Australia 2013: Down Under

Manly to Darwin, Australia

Day 1 – 10 May 2013 – Manly to Mooloolaba

We finally did it! After a year at the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron, working and getting to know one another, making ready for our travels, Roger and I have started our journey! We saw the most beautiful rainbows as we left the harbor and sailed into Moreton Bay, then had a dolphin escort along the way, with one feisty fellow jumping clear out of the water and landing with a belly flop back down. We reached Mooloolaba in the late afternoon and enjoyed a nice sunset.

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Day 2 – 11 May 2013 – Mooloolaba to Double Island Point

We caught the tide out and sailed up the coast to Double Island Point. It was very rocky out there and the boat, with her big round pregnant-guppy belly, tends to roll profusely though steadily along. I feel confident that this lovely yacht, solidly re-built by the capable hands of my partner, will safely carry us around the world.

Day 3 – 12 May 2013 – Double Island Point across Wide Bay Bar to Pelican Bay

The winds and waves were up and we decided early not to risk crossing the tricky bar in the morning, but when several lesser boats decided to head over and cross late in the afternoon, we followed suit. It was a bit of a washing machine across the bar, but we made it safely into the anchorage at the entrance just at dark. It was much calmer and we had a lovely dinner and a nice hot shower before climbing into bed for a good night snooze.

Day 4 – 13 May 2013 – Pelican Bay to Big Woody Island, Sandy Straits

We left at a civilized 8AM timed to take advantage of the tides in the estuaries behind Fraser Island. We worked our way through some very shallow areas, but made it through and set anchor mid-afternoon.

Day 5 – 14 May 2013 – Big Woody Island to Bundaberg

Yesterday we sent in our paperwork to join the “Sail Indonesia” rally. We’re all set and will be leaving Darwin on July 27th. That means we’ve got to keep moving along. We have something like 2000 miles to get from Manly to Darwin and only about 7 weeks to do it in. We definitely won’t be able to hang around any one place too long. We woke this morning to a very rainy and calm day. We’re planning to motor over to Bundaberg, about 50 miles (and at 5-6 knots/hour that’s 10 hours or so).

Day 6 – May 15, 2013 – Bundaberg to Turkey Beach

We left Bundaberg pre-dawn and decided to work our way along the coast rather than straight north to Lady Musgrave Island, because tomorrow’s forecast calls for strong winds and rain. It is best not to be out at a reef with no protection from the wind. We’ll need to save the Capricorn Cays for when we get back around again. It was a long day, 75 miles over 12 hours… 5:30am – 5:30pm, and we anchored at Turkey Beach, just north of Bustard Head.

Day 7 – May 16, 2013 – Turkey Beach to Gladstone

We headed into Gladstone early… about 9 miles into the harbor to the marina where we arranged for a berth for a day in order to pick up the new VHF radio we had delivered up from Sydney overnight. The town of Gladstone is fairly industrial and not very scenic, but the park and waterfront by the marina were nice. We would have enjoyed a leisurely walk, but it was pouring down rain the entire day, so we decided not to venture out beyond the little bait and tackle store next door to buy an area cruising guide and arrange for fueling up in the morning. We snuggled in for the afternoon, reading up on places to anchor further north and had a bowl of nice hot chili for dinner before heading to bed to read a bit and then snooze early for a pre-dawn start tomorrow.

Day 8 – May 17, 2013 – Gladstone to Hummocky Island

We start week 2 by fueling up and heading out of the Gladstone channel. We sailed nicely, if a bit slowly, up the coast. Since the winds were non-existent, we decided to motor to a closer island and enjoy a bit of the afternoon there. Up until now we’ve been ariving at sunset or later and pushing out early the next morning, so this was a very welcome change. We sat in the cockpit and read to each other then watched a beautiful sunset. Friday is “date night”, which means pizza night…. yum. Time to go fix that now! Tomorrow we have a short 20-mile sail to Great Keppel Island and will take a “Joy” ride (I named the dinghy “Joy”) to explore the beaches and island.

