Author Archives: Kiwihobos

Found a dead carpet snake. It was really big! Rowan turned around so I could go pat it.

Getting a few odd jobs done on the boat. Rowan edited the captains chair so it fit our new one that we got from an op shop. Léa gave us our new sail bag for the boom. There were some wooden pieces through it where it fixes on. They had started to break. I found some aluminum strips at bunnings. Rowan and David worked out how to make it work then we took the pieces to uncle Phils and cut them to length. They also drilled out the holes while there. It worked really well, now we have a good cover for the sail. Léa made it a bit longer for us so that it covered better.

Léa also did a cover for the cockpit area which makes it into an enclosed room. It didn’t fit properly it was a bit big. But she has now edited it so it fits nice and snug. It took me a bit of holding my tongue in the right direction to get it on.

Our autopilot is not working on the boat. Rowan is on a mission to fix it for pennies rather than dollars. The system we have is 30 years old and the company has just gone out of business. There is a local guy Phil who is in his 90s and is still working. He does this sort of electrical work and he is still climbing up the top of masts to do it! Pretty impressive. Rowan has found a second hand one on Facebook. Here’s hoping it works out well. I personally want to bite the bullet and pay for a new system, but we also really need to save our money right now. A new system would be around the $5k mark.

Rowan chose some material at spotlight for me to make him sarongs. I have only made one so far and that was a bit of a mission with my hand sewing machine. It did a pretty good job.

Spent a morning doing manual labour at David’s land. Trying to get it done before the heat of the day. Found these kingfisher feathers.

Rowan has new glasses for reading.

For fun we have been socialising quite a bit. We had pizzas with Steve and Linda one afternoon. Lala came over with lots of beautiful fish. Rowan and Kanu cooked it. We also had a family fun day at the marina and I got to hold a snake. Lala came with us and we tried out the marina swimming pool first then had pizza after. Look at the amazing Black Water Python. The colours were stunning.

First picture is me messing around while we did a few jobs before picking mum up from the airport. Do you like my new spammer? I think I need a bigger one!

We had two nights and a day in the Marina with mum just to get a few last things sorted and it is also nice for mum to have a few still nights for an introduction.

Amazing book from Jane. It is full of amazing information and great detailed paintings all done by the author.

Day 1, the Whitsundays was on full show today for Jane. We had Humpback Whales breaching with their calves. Bottlenose Dolphins swim in our bow. Green Turtles show their face. Snorkelling with hundreds of fish, Reef Sharks, Blue Spotted Stingrays and a Giant Trevally. We made our way out of the marina through Pioneer Rocks, past North Mole Island and through Hook Passage. From there we headed south to Chalkie’s Beach where we moored for the night and went snorkelling.

Breaching baby whale, taken with my phone so quality is poor

Day 2, It was a bit rolly where we stayed last night, we made our way to Whitehaven Beach. Rowan dropped us off on the beach, there was a dead turtle on the beach. We had a small walk as it was already getting pretty hot. We cooled off in the beautiful clear water. I waved Rowan down when we were ready to come back onto the boat. We had lunch on the boat.

After lunch we stopped by Esk island for a wonder. Lots of beautiful coral and shells. From there we headed to Tongue Bay to find a mooring for the night. The plan is to walk over in the morning to Hill Inlet.

Day 3, mum feels unwell. It was pretty side by side rocking and it made me a bit nutty. I make her a ginger tea, which helps a lot. We don’t go for the walk we decide to prioritise a calm anchorage. We leave Tongue Bay late morning after catching some small garfish for bait. Going back the way we came and end up at The Cairn in Hook Passage for a gentle night. Rowan Snorkeling spear fishing, while I attempt to fish off the dinghy. It’s always smart to stay in pairs, it is always a lot safer especially when it comes to diving. The water is a bit murky so he gives up and tries trolling off the dinghy. No luck, we really want to get some fresh fish!

Day 4, mum enjoyed the calm waters last night and feels much better. We head north east around Hook Island and stop at Caves Cove. Mum and I snorkel off the boat but Rowan stays on board as lookout. We jumped onto a private mooring so we can’t stay long and Rowan stays onboard just in case the owner wants the mooring. We then head onto Stonehaven to have lunch. I realise no one really adheres to the 2 hour rule for the public moorings. You can jump on one anytime but between 9 to 5 there is a 2 hour limit. Rowan says it has definitely changed, people used to automatically move if another boat showed up. Rowan and I snorkel with the dinghy just nearby. The dinghy can’t be anchored near the reef so we just float with it.

