this week.

Roger and Carole have a new toy - Zeus. He is a quirky little run about that they are intending to use to explore some of the lake systems in NSW. We took Zeus for a motor around Toronto Bay and called in for coffee at our favourite coffee shop. Thanks for a lovely couple of days Roger and Carole. We thoroughly enjoyed it.

Sydney 10th - 13th April

Only a couple of days left in Sydney. We managed to squeeze in as much family time as possible, accompanying Leisha and Jessica to the park, harbour walks and shopping. On Saturday Greg, Leisha, Jessica, Peter and I decided to motor Ocean Street over to the south side of the harbour to Rose Bay. Peter and I did not stop there back in 2013 when we were in Sydney in Rene. I wanted to visit Vaucluse House as I had seen it in a garden book and the kitchen garden piqued my interest.

We anchored Ocean Street in 4m of water between two jetties and a large port hand marker. Rose Bay is shallow close in and it is best to anchor in the eastern bay as seaplanes use the western area.
Everyone piled in the dinghy and we landed on a small beach nearby. A short walk up the hill and we found ourselves in the grounds of Strickland House. This part of Sydney Harbour was once graced by family mansions surrounded by extensive parkland gardens. It appears that in the 1920's many of these properties were purchased by the government so that the people had access to the harbour and the properties could be used for community activities.

Strickland House

 



Peter and I have spent much of our many visits to Sydney walking the beautiful bush tracks along the north side of the harbour from Gore Cove to North Head and marvelled at the wonderful access that the public have to such an amazing place. Looking over to the south side and seeing suburbia stretching into the distance we did not realise that these lovely public parkland spaces existed. At Vaucluse House we watched as men, and women dressed in brightly coloured saris, arrived for an Indian wedding. Peter was not very complimentary about the music. He thought that it sounded a bit like - 'if your cat made a noise like that on the fence in the night you would shoot it!!!' The kitchen garden was a disappointment. Maybe it was because of the change of season.

 

Vaucluse House

 

 

 

Stables at Vaucluse House

On the 13th it was goodbye to Sydney for a while and off to Townsville, Peter's family and Rene tucked safely in her pen in Nelly Bay Magnetic Island. Thank you Greg, Leisha and Jessica for giving us such a lovely time in Sydney. We'll be back!

Greg Leisha and Jessica 

WELCOME TO SAILING RENE APRIL TO OCTOBER 2015

Goodbye Albany! Hello Sydney April 2015

We rumbled out of Albany on 29th March, aboard the TransWA bus, bound for Perth and two days with Karin, Paul and our delightful little granddaughter Isabelle. It was a quick stopover but lovely to catch up with them before we departed for our third year on the water in Rene, our trusty ocean home, for six more months. At present Rene is berthed at the Nelly Bay Marina on Magnetic Island and it will be interesting to find out how she has fared without our constant care and attention.

Peter and Isabelle

 



After our two days in Perth we flew to Sydney to have some time with Greg, Leisha and our first granddaughter, Jessica. We were looking forward to spending some time with them in Neutral Bay and also on their new yacht, Ocean Street. She is an Island Packet 37, perfect for cruising with a family. The plan was for a relaxing Easter break sailing to Broken Bay and Cowan Creek for five days. The first night was spent on a mooring at Quarantine Bay just inside North Head, Sydney Harbour as the wind was in the north and it would have been an unpleasant bouncy trip heading off into the wind.

Good Friday dawned clear and fresh as the southerly had arrived during the night and we were off as soon as everything was organised. With the 10 knot south easterly we made good progress and arrived in Broken Bay in time to  make sandwiches for lunch. Peter contacted Ric and Val from Arkaydes, who we met and sailed with in 2014, and they were tied up to a mooring in front of the waterfall in Refuge Bay. Greg motored Ocean Street in close and Ric offered to have us raft up with them for a night or two. What a magic position! Right in front of the waterfall and small beach. Perfect for trips ashore exploring and swimming and splashing in the little stream with Jessica.

 

 



Ocean Street rafted up with Arkaydes

 

 

 

Jessica collects seaweed at Refuge Cove

 

 



During Friday night the rain started and kept pouring down for the whole of Saturday. Everything seemed to be wet or damp and Greg and Leisha discovered a leak or two they did not previously know they had. By late afternoon we had all had enough of being confined to the boat so decided to sacrifice some clothes to the weather and take a dinghy ride ashore in the rain to see the waterfall which was now pounding over the cliff, swollen with the constant rain. We all got wet and cold and thoroughly enjoyed our little sojourn ashore.

 

Waterfall, Refuge Cove

 

 

 



Contemplating the view in the rain

 



Ric and Val invited us all over to Arkaydes for dinner. Ric made his Mexican special which everyone enjoyed punctuated with sailing tales from us all. Thanks Ric and Val - it was great to catch up with you and Tiger. Sunday saw us motor over to Brooklyn to put some of the wet towels in the laundry there and take advantage of the café for our morning coffee. The day was beautiful and after a motor around Dangar Island we made for Patonga Beach to anchor for the night. Jessica had a wonderful time playing on the beach with the strands of seaweed which she collected and made into a pile.