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Day 9 – May 18, 2013 – Hummocky Island to Great Keppel Island

A short day motor-sailing, we arrived at Keppel Isle at 1pm. After a yummy tuna noodle salad for lunch, we piled into Joy (our dinghy) and headed for the beach. A beautiful long stretch of flat sand, we walked along, hand in hand. It was so lovely and so satisfying. Back on board, we enjoyed a hot shower, a stir-fry for dinner and a good movie before turning in. We were heading out early in the morning for a long trip up the coast to the Whitsundays, on our first overnight passage.

Day 10/11 – May 19, 2013 – Great Keppel Island overnight

We woke just before dawn and motored out of the anchorage with the first hints of light on the horizon. We decided we would sail through the night and arrive in the Whitsundays late the following afternoon, rather than going 75 miles in two separate day sails… pushing it if we wanted to arrive and anchor before sunset. The winds have been light, requiring us to motor-sail the entire way.

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Day 11 – May 20, 2013 – overnight to Shaw Island’s Venus Shoal

Following our overnight sail, the morning broke brilliantly as we were off the coast by Mackay. Roger let me sleep longer than I should have, and I awoke just before sunrise as he was calculating the path of possible intersection between our boat and a freighter steaming into port. We continued along our way and arrived at Shaw Island by mid-afternoon, which was good, as we had some challenges setting the anchor securely. Once that was taken care of, a hot shower and yummy stir-fry with rice noodles was about all we could manage before heading into the nest at 8pm to bed and a sound sleep snuggled up together. Life is very good indeed.

Day 12 – May 21, 2013 – Shaw Island to Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island

We made our way from Shaw Island over to Whitsunday on an ebbing tide, which helped us speed through the passage. Whitehaven beach is gorgeous, with miles of pure white talcum powder sand. We were anchored close in and rowed Joy to the beach for a lovely long walk. There were heaps of tourist activities with party boats, seaplanes and helicopters in addition to a gaggle of charter boats. There were also a lot of turtles in the area and we couldn’t believe it when an enormous ancient turtle surfaced right next to the boat. We were mesmerized. There were also little dolphins and along the passage to Whitehaven, we saw a baby reef shark (not more than half a meter long) chasing after something in the water.

Day 13 – May 22, 2013 – Whitehaven Beach to Nara Inlet on Hook Island

The forecast called for a bit of weather for tonight and Thursday, so we motored up from Whitsunday Island to Hook Island and tucked up into a small inlet protected from the North and Southwest. A gaggle of boats came in over the course of the afternoon, which made us feel a bit hemmed in and tight. We pulled down the genoa to dismantle the furler, which seemed to be harder to use and just barely got everything reassembled and the sail hoisted and stowed before the wind gusts started kicking up. We may head out today and further north to Butterfly Bay, which was highly recommended by two friends, before making our way towards Townsville and out of the Whitsunday Island group tomorrow.

Day 14 – May 23, 2013 – Nara Inlet

We’ve decided to stay put today (a rainy day), to rest up a bit before heading to Magnetic Island by Townsville. We’ve been on the move every day, so it’s nice to catch up on emails, update the blog, read and just relax a bit. We’ll keep Butterfly Bay for a return visit. I’m very excited about our next destination, which is said to be chock full of koalas, rock wallabies and other wonderful Aussie wildlife. You simply can’t have too many pictures cuddling koalas! We’ll either sail overnight or stop at Sharks Bay along the way, depending on wind conditions. For now, a little relaxation and a pizza for dinner sounds great.

Day 15 – May 24, 2013 – Nara Inlet, Whitsundays to Horseshoe Bay, Magnetic Island

We left before sunrise as we weren’t sure whether we’d stop at Sharks Bay along the way or press on with an overnight passage, which we decided on in the end. The winds were blustery from 10 – 15 knots, then increasing to 15 – 25 knots with whitecaps. We had to reef in several times as we were zooming up the coast at over 7 knots/hour. We arrived at Horseshoe Bay at about 4:30AM and after anchoring we slid into bed for a few hours of deep sleep.