Day 5, yucky weather. Well it’s not that bad, just bad compared to the other days. We’ll head to Mantaray Bay for a snorkel. We manage to get one of the moorings, before we know it there are a couple of tour boats here too. However they have a permit to feed the fish so we get the benefit of that. When I pulled up the mooring line there were two cute little crayfish. We put them back, hopefully they live on. After a few hours snorkelling we head back to Stonehaven and pick up a mooring in a better location.

Day 6, a rest day. A little boat repairs while we are out here and it is nice and calm. But most of the day is spent swimming, eating and reading. Jane and I have been taking a nap most days. The boat life sure is tiring. Some Bottlenose Dolphins graced us with their presence too!

Day 7, big day. We leave relatively early to make the most of the low tide. We are heading to Blue Pearl Bay off Hayman Island for a snorkel. We may see Elvis a giant Maori Wrasse. We saw George who is pretty big at Mantaray Bay. Now the actual Manta Rays come around now but we didn’t see any. Maybe next time.

We could hear the Humpback Whales as we were snorkelling around in Blue Pearl Bay which was really incredible. So many fish and it was really good spot to snorkel. I had seen a video of a person getting on a dinghy back to front by having their legs away from the boat and holding on backwards. They then put their head under the dinghy and push their legs up and over onto the dingy and push themselves up. I managed to do it, shit it was funny. I wish we had videotaped the whole thing. Mum had a go and I nearly wet myself. She managed to do it once we grabbed her legs to help her on.

After that we continued around Hayman island heading back to Hook Island. We passed the Pinnacle Rocks and headed to Crayfish Bay. Rowan spent hours snorkelling while mum and I walked along the beach and had a nice swim. I went to pick up Rowan with the dinghy and it took mum and I a while. The problem was mum couldn’t get onto the boat while keeping me and the motor in the deeper water. It was so funny, she fell in the water a couple of times. I am sure the other boats had an entertaining show.

From Crayfish Bay we headed back to Tongue Bay where we stayed our second night. This time we ignored the moorings and went far in to the shallow area and dropped our anchor. This will ensure a restful sleep.

I really need to get our underwater camera sorted so I can give you all an underwater show.

Day 8, sunrise over Hill Inlet. We are recreating day 3 or what should have been day 3. We got up the hill to the lookout nice and early to watch a spectacular show. I had three different devices take these shots.

After the show we walked down to the beach for a swim the crystal clear water. When we got back to the dinghy other people started to arrive. It was definitely worth getting in early to experience it all to ourselves. Rowan wants to come back with our metal detector.

With breakfast in our bellies we headed back through the Hook Passage and swung into Nara Inlet. Rowan doesn’t recommend swimming as it is very murky and Tiger Sharks like to breed here. We put down the anchor and dinghy in to a small beach with stairs. Climb the stairs and you will find some awesome Aboriginal cave art paintings. They are not as old as the ones we have seen in the Kimberley’s however they are still 9,000 years old and the Ngaro people used this cave constantly for at least 2,000 years. Pretty amazing place to visit.

When we got back down we went for a swim right next to the dinghy. It is shallow and clear here so pretty safe. When we get back to the boat Rowan hops off and I take mum for a blast around the inlet. It is really beautiful in here, I can see why it is chosen spot for go when it is rough out there.

We leave Nara and head to False Nara to moor for the night. We started the day with a nature show and we have ended the day with another spectacular view.

Jane and I swear we hear whales in the night through the hull. Turns out you can in the right conditions and more likely with a steel or aluminium hull.

Day 9, back to reality. Rowan finally manages to spear a fish and a crayfish. He just has a small hand spear so it has made it hard to get any fish. The crayfish was quite small but it’s hard to tell when they’re in their caves and there is no legal limit for this species. He is a happy man, we head back to the mainland and it is all go. I get the boat cleaned up and the lovely Léa comes by to pick up the boom bag. I also have Clint arrive to wanting to grab his dinghy. Rowan goes to Uncle Phil’s to grab the truck. I have a quick shower before we go out for a late lunch with Clint at Sorrentos for pizza. It is great to have a chance to get to know the guy who just dropped his tender off on our doorstep. We end up having left over pizza for dinner.

Day 10, surprise we are heading back out! The weather is too good to not. We have a few jobs to do first. A good breakfast at the Rainbow Cafe to set us up for the day. Rowan and I have the breakfast for two. Who knew there was such a thing. It was delicious. We did a quick shop for some more fresh food supplies and we dropped in on Vic and Roz to say hello and see if we could help them. They have family and a baby arriving tomorrow and they’re in a panic to get things ga done. Roz needs help getting a baby seat and a few other last minute items so mum and I help her find the things she is looking for. This is her first grandchild so mum offers her some wisdom. We get back to the boat and head straight out to False Nara.

