Lord Howe Island and return

Lord Howe Island a tiny speck in the Tasman Sea,  320nm east of Port Macquarie in NSW. It is about 10km long, a maximum of 2km wide and is the remnant crescent of a volcano. The east coast is exposed , the west coast has a shallow coral reef fringed  lagoon about 2nm long and 0.5nm wide. What a speck though. Pelagic life ,bird life , walks, spectacular scenery, diving ,snorkelling. The highest point is the towering Mt Gower at the southern end of the island, coming in at 875m. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site, with a permanent population of just less than 400 and tourist accommodation limited to 400 at any time. Access by air or boat.

 A group of about 6-7  Seawind catamarans were planning a sortie from Sydney, so great idea- I thought we would join them, it would be fun to meet some other owners.

You cannot anchor in the lagoon but a limited number of moorings have been provided and forward planning is required to ensure that you have successfully  booked a  mooring for your arrival. A maximum stay of 14 days is the allowance.

 From Sydney it would be about 420nm and from Mooloolaba it would be about 430nm.The tricky part for us , in deciding to rendezvous with the boats from Sydney  would be the weather window. We needed pretty well the exact opposite conditions to those that the Sydney contingent would require. Alternatively we could head to Sydney and then backtrack which was definitely not my preferred option. We just needed a conveniently timed high pressure system to pass off the coast and we  would be able to ride the back edge of it (the  East and Northerly components) all the way. Time would tell who would arrive first!

Lord Howe Wood Hen 

 Lord Howe Island being UNESCO listed due in part  to its unique flora and fauna has in place strict biosecuirity requirements for anyone arriving either by sea or air. Over the last few years a major effort had been made to eradicate rats from the island and save the diminishing numbers of the unique ground dwelling Lord Howe Wood Hens . At the time of our visit bait stations were still evident at various locations but the island had had no recorded sightings/captures of rats for almost a year. Unfortunately by the time of writing, two rats had been caught since our visit (absolutely nothing to do with us) so the rat free status has been revoked again.  

 For us as a visiting yacht this meant some preparatory work to meet the requirements. Rat guards were required to be in place at least 7 days prior to departure, rat traps and bait stations similarly to be distributed on each deck at prescribed  distance intervals. These were to be kept in position for the duration of the visit. A clean hull was required to prevent cross contamination of marine growth. This had also been a prerequisite for Port Davey in SW Tasmania (also world heritage listed)when we had sailed there.  

Rat guards -fashioned from plastic chopping boards

Rat guards and traps were set in place as required and I met the hull criteria as less than a month prior to our departure I had been out of the water and water blasted and re antifouled the hulls.

 I had decided to depart from Mooloolaba , where a friend (currently boatless) had a vacant pontoon which was just crying out to have a catamaran moored at it. This would preclude the issue of not only finding that handy high pressure system to ride but negate the issue of crossing the Wide Bay Bar “on demand” to head south.

 The rendezvous was supposed to be for approx  5 days from the 23^rd March. The application had been made in January and approved, obviously all weather dependent.  I’m in the fortunate position that my  crew both had  a very flexible time frame with no other critical time constraints.

 A weather window appeared ,a little earlier than planned, but a rapid amendment to the original application and we soon had approval to depart from Mooloolaba for an estimated arrival a week earlier than originally planned. Luckily I had installed the rat guards and rat traps when I moored at  Mooloolaba at the beginning of March-just in case!

 We departed at  0700 LHI time , having put the clocks ahead one hour the previous evening. There was no sign of the forecast wind and it was drizzly as we set off. In fact so little wind we found ourselves motoring initially. It was a little lumpy crossing towards Cape Moreton -so much so that after some 18000nm across various seas and oceans, I decided it was time for a Kwells! Prior to leaving Nha Trang on the maiden voyage across the South China Sea I had deemed it prudent to take one ,as we had no idea what the motion in an open sea or ocean would actually be like. That was then and this was now, so half a Kwells was the order of the day. It did the trick ,and of course once we rounded Cape Moreton and came on to  the SE’ly course for Lord Howe the motion changed.

 Picking up the east coast current and with the wind finally kicking in, saw us cruising along at a really handy 10kts with full mainsail and jib.