Day 16 – May 25, 2013 – Horseshoe Bay, Magnetic Island

We awoke after a good solid 4-hour sleep to a beautiful sunny anchorage. After brekky and a little research about the island, discussing whether this would be secure and protected enough for the upcoming days of high winds, we packed tuna sammies and headed for shore. We beached “Joy” and ate lunch on the beautiful beach, gazing out at the bay with our boat in the distance. We headed for my priority destination, the Bungalow Bay Koala Village, where we took a 2-hour tour of their Koala park and had many close encounters with their residents. Of course, top billing went to a cuddle with Mathilda, one of their koalas, but second up was Harry, the southern hairy-nosed wombat. We were able to get up close to him and scratch him on his forehead, which was a treat. There were also the usual suspects… crocs, pythons, lizards (with and without blue tongues), turtles, cockatoos and then a surprise tarantula at the end. It was a great afternoon and I love any opportunity to hold a koala. I’m happy to pay the “photo fee” and have my souvenir picture with all the koalas I can while we’re still here “down under”. Magnetic Island has the biggest and healthiest population of koalas in all AU, with 900 of them on the island compared to only about 1200 in all Queensland. So sad that their numbers are diminishing and they are now endangered because of the careless behavior of humans.

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Day 17 – May 26, 2013 – Horseshoe Bay

We had a great night sleep and awoke to sunny skies and calm winds. We headed over to the Sunday market to provision but the market was more for “creative” things rather than a farmers market, so we had to go into the little food store to buy some lettuce… the only urgent item that couldn’t wait for a trip over to Nelly Bay on the other side of the island where they have a proper grocery store. After lunch, we set out again to do the Fort hike. The hike brought you to an old WW II outlook and gunnery base, with splendid views of the island. But the real highlight was seeing a koala in the wild!!!! It was breathtaking to see one in its natural habitat and I was delighted to have been able to experience this.

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Day 18 – May 27, 2013 – Horseshoe Bay

At the market yesterday, we met a cruising couple based here. Lyn and Allan on a 37′ Tayana invited us over for a barbecue today. They have a little bungalow at Horseshoe Bay, and as cruisers know what’s what, they invited us to bring any laundry to wash, which we will happily do. We also had a dinghy visit from Stephen and Wendy on a 49′ Jeanneau, who will also be joining the Sail Indonesia rally. We’ll chat with them before we head out. We had a wonderful time with Lyn and Allan at their little bungalow, and enjoyed a great BBQ!

Day 19 – May 28, 2013 – Horseshoe Bay

We took the bus into Nelly Bay to provision at the grocery, so we have enough produce for the next few days of cruising and are going to head out very early tomorrow in the morning. It’s been a great stay here at Magnetic Island!

Day 20 – May 29, 2013 – Horseshoe Bay to Mangrove Point, Hinchinbrook Channel

We left at 4AM this morning, waving our farewells to Magnetic Island… a place we totally enjoyed. It’s been a long day of motor-sailing. We crossed the bar at the south end of Hinchinbrook island at high tide (which is why we left so early) and at one spot had only 11 feet of water! Yikes!!! Once in the estuaries behind the island, we had a lovely trip continuing north. Mangroves to port and mountains and lush greenery to starboard. We had the current with us until we reached the location we thought we’d anchor at the north end of the channel, but decided it was too exposed and then had to motor hard 6 miles back, against current and wind, to get back to a better spot. We’ll head out early tomorrow (but not quite soooo early) to catch the ebbing tide and arrive at our next destination at close to high tide. For tonight, a yummy egg scramble and a hot shower for the weary crew, before they crawl into bed.

