We were at Southport yesterday and only had the day to clean the boat, buy provisions, load fuel, check the oil, bilges and equipment, plan the next leg and enjoy some shore leave. We left Southport at 07:00 this morning and only now have I got around to updating this blog.
We had a good run from Sydney to Southport. Favourable winds pushed us along faster than expected. We had a beautiful rainbow at sunrise, a good omen for Dino on Friday.
But not so good for Paul and Catherine. We had a couple of very intense showers and each time it happened to coincide with their watch.
Friday evening we were excited to pass Cape Byron; not long to reach Southport.
The Gold Coast was easy to spot at night. It was a dazzling backdrop to our glowing red navigation instruments.
The swell increased to about two metres during the latter stage of this leg. Not everyone felt like having dinner, which was Moroccan meatballs with cous cous.
As midnight approached, we had one last challenge: to cross the Gold Coast Seaway. This is a narrow, man-made crossing through the sand spit. It required careful piloting along the navigation lights. We rode the waves in between the rocky breakwaters and safely reached the calm waters of Southport. We tied up just before midnight and then celebrated with supper on board Carpe Diem.
We bid farewell to Paul and BJ. Thanks for your help getting Débonnaire from Sydney to Southport. It was a lot of fun having you on board. When the going gets tough, we’ll remember BJ’s emphatic Japanese cry of “ooshu” to ensure success. And Paul’s coffees have definitely set a new benchmark that we want to exceed.
Welcome aboard Kylie, Colin and Lawry to do the final delivery leg from Southport to Airlie Beach with Dino, Catherine and Phil.
Debonnaire 