Reducing sail just before dark as we always do, in this case down to two reefs and about a third of the jib as the forecast was 15-20kt N’ly, we maintained a healthy 7 kts in the still slightly sloppy conditions. That was it for the next 60 hours really in way of sail changes. At dusk on the night before we made landfall at Lord Howe we stowed the still reefed mainsail and pootled along under the jib alone, now increased to about two thirds as we needed only 4 knots for our planned 0700 ETA. The planned ETA took into account both daylight and the high water for our entrance to the lagoon.

Mt Eliza from anchorage

We stood off the island for an hour or so until we thought it was a polite time to call  the harbour master who is in fact the local police officer. Having made contact via VHF we were then given our entry instructions and once a visual contact had been made with the officer (sitting in his car on the headland), we were allowed to enter and pick up our designated mooring.

Biosecurity checks were carried out, when both the Biosecurity and Marine Parks officers arrived. Biosecurity came on board to check the rat traps etc and Marine Parks dived on the vessel to check out the underwater condition. Next we had to go ashore to the jetty to be Covid temperature checked but we delayed this for a few hours as it was drizzling and the same checks were being carried out for the incoming daily flight and the ambulance officer couldn’t be in two places ,so we delayed and just after lunch went ashore to be checked. All a ok!

The jetty houses facilities -toilets, showers, rubbish bins for food scrap disposal and a separate  laundry and dryers for US! Yachties are definitely welcome at Lord Howe!

 Over the next 11 days we ,explored, snorkelled, walked, socialised with very friendly natives, dived, and had an excellent time, despite the weather.

 Did I mention the weather? - No probably not, as it was not playing ball at all. Wind and more wind ,squalls of rain and some more wind. So much wind as front after front came across it became obvious by the end of the week that it was totally unlikely that the Sydney contingent - that is, everybody else- were  going to make it. The east coast of Australia was being similarly affected with both NSW and Qld  being clobbered. Northern NSW was flooding!

So they regrettably cancelled. We had the entire lagoon  to ourselves!

 We watched the forecast daily,  looking for a couple of things, one being the best day to book a dive and the other being the best window to return to the mainland.

A note here, there is limited access to wifi on Lord Howe, it is possible to buy time at the museum and use the wifi there and the staff both there and at the Met Office at the airport were most helpful enabling us to obtain daily forecasts. I don’t have a  satellite phone on board , I do have HF radio via which it is possible to obtain weather faxes and during our stay I actually managed to figure out the mysteries of HF radio and Predictwind. I’m a new convert to the paid service of Predictwind. Yes it would indeed be faster and simpler via a sat phone but HF does the trick once I figured out just how to use the two together via Sailmail.

 The day we picked for our dive in the end turned out to be overcast, but was the best of the weather on offer. We were never going to find the weather window which would enable us to dive Balls Pyramid, but there are many other dive sights. There is a dive provider based on the island (ProDive).  As we are both recreational qualified divers, but carry no bottles or BCDs ,only fins and masks (and our dive qualifications are always on board ), we were able to book a dive with them. As relayed previously I have not dived for some years and I have to say the pre dive briefing was excellent and because of the hiatus in my diving history, Jo and I had a specific session with a complete run through on the gear prior to boarding the boat. There is no help available should something go wrong , the nearest hyperbaric chamber being in NSW, some hundreds of kilometres away by aeroplane, so safety of divers is paramount.                                   

What we next saw coming on the weather front, was a low pressure system coming from the NW, which was going to pass just to the east of the island. Indeed right on cue it arrived . The wind slowly increasing from 0100 hrs and continued to do so throughout the day, which we spent the entirety of onboard. The lagoon develops a fairly good degree of chop in around about 18-20kts of wind, which ensures a dry trip ashore in the dinghy is not possible. 

So we sat tight. Yes the wind  increased and increased to the extent that we decided it would be prudent to maintain proper anchor watches during the night, just in case we parted company with our mooring. If that happened an instant  response would be required with both our anchor being deployed and the engines fired up. There was not a great deal of distance from our mooring to the surrounding reef astern(200m) and 60m to Dawson Point.     

