Debonnaire

11 to 14 August 2023

We were in the sports bar of the Airlie Beach Hotel with our friends Catherine and Peter, along with 100s of other supporters, cheering wildly for Australia playing the quarter final of the FIFA Women’s World Cup.  What an exciting game and  memorable win for the Matildas!

Our friends Catherine and Peter have returned this year for more fun in the Whitsundays.  They brought with them the sensational weather we expect of Far North Queensland: lots of sunshine, warm days around 23°C, and light winds.

Catherine and Peter stayed at the “Pinnacles” apartments.  Who would have thought it was at the top of a steep hill?  But it did have panoramic views and a spectacular infinity pool, ideal for cooling off and sipping G&Ts while gazing across the azure waters.

We dined at our favourite restaurants around Airlie Beach, enjoying good seafood and searching for the best mojitos.  But the finest meal was delicious prawn rolls that we made while Debonnaire was moored at Lovers Cove on Daydream Island.  We sat upon a sparkling blue sea in a gentle breeze, watching whales swimming by.  Catherine and Peter even went up the mast in a botswain’s chair to get a better view.

We also did the pretty bushwalk to Coral Beach and then onto the lookout at The Beak.  Even the bus ride to Shute Harbour was memorable, making friends with people in the most unexpected place (it’s a funny story but too long to tell in this post). 

We will definitely be watching the Matildas play England in the semi-final.  Whatever the result, we will be having gelatis afterwards!

30 July to 7 August 2023

Scenes from our wonderful week with Alex, Cam and Huxley.

20 to 25 July 2023

We were invited to join Harry and Cathy on Carpe Diem over the weekend. We had a lot of fun getting to know their friends Jimmy, Di, Graham and Denise.

We went for a couple of day-sails, returning to the marina for sundowners on-board and then dinner at Airlie Beach’s fine restaurants. We didn’t have to go far to see several humpback whales.

The weather was mixed, with perfect days between days of no wind, and days with gales and showers. Monday, I believe, will be declared the official “winter’s day” this year, reaching only 15°C with showers. Strong winds blowing along the whole Queensland coastline, from Gold Coast to Torres Strait, brought the wintery weather from down south. Fortunately, the warmer weather has since returned with temperatures above 21°C.

20 July 2023

No, not the animals that can balance beach balls on their noses, but US Navy SEALs.

These high-speed craft slipped stealthily into a berth near us during the night. The vessels, known as CCMs (combatant craft medium), are used by the US Navy’s Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC). They are here for a couple of weeks for joint military exercises.

• 60ft, double skin aluminium hull
• Twin 1,250HP MTU diesel engines
• Top speed 50+ knots
• Range 600 nautical miles in 4ft seas
• 4 crew + 19 SEALs + 5 tons gear

I thought they were a new tourist thrill-ride!

Back in early May, we had a sensational trip taking Debonnaire from Sydney to Southport. David took awesome footage along the way and has now released his epic movie of the voyage. Click on the link below, and make sure you have “sound on” to enjoy the soundtrack, also composed and performed by David.

(It’s not too late to vote in the Logie Awards 2023!)

https://share.icloud.com/photos/0f3RAYyEmD7l8BydeKNVXq3uQ

13 to 20 July 2023

We had Grace and Alex visit us this past week and they were lucky enough to see the best whale show.  Grace spotted the whale only a few hundred metres away just as we were making our way into the deeper water of Whitsunday Passage.  We slowed down and held station as we watched the mother and calf humpback whales blow, wave their flippers and breach.  They leapt almost completely out of the water, twisted in the air and fell back into the sea with an enormous splash.  The spectacle seemed to last for ages.

We had a good sail across Whitsunday Passage on Saturday and anchored in Nara Inlet for the night.  We visited the aboriginal cave to look at the rock art, and then Grace and Alex went exploring with the tender.  We settled in for the night and played card games.  The sky cleared late in the evening to reveal a wonderful sky filled with stars.  The high ridges surrounding the inlet mostly sheltered us from the fresh south-easterly winds, with only the occasional gust pushing the boat around.  We were securely anchored, but not so our neighbour who dragged their anchor and woke up 200m from where they went to bed.  Luckily they just missed us during the night and did not end up on the surrounding reef.

Sunday morning was a leisurely start.  We left the calm waters of the inlet and found ourselves going head-first into choppy 1m waves and fresh 20 knot winds.  We were about to make our way to a sheltered mooring an hour or so away, but then we saw the whales, forgot about the rough water and spent probably 20 minutes watching them play.  We then reassessed our plans and decided we would prefer a quiet night in the marina.  So we made our way back across Whitsunday Passage to Airlie Beach.  By now, the winds had increased to 25-30 knots and the waves grew, too.  We were soon drenched by the spray from waves slapping the boat.  Thank goodness the water was warm.  Sounds dreadful but the trip was actually fun.  I think we made the right decision to head back to the marina.  The wind continued to blow hard at 25-30 knots for the next few days, with passing showers, too.