Day 11, a pretty relaxed morning waiting for the tide to go down. I make some more noise doing some rust work. The tide is favourable and we all hop into the dinghy. Rowan takes it slow as there is a bit to navigate over before we get into the deeper waters on the other side of the coral. We spend a good few hours looking around while Rowan gets us fish. Rowan finds a Nemo home and gets us to come over. I could spend hours looking at it. The smallest one is the size of my pinky nail and the biggest about the size of my hand. It is so mesmerising. I will come back with the camera one day and find it to take photos. Definitely a highlight of the trip. When we were ready to go back to the boat we realised the tidal has gone down further and we are stuck. Rowan said sometimes we get these bigger tides and today must be one of those days. It is amazing. Also when we hoped into the dinghy we realised that we have a puncture on one side. Maybe when I got caught on some coral I did it. I was swimming the whole time with the dinghy tied onto me. Well we gently get ourselves out when the tide starts coming back in. It is a bit of a mission and I say to mum be very careful. It takes us a while but we get out and back onto the boat. We have lots of fresh fish and we will be sure to have a feed tonight.

Day 12, Heading back in today. Mum leaves tomorrow so better head back. Rowan and I race around doing a few jobs and leave mum to wonder through the shops at Airlie. We all meet back up for lunch. It is a very hot day and we are all struggling a little. Later on we go out for dinner, pizza on the waterfront and having a nice wine. Rowan got a late call to do some drilling work for Uncle Phil’s friend. Uncle Phil is sick so Rowan said he was happy to help. He has worked out it has been 15 years since he did any work on an hourly pay. I wonder how long the novelty will last.

We drop Rowan off to work and head into the markets in Airlie. Today they have a cruise ship coming on in so they are set up. I am sure they make more on these days than the general weekly one. Mum and I find a nice top each and some spices. From there we head out for breakfast at the Treetops Cafe. I tried matcha for the first time. I was disappointed that they didn’t make it in house and it was a pre made one. However it was delicious. Off to the op shops then we head out to Proserpine. After we had a wonder around there I wasn’t sure how to kill the next hour and a half so I started driving and had a brain wave about going to the dam. Which they now call the lake, which sounds way more fancy. We put our feet in off the wharf to cool down. It’s not clear water like back home but it’s nice and refreshing. The lake is there to control water in flood season. There were a few boats and a JetSki but not very busy. Most campers looked like they were relaxing in their little areas. I dropped mum off at the airport about an hour before her flight. It was great to have her as our first guest. Thanks for coming Ma! When I caught up with Rowan that night he

I dropped mum off at the airport about an hour before her flight. It was great to have her as our first guest. Thanks for coming Ma!

Asked why on earth I would put my feet in the water and did I check for crocs. I explained I didn’t see signs and he said that didn’t matter. Then I explained boats and jet skis so I thought it would be safe. Then he realised oh yes if there was jet skis it will be safe haha. Made me think, because I did have a vague look for signs but I should have checked more thoroughly first.

We are back

So much to do and the weather is teasing us for working. Here is us walking to the shops for supplies.

Taking the dinghy for supplies. We park at the local Marine Dock (2 hour limit) and walk from there.

Uncle Phil has let us hire a car off him. Here we are replacing the fire extinguishers that are no good anymore. We also replaced the EPIRB (emergency beacon). The tools are absolute chaos that we left when we went to Sydney. They are getting sorted and put into the storage space in the engine room.

The supplies keep coming. All of the spare backup parts are going under the bed. Here is a Curlew nesting on an egg out on David’s land. They are great at camouflage.

We picked up an old chess table from Joannes friend who has stored it for the last 30 years. I would hate to think of the bill for that one haha.

I got a bit overwhelmed with all this work and amazing weather I nudged Rowan into a quick dinghy trip to try out a few of his fishing rods. As we were about to hop on we got talking to the neighbouring boat, Eliza & Clint. They’re around our age, he currently has a large motorboat (as us sail sailors call stink boats) but he has also had sailing yachts too. He loves fishing so he says he struggles to stick to one type of boat because he likes sailing as well. It’s nice to have someone close our age. Most people in the Marina are 60 plus.

When we went out on our little dinghy Rowan snagged an Estuary Cod. He was a bit small so we put him back.

A large heavy job that arrived for us while we were in Sydney. Changing three of the house batteries. There are three sets of batteries on the boat. One for the engine, a set of two and a set of three for the house batteries. The set of three were totally gone so Rowan removed them and replaced them. He needed help getting the last battery out and he called me to the engine room and said Katie get your clothes off! I thought gee it’s a bit small in there Rowan haha. No he just didn’t want me to get grease and oil on my good clothes, very thoughtful of him. He did a good job getting those all sorted in such a small space.