 

https://youtu.be/hWWcS4TsnEU

           

https://youtu.be/7Zl8b87GD-0

 So how did we entertain ourselves - a competition of course, to see who could get the snap shot of the highest wind speed recorded and who could get the best video of the sheets of spray and rain that were roaring around us, as well as hourly recordings of the barometer which was dropping . Regular checks of the mooring arrangements looking for any signs of wear and tear in the bridling arrangement ( three mooring lines triangulated through the eye of the  provided tail) and the general state of the boat, the boom bag  to which we had added lashings during the day to ensure it remained zipped up, using the length of rope used usually for rigging the sun shadecloth over the boom in SE Asia. Each time there was a lull in the weather these checks were carried out. Before dark we  checked in with port control and advised that we were maintaining a listening VHF watch and anchor watch during the night. 

https://youtu.be/xPD2YBEbM7U

So what was the top wind speed that we recorded? 48.2kts at 1800. It howled through. And then an hour or so later  it was gone! Barometer rising ,wind decreasing and by 2200 we back to a much more pleasant 30kts and decreasing as the low pressure system  spun away to the SE.

The next day the dawn broke as it usually does after a low passes, absolutely gloriously. The day was glassy calm and clear blue skies. Lord Howe at its absolutely picture postcard stunning best.

Picture perfect -the morning after. View of  Mt Gower (at last)

 We spent it returning the hire bicycle, catching up with a few of the “friendly natives” we had met to say goodbye and then snorkel, snorkel, snorkel in the lagoon before finally dropping into let port control know we were departing  the following morning and checking whether  as with our arrival he needed to ‘guide’ us out. This was not necessary.   

Finally we saw the lagoon as it should be 

Ironically having had 'strongish' perpetual wind for 9 of our 11 days stay, the forecast was for next to nothing for the next 4 days, alas that would be followed by yet more wind in the 20kt plus range, so we decided to go and if it meant motor sailing then so be it.

 It had taken 72 hours from Mooloolaba and the next front was forecast to arrive on the mainland coast in the vicinity we hoped to be in ,in  90 hours time.

We sailed  and motor sailed back to the coast. Eventually making landfall at the closest point of entry, the Gold Coast Seaway 77.5 hours later. We had three different potential landfalls in mind , the Seaway, Cape Moreton or the Wide Bay Bar. We thought the Seaway would be the most likely in the conditions, as with little wind forecast, we would towards the end, be making our way against the east coast current.  So the choice was to motor in open seas against the east coast current or use the tides to our advantage and come up through the islands of the Seaway and Moreton Bay.

 Great idea in principle as the tide was due to be to our advantage when we entered. It may well have been, but what we had completely failed to take into account was the fresh water on top ( the result of the deluges from  same weather pattern we had been suffering from at Lord Howe) that was rushing south to exit at the Seaway. Never mind. We anchored that evening off Raby Bay in southern Moreton Bay, and  six hours later pressed on to Mooloolaba. We arrived at our home away from home just as the predicted Southerly change arrived, which would undoubtedly preclude a safe crossing of the Wide Bay Bar for a few days.

 Of note on the way home was that whilst we had wind( the first 24 hours) , we had as usual reefed at night , but we tried an experiment to prevent the chaffing that occurs on the luff of the sail from the single line reefing system we have.  By changing the angle fractionally of the reef line and endeavouring to hold it off the sail luff with an ingenious rigged device of a snap hook and a length of lashing, it wouldn’t chafe on the sail. It absolutely didn’t ! With physics not being one of my stronger points I had however completely failed to register that the slightly altered  lead of the reef line also changed at the point where it passed over a sheave in the boom. Suffice to say that in the morning upon inspection, it was not a good look! The long and short of it being I now know how to change out a  reef line and how relatively easy it actually is to feed a new line, attached to the old line through the length of the boom. A simple couple of stitches (and some precautionary electrical tape to bind them together) having first also applied heat to the two raw ends to ‘melt’ them together worked a treat. Think the chaffing and application of cuban patching is actually the better alternative!!!

 

As the trip home from Lord Howe included a couple of windless days we managed to stave off  potential bouts of idleness by  being industrious. Jo created an anti swallow nesting device for the boom bag from a useful piece of shade cloth,using some handy pegs to hold the hem in place whilst sewing- I’m sure our dear mother would be sighing.

I got creative for dinner one evening!

