Summer Sizzles On

We are now in Autumn but the days are continuing to get up to 35 C, however we are now having cooler nights and a few cooler days.

Cottelsoe Beach had their annual Sculptures By The Sea, which was a lot of fun. Some great ideas. In the background above are a group of sticks with wind vanes on them. They create music through a bamboo tube ..like Indonesian Angklungs. We will have to go listen when we get a huge sea breeze!

What else would one do but enjoy Gelati by the beach??

We now have our Kiwi Prop from NZ..feathering prop as opposed to folding.....we now hope that we can motor at around 6 - 7 knots. Now that would be novel for us! Wonderful service from the Kiwis of course! We are also in the market for an assy, so hopefully less motoring and more sailing in light breezes. People had said to us that we would suffer from not having light air sails in the Pacific...should have listened...maybe then our gear box would have made it to Fiji and saved us a heap....

Bundaberg is recovering from the floods and we hope to be back on board in June, then back here for 10 days in July to mind the grandchildren whilst Emily and Mark take a holiday.

Hitchhiker, with Sam and Barn are doing Hamilton Is Race week, so we will head up to there with Stolen Kiss, then down to Sydney for the summer. We have invites to go to Magnetic Is Race week, so if we can make it we will. (A taste of racing here and we just can't help ourselves!!)

Due to the number of yachts last year that overstayed their visas in French Polynesia, the government has had a severe crack down from this year.....an interesting year if those crossing the Pacific are not up to scratch on their info.

http://www.noonsite.com/Countries/FrenchPolynesia/french-polynesia-hefty-fines-if-a-yacht-and-crew-overstay-permitted-time

As for our refund from Customs/Ozone, apparently they are ensuring that yachts importing next year will not be charged...so beware...you do not have to pay the Ozone Tax, even if Customs say you have to. If anyone is in contact with Ganga and Happy Cat, who were made to pay the tax in Coffs, let them know about pursuing a refund. We have not got ours yet, but apparently it is coming!

HOT OFF THE PRESS....Refund has been approved and should be in our bank next week! Thanks to Customs. Department of Sustainability ....hopefully their poor legislation can be changed with a change of government later in the year. (We live in hope!) Such a scam. So....if you are importing a yacht into Australia, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO PAY OZONE TAX! Bundaberg is now clear on this, lets hope other ports are!

We are both gainfully employed and are meeting our wish list for the boat! We miss cruising and especially the wonderful people we have met!

Sizzling Summer in Perth

Summer in Perth...our first for a very long time! There is nothing like it. Between xmas and New Year, we have had a week of temperatures hovering around 40 degrees Celsius. Only 1 place to be......at the beach!!

We might not have palm trees, but we have lots of space and amazing white sand and gloriously clear water!

Our time has been flying by with Peter working and dividing our time between the grandchildren and boating with friends. What else does one do when away from Stolen Kiss???

A weekend down south with the 4 grandchildren on our own was just delightful. The two older ones are self sufficient so there are only the two smaller ones to really watch out for. 

Every year our friend Timmy takes his Grand Banks to Rotto for the Kite Surfing race back to Fremantle. 

The trip down the river and over to Rotto is just as enjoyable with Di and Gorbar also at the ready. 

The harbour is nice and quiet before xmas. The white building represents an upside down dinghy and is our Maritime Museum.

We got to spend lunch in Thompson's Bay whilst Timmy went to the briefing. Very quiet here as well!! A different story over the xmas break.

It takes the kite surfers around 26 minutes to do the 9km dash. By the time we finish the start, get anchors up and move off, they are half way there. What a spectacle!! They had a 22 knot sea breeze, so a little wind for them.

The local rag published a great photo of the start boat from the beach!!

Peter's two boys had some of the xmas cooking in hand......most of the men in our family are the chef's! Good role modelling from their dad!!

Kingpins of the Kimberley

Crocodiles of course!!!!!!



Having observed that most, if not all, Darwin yachties have ‘tinnies’ (as in the dinghy variety) we re-visited the Kimberley with somewhat a little more circumspection in our RIB. The old adage that inflatables were ‘teething rusks for crocodiles’ was echoed by more than one person! Perhaps it was because we would be there on our own this time that we decided we should be savvier and go prepared on any expeditions in the dinghy. So off we would go armed with spare water (in case we got stranded) and the verey pistol to defend ourselves against any crocodile that decided we could be fair game or in the slight chance we wanted to attract (wanted) attention!

The thought that we would be there on our own was merely wishful thinking! In 2003 we did not see any other yachts (except the two we were in company with) for 9 weeks until the King George River where we found one charter yacht and two other yachts from Darwin. This time (July) there was a total of 21 boats during our two week stay. Whilst this may sound alarmingly like being in the middle of a metropolis, we still managed to spend 4 days anchored on our own up the river. The wave of boats coming and going was in response to the tidal variation which did or did not allow you across the bar. There were considerably more charter boats this year than there had been in the past which were always more active. The Orion anchored out in Koolama Bay and had ribs full of happy punters going to and fro from the falls or whizzing around in the helicopter.

We also managed a quiet walk alone up the cliff and along the river, (with many cairns to guide us) which was beautiful and cool (if not freezing!). Apparently about 5km along the river there
are some wonderful aboriginal paintings, although we only walked for approximately 2km.

The King George was just as majestic as we had remembered it. The ochre colours of the towering cliffs in the early morning and sunset, along with the contrast of the pale green vegetation were savoured every day. The only other aspect that had changed was the number of crocodiles! We saw only one at the entrance in 2003, which of course does not mean that there were not more lurking! Perhaps the increase in numbers spotted could be attributable to their rate of breeding, the time we spent there and the increased number of boats that has perhaps encouraged them to gather in waiting!

This time we took the dinghy up the East Arm to the waterfall and the rope climb. A plaid rope of considerable strength has been placed by the Navy to assist climbers (rather than stop them) which was a welcomed thought in preference to the usual ‘nanny approach’ we often see in Australia. Knowing our limitations (me vertigo and Peter his sore shoulders) we decided to watch others (a very agile Stylopora) do the climb. Perhaps it was the crocodile lurking at the bottom waiting in anticipation that also put us off!! News that a very large crocodile often sat across the entrance to the East Arm on a falling tide (scarier than the troglodyte under the bridge??) ensured our timing so we did not get caught up there at low water.

We think we may have met this crocodile a week later when we anchored just around the corner near the mangroves to shelter from the screaming wind. Nudging up to the mangroves to drop the pick (Peter always says we do not get close enough and I say we are too close!) we inadvertently upset a very large, gnarly old croc! We presume he was hunting there! Although camera shy and did not like us going up to the foredeck to look down on him (us refraining from hanging over the side!) he was there for a few days at sunset glaring at us! At least we did not drop the anchor on him!! Having realised after the first night that we were in so close that our anchor could only be retrieved at more than ¾ tide, we did in fact move out a little.

Two of the falls were flowing at the head of the river, which was more than last time! The idea of filling up the dinghy and having a bath was shelved quickly due to another crocodile lurking, but more so because of how utterly cold the water was! We managed to collect water to fill our tanks, do the washing and have a good old soak, but like the crocodiles we then had to lie in the sun to warm up. Our days there were very cool, so much so that we spent one windy day below with the hatches closed and me in a sleeping bag to keep warm! It’s the first time in 5 years that we have not had to use the fans.