Today we met another sailor our age Lala. Lala is from Hastings, NZ and she has been in Australia 14 years. She lives the boat life with her 14 year old son and they moved on about 3 years ago. Rowan found her on Facebook because she was selling some anchor chain. Which we want ours a bit longer so that worked out well. I will have her over for dinner. She said she hasn’t found anyone our age in the area and she has been here 6 months.

First photo, a perfectly good gas regular haha. The bbq regulator fell apart when Rowan went to check the gas bottles. There is no one in town that doesn’t gas bottles checks as everyone appears to do swap a bottle. We don’t want to do that as all three bottles are hot galvanised dipped to stop the rust. Plus when we start getting overseas there is no swap a bottle. You can get gas bottles in stainless steel and even fibreglass! A big shop stocking up the cupboards. We found some old drinks in one of the bilge compartments, they expired in 2018 so they have been there a while.

Got a free dinghy! Eliza & Clint were only our neighbours for a couple of nights but he said to us casually “I might leave my dinghy with you guys, is that okay?” Here we are a couple days later with a note on our boat and a dinghy hanging out the back. Talk about trusting, we only had one 10min conversation with him. They have a mooring they are renting for a few months just off the marina and they have a house back in Yeppoon. While needing to head back he wants to leave the dinghy with us rather than a public dock where it is safer. We give him a call and he says to use it and take it out with us while we head around the islands.

Bed is ready for mum! Here is a boat tour.

Hopefully this video works.

Here are the boys trouble shooting the engine. Trying to work out why it is losing water. The second photo is me pulling apart the place to clean out the lockers and move stuff around.

We have been having some beautiful sunrises and sunsets.

We took the boat out of the Marina and anchored up just on the other side. You’re not allowed to do boat maintenance while in the Marina so we went out to make a bit of noise. There are some rust spots and one of the hatches was leaking so we had to dig a bit further to find the issue. Oh no a holey boat. We will do a semi permanent fix and when we sail south we have a friend in Coffs Harbour who can help us weld a more permanent solution.

Campfire dinner at Roz and Vic’s. Little Allie liked Rowan.

The boys working on the engine

I have had two outings without the boys. First one was learning bowling in Proserpine with Uncle Phil and Aunty Heather. I wasn’t the youngest as they had a woofer (farm worker) from Germany with us and she is 19. Sinja and I got a run down for about 15min on the very basics of lawn bowling, Phil was a pretty good teacher.

Sinja and I were playing in the same game against one another for the first one. It was an even tie. We had two old boys who helped by telling us where to aim at the other side of the field near the jack (small white ball). Phil was on both of our teams as he played for both as we were one person short. It started at 1.30pm and we finished around 3pm. We had a cuppa and a muffin as our break and then we went off to play another game.

The next game Sinja and I were separated. I played atrociously after our break, I feel like I shouldn’t have stopped. But then I got into the swing of things and actually won my team two rounds. Wahoo! My bowls are the green ones, I took photos as I was so proud haha. My team ended up winning by two points. It was a great day out, I think I will bring Rowan back for a game when we can. The hardest part was the heat, and feeling the sun. I can’t imagine playing in summer as winter is warm enough for this Kiwi.

Just a couple of pretty photos. I have been looking at redesigning the paint job on the boat. I have a design in mind and have considered buying another vinyl cutting machine to do it. But by the time I do that it will be pretty costly and I won’t have any use for the machine afterwards. Also the cost to get it done by a sign writer will be in the thousands. I will most likely end up hand painting it with two part epoxy gel coat paint. It is not a job I will do for a long time, but it is fun to work out what I want to do.

I joined some ladies for a quiz night run by SeaKeepers and the marina. The quiz was about the Great Barrier Reef and I thought I would be hopeless as my knowledge is Finding Nemo and that movie is more than 20 years old.

I also hoped to make a few connections but also expected most people to be cliquey. Well it was but I made friends with Gen, a lady from Barosa who is not like that at all. I actually have talked to her a few times early in the morning while getting coffee at the Ocean Club. Oh Ocean Club is where the showers, toilets, laundry are and above is a big deck area with a bbq and coffee facilities a book swap and a little interior chill out lounge. There is a bean to cup coffee machine there which provides me with bean juice.

Back to the main story. Gen and I ended up on the same table and you did your test individually so no groups. There were beautiful food platters and whatever beverage you fancied, I got into the bubbles. Gen and I got the same score in each round and came out with 25 out of 30. It was really funny as we got different questions wrong so we definitely didn’t cheat. The top three had 26 score and had to do some bonus questions in order to figure out who was first. They were some really fancy prizes. I was really happy that I did so well considering my limited knowledge.