 

All in all a great trip. The company on board was as always good and the natives friendly and very hospitable indeed, the scenery spectacular and the weather ho hum-but that’s sailing!   Oh and in the 973nm voyage  - one spotty mackerel, caught in the last 20miles! 

Sadly this picture which is on display in the museum 
is constructed from the plastic contents removed from the stomachs of  dead and injured sea life
 

At anchor just off Dawson Point.

https://youtu.be/cgQXfOXQG9k

                                           Cabin fever? I don't think so-just unleashed creativity

https://youtu.be/utTUywZ02Vk

Lock down, what lock down? ......oh, that lock down

Strange times indeed.

Our Prime Minister  exhorted us to self isolate because of you know what. So following his instructions we set off as we had already intended, for a spot of waterborne isolation, ending up once again at Lady Musgrave Island.

 Weather was perfect and when we arrived at the lagoon there was only one other vessel there. Great we thought ,we can pick up a mooring.

As we approached the moorings designated for our size of vessel it was somewhat annoying to find the only other yacht there was anchored in such close proximity to the moorings it precluded us from picking up two of the three available. Somewhat inconsiderate, but it takes all sorts!

When the moorings are occupied its easy to figure out the swing distance of any vessel using them. Vessels at anchor are completely different story. Nobody knows how much anchor chain you have out except you.

My own rule of thumb is an absolute minimum of 4-5 times the depth of water, so in 6-7m of water I would have at least 30-35m of chain out. Add to that my boat length and at full stretch I could be sitting 40-45m from where I actually dropped the anchor and with any wind or tide change may swing in an arc of that length. I always assume that other yachts should be using approximately the same idea, perhaps more,so finding a yacht anchored about 20m from the mooring buoys was a pain.

Ah well ,the lagoon wasn’t busy! We set about enjoying the environs.

 We did note the daily tourist vessel hadn’t turned up, nor did it turn up the next day-odd!

 Even odder was that we hadn’t actually seen anybody on the anchored yacht. After two days this was a bit strange. I know some yachts are sailed single handed and perhaps the sailor is very happy with their own company , but usually at some point they can be glimpsed at least  moving about on board.

 One of the things that I came to appreciate when I was on board in SE Asia was that my life goes on quite satisfactorily even if I don’t have news updates about the state of the planet. What ever happens, will occur whether I know about it or not and I have no influence on world events. So really when on board the only thing of relevance is the weather- another element I have no influence over but it does allow for contingency planning. So we get the weather reports when available.

At Lady Musgrave, courtesy of Bundaberg VMR (Volunteer Marine Rescue) we can get the BOM (Bureau of Meteorology) updates twice a day on scheduled bulletins via the VHF .I can also get them via HF radio, and if the wind is blowing the right way we do very occasionally manage a connection to the internet! Local radio via AM band also available .

 All the inactivity, no other yachts and the lack of activity on the anchored yacht  was increasingly odd.

Turns out when we bothered to tune into the news that self isolation had morphed into a lock down across the country. Yes China had imposed it on the citizens of Wuhan, but who would have thought it would/could happen here in Australia. Suddenly no one was at work, everyone was supposed to be staying home.

Supermarkets were being bought out with panic buying - how bizarre!

 That then explained the total absence of the daily tourist boat.

Now I was concerned about the anchored yacht and the lack of activity, so I called it in to VMR Bundaberg. Before doing so we had gone over to the vessel, called out ,banged on the hull all to no response. Odd indeed! The cabin was unlocked , there was no sign of a dinghy ,no sign of life at all and quite noticably when we did a complete circuit of her there was also a substantial chunk of its bow around the anchor roller missing! Despite what you may  see in movies , boarding someone else’s vessel uninvited is a complete no -no, so we  returned to K’Gari and  relayed the details of the vessel to VMR  Bundaberg.

 Later that day , we were asked if we were prepared to board the vessel at the request of Qld Water Police. I asked for that request to be repeated, so that I was able to record it and our answer in the affirmative- just in case, proof that our actions were indeed sanctioned, if ever in the future it were needed.

 We boarded the mystery yacht -  with video on phone running to cover ourselves.

 Nothing , nobody (literally no body)- thankfully !

This we relayed to VMR.

Much later in the day, we were advised that the owner had indeed been located by the police .Very much alive and ashore!