After the first week there we thought we may have had a good weather window to go down to the Berkley River, some 75 miles SE of the King George. We came out across the bar following other yachts who drew more than us to see if they had a deeper track than ours. Indeed they did but thinking that we would not be going back, I only glanced at our track rather than actually tracking our course on the charts. Our plan was to anchor over in ‘Koolama Cove’ near the beach, go for a walk then leave at night for the Berkely. We had to wait for the crocodile to finish basking on the beach (where there are many turtle nests) before we could go for our walk. As the wind did not abate at night enough to our liking (SE wind on a SE course..hmmmm) we stayed put and decided, given the wind warnings, we would go back in the river. Stylopora elected to stay out in the cove, which apparently was a reasonable anchorage.

When we did finally exit the river again, we thought we would have enough water. (A 2m tide at nearby Lesueur Is gave us a minimum depth of 1m underneath us on our initial track.) However, the tide was a little lower than anticipated but given our shallow draft and a minute change in the tide over the next 3 hours, we forged on. I was a little slack in keeping a check on our progress; preferring to be on deck rather than looking at the chart. Just when we could see the deeper water 2 boat lengths ahead, we ran aground. Bugger!!!!!!!! Our sounder had been on 00 for about 100m! So over went Peter in the dinghy and off went the 15hp outboard! That was enough for me to reverse and float off. Whilst Peter was having fun with the hand held depth sounder that was for some reason only happy displaying water temperature, I quietly ambled past him to where we thought the channel was. At one stage Peter did not hear me and got a bit of a fright, looking up at the bow hanging over him and moving! I did see him!!

Unbeknown to us, going aground jammed the centreboard up inside its casing. We only realised this at dusk when we were setting off to cross the Joseph Bonaparte (aka blownapart) Gulf in the calmer waters of the evening. Peter knew that it was only a matter of levering it with a screw driver which would take a minute, however given our company on the beach previously….we had to live with it!

We never did make it down to the Berkley but neither did many other yachts for the same reason as us. One of the cats we spoke to in the King George had come from the Berkley and had to push through 2m breaking waves to get out. Not for us!! We had planned to use the other, deeper approach, but even so it did not sound good.

But we did have a sensational sail to and from the King George. We had no moon on the sail down, which meant amazing starry nights. Afternoon breezes filled in giving us a good sail under spinnaker. Two weeks later we had the full moon to keep us company at night. Our night watches were relaxed and we still treasure the fact that we can sail along under clear skies without squalls finding us!!!!!! It was rather fortunate that we did have a light sail back (motor sailing most of the way) as we made a reasonable amount of leeway with our board jammed up!!

We almost made it there and back without being buzzed by Coastwatch. Customs (really nice chaps) had come by in their centre console RIBS in the King George to check us out (a lousy job but someone has to do it!) and were just as surprised as us that we had escaped Coastwatch. However, about 60 miles out from Darwin, just on sunset as I was snuggled up in our cockpit, came the flyby; mast height, so we could eyeball each other!

A dawn approach to the Cox Peninsular had us enveloped in an eerie fog, lasting well after sun rise. Further on we could see the myriad of masts across Fannie Bay, announcing the arrival of the rally fleet. Even so, there was enough room for us to go and anchor a little way from the crowd.

A day or so later, Peter made a call to the local ‘crocodile watch’ to see if there had been any sightings ( there had been one on the beach near the yacht club a week before we left – apparently just passing by) so he could go over the side to free up the centreboard. I stood on guard with the verey pistol (Peter ensuring that I clearly understood that I would shoot at any crocodile and not at him!!) whilst Tony (Stylopora) monitored Peter’s safety rope from the dinghy. Not more than 40 seconds later, and the job was done!

Unfortunately we could only spend a little more time at anchor as we needed to secure a birth back at Tipperary Marina to finish our planned work on the boat and to go back to our day jobs. An American boat coming into the marina the following day cut the corner on a falling tide, went aground and ended up on his side (good time for a bottom job!) for a considerable amount of time. Coming out of the King George River could have been worse for us!!!!!!!!!

Kimberley Anchorages

Anchorages and Notes on cruising the Kimberley, Western Australia, June to August 2003.

The following notes are from our observations and anchorages we chose. Most of the time we were in the Kimberley, BOM were issuing Strong Wind Warnings for the region. As we were in sheltered waters most of the time, this was not a concern to us. We used fax and voice weather information to assist us with the times when we were in open water as we were fighting against the easterlies. In between the ridging Highs across Australia there is enough time to make a dash!

The Western Australian Cruising Guide is a valuable guide to this region. The 3rd edition is about to be published. Contact Fremantle Sailing Club.

Although some people are daunted about cruising in an area with around a 10m tidal range, with careful planning, problems are minimized. It is possible to get from one anchorage to another with the right tide. We were careful which areas we negotiated during spring tides and tried to avoid moving during such times, especially through areas where the tidal race was significant.

We found one uncharted rock (courtesy of a fisherman) and one rock that is charted incorrectly. Reference is made to these. As we did not fish from the boat or cook meat on board, we had no problems with excited crocodiles hanging around the boat or trying to mount the the dinghy, as they do! We lounged in the water where there was a sandy beach without any problems.

All sailing was day sailing until Seaplane Bay when we departed for Darwin. Unfortunately we did not have time to explore the Berkley River, which others have said was magnificent and better than the King George River – so it must be amazing! The Berkley would provide an even better place to depart for Darwin in the case of strong easterly winds.

Having lived in Wyndham for a period of time in a previous life, the Cambridge Gulf held no interest to us. As the saying goes ‘the Cambridge Gulf is the arse end of the world and Wyndham is 60 miles up it.’ That was my welcome to the town!

I did not record anchorage depths due to the tidal range. We never found depth to be a problem – either too much or too little.

Anchorages Broome to Darwin:

Broome, Cable Beach Gantheum Point
17 57.703 S 122 11.486 E
Sand. Good holding. Protected from SE

Cape Bertholet
17 15.68 S 122 09.59 E
Calm anchorage.

Beagle Bay
16 53 649 S 122 32.948 E
Calm. Watch out for rocks nearby. They are on the chart.

Thomas Bay
16 28.954 S 122 53 046 E
5 nm south of Cape Leveque, which is an alternative anchorage. (But less protected)

Hidden Island
16 12 618 S 123 27 394 E

Waypoints:

Hidden Is
16 12 959 S 123 25 746 E

Silica Bay
16 12.71 S 123 27.30 E

Sand! Stunning little bay out of the tidal race. White silica beach. Depth jumps up quickly at entrance, Anchor just inside. We anchored in 8m. The entrance to Silica Bay is difficult to see. We had a 5 knot tidal race in between the islands to get there. On heading north to Coppermine Creek, the suggested track takes you around a few reefs, which are noted on the chart.

Coppermine Creek
16 09.620 S 123 34 705 E
Protected anchorage

Crocodile Creek Entrance
16 09.2 S 123 39.9 E
Surveyed the creek in the dinghy to anchor up in the basin. Moved into the basin 2 hours before high tide. Bar will be exposed at low tide (we were not there in neaps or springs). Anchor and tie off to cliffs near ladder. Creek flows into pool during neaps/ springs, so beware of crocodiles! Another fresh water pool higher up. We had three yachts and a catamaran rafted together in basin. Lots of yachtie memorabilia.

Silver Gull Creek
16 10.799 S123 42.158 E
Phil and Marian live there. Go for a visit. Good water tank to sit in and have a drink. The most scenic toilet in the world!

Dog Leg Creek
‘Next door’ to Silver Gull. Could buy diesel there.
From Dog Leg Creek we went through ‘The Gutter’ which was not a problem. Deep and fast!