SeaKeepers is a non profit organisation that has a but load of scientists around the world. One of the biggest costs is collecting data so cleverly they employ citizen scientists (every day people) to help. There are a lot of vessel owners who can help in different ways. You can put some scientists on board and take them out to gather data. You can also collect data for them, email it off and the scientists then use that to help. I got a coral checking pack for when we are snorkelling we can check the corals and record what we find. You can also get a noise listening device that records the whales. They are trying to develop a sound that can be put on boats that tell the whales not to come near. There is no official data for how many collisions there are but I heard one of the ladies say her friends are waiting to see if their boat is a write off and that 3 were hit with last years rally. I know a lot of humpbacks are migrating but that is a lot of whales! Some really cool initiatives that Rowan and I will definitely get involved in.

More campfire

First photo is taken from David’s block of land looking over Airlie Beach, what a view. An important label, I think it was the gearbox. Rowan searching for a leak. A huge strawberry!

Rowan and David pulled apart the outboard for the dinghy and cleaned out the carburettor at Vic’s. Rowan drilled some anodes for the boat. They are sacrificial metal chunks to protect your propeller and in our case steel hull from corrosion.

I cleaned out the first aid kit and found a few goodies that expired in 1994.

David had a bit of a breakdown and wouldn’t tell us what is wrong. He tried to leave the boat after a few too many so I took the car keys and hid them so he couldn’t try to drive. I ended up calling his wife Jennifer to help us and in the end he called Vic to come pick him up. I really struggled with the situation as Rowan communicates clearly if he is frustrated but David doesn’t so we still dont know what upset him. Even more difficult was hearing David drunkenly go on about how if Rowan wasn’t his son he wouldn’t have anything to do with him. It is just hard for me to hear a father say that to his son and say openly that he tells all his friends this. I cried myself to sleep that night and it was tears for Rowan. I can’t imagine what it would feel like hearing a parent say something like that.

David came back and apologised in a David way a couple days later. Rowan forgave him. I don’t know if I can.

Time to leave Airlie, this is the hard part. We only just got here and I really don’t want to go. Not when I feel like we have barely scratched the surface of getting the boat ready and not when it has taken such a long time to get here. I am rather frustrated. We are heading back to Sydney to look after Bette for 10 days. Bette is very easy to look after and it is not a problem, I’m just itching to properly start living on the boat!

As much as we would love to sail into the sunset there is work to do. The boat needs a good clean and there is a bunch of maintenance to attend to. We also have gear to remove and gear to add. The marina is paid until 22nd August but we are also needed back in Sydney for a couple of weeks which doesn’t give us a lot of time.

I am trying not to buy anything that isn’t strictly necessary and the op shop list is pretty long now. We have most things on the boat already but we will swap out stuff as we go.

This is an antique gimballed kerosene lamp that was on the yacht Mango Groove when Rowan was a child. When his dad went to sell the boat 6 year old Rowan told him he had to remove it and keep it. Consequently each boat David has owned he has been told to remove and put on the next boat. So when he put up Acacia Spray for sale he removed it for Rowan. Well now we own it so it has gone right back where it was. It was made by William Kopsen (1847 – 1930). Read below if you’re interested in his vibrant history (copied from Australian Dictionary of Biography Vol 9 – by Barbara Dale).

William Kopsen (1847-1930), manufacturer and ship-chandler, was born on 29 December 1847 and baptized Gustaf Wilhelm at Vaxholm, Sweden, only son of Erik Gustav Kopsen, marine customs house porter, and his wife Anna Greta, née Ohrstrom. His early childhood was marred by family discord and straitened circumstances. Orphaned at 15 he lived in 1862-64 on a farm at Osteraker where he was tutored by the rector Dr Samuel Ponten who encouraged Kopsen to study geography and anthropology.

From 1864 Kopsen worked as a shop assistant and book-keeper in Stockholm. He migrated in 1868, reaching Sydney on 10 September. After working as a cook and shepherd on sheep-stations near Bathurst, he went next year to the Clarence River where he bought a small boat and traded. But, ‘seized by a longing to see the Fiji Islands’, he joined the missionary ship John Wesley and reached Levuka in May 1870. For two years he transported cargoes round the islands and early in 1873 became a book-keeper in Levuka, while acting as commission agent for Swedish planters. In 1875 he established W. Kopsen & Co., with J. C. Smith, to import and trade in textiles and general merchandise. By the late 1870s he was a member of the hospital board, secretary of the yacht and rifle clubs, and consul for Sweden and Norway from 1881.