He had apparently managed to get ashore with the daily tourist vessel to obtain some requisite supplies to attempt to repair the damaged bow section- (it was a ferro cement yacht) then the shut down had commenced and he was now high and very dry ashore, with no means of returning to the lagoon.

 I doubt we will ever again be the only humans in the lagoon, no matter how often we return. It was a blissful experience having the entire place to ourselves.                                                   

                                                    https://youtu.be/BioEgF-V85E

 How the world had changed when we rejoined the rat race!  

Strange days indeed.

 

Introducing international family members to our recently discovered paradise.

Once again heading for Lady M. This time via Bundaberg  to pick up some time tight tourists.

Jo and I sailed to Bundaberg from Tin Can Bay , arriving an hour or so before the arranged late afternoon pickup. When  we left Bundaberg the following morning  we had on board an international contingent comprised of Dave ( he who has been mentioned previously as he dropped in for a visit in Kota Kinabalu), his nephew and his nephew’s mate who were  on a whistle stop ‘reccy’ tour downunder.

 

Lady Musgrave delivered in spades. Glorious weather and the night walk on the cay revealed nesting turtles as they laboured their way over the fringing reef , the smarter ones waiting for the rising  tide before clambering over the reef and up the sand , digging their nests, laying their eggs and staggering back to the water. What an amazing effort. Being able to observe this, first hand, not via a tv screen is a privilege indeed. What a turtle can do with its rear  flippers is amazing to watch under the muted light of a torch. The scientists tell us that red light is better as it isn’t so disturbing for the turtles.

 The noise from the nesting whitecapped Noddy terns or the shearwaters, I’m not sure which, at night would make a perfect background track  for a horror movie. It is eerie, shrill at times and then it sounds almost mournful and lonely, despite the fact  you know there are hundreds of them nesting.

We skirted around the sandy edge of the cay under moon and torch light, not wishing to venture through the ‘deep dark’ pisonia forest, where we might have unwittingly and accidentally trodden on  a shearwater (mutton bird) nesting beneath the ground.

 Some  of the memorable moments, apart from the excellent company we had on board, from this trip were  when the single hander on his fishing boat anchored nearest  to us, one evening finally lost the battle with what ever fish he had hooked and it broke him off by swimming around a bommie. For goodness knows what reason, he came over in his dinghy to ask if any of us were likely to be going for a swim as he had lost his lure-handily he knew where it was!  As it was well and truly sundowner time and probably only another ten minutes of daylight left, I was a little bemused  that he was surprised that, no actually we weren’t thinking of going for a swim to retrieve a lure with or without flapping possibly injured fish attached, at the time of day when the “grey /bronze/tiger suited “ fish with the big teeth, might also be on the prowl.

 Our next interaction was the following day when he came over mid afternoon in his dinghy when Jo and the boys were away snorkelling,  enquiring when we were leaving and where we were headed. I’m always cautious handing out information,  but it was a genuine request, as he had discovered on board an unwanted freeloader- a diamond head python. Unable to assist with our own imminent departure , the suggestion was put forward that perhaps the daily boat from Bundaberg might be able to assist as it hadn’t yet departed. Off he went.They obviously agreed to take the freeloader with them and we watched as he returned to his vessel ,scurried around and produced a garbage bag or sugar sack ,hard to tell really.He then went forward of his wheelhouse  just out of our direct line of sight,  bent over into something (which turned out to be a storage box of some description) and when he stood up, he had in hand a very healthy looking 5-6 foot python which he shoved unceremoniously into the bag he was clutching . Into the dinghy it went and he sped over to the almost ready to depart tourist vessel. When he returned he was all smiles! Obviously he couldn’t just take it ashore onto the cay to let it go  - it would have had a field day with the birds and it’s a National Park after all.  Goodness you couldn’t write a script about it as no one would believe you, but it was excellent value for us as entertainment.

The actual cay is indeed part of a designated national park as is the western edge of the fringing reef. The majority of the lagoon is not and spearfishing, fishing etc is permitted.

 

Fabulous time with excellent company, but way too short. We returned the travellers to Bundaberg. Dave was on a flight to winter in  the UK in a couple of days time and the boys were driving to Sydney down the coast road before returning to winter in the US. From 30 degrees and balmy seas to snow!