Horizontal Waterfalls
16 21.836S 123 57.323 E
Took the dinghy through just before slack water. Sensational. Lots of exploring around here. A friend of ours took their yacht through. We chose not to. Explored the cyclone anchorage nearby at 16 22.98 S 123 59.59 E.
Betweem Kingfisher and Melomys Is.
16 07.492 S 124 05.860 E
Calm anchorage, great fishing spot!

Raft Point
16 04 584 S 124 27.497 E
Aboriginal Paintings around the cliffs – on the east side there is a little pebble beach. Walk up to the cliffs to view ‘gallery’. There are many anchorages around here and places to explore like Sale River. Can also do a day trip out to Montgomery Reef from here. Many places to anchor between here and Sampson Inlet.

Sampson Inlet
15 29.443 S 124 29.354 E
Deep, calm anchorage. Cyclone moorings. Dugongs.

Anchored in Bay near High Bluff.
15 16.072 S 124 41.553 E
Camden Sound and Brecknock Harbour are stunning and worth exploring. Came through Quentin Channel, HW slack. Most shallow was 10m at NW entrance into Roger’s Strait. Min depth in Quentin Channel, 18m Kept to LHS of channel. Tide flooded north into Brecknock Harbour. Many anchorages around to choose from. We decided not to go up the Prince Regent River. Many other yachts have. We were on a time frame to get up to Singapore via Indonesia.

Careening Bay
15 06.127 S 125 0.249 E
Good sticky mud! Visited King’s tree!

Hunter River
15 00.588 S 125 27.002 E

Hunter River, Porosus Creek
15 01.56 S 125 24.99 E
Magnificent Entrance. From memory, there were some shallowish spots, but no problem. Lots to explore in the dinghy. Apparently there is a great waterfall up the RH arm of the river. We were there in an incredibly dry period so no waterfalls!
Uncharted rock between Thais Is and Murrarn Is. Keep well west.

Bigge Island, Bomerang Bay
14 32.642 S 125 07.136 E
Some yachts have gone through Scott Strait without any problems but after reading the pilot, we decided not to! Bigge Island is well worth exploring with some good walks. There are aboriginal paintings that are worth a look, but we could not find them!

Prudhoe Is
14 25.357 S 125 15.124 E
We came in the north entrance at LW with no problems. Look out for the rocky extension as you come around. Perhaps the other entrance has less hazards?? Many beaches around the island in clear water. We sat in the water on one beach on the north side of Prudhoe Is. There was a resident croc who came around one of the yachts we were with – they had cooked meat the night before and had just done the dishes! Stunning anchorage.

Krait Bay
14 14.758 S 125 36.032 E
We found that the ebb from Shelter Bay becomes the flood to Cape Voltaire. Near Krait Bay the tide appears to change and flood south???? Anchored in 15m mid tide. Lots of walks and exploring ashore.

Parry Harbour
14 01.720 S 126 01.325 E
Departed for Parry Harbour, Voltaire Passage, on ½ tide ebb. North through Lavolaler (Lavoisier?) Island, min depth 26m. Tide with us.

Freshwater Bay
14 00.783 S 126 10.941 E
Getting around Hat Point and Cape Bougainville a bit tedious with our first (and only) tidal overfalls we have found in the Kimberlies. Passed Eyre Reef to port. Not as bad as expected. Watch out for pearl farms around Freshwater Bay entrance. Freshwater Bay is stunning, protected and calm. Waterfalls and fresh water for laundry! Deep anchorage – anchored in 10m close in.

Honeymoon Bay
14 05.938 S 126 41.035 E
Although we went through to Honeymoon Bay, there are many anchorages around Vansittart Bay and Geranium Harbour to explore. There is an old landing ground in Vansittart Bay to explore. Planning the next passage is VERY important as AUS 318 chart we used (and electronic chart) has Middle Rock charted incorrectly. There is somewhat of a tidal race through here, so beware! I made the note that the correct position of Middle Rock is approximately 0.337nm on a bearing of 117 degrees from its chartered position; 13 58.1365 S 126 21.0059 E. At mid tide we followed the most turbulent water and had no less than 26m depth. Caravan Park here. Resident croc in the bay but an aboriginal girl took us swimming! Possible to get a lift into Kalumburu Mission for supplies (limited) and icecream! This area is alcohol free for obvious reasons, so please be responsible and not sell your beer to the locals! More depth in bay than shown on chart. Anchorage was in 5-6m of water.

Bruce’s Bay
13 48.664 S 126 45.344 E
Cape Londonderry is perhaps one of the most challenging of all capes in the Kimberley. One side has 4 tides per day and the other two! We waited this small bay just south of Cape Talbot for reasonable conditions as many other yachts had been absolutely hammered rounding Cape Londonderry.

Entrance to King George River, Koolama Bay
13 56.090 S 127 19.382 E

Waypoints we used, which may not necessarily be correct due to shifting bar. On coming out, deeper water approx 50m to the west of our track.

1. 13 57 01 S 127 19 71 E

2. 13 57 74 S 127 19 74 E

3. 13 57 82 S 127 19.8 E

Anchorage up at the falls:
14 02.301 S 127 19.656 E

We rounded Cape Londonderry before the high (in central Aus) ridged. We had 15-20 knot easterlies at the top of the Cape which was ok and we sailed around and down to King George River. There are other anchorages before King George River but as we were sailing, we continued on. We anchored 2200 hours. Could have anchored closer to cliffs but we came in with no moon and radar. No problems. Moon rose just as we anchored! The channel over the sand bar changes. There are many charter boats around to ask advice. A seaplane also lands just the other side of the sandbar. Our minimum depth was 3m. Made a note that the channel we used just happened to coincide with what was shown on the electronic charts. Enter near HW slack. Many anchorages in the river. Potentially great waterfalls that you can climb up but alas none for us due to the previous dry wet seasons.

Seaplane Bay
14 06.155 S 127 32.324 E
From King George River we went to Seaplane Bay to try to get a better angle on the strong easterlies to cross ‘Joseph Blownapart Gulf’ (as it is so affectionately called – with good reason as strong easterlies produce nasty seas here!) to Darwin. Seaplane Bay was quite rolly. Berkley River would be an excellent choice as an alternative! If it is possible to make eastings on your way up the gulf, there are some good anchorages on the way to Darwin.

Fannie Bay, Darwin
12 25 665 S 130 49 288 E
Although very shallow, it is possible to get a lot closer! It was very crowded when we were there and we were used to open spaces with no neighbours!

Broome to Darwin June July 2003

Tuesday seems the preferred day of departure for whatever reason, so on Tuesday 17/6/03 we upped anchor and were off! Dolphins and turtles were sighted again. Change of plan! Cruise the Kimberley and depart Darwin for Indonesia.

Our first destination was Cape Bertholet, some 42 miles north, which was no more than a place to anchor for a sleep. We sailed through the Willie Creek ‘anchorage’ to take a look at the impounded Indonesian fishing boats that have been confiscated. Apparently only 1 in 10 vessels are caught in Australian waters. It seems a shame and a waste to burn the boats. Everyone is just trying to survive in this world.

A surprise for everyone – we were first into the anchorage! Stolen Kiss does well on a reach! We powered along and enjoyed a great sail, beam reaching in flat water. Leaving Cape Bethlolet, we could then sail in the mornings and motor in the afternoon as the wind died. Our next anchorage was Beagle Bay – a very quiet, interesting place. We anchored on the north side of the bay after some discussion concerning the nearby rocks on the chart. As it was high tide, this was a worry. Still, we could see sand under the boat. On sunset, the falling tide revealed the rocks close by, (sounds of a waterfall when we were resting had us leaping about rather quickly!) so we decided that a more restful sleep would happen if we anchored further out. The 10m tides could be interesting! We managed a walk ashore and a swim. The ‘kids’ in the Cat (Waitpinga) were anchored on the southern side opposite us near the pearl farms.