Monday dawned fresh and clear and after a quick trip to stretch our legs on the beach we motored off south towards Sydney. With very little wind we motored all the way and managed to be in time for the 2.15pm opening of Spit Bridge and were tied up to the mooring at Cammeray soon afterwards.
What a fantastic weekend! Thank you very much Greg and Leisha for a lovely weekend.

 

 

Greg, Jessica, Liz and Peter on Ocean Street in Refuge Cove

 

 



Final Chapter for Sailing Season 2014

Townsville 19th September

Today is the day we begin the trip home for the summer. Firstly we will spend four days in Sydney visiting Greg, Leisha and Jessica and checking out the new boat. A day or two on Sydney Harbour will bring back fond memories.

Since arriving in Townsville Peter and I have checked out the three marinas available for putting Rene to bed for the summer break. She is now berthed in to her pen in Nelly Bay Marina on Magnetic Island. She looks very secure there, tucked in behind the multi storey apartments and the background range of steep hills, hopefully out of the direct impact of any cyclones that may head this way over summer We have carefully and thoroughly cleaned her throughout and done our best to banish those nasty little mould spores for a few months at least. Peter is flying back to Townsville for most of December so he can help his family celebrate his father's 90th birthday, have Christmas with his family and of course check on his 'other woman' - Rene!

Townsville is a lovely place to visit, especially during the dry season. Being on a dry part of the coast the surrounding landscape is very parched and barren, so the numerous parks and gardens in the city seem to have a much greater impact than in other places. We have visited the Ross River on several occasions and admired the walking paths and parkland along both banks. Wildlife abounds - tortoise by the hundreds, pelicans, lilypad walkers, parrots and many others. Several reservoirs have been constructed along the river making huge billabongs throughout that part of the city.

Ross River

 

Interesting gardens there boys and girls

 

 



Since we were last here the council has completed the large parkland area at Kissing Point. This is an historical precinct with three groups of people represented. The Aboriginal history of the area is shown on the Ethno-Botanical walk, the military history at the Fort, Jezzine Barracks and the Military Museum and finally the early settlers are also represented. The coastal boardwalk affords beautiful views across Cleveland Bay. Connected to the Strand on the northern end completes a wonderful, landscaped, parkland area in the centre of Townsville city that is popular for recreation and tourists. It is a gorgeous spot and well worth a visit by any tourists to this part of North Queensland.

Andrew & Peter - The Strand in the background

 

We have had some memorable times in 2014. Looking back I remember the first day of sailing out of Lake Macquarie, when the day was superb as we sailed to Port Stephens.   During the night a huge swell developed and we found ourselves anchored, with many others, just a little too close to the breaking waves in Shoal Bay. New South Wales taught us the importance of getting it right when crossing bars at the entrances to the huge river and lake systems on that part of the coast. We began to meet many more people than last year, and their pets, so socialising became part of the deal - especially sundowners.  Queensland has the islands and reef. We have visited many islands, but still have many more to explore. Here we learnt about wind bullets, tides, currents and working with and not against them. I am looking forward to next year when we will continue further north and who knows where from there.

For the dog lovers - an interesting sculpture at Riverside!!

 

 

 

Andrew - Nearly ninety years young

 

 

 

C U again in 2015



Magnetic Island & Townsville 1st - 10th September

We departed from Gloucester Island and Shaggers early on Sunday morning in still conditions and motored across Edgecumbe Bay to just off Bowen before any wind arrived. From then on a good breeze blew us north to Cape Upstart where we made the decision to continue on to Horseshoe Bay, Magnetic Island. Cooking dinner was interesting as we had rolly, quartering seas and using one hand for me and one for preparations made things a bit slow and messy. As I was dishing up the meal I happened to look out of the window and nearly levitated as this huge black shape appeared about 50m away. Momentarily I thought we were about to hit something large. It was large and turned out to be a whale breaching. At least half of it came vertically, head first, out of the water. Peter saw it too as it repeated the performance, then followed up with some tail slapping. Maybe it didn't like us being so close, but as we never saw it in the first place and as it was almost dark, we obviously both got a shock. That was close enough for me and I hoped there would be no more whales on our night's path.

It was still dark at 5am as we entered Horseshoe Bay and slowly crept into the eastern corner of the bay and dropped the anchor outside the moored/anchored boats. Then it was time for a proper sleep. This bay is very beautiful and is one of our favourites. We spent three days in Horseshoe Bay and walked over the range on the national park walk track to Nelly Bay where we investigated the possibility of leaving Rene in the Nelly Bay Marina over the summer. We also walked to Balding Bay and spent some time at the coffee shop at Horseshoe.

Horseshoe Bay

 

 



Early morning, Horseshoe Bay

 

 



Townsville's Breakwater Marina had advertised a special deal for "Shaggers" so we took advantage of that and booked in for three nights to fuel up, clean up and meet up with Andrew (Peter's dad), Clive (Peter's brother) and other family members. Meanwhile we checked out the rates for leaving Rene at either Breakwater Marina or the Motor Boat Club Marina in Ross Creek over the summer while we spend some time back in WA. There really was no choice. Nelly Bay was about $1200 cheaper for the seven months so we booked in and made our way over there as soon as our short stay in Townsville was over.