“It’s better to be in harbour wishing you were out to sea, than to be out to sea wishing you were in harbour.”

a wise, old sailor

We found some good shore-based activities to do around Airlie Beach, and had plenty of time for leisure in the tropical warmth. We caught a bus to Shute Harbour for lunch and walked to Coral Beach and The Beak Lookout in Conway National Park. We went on a pretty walk in a leafy valley following Airlie Beach Creek to a serene rockpool in the bush. We also walked along the Bicentennial Boardwalk that follows the coastline around Airlie Beach. For relaxation, we sat under a palm tree at Boathaven Beach; had lunch at the Whitsunday Sailing Club overlooking Airlie Bay; played pool in the Marina Lookout Lounge; and, on more than one occasion, spent happy hour around the pool at the Coral Sea Resort next to the Marina. Another Aperol Spritz, anyone?

Since my last post, we went home to Melbourne for a few weeks to catch up with family and friends. In particular, we celebrated our daughter reaching a major birthday milestone. We also spent time with our children who are expecting babies, to share the excitement and anticipation.

It was also an opportunity to start preparations for bringing Debonnaire back to Melbourne in October. Catherine spent a few busy days in the kitchen cooking and cryo-packing 66 dinners for the crew. Phil was busy doing neglected chores around the house, on the roof, and – worryingly – under the floor.

We returned to Airlie Beach, our other “home”, at the end of June, happy to leave behind the chill of winter in Melbourne. We planned to cruise around the Whitsunday islands for a couple of nights, but we only got as far as poking our bow into Whitsunday Passage when we were hit with strong 30 knot gusts. We decided to return to the marina and wait for better weather.

We took a bus to explore Shute Harbour, which is slowly recovering after significant damage from Cyclone Debbie in 2017. We had a nice lunch at a café overlooking the water. We also spent a lazy afternoon beside the pool at the Coral Sea Resort, now part of the Coral Sea Marina where Debonnaire is berthed. And, as always, there were some boat maintenance chores to cross off the list.

The two of us slipped away for a cruise from July 5 to 9. We visited Woodwark Bay, a quiet anchorage on the mainland. It was a calm night, with a clear sky filled with beautiful stars. We then cruised to Tongue Bay where you can walk to a lookout for a spectacular view of Hill Inlet and Whitehaven Beach. The next day we went to Chalkie’s Beach for the first time. We have always wanted to visit Chalkie’s, and it was a highlight of this trip. It has not only a beach of soft, white silica sand, but also a coral reef for snorkelling, making it a unique destination offering both features. We saw turtles swimming by, too. For our last night out, we sailed to picturesque Luncheon Bay on the north of Hook Island. It was a long trip in a fresh 18-23 knot breeze coming from behind. It was reasonably comfortable with 0.5m seas, other than a couple of rougher areas passing Border Island and Pinnacle Point. Along the way we saw turtles and dolphins.

We finally saw our first whales this year on our way back to Airlie Beach. We had started to hear reports of whales in the area during the preceding week. We expect to see more and more whales for the next few months.

(I forgot to include a map of our voyage, so I have updated this post to include the following to show our track.)

1 to 9 June 2023

What better way to start winter than a cruise around the Whitsunday islands? This past week, we welcomed aboard our friends Jane, Andrew, Liz, and John. While Melbourne shivered through chilly days, we enjoyed temperatures of 20-25°C, day and night.

It was too early in the season to spot whales, but we did see lots of turtles and fish. We saw a kaleidoscope of colourful tropical fish while snorkelling at Blue Pearl Bay and Stonehaven. The variety was amazing.

One evening at Stonehaven, there were hundreds of fish leaping out of the water as we panned our torch across the dark surface. The light seemed to startle the school, which was probably already nervous of predators hunting around reef.

We did a few walks to stretch our legs on land. A short walk at Nara Inlet on Hook Island took us to an interesting cave with aboriginal art. The Ngaro people have been living off the land and sea of this region for thousands of years. On Whitsunday Island, we did a couple of walks from Cid Harbour. One was a leafy 1 hour stroll between Sawmill and Dugong Beaches (keeping well clear of the giant stinging trees!). The other was a more challenging 2 hour hike to the summit of Whitsunday Peak (437m). The panoramic views, as well as the hike, were breath-taking.

A lot of the time we spent simply relaxing on the boat: reading, playing cards and board games, eating, drinking, enjoying the view, watching the sunset and gazing at stars.

Although the weather was windy at times with some showers, we always found quiet anchorages for restful nights.

At our “home” port in Airlie Beach, we spent the first and last nights of this cruise in Coral Sea Marina. Airlie Beach is a busy little tourist town with lots of places to eat. We bookended our voyage with dinner at a couple of our favourite restaurants.

The map below shows our track for this cruise. You can zoom and pan to view the track in greater detail.

Enjoying our stay at Whitsunday Island. Relaxing on board, visiting the beach, taking short walks on the island, watching the sunset.

Baked a delicious cake for Catherine’s birthday. Our small galley is basic, so sometimes you need a little ingenuity and make-do.

Moving to Hook Island, planning to spend the night at Stonehaven Anchorage.

Had a sensational sail to Whitsunday Island today. Sunny, warm, flat water, and a perfect breeze for a fast, comfortable sail. Anchored at Cid Harbour for the night; only 5 neighbours, so it’s nice and quiet. Took our new tender for its maiden voyage. Now enjoying a G&T before dinner.