Peter and I had consulted the Australian Pilot, various charts and from our observations, thought we had the direction of the flood and ebb tides sorted. Wrong! It was opposite to the Pilot going through Lacepede Channel. Perhaps we had an eddy! Our next destination was Thomas Bay. Whether or not to take this anchorage rather than Cape Leveque caused some discussion. By all accounts, the anchorage at the Cape was quite rolly. Thomas Bay was quiet and peaceful, even though it made for a long day to Hidden Island.

For some reason, we envisaged a fast reach across King Sound on an easterly as we could fall off to the north-west a little as the flood tide pushed us south-east. Wrong again! Motoring the rhumb line was the best course as the wind came around on the nose. In the end we gave up on any sort of compass course and followed the rumb line on maxsea. Due to the tide, our course over the ground was 40 degrees different to that of our compass course! Parts of the bay had the flood tide moving in opposite directions! We are definitely going round Australia the wrong way! Still, this is the first time we have had strong-ish winds up the whole coast – so no complaints.

By many other accounts, the channel that was to be negotiated in order to get into Silica Bay, Hidden Island was a nightmare with rushing tides that can carry you anywhere. A tads disconcerting in unchartered waters! Although we had tide against us, it was coming around to slackwater and therefore a little less than observed by others. (Timing is everything!) We were also coming into a period of neap tides. Peter, the experienced tidal yachtie from good old days in the Mother Country, decided to go to the north side of the channel to get out of the tide. Soon we were doing 5 knots over the ground (speeding compared to earlier parts of the day) and looking for Silica Bay. Mahdi decided it did not look like a good anchorage and continued on.

The bay was not obvious, but we knew it was there (accounts from Di and Heather) and that it was pretty sensational. We turned at the appropriate time and headed across, still doing 5 knots across the ground and not making any leeway. Miss Conduct had elected to stay along the southern shore and plodded along at 2 knots, only ending up 5 minutes behind us. We anchored just inside the entrance in the required depth for tidal variation and what magic bay lay before us; a stunning white sandy beach, in a small bay with high cliffs. By 1700 hours it was in the dinghy for a swim! (Swim is a loose term here as we were on crocodile watch whilst we wallowed in the shallows.) Port and coffee was shared on Stolen Kiss after dinner and after our guests departed at 1900 hours we collapsed for a well-earned sleep. So quiet!

0845 (Saturday) it was up and off to Coppermine Creek! We followed the suggested track from the cruising guide, which was a little tricky, as we had to wend our way around reef. Although the tide was ebbing and with us, we had to cross it, go round one reef, and then around another. With some initial confusion and some shared words with Peter on the helm (my directions were not specific enough and maxsea was a little tardy in keeping up with our heading in the tide) we managed to miss the first reef and find the other, which was where the chart said it was! Depth jumped up to 1.5 m underneath us. A bit of a giveaway as to the edge of the reef! All was ok and we made Coppermine Creek with no fuss. A big day with 9 miles on the log!

As we approached we could see Mahdi coming around the headland to join us. Coppermine Creek was a beautiful anchorage with an opportunity to explore the creek in the dinghies and to have a swim at the beach in front of us! Rod disturbed a large croc in the upper reaches in a small backwater. That was enough for me. We were out of there. If Peter wants such adventure, he will have to go with the ‘boys’. Everyone wants to see a croc, but after having lived in Wyndham and spent time in croc country, I do not share this desire, especially in a RIB! Funny that! I gave Peter the opportunity to develop his hairdressing technique in the afternoon and a planned ‘au natural’ swim was disturbed by the Mahdians.

An overnight stay at Coppermine Creek gave a welcomed opportunity for a rest. The last of the strong wind warnings had gone as a front had approached the SW of the state and the high moved on. At last! Next stop was Crocodile Creek! Although 5 miles away, we motor sailed in a fresh NE breeze over towards Cockatoo Island, then back towards the coast. Wind against tide proved to be a little lumpy at first. We wondered why we could see Mahdi driving up lots of spray in the distance. John called up Top Knot who were heading back to Broome. They had stayed in Crocodile Creek the day before and had the resident croc try to climb in their dinghy at night, just like Surreal John a few years earlier! They did not have an inflatable – unlike all of us! They were also chased from the waterfall by a large croc!

After the first half hour and away from the headland, the sea state and wind settled. We were some distance behind the others and could just make out Miss Conduct motoring along the cliffs. Joining the others at anchor at the entrance to Crocodile Creek, the ‘boys’ decided to investigate the creek and anchorage in the pond. They had a plan! Mahdi would come in first, whilst Miss Conduct and Stolen Kiss anchored in the creek, just outside the bar. Mahdi reversed towards the rock and John and Peter assisted in the tying up to the rope attached to the rock. John would go next, then us. All worked well and we were soon tied up with suitably, given the state of the tide. The huge ochre coloured overhanging cliffs were amazing, especially at first light. On completion, we scuttled up the ladder to look at the many plaques left by fellow yachties (a brown eye to the world from PJ on Highlander – good sketch!), many of which we knew. A welcomed swim in the fresh water pool, which was cold on top and warm underneath and drinks to finish of the day. MAGIC!

So here I sit in the early morning listening to the waterfall surrounded by beautiful red-ochre cliffs. Another shitty day in paradise, which slipped away at little when Oceanic brought in some tourists at 0845!

July 14 today and I thought I would add some more to this. We have since heard from Yo and Murray ‘Iluka’ that they were at Crocodile Creek two weeks before us in the spring tides and motored their dinghy into the first pool (where our waterfall was!) There could have easily been a croc still in the pool. Luckily for us we had ‘sports fan’ Rod in first! No sitting back for him!

On leaving Crocodile Creek (June 24) we made the short hop around to Silver Gull Creek. Phil and Marion usually live here but were on holiday, leaving Jenny and Julian there. Mahdi and Miss Conduct went to get water while we anchored in the creek. The ‘kids’ came in on Waitpinga and Red Sky at Night barged in to get water as well. We spent the afternoon in the water tank with a million dollar view with the Waitpinga crew. A few drinks and some R&R. The tank is fed by a natural spring. BHP initially installed the tank as a water supply for Koolan Island. Phil was eventually banned from Koolan Island as every time he went there he would bring some materials back for his ‘house’. The outside dunny is just that – a toilet bowl under a tree with a view to boot. Apart from the python that is often there at night – a quiet spot! I think I would draw the line at that and having snakes under the bed, as the ‘house’ has no walls. The garden is just stunning – very tropical with paths that wend their way around and have the odd seat placed strategically to get the best view. WOW!

We ventured back in the dinghies early evening after not having spied the resident croc. Early next morning we went into Dog Leg Creek to get some fuel. The young guys are building their own ‘house’ and like living there. Modern day squatters. Soon we were on our way through the ‘Gutter’ – a passage between Koolan Island and the coast. We had heard about the uncharted rock in the middle and were advised against this passage. A strong tidal flow was evident, but no rock. We flew through there! We were off to the Horizontal Waterfalls in Talbot Bay, whilst Mahdi elected to meet us later at Kingfisher Island. We had some fast tidal passages, one from which Peter almost took the wrong turn into the never-never. Thank goodness for electronic charts! It was a long journey, but well worth it. We went through both waterfalls in the dinghy, aghast at how Didy had taken ‘Shibumi’ through! Best of all was the creek to the south of the falls. The beautiful high cliffs provided an excellent cyclone anchorage with moorings. The entry is small and hidden. There was quite a tidal race in the middle, up stream.