Britain had annexed Fiji in 1874 and in 1877 Kopsen was naturalized. In Levuka on 20 October he married Laura Theresa Turner from Sydney. He had sent articles about native customs, flora and fauna to a Stockholm newspaper, and donated artefacts from the South Pacific to a Swedish museum — in 1882 he was elected to the Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography. When the capital was moved to Suva that year, Kopsen moved too and in 1883 became an alderman and mayor. He was a member of the Marine Board and in 1885 formed and was chairman of the Fiji Fire and Marine Insurance Co. Ltd.

In 1889 Kopsen settled in Sydney, carrying on business at 70 Clarence Street as Smith & Kopsen, ship-chandler. After Smith retired the firm of W. Kopsen & Co. Ltd was registered in December 1905. On a cycling tour of the Snowy Mountains he became interested in a timber which locals called ‘mountain ash’. Foreseeing its commercial potential, Kopsen in 1906 built a plant at Auburn, where tests indicated its suitability for oars and implement handles. When transport of the timber proved difficult and costly, a factory was built at Laurel Hill, near Batlow, where ‘Pioneer’ oars and handles were made. By 1927 W. Kopsen & Co. Ltd were contractors to government departments and always had 10,000 oars ready for delivery within Australia and shipment to the Pacific Islands. He did much to revive the Australian timber industry and to reduce domination by American imports.

From 1911 Kopsen served as foundation senior vice-president of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce for Australia, New Zealand and South Sea Islands, and in 1923-28 was honorary vice-consul for Sweden. In 1914 he was largely responsible for erecting a monument at Kurnell to Daniel Solander.

Described as ‘a giant, elegant both in appearance and manners’, Kopsen had great personal charm, humanity and optimism, with the ability to organize, act quickly and take command. He had been brought up as a Lutheran, believing in the virtues of thrift, industry and self-discipline; in Australia he was a Congregationalist. He visited Sweden in 1910 and afterwards said that ‘a good wind blew over my head the day I travelled away from the old country’. Kopsen retired in 1928 and died at his home at Strathfield on 15 August 1930; he was cremated. His estate was valued for probate at £34,092. His wife, two sons and three daughters survived him. In 1983 William Kopsen & Co. was carried on by a grandson.

Rowan and David working in the engine room

Metal detectors! Rowan and I used to have a couple years ago and we have purchased two ex demo ones. One can go down to 60m and the other is more for on land but can handle getting wet too. We will be hunting for treasure in no time.

We took a trip up Brandy Creek Road to Uncle Phil’s places. It was great to meet Heather and Phil as I have heard a lot about them. Their place is in a beautiful bush setting and Phil is a bit of a wheeler dealer. Rowan came helped remove a drive shaft from an old ute. It was a bit of a mission. I supervised.

Sunrise and a sunset in the marina

We are off! Let’s take this bad boy for a spin! We are going out for a couple of days to see what else we may need to do.

I did a bit of hull scraping before we left as we have our own reef growing under the boat. It is due to be slipped and new anti foul put on. We will do that within the next 6 months. It is perfect sailing weather.

I am feeling very lucky, I have spotted a bottle nose dolphin and a humpback whale. Not bad for my first trip on the boat.

First night we spent on a mooring at Dumbell Island. Rowan took me into shore on the dinghy and we went snorkelling around to see all the stunning coral and sea life. Even though I have run out of contact lenses it was incredible to see. Did come across some jellyfish but they are not ones that sting, phew.

First sunrise at sea on Acacia Spray

Good morning cruel world. We were aiming to leave early to go to Whitehaven Beach but our engine won’t start. The boys fluff about for an hour and manage to sort it out. Something about bleeding or air to get it going. This happens throughout the day until we finally realise it is one of two things that they tighten to fix the issue. Wh

Whitehaven is exactly like the photos incredible white sand, blue water and blue skies. We take the metal detector for a swing on the beach. We really need to learn the codes for this machine.

Second night we stay on a mooring in Hook Passage at the Cairn. It is between Hook Island and Whitsundays Island.

We set off early to False Nara Inlet, it is exactly what you think it is. A false bay that would make you think you had made it to Nara Inlet. There were two Green turtles there which was awesome to see. Rowan kept seeing them yesterday and I kept missing them. We didn’t a stay long, just had some breakfast and headed back to the marina. David has an appointment on Monday so we needed to be back at lunchtime. The wind was great for sailing and we averaged 7 knots on the way back.

Here is our course expertly mapped.

We arrived pretty exhausted. Rowan even fell asleep on the couch. The rainbow lorikeets love coming over to say hi! We have had a lot of fun with Justin, Rowan’s youngest cousin. Lots of Snorkeling, swimming and adventures. Photos are of Little Bay. Rowan grabbed a shark by its tail here.