 

  

Lady Musgrave Island

 Following our exploratory run to Lady Elliot Island  we headed next to Lady Musgrave Island.

 This stunningly beautiful coral cay and vast coral ringed lagoon is well known by yachties and the odd ship which has strayed too close. We however had never been there before .

                                                             

                                                     photo from google earth and GE2Kap

From my  marina berth it’s either a 24 hour run or two day jaunt with an overnight anchor somewhere convenient , weather dependent. Always no matter where we are heading when going north, it requires juggling the tides through the Sandy Straits ,a small price to pay for my choice of marina.

 We chose the 24 hour run. The tides for Sandy Straits were late afternoon so we left the marina after all the usual pre voyage checks and inspections at 1145. We have developed a routine that seems to  work satisfactorily .Arrive at the boat, Jo then goes to the local supermarket to obtain all the provisions required, whilst I check the engines and run them up, opening all the appropriate through hull valves and ensuring the log and depth sounder have been put back and the blanks that I leave in when in the marina are removed. Depending upon the amount  time  available we may depart and stow the recently acquired victuals enroute ,similarly distributing the comfort of the cockpit cushions and actually unpacking and stowing our gear once underway. The beauty of my playground is it is rarely rough or choppy waters for at least the first six  hours when heading north.

 The midday departure and the 24 hour distance would be perfect for our first arrival into the lagoon. The sun would be at its zenith and a rising tide for the channel entrance.

Averaging a nice 5.5kts , with 2 reefs in the mainsail for the 20kt wind we arrived on time, on budget at the entrance to the lagoon.

 The entrance is well marked and I’m guessing enhanced by mankind. It's straightforward once you have seen it and using  some nautical nous in predicating  the time you attempt to pass through, it presents no problems.

 The generally navigable areas of the lagoon are 7-8m deep, totally scattered with bombies only a few of which actually dry.

There are some Marine Parks mooring buoys but also masses of area to anchor safely in, without causing damage to the reef and the existing bombies.

 The SW corner of the lagoon has a tree covered sand cay , home to thousands of nesting sea birds, as well as those ground nesters,  mutton birds (shearwaters), who build their homes in the sand. Turtles nest and hatchlings emerge as the seasons progress. It is possible to camp on the cay -but there is no fresh water, or facilities, other than some eco toilets. The cay and the western edge of the fringing reef through which you enter the lagoon are a designated Marine Park. The rest of the lagoon and fringing reef are not, so fishing , spear fishing are allowed within the limits of a nature reserve.

                                             Looking aft towards nearest big bombie 

It is stunningly beautiful, it rates right  up there with some of the glorious exotic locations K’Gari and crew has already visited, and its right here in my backyard.

We snorkelled here, we snorkelled there, we snorkelled snorkelled  everywhere!

Lady Elliot Island

Returning from Gladstone I noticed that a small repair was in order around one of the reefline points on the leech.
It's a bit of a palaver to get the mainsail off, removing each batten, not to mention the weight of the sail when lugging it about the boat aswell a the roadmiles to and from the sailmaker.
However I believe the old proverb 'a stitch in time' is the order of the day, so off it came.

Down to Brisbane with the sail, and it was repaired whilst we waited- having first organised for this to be the case, due to the distance involved and the relatively minor nature of the repair required.
Pressganged Chris into helping me with the task of getting it re rigged. Watching the forecast for a few days, a window of wind-less-ness appeared and we whizzed up to the marina. Fought the mainsail back onto the mast track cars having first inserted the battens, but just as  we had finished bending the main back on, the wind picked up and I decided to leave attaching the reefing lines until another day.

Lady Elliot Island

 The southernmost recognized coral cay on the Great Barrier Reef is Lady Elliot Island.

Once destroyed almost beyond repair by guano miners it is now an eco resort. It’s only accessible by air or of course by private boat,so its off the beaten track for most people.

Divers love it as it is a hotspot for the elusive manta rays. One of the known facts about them is they tend to congregate around  Lady Elliot during the winter months.There is a renowned ‘cleaning station’ , where they can apparently often be sighted enjoying a bit of TLC from the tiny workers providing this essential service. The Manta Project , a research project based at  Queensland University, visit the island several times a year in their quest for more data on these magnificent creatures.