Back to Kingfisher Island, and then off to Raft Point. John was a bit foggy on where the location of the walk track was and we could not find the ‘beach’. Rod, Peter, John and I decided to take a walk in from the corner of the bay. Seemed like a good idea at the time. Needless to say that we did not find the track, the tide had receded a great deal and there we were having to pull the dinghy through mud! We kept sinking in up to our knees. I don’t do mud!! John got his leg stuck and after pulling free had found that his sandal was still buried in the mud! I kept a weary eye out for the crocodiles! A quick chat to the ‘kids’ the next day revealed all – the beach was around the corner. The Aboriginal paintings we finally found were well worth the visit (but not for Rod).

Leaving Raft Point on the correct tide saw us make the best time ever! It’s great when you get it right! Hooning along at 8 knots saw us complete the 40 NM journey to Sampson Inlet with ease. A beautiful place – but no waterfall! After two very dry wet seasons, we missed all the great waterfalls. Moving on swiftly enabled us to use the tides in our favour, passing through some fantastic scenery in Brecknock Harbour (Kuri Bay). Sydney Harbour eat your heart out! Coastwatch did a pass over and caught Becky topless on the foredeck. They came over for a second look! Unbeknown to Denise, she asked them if they enjoyed their job and the scenery! They said they did! Seems a little hypocritical that they dobbed some Paspaley Pearl guys in for doing a brown-eye at them, when they happily catch us naked! Whilst we were being buzzed nearly every day, a boat of asylum seekers made it to within 30 miles off the coast of Port Hedland! Hmm.

We stopped a night at Careening Bay to see King’s inscription in the boab tree (Mermaid, 1820). Hunter River was our next stop which was an eerie place, but well worth the visit. The magnificent entrance which towered over us was very spiritual in terms of an Aboriginal presence. Peter and I played Yothu Yindi at top volume which we thought the Aboriginal Spirits would have enjoyed. We saw our first croc but we were also sure that more saw us. Someone was watching us! An extra rest day prepared us for the haul up to Bigge Island, 47 NM away. Some fishermen called us on the VHF and warned of the rock they just found and advised us to stay to stay to the west. It took ages to get past Cape Pond. Mahdi elected to go the full 55 NM or so via Scott Strait to meet Bill on Time Out at Prudhoe Island for July 4 celebrations. We joined them the next morning. It was great to see Bill with a huge smile on his face! He had departed Fremantle before us and we had passed him when he was hiding out in Shark Bay. As usual, he had got hammered all the way up the coast whilst we swanned it! There is a wonderful little beach on Prudhoe Island that has crystal clear water. We all went for a swim whilst Bill was ‘croc spotting’ with his stick. Oh protector of all!!! The croc we saw the next morning hopefully was not watching us swim! Bill must have frightened him away! Gave someone a big scare though as after a few rums the night before, there was swimming off the boat!

Mahdi by now was getting itchy feet and wanting to be in Darwin. They chose to do a hard slog (as they do!) against wind and current all the way around to Parry Harbour, then on to Honeymoon Bay. Two 60 NM days! We were heading in the same direction, but in smaller hops. After 3 weeks of motoring, the easterlies had now kicked in. We managed to get around Cape Bougainville without too much of a problem and into Freshwater Bay. What a stunning anchorage. We traipsed through the mangroves to find the waterfall and pools. There was not a lot of water flowing, but enough to do the washing. Honeymoon Bay, via Middle Rock was our next anchorage.

Every day is a new adventure! Bill made an early start to catch the tide, which was crucial to the passage through Middle Rock! We were not far behind and could see Bill’s approach. The chart did not match up what we were seeing so we made a quick guess as to where the rock actually was. We came flying through the channel at 9 knots, keeping in the ‘bumpy’ bits which indicated the deepest water. Somehow in the midst of all of this we remembered ‘still waters run deep’..so should we be here??? Too Late! We had around 26m of water so we figured that was deep enough! Our ships' master of course, did an excellent job at the helm, which at times was a bit of a struggle to keep the boat on a straight course.

Hardly having a second to figure out our course and working out where John was going (or not!), we shot past him. Unfortunately for John he did not realise the extent to which the charts were out until it was too late. After some conversation on the VHF, we stood by about two miles down the track and after a while continued on. There was nothing we could do and we had to catch the tide down to Honeymoon Bay. We called up a launch that was passing by, but by the time they got to John to offer assistance, John and Denise had got themselves off the bank. Good for them! The rum was flowing on their arrival to Honeymoon Bay! A swim at the beach to cool off before collapsing into our bunks!

Honeymoon Bay is a great place to chill out. A caravan park is located there and is run by a local aboriginal family. There were so many happy campers! Yachts included Time Out, Miss Conduct, Mahdi, Stolen Kiss, Iluka (Murry and Yo), She (Tony) and SoJo. (Gunther and Beverley). Anna (Aboriginal lady whose father ran the caravan park and who was head of the Land Council) took us to ‘town’ (Kalumburu) so we could get any supplies we could (not a lot of fresh food) and ice cream! What a treat! Bill ended up buying a 2 litre tub of ice-cream. Peter, Bill and I sat on a seat amongst the local aboriginal people with a plastic spoon and did what one does with ice cream! Yum! Lesley Anne (Anna’s daughter) thought it was good as well when she got to eat some on the way back. Lesley Anne decided to come and take a look at our boat to see how we lived, then had a swim with us, reassuring us that it was really ok because the crocodile stayed at the other end of the bay! What a beautiful child! Anna told us the story of how during the war, local aboriginal people would find the Japanese planes when they crashed and kill the pilots if they survived the crash. Most were women pilots. There were many bombing raids on the Kimberley.

After a bit of a party on Time Out, we found out the next morning (listing on the HF!) the night almost ended in disaster for Bill as his dinghy was attacked just after he got out of it after midnight (on his return trip from dropping Margurita off on Iluka.) A croc grabbed the rear pontoon and death rolled it! Bill managed to lean over the side of his boat to rescue the outboard and pull the dinghy out of the water. Of course over time, the story has evolved into Bill rescuing a damsel in distress with one arm whilst beating the croc off with an oar with his other arm.

So after spending three days at Honeymoon Bay, here we sit at Cape Talbot waiting for some good weather to round the Cape Londonderry. SoJo has joined us. (We last passed SoJo heading towards Broome when we were heading north.) Everyone we have spoken to has been hammered rounding Cape Londonderry!

Some of our time en route has been spent baking bread (Peter), picking out the weevils (Cheryl) and sorting out the bean sprouts. Peter’s idea today was to teach the weevils how to swim! They are very good at playing dead in the flour! At anchor we have the opportunity to socialize if we want; story telling, sharing ridiculous but fun conversations and laughter. Every night since we have left Broome the wind has died, allowing a peaceful sleep!

The dreaded passage around Cape Londonderry was made on July 15 after waiting two days. We sat with the others at Cape Talbot waiting for favourable winds to round Cape Londonderry. As we did not want to be one of the boats to be whacked on the other side of the cape by the 2 – 3 metre waves and howling SE winds, we continually downloaded weather faxes. The decision was not to make a decision, and as we had to decide something, we decided to have some more wine and port on Stolen Kiss.