Peter has taken the injector fuel pump off Rene and brought it over to Townsville to have it fixed and then he has the wonderful job of putting everything back together again. To reach this part of the motor he had to take off the entire exhaust and manifold system and the water pump before removing the injector fuel pump. It has kept him busy for a few days travelling to the island and back, organising a fuel pump specialist to do the work and ordering parts. It sounds like it will be ready by Thursday so he will have the job completed by the time we leave for WA. Whilst researching where to leave Rene for the summer we discovered that the Magnetic Island ferry cost $5 per trip for those in possession of a Senior's Card and if you buy a book of 10 tickets. This helped convince us that Nelly Bay was the place for us.

Unfortunately, we have decided to cut our sailing season short by a month or so because the tenant in our unit in Perth is vacating and we want to do a quick renovation and try to sell it before the Christmas break. We are both over dealing with the various problems associated with rental properties. Our plan is to fly to Sydney to see Greg, Leisha and Jessica for four days, on 19th September, then fly to Perth on 23rd ready for a session of painting, cleaning and gardening.

 

'Friends'  showing a great deal of interest in me putting on my shoes

 

 

 

 

Crab art, Balding Bay

 

 

All the other crabs just put their little sand baubles in a pile around the holes, but this one obviously has a bit of crabby imagination.

 





'Shaggers' (Shag Island Cruising Yacht Club) Rendezvous, Goucester Passage 26th - 31st August

 

Shag Island, Gloucester Passage

 

We spent three days in the Abell Point Marina stocking up and preparing Rene for the trip to Gloucester Passage and the Shag Island Cruising Yacht Club 2014 Vice Commodores Rendezvous. Just before we left Peter discovered that the fuel injector pump was leaking diesel into the bilge. That caused some angst and grinding and gnashing of teeth. Peter spoke to one of the mechanics at the marina and he advised us to sail on to Townsville and get it fixed there - quite complicated apparently. So, on Tuesday, I went with Sue and Dave from Duet to purchase a few last minute items before we departed. The day was beautiful, but almost no wind, so progress was slow for the first hour, then the wind began to pipe up and we enjoyed a delightful sail for the rest of the day along with half a dozen other yachts. We anchored in Edgecumbe Bay just adjacent to the Eco Resort. Many boats were already anchored there and many more had anchored off Montes Resort in the Gloucester Passage. All up one hundred and seventy boats arrived to participate in the Rendezvous. We enjoyed sundowners on the beach in the evening.

 

Lunch at Eco Resort



Wednesday saw a steady stream of boats coming to join those already there. Peter and I went ashore and walked around to Montes to see how the preparations were going. Ric and Val, Sue and Dave (Duet), Chris and Maureen and Peter and I met at the Eco Resort for lunch and later we joined a whole pile of people for a game of Botchie under the trees. Needless to say neither Peter nor I were on the winning team, but we all had a lot of fun.

 

Peter Julie and Andrew

 



On Thursday we decided we needed a decent bit of exercise so Peter and I walked south along the beach and over the rocks for a couple of kms. There were some very expensive houses nestled in the bush along this part of the beach. In the evening we participated in Happy Hour at Montes as an introduction to the Rendezvous. We caught up with Milton and Jenny (Magnetic Attraction) and Di, Russ, Evan and Helen (C Dragon) from Townsville.

 

Montes - Just a few dinghies on the beach

 



There was no shortage of activities and entertainment to participate in during the four days and three nights of the Rendezvous, but the two that I really enjoyed were the sausage sizzle on Shag Island and the' Hands Across The Blue' dinghy raft up for prostate cancer. Shag Island is very small and hundreds of people congregated there for lunch, in strong winds, on the tiny spit of sand and rock, the only flat part on the island.

Sausage Sizzle, Shag Island

 

 



'Hands Across The Blue' for Prostate Cancer dinghy raft up was my favourite activity. The aim of the exercise was to have all the dinghies assemble and raft up to make the shape of the prostate cancer logo on the water. A helicopter flew over to take photos etc for the media and once all the dinghies were in place it would have looked amazing. Anchored nearby was a large motor boat with a broad back deck and a band entertained us and later the dignitaries spoke from this platform. Everyone took drinks and nibbles and thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere and self satisfaction of being a part of a large co-operative exercise that raised money for a good cause. I couldn't help thinking that I was very lucky to be me - sailing around this beautiful part of our coast, going where I pleased, the weather was perfect, the setting stunning and the company wonderful. In other places in the world people are killing and doing despicable things to each other. How lucky am I? Shaggers was fun and I hope we can do it again next year and meet up again with some of the lovely people we have met this year.

We made ready to leave for Townsville on Sunday and just before we pulled the anchor Ric, Val and Tiger motored past and waved goodbye. They are now on their way south to eventually end up in Pittwater where they base themselves. We will miss them, but hopefully will catch up again next year on the water.

Decorated boats at Shaggers 2014