We trekked up to Dungog to see Heather, Kaity and the kids. They have all grown a heap in the year it has been since we last saw them. It was great to have a good catch up. We even got time to help out around the house. They had been waiting for someone to be able to replace their dishwasher so we got that sorted for them. There was a light that needed replacing which was pretty dodgy when it was wired up. But in Australia you can’t replace light fittings yourself it has to be an electrician, we left that alone. We went for a little skinny dip in the river, the water was fresh. Not as cold as NZ. They also have a new family member, the cutest mini pony for the kids to ride. It’s kept out at grandmas land. It was really lovely to catch up with Heathers grandma and her mum too.

Joanne took us to a delicious restaurant for Rowans 40th Birthday. Experiences are always preferable. This is L’Entrecôte, there are two in Sydney. They started in France and I think there is one in London too and they are well known for their sauce that goes with their steak. The food was perfect, it was delicious, I tried a steak tartare. We also shared a Foie gras. I can see what the fuss is about, Rowan and I agree that it’s not worth the cruelty. There are a few farms who do it ethically, it costs a lot but I think it’s worth it to not have the cruelty behind it. The Apple tartan was incredible, I shared it with Joanne and I am glad I did there was no way I could eat it on my own. They only make 6 a day so it was something I had to try.

More snorkelling and swimming with Justin. We have come down to La Perouse a few times now to swim at Congwong Beach. The water is pretty fresh, I can last about 30min in there to an hour. I haven’t used my wetsuit but probably should if I want to stay in longer.

Unbelievably Rowan actually got a beautiful crayfish around the corner near Bare Island. It’s an Eastern Rock Lobster. I always think of it as a crayfish as it doesn’t have lobster claws.

We got it back to the apartment to cook it.

An early start to make sure we were in the Royal National Park before the sun rises. We went straight to Wattamolla Beach and couldn’t resist a swim. It wasn’t until we were in the water that I pointed out to Rowan we are swimming at peak Great White Shark feeding time. There have been quite a few more attacks recently. We just moved to a more shallow area to reduce the risk. The water was super clear and beautiful. A beautiful sunrise while swimming.

We continued through the National park to Garrie and at the lookout I got to see my very first Lyre bird. I was so excited. They’re the icon of the NSW national park. Notorious for being hard to spot, you normally hear them rather than see them. But of course they mimicked all the birds. I went back to the car for my camera and got an identification shot.

The whole reason for this trip south was to catch up with our friend Danny from Ōamaru. We haven’t seen him in a few years and we missed our nights out camping together.

Paula Hall – Child Welfare NZ approves of this message. “No child left behind”

It took the day prior to bake everything for Bette’s party. There were 11 of us to celebrate her 96th Birthday. Rowan and I over catered, but at least we didn’t run out of food. The cake was strawberry and lime.

The next day Justin, Rowan and I got up early to do the Wollangambe in the Blue Mountains. It is a hike in and a lilo down the creek which I would call a river and it’s a canyon. We are doing the first part which doesn’t need ropes and experience just good fitness. Well we drive the 2.5 hours to find the road is closed and only open to residents. The guys at the boom gate have been there since Easter and they said it will be at least a year before the road is open again. I feel like every time I go the Blue Mountains it is closed lol. It was rather annoying but we just decided it was worth going somewhere else for a walk and a swim.

These photos are from Evan’s Lookout

We found another Lyre bird in the wild. How cool we could hear it sing didn’t get great photos.

3 sisters

At the Wentworth Falls carpark and lookout there were two cheeky Lyre birds and they let me get very close. I was gutted I didn’t bring my camera but of course I planned to be getting we down a canyon.

A lot of stairs down to Empress Falls which means there is a lot of steep stairs up. At the bottom was a very cold water hole that we all hopped in. It must have been 5 degrees or less. I swam to the waterfall then I got promptly out. All those cold plunges trained me for 10 seconds of stinging water.

We then went to Jellybean Pool. Where the sun came out and see swam across to sunbathe on the rocks like monitor lizards. It was no where near as cold as Empress. Our timing was perfect as we got out other people showed up. Three groups in fact. It cost $8 for entrance.

After we demolished some yesterday sandwiches and birthday cake we headed out and turned left to see what was further down the cliffside. We discovered there is a whole lot more to see and to do. You go over a ford and there is all this extra wilderness. A large area for camping. Beautiful views of the neapon river. Aboriginal art and loads of places to have a walk or a picnic. What a great discovery, thanks Rowan for pointing out we should go left.

Red hands cave paintings. Each one is a different person. I really enjoyed the bush walk seeing all the flora.

We headed back to Sydney from there.