Eventually the weather fax was showing a break in the highs. Preferring a day passage to a night one, we finally took the plunge! When we set out, wind was south at 8 knots. This of course changed after rounding Cape Talbot to a 15 – 20 knot easterly. This was ok, at least the waves were only 1 – 1.5 metres at the most. We could actually sail! Had the yankee and two reefs in main, sailing 45 degrees to wind doing 6.5 knots. Not bad for an old girl! A lot more comfortable than sailing in a sea breeze heading to Bunbury! From all the tidal advice we had been given, we were sailing towards King George on an ebb tide and should have current against us. We were pleasantly surprised to find a 1.5 knot current with us all the way, which was stronger as you went in closer to the coast. We did not even try to work that one out! We had a great day sailing, arriving at Koolama Bay at 2030 in absolute darkness. As we anchored, the moon rose and Mahdi (in hiding) left for Darwin! Strange things happen at sea. More space! Sojo had left for King George River with us and when I awoke at 0300, I knew they were anchored nearby as I could hear their wind generator!

Being far too excited to sleep, the wee hours of the morning are just right for a milo and sending e-mails. At first light the cliffs were magnificent and of course we were anchored further out than what we thought we were in the darkness the night before. At 0645 the VHF was alive with Iluka giving Miss Conduct waypoints to cross the bar and into King George River. High tide was 0830, so no time to waste in up anchor and move! As Stolen Kiss was in ‘shallow mode’ we would take the lead over the bar. Peter had the hand held VHF and called depths. No problems! What an amazing journey that unfolded before us with 200 – 300 metre cliffs surrounding us. Breathtaking and spectacular, it was right up there with the ‘wow’ factor. There had been a few recent rockfalls as a lot of the cliff faces looked very old and weathered. Unfortunately there were no water falls due to the last two very dry wet seasons. We took the dinghy and just sat underneath the overhangs. Amazing! There were 6 boats in total in the anchorage. Opal Shell – a charter ketch was there as was She. All those interested in walking up the cliff did so the next day and went exploring the river bed for some kilometres. Only one small water hole that was toe deep! Next day the 4 of us were off down river to anchor with Iluka, near the sand bar. We had to get over the sand bar before the tides decreased and Iluka were awaiting some visitors who would arrive by seaplane. Bill appears to attract the crocs (looking for another dinghy?) as he has seen one every day in King George River. Murray (Iluka) radioed us and said that he took an excellent video of a croc this morning sunning itself on a rock. He tried to entice it into the water by hooking it with a lure (he is very brave – but has a tin dinghy!), but it would not move! It just glared at him! If they were not so far away, we would go and visit him to watch it. As we anchored under the cliff in Koolama Bay, we saw a dugong – second in two days.

As predicted, the easterlies were piping up to 25-30 knots, so another wait for about three days before we head for Darwin.

We very sadly departed the awesome King George River and the Kimberley at 0245 on Sunday July 20, with to make our way to Darwin. (Wind dies off at night!) We had another plan! If we make our way down to Seaplane Bay, then the distance across Joseph Bonaparte Gulf (aka Blown Apart Gulf) will be less; hence we can get into the lee of the land early in case of strong easterlies. We arrived at Seaplane at 0730 and rested until 1630, then up anchor and off north! The swell rolled into Seaplane Bay – so not a good anchorage to stay long. As it worked out, we were so accurate at picking the weather window; we had to motor all the way! No sight of land for 36 hours as it was too flat and we were 30 miles out. The only wind we did get was due east, 17 knots as we rounded Cox Peninsula and into Darwin. We did manage to sail the last 8 miles, which was delightful.

Our first anchorage was Fannie Bay to enjoy the hospitality of Darwin Yacht Club. The view was to die for – as was the shower, QLD (quiet little drink) and fresh food! We had been in the Kimberley for 9 very short weeks. We then moved off to Tipperary marina and my first lock experience. Peter (who runs the marina) was excellent in helping us find our way. Of course once we were tied up, we were invited over to Time Out for a celebration drink. Why were we not surprised when we saw this apparition sitting on Bill’s boat drinking wine? The lovely luscious Lisa – every marina must have one! Blonde and a body to die for, sitting there in a bikini!! Bill’s eyes were out on stalks permanently! Lisa was fabulous company had some good stories; the most memorable was about her white rabbit!! Needless to say that Lisa was a good encouragement for men to do their own laundry when she was there doing hers!

There are many international boats that are heading off to Indonesia in two rallies. Peter and I plan to leave after these boats are well and truly on their way. The Kimberley was an awesome experience. In 2003 there were only 3 charter boats. In 2007, this number has grown to about 30! However, they all go to the same spots and there are many anchorages left for those who wish to venture there. In the right season with favourable weather patterns, the west coast is an amazing place. It can also be your worst nightmare and if you read the pilot, you would not even contemplate cruising this coast. The West Australian Cruising Guide has just been updated and the new edition is available (2007). It is an excellent guide and a must for the Kimberley.

The kindness of people we have met has been humbling. Some great friendships have been made and lost. One morning it dawned on Bill that he had been on our boat years before in Fiji with the previous owner. Such a small world and a new adventure awaits us.

Dampier to Broome. July 2003

Dampier to Broome. June-July 2003

The anchorage at Hampton Harbour was one of the best – but perhaps that was because there was no wind! The million-dollar view of the yacht club and friendly staff contributed to the pleasurable visit. The first day there we did a tour of the facilities (which took about 20 minutes!) in order for Rod to find some cigars. He had run out at the ‘Monties’ and now being in port was too much. However, a Sunday and no cigars it was. Bugger!

Our original plan was to stay for a few days and go to Karratha to shop on Tuesday. Even though Monday was a public holiday, Karratha shopping centre was open for a few hours. Luckily for us Bill and Carolyn from ‘Perriwinkle’ were at the anchorage and had access to a vehicle that could carry 7 people! So eventually we all went mad and purchased whatever, as we had not really been shopping since Carnarvon. Having to pick up the actual owner of the vehicle on the way back, we had a total of 8 people and a load of shopping in the 4-wheel drive. Some disparaging remarks were made concerning my posterior fitting between the seats on a carton of cans. Perhaps Rod was worried about sitting on the floor in the back and the possibility of what would happen if the cans split. John, who had made the initial comment looked sheepishly and asked if he had said the wrong thing!

The old saying of ‘never look a gift horse in the mouth’ overcame us Monday night (2/6/2003) as the ‘weather gods’ forecast two more days of this weather then a high ridging in and strong easterlies developing. We were off!! It was over to the rusty barge for a hose down and then straight for Flying Foam passage. We had planned our departure for 1000 hours Tuesday morning to coincide with slack water to transit the passage. The passage was beautiful, calm and except for a few whirlpools, uneventful. We did see turtles and dolphins, which have become daily occurrences. We did have a few minutes of silence as we remembered what we had read about the massacre of the Aboriginals in Flying Foam Passage. Such a dark history in more ways than one!

The 120 NM to Port Hedland was uneventful – motor sailing all the way. A 15-20 knot easterly piped up at around 0500 on Wednesday morning as we were coming in. We were a bit slack calling the Port Authority and they had us nailed as ‘the blue hulled yacht entering the Channel at pylon 20 do you copy’. We apologised profusely and gave our details and called them when requested – after we had anchored.