Day 21- 22 – May 30 – 31, 2013 – Hinchinbrook Channel to Mourilyan Harbor

This was a tight little anchorage and the wind had kicked up in gusts, so Roger didn’t sleep much that night and we decided to stay an extra day to rest up a bit. Next stop would be Cairns!

Day 23 – June 1, 2013 – Mourlyan to Cairns

We arrived in Cairns late afternoon and had a very difficult time setting the anchor. We couldn’t set it where we first intended and it took a good number of tries before we finally got an acceptable (but still not great) hold.

Day 24 – 33 – June 2 – 10, 2013 – Cairns

We went ashore and arranged for our dive trip and training. What an adventure! I was very nervous, but Roger assured me that by the end of the training and dives I would feel confident and totally at ease. I wasn’t sure I believed him at the time, but he was right. Monday and Tuesday were classroom and pool training, then we headed out to the outer reefs of the Great Barrier Reef for three days and two nights. Roger was doing his advanced PADI certification and I was doing my basic Open Water PADI certification. I also did the “Adventure Diver” course which certifies me to dive to 30 meters (~100 ft) rather than the 18 meters (60 ft) in the basic course. It was amazing to dive with all the beautiful fish, coral and TURTLES!!!!! We both got some new equipment… fantastic Probe wetsuits that fit perfectly for us both, booties and fins that work great, and Roger got a new better-fitting mask with corrective lenses. He also got a GoPro… a great new underwater video camera that’s tiny and takes awesome pictures.

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As part of the Adventure Divers course, I needed to do a night dive and one deep dive, plus two other course segments you could choose. The night dive was scary and cool at the same time. There were reef sharks circling around the boat, though these fellows aren’t dangerous (or so they say!) We each had a torch (flashlight) and the instructor pointed out the sharks, a mackerel and “Brian” the huge 149 year old resident turtle. I wouldn’t say that I’d never do a night dive again, but I also wouldn’t say that it was a highlight and something I’d be particularly eager about. I was also very nervous about the deep dive (I went to 96 ft!) but it went smoothly. There’s something called “narcosis”, where the body absorbs more nitrogen at depths and it can make you a little slow thinking and confident. I was afraid I’d get that and decide to do something stupid like take my regulator out of my mouth, but I didn’t feel any different and all was well. After those two dives, the last two (photography and a free dive with your buddy) were great and I did feel much more comfortable. The course and the dives on board the boat was all very fast-paced and hectic, but great. We returned to our boat in the late afternoon on Friday completely exhausted. We couldn’t stay awake past 7:30PM and then slept for about 11 hours.

What an amazing experience this all was, and diving on the Great Barrier Reef was terrific. I’m so glad we did that! We’re resting all day on Saturday after washing the saltwater out of our gear, then will take the dinghy into Cairns tomorrow. We’ll be leaving for Port Douglas on either Monday or Tuesday depending on how we feel and weather conditions.

Day 34 – 36 – June 10 – 12, 2013 – Port Douglas

We traveled from Cairns to Port Douglas at a leisurely pace and then spent 3 nights at the marina in town, as it was very shallow with no room to anchor in the harbor. We had a chance to do all our laundry, vacuum, replace the genoa furling assembly and provision for the next 3 weeks until we get to Darwin. We also got to spend some time with my friend Jo. I missed the great Sunday market this trip 🙁 but we’ve spent a lot of money just recently, so best not to shop for any more treasures. The marina wasn’t very nice which surprised me because Port Douglas is such an upscale resort location. I also missed my last koala cuddling opportunity while we were in Oz, but having cuddled at Magnetic Island, I suppose I should be set for a while.

Day 37 – June 13, 2013 – Port Douglas to Hope Island

We had a lovely 45-mile sail up to a little island surrounded and protected by reefs. There were lots of coral “bommies” (coral heads), so we were delighted to find one of the two public mooring balls available. That way we know we won’t drag the anchor or get it wrapped around any coral. Once anchored, I got busy making a huge batch of veggie lasagna… for dinner tonight and several meals in the freezer for overnight passages.