Joanne and I went for a walk and watched the sunrise in Coogee. It was a nice outing and we stopped by Tuga Pastries to check out their food. One of the guests brought lovely Portuguese tarts to the birthday party so we had to check out what else they had on offer. I had an amazing eggs Benedict danish. It was the most delicious eggs Benedict I have ever had. I will be coming back to try more delicacies soon.

Airlie Beach here we come. We are off to the boat, it was an afternoon flight that got us in after 6pm. David (Rowan’s Dad) picked us up and we headed to Airlie Beach for dinner. We had a nice meal before getting to the boat. By the time we had done our evening set up and ablutions it was 11.30pm and I went to bed wiped.

The day has arrived to dig up the road. It has taken a long time to get here. We also have our Sparky on site finishing the wiring. I got a pretty certificate at the end. South Roads hasn’t finished their part but I don’t care. I am just glad I have my part in. We stayed around to make sure they connected the water and put the water Toby in. Literally their one job for the day and they didn’t bring the tool that means the water turns on. They promised me 2 days or so to do it. Rowan told them not good enough as our plumber is here tomorrow and needs the water on. So they needed up getting a worker who lives I. Palmerston to do it on his way to Ōamaru tomorrow morning. Our Skevingtons contractors were great, I just wished we could have used them for the full job. The digger driver even kindly moved our tree stump for us. Rowan wanted it away from the power line so we can set it alight one day.

We have Dave the plumber and Chris our digger man on site today. Dave is finishing off the plumbing and Chris is finishing off our landscaping. It took a few trucks off rocks to finish it off and moving some earth too. But it is much better. Dave had trouble with the toilet and realised he didn’t connect it properly, so he fixed it easily. But this is why you turn the water on as soon as possible to see if there is any issues.

Wednesday, today it is just Rowan and I. We are here finishing off jobs. The council inspector shows up around 10am to do the final inspection. Wahoo we pass with flying colours.

Carpet is here! It is a big push today. The carpet is going in and Rowan and I have a fair bit to do too. We also run off to Dunedin to go to Bunnings, The Warehouse and Recycle Boutique. I need a hair dryer if I want to get exterior paint dry today. It works a charm. After the carpet layers are gone I get into my touch up paint. Rowan and I collapse at 6.30pm and go home. What a day.

Friday and Saturday are a bit of a blur. We have a day in town running around on Friday and get back to Herbert around 2pm. Rowan and I get into a few jobs that need to be sorted. We also have a big list for tomorrow. Bette is going and the first job is to unpack her ready to go on the move. Sylvia and I follow Jim in her ute. The drive takes about an hour and a half. Rowan stays behind to level up Jo and to reconnect the water and cook dinner. We moved the truck forward and so it needed to be done asap. Rowan literally has bruises all over his abdomen from getting under the truck. Crazy!

Sunday, oh I forgot to mention in all the chaos we also sold the house. The new owners are getting early access today and starting to put furniture in. I cleaned like a mad woman and Rowan worked outside fixing up gates and cleaning up outside. I got a few photos done just as they arrived. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

The day is far from over. Rowan gets onto the roof of the containers and starts putting up the iron. It’s is getting pretty dark and the iron is wet with condensation when he finishes.

Alistair comes to help us get the last jobs done. We are very thankful for the help. it was about 3pm when we finally got the jobs done and could pack. We did it in the fastest way possible. Throwing things into bags and weighing them. There was no rhyme or reason. We got 5 out of the 6 bags done. Then we ran off to Ōamaru to go see Jerry and Margaret. Plus a few other last minute errands. Then dinner with Laura and Alistair. We got home beyond tired. At midnight I got to sleep. What a day.

Goodbye! We hit the road

We have two nights in Christchurch before flying. There is a few people we want to see before we go. It is pretty full on, but in a good way. I manage to send a bunch of messages before we go. However I still have a long list to get through while in Sydney. We also have a goodbye to Noodly, the new owner has picked her up.

I noticed the newly commissioned art installation in the bathroom, and was going to enquire about it, before remembering that one doesn’t need to fully understand art in order to appreciate its beauty.

We got an early uber to the airport, it feels really strange to have so much luggage.

I safely landed us into Sydney. The ride over was quite bumpy but after trying to go up, down, to the side and still finding turbulence I gave up and left the auto pilot on. AI is so good now, didn’t even need to land the plane. It really is a sit there and look pretty kind of job now. Thanks to Air New Zealand for trusting me to get us all to Sydney.

We were being cheeky and that cheekiness got me into the cockpit with the pilots. Got to love AirNZ ❤️

We made it through customs without a hitch. It may have been obvious that we are packing our life up to be on a boat with all the strange gear we brought with us.