The anchorage at Hedland along the spit in the designated area was satisfactory, albeit a bit rolly and a bit of a ride in the dinghy. On high tide we could negotiate the channel into the yacht club. We stayed for a week to let the strong winds die down. With our course now easterly, we felt it was more gentlemanly to wait for the easterlies to pass. The days were filled with essentials like getting fuel, going to the races, (at least Peter found his way into a private function and got us free drinks to compensate for the $22 entry fee!), checking e-mail, a visit to the Emporium, (which stocks anything and everything) and to customs. For some reason only known to Rod and Peter, they decided that a jerry can was an essential purchase (Rod unfortunately had a new one stolen at the yacht club in Hedland) and paid $50 for one, only to find them for $15 in Broome. Hmm!

On one shore visit we decided to tie the dinghy at the customs jetty – the landing, which we embarked, was underwater – knee high! By the time we got back it was a step down into the dinghy. Good timing. Next day, with much discussion as to how we were going to get all the shopping and 6 people back to the boats in the ute (6 people trying to make a decision can be quite painful!) and much activity of loading and unloading the shopping whilst changes were made (Becky won the ‘how many times can you move all the shopping competition’). The boat ramp won out in the end (tide was too low to get dinghies into yacht club where shopping was unloaded first!)- Becky pointed out the ‘no swimming sign due to crocodiles’ – but the most recent one visiting the area was high and dry (and stuffed!) in the yacht club bar.

By now Customs and Coastwatch know all about us! The word is that we cannot ‘do’ the Kimberlies after clearing at Broome. Darwin is our only option. Plans were made so that they can be changed! Neither Peter nor I had been to Darwin for some time, so we were quite excited at the prospect. At worse, it means an extra two or three days sail to Kupang – but were we not out here to sail? We could have tried to get away with it but were told that if we were found up a river, we would be up the creek! The interrogation apparently is not a pleasurable experience!

Having watched the weather carefully, another window opened up, so the following Tuesday (10/6/03) was time to up anchor and sail to Broome.

Sail is perhaps the wrong word as we had given up pretending we were in fact a yacht. The first part of the 260 miles saw us motoring. By 0300 the next day we could finally sail for a while on the light easterly. But as easterlies finally die (which we were generally thankful for down the track) we were motoring again by 0800. We needed to motor sail back towards the coast so as to create a better angle for the stronger easterlies the next day. By this stage we had just over 100 NM to go.

Late morning Rod announced that he had caught a large Spanish Mackerel, followed shortly by another! Another fish curry coming on! We had our lines out and crossing the same area (some few hours later!) we had caught one as well. Miss Conduct followed suit! I was wondering what I could do to fill in the time. This was the very first fish to be ‘dealt with’ on board Stolen Kiss. This time we had the gaff. Peter (after a few prayers and request for foregiveness) clubbed it over the head with the double-handed winch handle and all was done with very little blood on the deck. Phew! The books say that a fish should be cleaned, filleted and on ice 15 minutes after landing. A little quick for me!

1530 hours still had us motor sailing. The autopilot was doing a great job. We thought that we would take the opportunity of enjoying the sunshine and light winds. We had a shower on deck and lazed around, exposing those parts that never get to see the sun! Of course Coastwatch have such impeccable timing and flew at mast height (as they do) approaching from our stern. Looking up at the last minute and realising that they were there, Peter waved to them in all his glory! I am sure they get to see some fun things!

Our last night into Broome was quiet, except for some Indonesian fishermen talking on 72! Thought we were still in Australian waters. Some Russians followed this. Strange. At 0300 hours we could almost sail again as the wind came in SSE, 15-20 knots. We made Broome at slack HW (how is that for timing!) and anchored at Gantheaum Point at 0815 hours. Sleep!!

With the high ridging in we were to have strong wind warnings for the next 9 days. We had made it to Broome in time.

Broome is just fabulous and we have it in mind to go back one day and stay for a few months. Lawson very kindly lent us a car and it was great to spend some time with him. We could phone family again and catch up with Di and Gordon who had flown up to ‘do’ the Kimberlies by land (with 4 friends) this time. All 12 of us went to see ‘Stairway to the Moon’ although the next night it would have been better.

We managed to coordinate the dinghies so that we did not have 3 dinghies to carry up and down Cable beach. On our first landing, Lawson had us drag the dinghy almost halfway to the high tide mark. We insisted that the tide was still falling and it would be ok, but Lawson somehow thought that we could not have worked the tides out! On our return Lawson helped Peter drag the dinghy all the way back down the beach, stopping to admire the ‘view’ (topless woman). It was great to see Lawson again and enjoy his company. Much shopping was done over the next few days; our outboard fixed ($200), then it was time to continue north. Even though the strong wind warnings were current, we were in the lee of the land. At least we can sail!

Carnarvon to Dampier May 2003.

Carnarvon to Dampier. May 2003

Is it the journey or the destination that is important?

Our departure from Carnarvon at 0900 was accompanied by a forecast of SE 13 –18 knots, with a swell of 3m once outside the lee of Bernier and Dorre Islands. The wind later swung around to SW 15 knots. As our run was only 120 miles to Maud’s Landing, our main problem was slowing down so as not to get there before first light. The wind did what it was not supposed to do and piped up to a 35 knot ESE. There was much discussion between the boats on VHF 72 as to what each of us was doing. We had first put one reef in, two reefs then dropped the main altogether and moseyed along at 4 knots under a little bit of headsail.

As our trip unfolded it appeared that a yet to be identified planet had constantly provided a little confusion. As it rises from the east, it looks like a mast light – mainly white with a little flash of red or green. What is that yacht doing? It becomes a little more obvious as it ascends the heavens – masts do not get that tall!

Cape Cuvier was a mass of lights, with two ships anchored in the bay to the north. As the moon was just passed full, Red Bluff could easily be seen on our starboard side. This being our first overnight trip with just the two of us, it was very comforting to have a near full moon. Our rather ‘loose’ watch system did prove to be a little tiring but at least the autohelm managed to stay awake for the whole night. We crossed the ‘Tropic of Capricorn’ 23.5 degrees South at 0445 and quietly slipped into Maud’s Landing and dropped anchor. First thing was to catch up on some sleep.

The afternoon breeze was very light and with a suitable tide we all took our dinghies across Bill’s Bay to Coral Bay. It was just as stunning and peaceful as ever, even more of a delight being outside of school holidays. A leisurely look around and a coffee was the order of the day.

As the top of the latest front was looming to the west, we collectively decided to head off down to Stanley Pool the next day, which offered more protection from the west. The forecast of NW 20 knots stayed in for a few hours in the afternoon and then died down. A reasonably quiet night at anchor followed. Not being people to hang around, we up anchored on Wednesday and continued our way north to Point Cloates via boat passage. A threatening squall encouraged us to drop anchor in Chabjuwardoo Bay. The heavens very kindly washed our boats for us without any wind! Now that we were all clean, we carried on to our destination. Stolen Kiss managed to land the first fish – a rather large mackerel. ‘Land’ is perhaps not quite the right adjective as we did not have a gaff and could not get the fish on the boat. A few sharks were following close by – it was not us that got a feed!

We joined Mahdi at the Point Cloates anchorage – not the most pleasant as the SW swell rolled over the reef, putting us on a lee shore. However it was good holding and it a place to stay for the night and a better option at thes stage. Not a lot of sleep happening, but at least a rest.

The swell risen come up to 3m again. Getting out through the reef was a little interesting as some of the waves were half way up the mast. Rod was a little excited as he went through and gave us a call to share this excitement with us. Once out into deeper water, the swell was its usual lolloping self. Whilst I was checking our drift through the reef I heard Peter exhale an expletive - unusual for him! I ducked my head up only to see the next roller as high as the first spreader. As it was not breaking, it was not a problem but it definately went down as the first pucker factor! Through all the tricky bits, Peter helms and I navigate. Not sure who gets the best job!!

