Bloody Northerlies

After the Clarence we headed north again towards the Gold Coast. This despite the persistence of the Northerlies. Every transient in the marina was heading south with the whales so we are definitely the odd ones out. But we had a good time in the region including an unlikely find - a good Mexican restaurant. Also visited the Yamba yacht club and had a few beers with the locals.

Sailed along merrily for about 5 hours and then the wind began to die and become variable. The helms person suffered the indignity of an involuntary 360 circuit in the middle of the night - no names, no pack drill. Motored (again) up to the Gold Coast seaway with a little bit of sailing possible in the last couple of hours. No problem crossing the seaway bar and we headed to Wave Break Island to plan our next move. That spot proved vulnerable to afore mentioned Northerlies so we upped anchor and headed down to Bums Bay which proved much more comfortable despite a crowd with the same idea.

Our tide calcs suggested an early departure to ensure we hit the shoal areas as close to high as possible. The seaway is a pretty run although in the three years since I was last there it has become more developed and busy. Marinas everywhere and boats anchored all over the place. Our calcs proved pretty accurate and although we graduated from those "about to hit the bottom" to "those who have" at Steiglitz we did no damage and power on fixed the problem. Lots of dredging going on all up the seaway so a good chance to test our day shapes knowledge. The dredge operators are obviously tired of dickheads so they have a big sign on each end of the dredge "PASS THIS SIDE". Sort of makes the shapes redundant really. 

We took an unusual route East of Macleay island into Moreton Bay which meant a long run into Manly but we made it largely on schedule around midday after a 12 hour run. They put us in a berth 2 doors down from where the boat was berthed when we bought it - full circle. 

Northerlies had almost beaten us and we discussed leaving he boat here for the summer but we then decided we'd press on and the next stop is planned for the southern end of Fraser Island. About a 22 hour run for us (against the Northerlies!) and we'll likely drop the anchor in Pelican Bay before traveling  through the Great Sandy straits - more tide calcs. After we get through the great sandies we'll terminate the 2016 jaunt in  Bundaberg where the boat stay till about March. We have to stop because we're running out of Hunter Valley reds, thirsty business this sailing 

Got the tides wrong!

Up a Clarence River

Another motor sail from port Macquarie to Yamba saw us tie up in the marina at about 9.00am. More whale sittings on the way up but we haven't seen a shark yet, they must be busy chasing surfers. Caught a couple of little bonito and a striped tuna on Johnnys pretty little pink skirt. I'll get a man sized one out for the next leg and try to catch a real fish.

Wind mostly 5 and below so the Yanmar is getting a good workout and delivering well. Just over 2 liters per hour but that will change when I get to be in charge. Rep itch the prop and make it work a bit!

Yamba entrance is a bit confusing for novices and we were glad to cross the bar and enter the river in daylight. Lots of training walls with lights and marks all over the place. Finally found the "hole in the wall" and managed to negotiate the shoals around Dart Island and into the marina. As usual the marina staff were very friendly and helpful and the facilities are OK.

Spent a few days sailing up the Clarence although we were an hour late to the Harwood Bridge which meant waiting 23 hours waiting for the next lift! Saw the sugar mill in full operation. Finally passed under the bridge and made our way to Maclean where we tied up for the night on one of the public pontoons that line the river. Pretty place with a full township and all the facilities you'd need. 

Next day we headed further up River past Lawrence where we had to negotiate shoals on the bend which we did without too much concern and from there we motored on up to Ulmarra. Lovely little spot spoilt only by an angry old bastard who'd been living on a boat for too long. Got upset because I moved his dinghy so we could tie up. Waved a piece of pipe around like William Wallace but I felt quite superior because I was up on the deck looking down at him and he was all piss and wind anyway.

This is an amazing River. 500 yards wide at Harwood and 40 feet deep and still probably 200 yards across at Ulmarra though a little shallower. Hard to believe the Filinders didn't find especially as tha was his express mission and he stood on the hill at the entrance. Apparently, at the time it didn't run to the sea continuously and he must have been there in a dry season. Now the training walls mean that the river flows much more directly and swiftly to the sea. Now sips up to 5000 tonnes navigate the entrance and head up River. In fact we saw one at anchor so now we know where Tom is (see below) but there was no sign of Leanne. 

Back to Harwood for the next bridge lift and because we were a couple of hours early we had to have a beer at the Harwood Hilton - top spot. From there back to Yamba to wait for the Strong winds to die off and allow us to make the leg to the Gold Coast. The way it looks we won't make Ballina but rather head straight to the seaway. After that it will be up the inside to Manly and from there to Mooloolabah where we'll leave the boat for the wet season.

All is going well and we'll be home mid November for the summer.

Whales and Hornets

Look up at the FA18's and you miss the Whales, look for the Whales and you miss the Hornets! It's all a bit head spinning.

