Bass Strait take two

Some company whilst doing the dishes

Indeed the wind pattern had changed as predicted.
First northerlies  for about 9 hours which we didn't want but then there was going to be a window of opportunity to cross Bass Strait again in great conditions.

last view of Tasmania

We sailed for 24 hours  from Wine Glass Bay up the coast before the wind dropped out when we were  just north of Flinders Island and we resorted to the iron sail- worth every cent of diesel not to get bashed about in Bass Strait.
Glassy calm eventually gave way to the predicted Se'ly and we had two reefs in the mainsail as it arrived.


As you can see a beautiful day and no wind makes for ridiculous entertainment .

Think this is the second time in 3 months
for the shorts! Wonder how this thing works?

More company whilst doing the dishes

                             

Swell just picking up- makes it more fun for our companions

Off Eden we checked the weather forecast again and decided to sail on.
In hindsight  had we stopped in Eden we would have followed the front , instead of 'being the front'.

Thethers just in case

As it progressively got more breezy and uglier , but at least from the starboard quarter, we for the first time so far,deployed lifejackets and tethers when in the cockpit- just in case an inquisitive wave actually made its way on board. Several certainly tried hard but none made it!

Another view from the kitchen sink!
Photos never do justice to the swell.

Note to self- when Windy .ty app shows potentially orange wind 25+ kts, K'Gari is staying put! It certainly wasn't unsafe and we had reduced the sail appropriately, it was just uncomfortable, and that is not what cruising is about.



For those who dont know,picture left is from the Windy.ty app showing forecast winds. Blue means probably motoring, no wind, 0-10kts.Green is good (10-15-20kts). Orange(20-25kts)is not so good in these quantities even when its coming from astern and is absolutely verbotten in my opinion (not to mention a pointlessly uncomfortable pursuit) when coming from ahead.Blurring to brown, forget it (+30kts).The photo on the right is from the Met Bureau,showing rain. Blue is light rain, green is tending a little heavier than light rain , yellow is moderate, and cells which are red and above are really not pleasant. The BOM shot was at 01:52 so it's a really handy oversight of what's out there, without turning on the radar to see the extent of the rain, especially in pitch darkness.

Jervis Bay, somewhere I have never been, was now our destination.We had decided not to try Batemans Bay taking into account  the conditions as they currently were  from the SE, combined with no local knowledge or experience of the area.

Jervis Bay is beautiful. We anchored in the SE corner at 'the hole in the wall'. There is a naval base there, but the rest of the Bay is accessable.
One of the days we were there we had the opportunity to catch up  and spend the day with a retired colleague and his wife who now live just south of Jevis Bay- a bonus indeed.

Jervis Bay to Sydney was the next leg after a few days in Jervis Bay.

The aptly named Point Perpendicular as we leave Jervis Bay