Our plan (plan A) was to go to Yardie Creek for a night, then on to Tantabiddi for another night and meet up with Mahdi who needed to go into Exmouth to fix a high-pressure hose fitting from their water maker. As all plans need to be flexible, Yardie Creek proved too much a challenge with the swell breaking across the entrance. (We had thought of Norwegian Bay as well, but it did not look good. Another day on the ocean that was quiet and beautiful – so much so that you wonder what the pay back will be like. The wind and swell continued to drop and we had Cape Range to look at for the whole day.

Our contingency plan was to go into Exmouth marina with Mahdi. How could 8 knots of SW turn into 25 knots of SE rounding the Cape? We thought Rod was getting a little too excited when he radioed about the wind and waves after rounding! Not! As it turned out we came in a little too close and ploughed through standing waves that tried to rip the dinghy off the foredeck. At least we could not see them in the dark! A twelve-mile slog down the Cape, with wind against tide! We had 2-3 knots of current with us. A few long tacks with a full main and iron headsail did the trick. The saloon port window had been left open (which was not discovered until we were almost in the marina) soaking a chart and the saloon. At least it was not as bad as Mahdi leaving their fore-hatch open! A little more disconcerting for them, having water inside a steel boat! They had obviously shipped a little more water than us. We rounded the Cape at 2300 hours and arrived in the marina at 0200, with Rod and Becky to help us tie up in a pen. Coffee (and lots of rum for me) on Mahdi did the trick – went back to the boat and cleaned up. Could not sleep after all this excitement!

Whilst we were having all this fun in the wee hours of a new day, Miss Conduct had decided to sail on through the rest of the night to Serrurier Island where we would meet her a day later.

A women banging on Mahdi’s hull woke them up around 0715 hours (Rod thought it was me! As if!) and shouting, as there was much excitement with the cruise ship anchored outside. Mahdi was on the ‘T’jetty and had to move to make way for the lifeboats to bring the passengers ashore. We were to have much entertainment with the passengers coming and going down our jetty all day. Had a quick chat with Greg Hanson and wife but did not have the heart to tell him the radar still does not work, despite just having paid him $200 to fix it. How nice are we!

We ourselves spent the day doing the things we had to do. Dear Denise with whom I had worked with at Penrhos for the past 8 years had given me the name of her brother who worked in Exmouth. He just happened to be standing on the jetty when I asked if anyone knew where I could find him. Allan very kindly gave us a lift in and out of town. Just like Denise, a wonderfully kind, gentle person. In town it was off to the Laundromat, Internet café, a bit of fresh food and the great purchase of a gaff. A layday sitting in the hairdressers near the Laundromat looked as if she could do with some work so I went in to have a decent hair cut. I now am back to very, very short hair, but not quite a number 1! Peter thought I would pass for a boy except for some very obvious contours! It’s cool and easy to wash! Sharing a swim with a turtle, drinks and dinner with Mahdi saw the end to a busy day.

The strong SE wind had blown itself out so a day’s motoring to Surrurier Island to meet Miss Conduct was in store. At least we made it by 1430 hours. Does it get better than this? A calm anchorage along the beach on the SE side of the island and we thought we had found paradise (again!) A long walk in the evening, drinks, and a great sleep was the order of the day. Next morning saw the girls taking a long walk along the beach and the boys off fishing. Needless to say our walk was more productive! Leaving the anchorage at midday would give us enough time to do the 90 or so miles to the northern end of the Montebello Islands. Once again we had to slow the boats down. A very calm night with a following breeze – does it get any better than this? With clear skies, the heavens were ablaze again with the stars and galaxies offering enough light to see. Rod gave a ‘12 o’clock and all is well’ call over the VHF at midnight. Who was sleeping anyway? A little bit of poled out headsail allowed us again to cruise along at 4 knots. Although the south easterly piped up to 15 knots early in the morning, there were no tidal overfalls encountered where shown on the chart.

There was much discussion about where to anchor as the wind was blowing straight down Trimoulle Island and offering very little protection. Mahdi decided enough was enough and went over to Disraeli Point. Messages of encouragement flowed across Ch 72 so we followed suit. A good 360 degree protected anchorage, which was shared with the pearl farm station. At least we had someone to give our ripening bananas to and somewhere to dump our rubbish.

We needed to stay for a few days to have a rest and to wait for the 30-knot easterlies to pass. Our fist (and only at this stage) fish was a garfish – rather small! After initially deciding to keep it, we left it in the bottom of the dinghy to die. Peter very kindly encouraged me to take it off the hook! Thinking that keeping it was a little ridiculous, we gave it another chance to swim to freedom. Our decision was a little too late for the poor fish and Peter dived over the side to retrieve the sinking fish. As it was dead, we might as well eat it! Later we (Cheryl with Peter looking on) managed to clean and fillet a fish (Sweet Lips) Rod had given us. Rod kept us all in supply of fish and crayfish even though he was at risk of hypothermia at times! Meals were shared, sundowners, games of cards, boule on the beach, afternoon naps and reading passed our time. By Friday we were ready to leave and go to Stephenson’s Channel in the southern group in preparation for our departure. Friday breakfast was shared with the entertainment of a seaplane landing to swap crew and re-provision the pearl workers. I wonder what the pilot thought when he saw his runway littered with yachts and a launch. (Anastasia had arrived the previous afternoon). He managed to take off and land around us.

Stephenson’s Channel was beautifully protected. Wanting to be consistent, Miss Conduct dredged the same sandbar as on their previous visit a few years ago. Peter, John and I went off to visit the ranger station to look at the grave of the last cat shot on the island (cats were put there after the atomic tests and they survived!) and to walk to the test observation site. The walk through the Spinifex was well worth it in terms of the vista and the ruins of the observation post. Massive steel beams, steel doors and extra thick tin making the walls were still partially in situ.

As the wind had settled down to a very light SE, we felt it was the time to depart. Peter and I were leaving for Dampier and chose a southerly route out of the Monties. No need to eyeball as we had over 6m of water at high tide. Miss Conduct and Mahdi were planning to go to Port Hedland, where we would meet them later in the week. As we cleared the islands, schools of Tuna were leaping with gay abandon, a few of which leapt onto John and Rod’s lines. The other two cruisers had made a change of plan (as you do) and decided that given the forecast they too would come to Dampier. John made us a fish curry for our first dinner in Hampton Harbour! Yum! As it worked out the forecast was wrong – again! In order to make the 65nm journey in a least the same day we started, on went the iron headsail yet again. Although no moon, the heavens provided some light. We had seen Mahdi sail off over the horizon, only to come hurtling back again and be in the anchorage at West Lewis Island 1.5 hours before us! (They have a bigger engine!) We finally put our anchor down at 2300 hours, with Miss Conduct some 3 hours behind - a long day. In the morning the bay revealed barges and cyclone moorings strewn all over it. Where was our radar when we needed it? A quiet motor into the harbour the next morning – we just sat back and enjoyed the view.

Hampton Harbour and surrounds is very stunning. A magnificent contrast of colour between the land and sea. Peter considers that it is the journey that is important rather than the destination. I am yet to be convinced. The night sails with a gentle breeze and the heaven’s ablaze or sailing under a full moon – yes, it is definitely the journey. Bashing our way to Exmouth – definitely the destination!