Day 38 – June 14, 2013 – Hope Island to Lizard Island

We had a smooth day of motor-sailing as it was a long haul to Lizard Island and we wanted to make sure we arrived before dark. The anchorage is nice in beautiful clear water. We saw several black-tipped reef sharks and a number of fish which scooted under our boat as soon as we were anchored.

Day 39 – 41 – June 15 – 17, 2013 – Lizard Island

We are resting up here at Lizard. We have a good solid anchor set and despite wind gusts of up to 35 knots, we’re holding our ground. I have a bit of a cold and Roger hasn’t been sleeping well, so he is tired. But we made a yummy pizza last night and we slept reasonably well, so we are feeling better. After brekky (Aussie for “breakfast”) we paddled Joy over to shore and then hiked up to Cook’s Lookout, on the very top of the ridge. It was the place Cook determined that he would sail out to sea on Endeavor, rather than risk the string of reefs he saw extending as far as the eye could see. The top of the ridge was about 1000 ft or more and had spectacular views all around. The view down to the bays and reefs was simply gorgeous with varying shades of blue and green. We walked along the beach of Mrs. Watson’s cove and then paddled back to the boat. After lunch, we climbed into our wetsuits and went for a snorkel around the reef just beside the boat. Parts of it were dead, but much of it was alive with giant clams, colorful coral (actually, it isn’t the coral itself that is colorful, but rather the color is provided by the algea that live on the coral… we learned that at the “Reef Teach” program in Cairns!). The fish were beautiful too, with the ever-colorful and coral-munching parrot fish, a huge wrasse and an electric blue little fish that defied any description… it was fluorescent and about the color of runway lights, but that doesn’t do justice to it at all. Back on the boat, we rinsed off and relaxed. We had a good night sleep and were ready to take off the next morning.

Day 42 – June 18, 2013 – Lizard Island to The Flinders Island Group

We set out at first light with the intention of heading to Ninnian Bay, but decided we would head further north and anchor behind Cape Melville. We’d have plenty of time to get there in daylight. That area is a national park and a dugong sanctuary, and I was enchanted with the idea of a possible siting of one or more of these lovely creatures. However, when we got around the tip of the cape, the wind was blowing 30 knots and there were white caps well into the bay. We decided it would be too uncomfortable to anchor there and decided to press on to the Flinders Group, another 14+ miles. We thought we’d have just enough time to squeak in there and anchor with a bit of light. Just at the entrance to the channel between the two bigger islands of the group, we saw a group of dolphins. They were probably feeding, as they didn’t come alongside the boat to play and ride the bow. Still, any dolphin siting is a good sign and it made us smile. We pulled up at the anchorage just at last light, but had trouble setting the anchor. The third time was the charm and it was a relatively quiet night parked next to a few of the boats traveling north to join the rally as well.

Day 43 – June 19, 2013 – The Flinders Islands to Morris Island

We weren’t sure whether we’d stay a day at Flinders, but after the long day prior (85 miles) we decided not to set the alarm and slept in until 7am. Roger didn’t sleep well, so we thought maybe we’d stay another day. Then we thought maybe we would continue on. Then we thought maybe we should stay and try to repair the display in the cockpit which seemed to be losing color and acting up in general. Then we thought that it probably wouldn’t help anyway and might as well go. In the end, we decided to go, but didn’t get under way until about 8:30am, which meant we’d need to motor-sail all or part of the way. We decided that we’d needed to be more decisive in the future. 🙂 

Roger has a unique process for killing the fish once caught, so that it doesn’t suffer a prolonged death. He pours some scotch (which we don’t drink, so this is a good use for it) into a bucket with the fish in it and it seems to anesthetize and kill them quite quickly. We have three meals from this fish, the first one being tonight’s dinner and the other two are in the freezer. We honor this fish and are appreciative for its sacrifice to nourish us. We don’t usually have to hunt/kill our meals, so we don’t think about it as personally as we might. I’m thankful to have the luxury of abundance in all aspects of life, including the very basics of food, clothing and shelter of choice. The winds came up quite suddenly, and we sailed all afternoon, arriving at Morris Island in full daylight. We anchored by this small island, with its large reef and although not protected from the 20+ knot winds, the seas are calm, so it’s very comfortable.