 We set off with a weather window that looked perfect to drop into Lady Elliot for a day or two. The anchorage is relatively exposed so it’s not an oft visited spot by yachts, when there is a very beautiful and protected coral  lagoon just 25nm further to the north.

 Enroute we spent the night on the NW side of Rooney Point on Fraser Island (K’Gari- I know its a bit confusing, but anyone who has followed the blog from the beginning will understand ). This is not a usual anchorage for us  but was perfect for the prevailing weather- absolutely nothing wrong with it all. Perhaps it would be a tad uncomfortable in a mono, but it was a restful night on a catamaran. We alao found the opportunity to re attach the reef lines to the mainsail.

 https://youtu.be/MiM_X8vurqs

It’s a 49nm run from our overnight anchorage and with the prevailing light airs we managed the MPS all the way. Jo still doesn’t like it when I say perfect MPS weather , but it works, we get from A-B without the mainsail flogging away pointlessly when there is any swell. So she concedes on a needs must basis , but then prefers me to be on watch- so it will be my issue if it gets destroyed!

 

We arrived late in the afternoon, not ideal when trying to anchor around coral. There are two supplied Marine Park moorings at Lady Elliot- both were occupied, so that left the anchor. There was still enough light left, albeit at the wrong angle really as it was very low but we managed to find what appeared to be a sandy spot upon which to anchor, doing so in 15m of water. Time would tell if the chain would find any bommies during the night. As it turned out the southerly running current was so strong we swung  very little during the night.

 My nearest neighbour in the marina was anchored when we arrived, it wasn’t planned just coincidental.

 The European history of the island is that it was mined for a decade from 1863,during which time it was so destructively mined that thousands of years of growth were destroyed with  estimated removal of  3 feet of topsoil. The Queensland government had a policy of putting goats on barrier reef islands  as sustenance for shipwrecked sailors which in turn precluded regrowth. Eight  pisonia trees -the favourite nesting spot for sooty terns-were the only bits of vegetation left. These eight trees remain today along with the massive revegetation that has occurred since  1969 when the rehabilitation efforts of one man started.

 Intelligently, along with the goats a lighthouse was erected , however that has not precluded various vessels over the years being attracted like moths to a flame, to abrupt and undoubtedly costly ends.

https://youtu.be/GJ6zuG7h6L8

 The next day ,the weather was perfect, glassy calm ,crystal clear water. The water  was alive beneath us turtles ,fish and rather disconcertingly a couple of whales passed by just meters away. I was down below when I heard what I thought was a turtle snorting (with a much deeper sound than a normal turtle) when I looked there they were a mum and a baby just gliding past. I didn’t get my camera in hand until they were some distance away, just beside our marina neighbours. To date it’s the closest I have been to these majestic mammals.

We drift snorkelled down the western side of the island and then contemplated a real dive. I dropped Jo ashore- it is a draw back for yachties, that leaving a dinghy ashore here is an issue as its just a steeped coral shard  “beach” that you land on. The reconnoitre revealed yes it was possible to dive with the onsite provider but as it had been some time ( well yes the last actual dive had been 8 years ago for me) a refresher session- available and inclusive in the dive price would need to be done first. Jo decided to do it and I would do it the next day, thus circumventing the dinghy ashore issue.

I occupied myself with as usual inspecting below the water line, something I do at every opportunity when the water is clear. The anodes  looked in good condition except the starboard prop triangle was looking slightly more consumed.

 In the end Jo did her dive but I decided not to and the following day we snorkelled instead, looking for those elusive mantas-unsuccessfully .Not unsurprisingly really as it wasn’t the time of year when they are known to congregate.

So we now know the lay of the land not to mention the speed and direction of the prevailing current in October, at Lady Elliot and when the weather allows we will return .Made a mental note to investigate the acquisition of an inflatable SUP. Inflatable as it will be easier to store on board . Also perfect for island access and being easily able to leave ashore if needed at a place like this.

 

Our return run was trouble free and we in fact had  a record run for us of 72nm from our anchorage at Rooneys through the Sandy Straits to the entrance to the creek where the marina is located in just 13 hours. The wind and tide were just perfect.

In fact most of our run was completed with the mainsail stowed and only 1

/3rds of the jib deployed in a 20-25kts wind on our quarter

https://youtu.be/oAiEopOGtRs