Left Port Stephens at about 2.00pm Tuesday 11 and enjoyed a cracking sail until about 9.00pm when the wind dropped out and caused us to motor the rest of the way to Port Macquarie. Instruments still not 100% with AWS displaying when it feels like it and Rev Counter giving up the ghost altogether. No amount of wise peering at its innards will coax it into action. Not a big deal but will need to be replaced when we get to Mooloolabah.

Spent a weekend in the Hunter boozing up and replenishing the cellar. Top spot the Hunter but I reckon their reds are a bit light on. Maybe they're "elegant"; wasted on me. Nevertheless we found enough to keep us lubricated for the next few months. Some chick called Bradman was playing at one of the wineries but women's cricket has never been my go so we gave that a miss. (If we had known she was performing we would have booked). 

We had bent a staunchion in Sydney so a few days in Port Stephens offered the opportunity to replace it but "overnight" delivery turns out to be 3 days plus in these parts and the staunchion is (hopefully) following us to Yamba which is our next stop. We're now in Port Macquarie which is bigger than expected and a nice enough place. Marina is small but we managed to snaffle a berth and we're tied up and sitting out the rain! We crossed the bar on the ebb about two hours after high with no problems although the sector light is hard to see with sun behind you. No drama though and the bloke who runs the marina is very helpful. 

We hear that Coffs Harbour is still out of action after the big East Coast low blow earlier in the year so with the weather we see we will make a 24 hour run to Yamba and the Clarence river starting tomorrow morning. The plan is to spend 3 or 4 days in the river and then head to Surfers for an overnight stop. Then up the seaway to Manly and on to Mooloolabah. Should be up there in about 2-3 weeks and we'll tidy up the boat for a few days, arrange for a haul out and anti foul, re pitch the prop (need to go faster) and a couple of other bits and pieces before heading back to Melbourne for a few months. There are whiting to kill.

Lazy days in Broken Bay

Rounded Barrenjoey head and tied up at Prince Alfred about 5.00 pm on the 28th. Fantastic facilities and very friendly/helpful staff. Got in touch with Michael from Aquatronics and he installed some new second hand wind instruments to fix our problems. He didn't want all our money either which makes him unique in the industry!

We kept our eye out for John Howard as we passed Palm Beach but he was nowhere to be seen - no great disappointment to me I might add.

Broken Bay is a beautiful spot surrounded by the Kuringai Chase national park and our first destination was Refuge Bay so we could compare with our "own" Refuge. Apparently some say Refuge Bay is the best anchorage in the world. Well, they haven't been to Wilsons Prom have they. It is pretty good but doesn't have the charm of our Refuge Cove. It was Labor Day long weekend up here so there were boats everywhere and jet skis (sea fleas) all over the place. Still, it was a top spot to send the night on one of the many moorings that are available to the public all through the waterway. 

I was starting to get anxious as GF day was fast approaching and we couldn't get TV signal so on Saturday am we upped anchor and headed up the Hawkesbury to Brooklyn (as far as we could get because of the Railway bridge) but still no good. Now it's 11 am Saturday and the Swans are warming up. We turned around and heads for Patonga where there is a pub. Picked up someone's mooring and booked a table front row in front of the tellie. It's pretty special sitting in a pub and be able to turn around and see your boat at anchor 200 yards away. If my old dad could see me now what would he say? "Bourgeois little bastard" probably.

We had tied the dinghy up to the pier and as we were watching the footy it blew under jetty on a flooding tide. So, after the disappointment of the footy we wandered down to go back to the boat only to find poor Penelope somewhat deflated. Some kind souls had seen what was happening and realized that the only way they could retrieve her was to let some air out. So they did that and pulled her out from under but there were oysters everywhere and we suffered some small tears and subsequent slow leaks. I jumped in and handed off to the boat to pump her up so I could back and get the skipper. Halfway back to the boat Penelope began to bend in two and looked like sinking. Slow right down and shift weight and we'll make it, won't we? Well, we did, just, and I pumped her up and went back and retrieved the skipper. 

Next day it was off up Cowen Creek to spend time in the many beautiful bays and inlets for the next couple of days. A highlight was Cottage Point, a truly beautiful little spot with a general store/cafe where tied up briefly. Because it was the long weekend there were lots of people so we couldn't stay as long as we would have liked. Not to worry, there's plenty to see and we continued up the "creek" (it's huge) to Jerusalem Bay and Bobbin Head and Cotton Tree bay picking up one of the many public moorings and camping a night here and a night there. A truly beautiful place in the world.

Concerned about the weather, we turned and headed for Coasters Retreat in Pitwwater for lunch before returning to RPAYC for shelter and a wash (us and the boat). Arrived with a 20-25 knot norwester and docked to boat to the thunderous applause from the boat boys who helped us tie up.

Tomorrow the weather looks OK so we'll head for Port Stephens and the Hunter Valley.

A few pics below to try and give an idea of what it's all about.