Day 44 – June 20, 2013 – Morris Island to Portland Roads

We were the last of three boats to head off in the morning, getting a leisurely start at 7:30am. We had a lovely day and sailed almost the entire way. Portland Roads is the last outpost of civilization north of Cooktown before you get to Cape York, but aside from a few cottages, we didn’t see anything. One of the other rally boats said there was a good seafood restaurant on shore, but since we have THE best restaurant on board, we decided to stay “home” and make a pizza.

Day 45 – June 21, 2013 – Portland Roads to Cape Grenville

The same three yachts from Morris Island were anchored at Portland Roads, and once again we were the last to hoist the anchor and head out. We weren’t sure whether we’d stop and spend the night at Cape Grenville, or if we’d continue through the night up to Albany Island/Passage. The timing of arrival there is critical to ensure the strong currents are running in your favor. Currents through that area and up into the Torres Straits can run up to 8 knots, which means with all of our power (motor and sail) we’d be at a standstill at best against the current. With the current, we’d be zooming along at 13 – 15 knots! In the end, the winds were up to 30 knots and the seas were rough. Instead of fighting that for the 30-mile stretch with wind behind us, we decided to head in to an anchorage protected by Cape Grenville and leave out tomorrow in the afternoon to time the tides/currents. We had a good night sleep and felt rested in the morning. The anchorage is nice but there are lots of other boats here.

Day 46 – 47 – June 22 – 23, 2013 – Cape Grenville (Margaret Bay) over Cape York to Seisia

We had a leisurely morning and lunch at Margaret Bay waiting until afternoon before hoisting the anchor and heading north overnight in order to arrive at the entrance to Albany passage at first light and when the tide turns and begins flooding. Once past Cape York, the northern-most part of Australia on the mainland, we will be leaving the Coral Sea and the Pacific Ocean behind. That is quite a milestone in our adventures and the even longer adventures that Roger had on board prior to my joining him last year. We will be in the Torres Straits making our way to the Indian Ocean. How exciting!… but I’m getting ahead of myself. The way it actually turned out, we left about 2 hours too early. We were zipping along at over 7 knots and even with the genoa reefed in to just a patch of sail, we couldn’t slow down to less than 6.5 knots. So, we arrived at the entrance to Albany passage in the dark and with current still against us. We decided to take the safer route and head up and over Albany Island. The trip was a bit uncomfortable, we rolled, and rolled and rolled. Our boat, with her round little pregnant-guppy belly (Roger prefers “Buddha Belly”) likes to roll, so we didn’t get any sleep and were very tired by the time we set the anchor in Seisia. We napped a bit and will dinghy over to the little village tomorrow.

Day 48 – 50 – June 24 – 26, 2013 – Seisia

We enjoyed a few days at Seisia, meeting and chatting with a few of the boats that all piled into the tiny anchorage at the same time. There isn’t much to report on as far as the village goes, except that they do have a well-stocked little supermarket. We got a rotisserie “chook” (chicken) which was cooked just perfectly, but the produce was a little on the wilted side, though we got what we needed for the rest of the trip to Darwin.

Day 51 – 53 – June 26 – 28, 2013 – Seisia to Double Island Bay on Wessel Island, across the Gulf of Carpenteria

We left at about 9am to time the flooding tide and were off to cross the gulf… big milestone on this first part of our journey. The weather window seemed ideal, and in fact, the winds were too light at times so we had to motor-sail for hours at a time. We needed to maintain an average speed of 6knots so we would reach Wessel Island with enough daylight to get to the anchorage and get set among the gaggle of boats we are crossing with. On the other hand, we may just keep going if the weather is good. The trip was lovely, two nights and three days. On the afternoon of the second day, we were visited by a group of small dolphins. They were grey and only about a meter in length. They were dancing around the bow and weaving back and forth in groups of three and four. It is always a joy to see these lovely creatures, and have them come play with us as we travel. Shortly after the dolphins, we had another visitor… a brown booby bird who was determined to hitch a ride with us and rest overnight.

We decided on day three to stop at Wessel Island rather than continuing straight on for another two days to Crocker Island, because we are expecting some weather with high winds to come in on Sunday. We didn’t want to take any chances and get caught in rough seas, so we thought it would be better to anchor with the pack and wait for a good window. As it was, coming around the top of Cape Wessel was a bit hairy with 4-meter seas and mixed up like a washing machine. But the boat and “Raypuss” (nickname for our auto pilot) handled it all perfectly. We saw two huge turtles floating along on the surface of the water… very cool. Tomorrow is my 55th birthday, and so I will get to spend it in a lovely little anchorage. More importantly, I get to sleep all the way through the night. Birthday dinner?… why yes, I would love to have a pizza. Roger got me a dark chocolate bar with “intense coconut”, so pizza and a movie and chocolate… all on our lovely yacht down in the land down under… sweeeeet.

Day 54 – June 29, 2013 – Double Island Bay, Wessel Island on my 55th Birthday!

What a wonderful birthday!!! Before even getting out of bed, Roger surprised me with a wonderful birthday present. Somehow, he had slipped away unnoticed in Port Douglas, went to the pearl and opal center we had visited, and picked out a beautiful opal necklace for me. It sparkles and has a brilliant rainbow of colors from the typical blues and greens to a fiery red, orange, and even an intense purple. This little shop is a family-owned business and they do the opal mining themselves, the jewelry design and creation, and then run the retail shop in town. So, the opal I am now wearing is really a special piece and even more special because Roger thought about what I like (simple, elegant and a little asymmetrical) and planned ahead to get it for me as a surprise. We then had our porridge for brekky… why have anything else since we love our porridge and it is so good for us? We enjoyed the day, resting and puttering, then prepared to go over to a neighboring boat for what was planned as an informal cocktail party but turned into a birthday party for me. There are eight boats in this anchorage on the west side of the Gulf… really in the middle of nowhere. So how cool to have 8 couples (I think everyone was there) all together enjoying a nice party. We’re not much for lots of socializing and big parties, but this one was just great.

When we first arrived on board, there were several renditions of the “Happy Birthday” song, one accompanied by a ukulele! Everyone brought something… there was fresh sushi from a tuna that someone caught, two birthday cakes, we made fresh trevally fish salad from the fish we caught and brought hummus, veggies and crackers to go with it, and everyone brought whatever they wanted to drink. We brought a bottle of red wine that Roger’s sister had sent us for the holidays… all was yummy. I can’t think of a better birthday celebration. Originally, we were going to have pizza and the coconut chocolate bar to celebrate, but since it will still be my birthday in the US tomorrow, we’re going to celebrate again! 🙂

Day 55 – 81 – 30 June – 26 July, 2013 – Wessel Islands to Darwin and Anchored in Fannie Bay Darwin

(Updated: 19 October 2013)

Unfortunately, I somehow managed to delete the wrong file in progress and have lost the month of July as we sailed from the Wessel Islands over the top of Anthem Land (a very rough passage) and then worked our way against current and towards Darwin. We spent 3 weeks anchored in Fannie Bay, mostly getting ready for our trip into Indonesia, but also enjoying some socializing with friends. I’m sorry to have lost the details of those weeks, as it is now a distant memory, although it was just 3 months ago. Rats!