Thank Your Mother For The Rabbits!!

A favourite saying of Bowen-based family friend, John Warby sums up our latest experiences nicely... thank your mother for the rabbits!!

At Double Cone island (where we spent the night anchored alone but for the very friendly mozzies) we went beach combing in the three rocky beaches and discovered all sorts of stuff. I found a plank (a family joke - as a kid I really wanted a plank for Christmas) and some rocks which strangely reminded me of people back home. Something about the combination of colours, patterns and textures. Rene found a perfectly useful lifering (worth about $100 new) and some fishing lures. We skinny-dipped in the sea (I was really brave and spent most of the time looking for imaginary jellyfish) to try and trick the swarm of sandflies into leaving us alone. It didn't work and we escaped back to the boat covered in bites.

Rock people

Life ring discovery

At Armit island we continued our beach combing ways but it had already been gone through and there wasn't anything useful left from the ship wreck. There were so many shoes washed up (at least 50) that I piled them all together into a shoe shrine next to a rock cairn that someone else had made before me. I wonder if others will add to the shoe pile? There was so much flotsam and jetsam here that we figured it must have been from the cyclone that hit Airlie beach back in March this year.

Anhinga under Jib and Mainsail on her way to Bowen

We left for Bowen at the same time that Nick and Jan from Yawarra 2 were leaving so they obligingly took some photos of us under sail (our first record of Anhinga sailing with us as the helm). In Bowen, family friends the Warby's helped us out so much because (as they kept telling us) 'we know what it's like' (to not have a car, washing machine, shower or space) and so they provided us with all of these things and more! John and Koffee Warby built their boat, Jantala (meaning 'home wherever you are' in Aboriginal language) in Brisbane and went cruising with Rene's parents 30 years ago. With their help, we were able to get the little outboard motor fixed (it turns out that all that was wrong with it was the off button had disintegrated), do a tonne of washing, stock up on food, get sparkly clean and cut out the pattern for our dinghy cover.

John, me, TT, Koffee, Jan and Nick on Yawarra 2

While in Bowen (famous for mangoes by the way) we first anchored off the boat harbour and as the trade winds picked up (as they always do this time of year) we began bucking about quite vigorously. Getting back to Anhinga in our little dinghy resulted in us and everything we were carrying getting completely drenched. A funny sight – us washing and wiping up our freshly bought groceries in the cockpit! Anchoring around at Greys Bay was much nicer and provided Rene with a bounty of fresh coconuts – his new fave snack food.

Anhinga sail-drifting to Cape Upstart

We eventually left Bowen for Cape Upstart and again, Yawarra 2 overtook us and snapped some more photos. Ren wishes our sails were fuller. If only we could somehow get a picture (from google?) of us as we are sailing right now on our way to Cape Bowling Green. We have four sails out – all full, it's a gorgeous day. Warm, sunny, surrounded by sparkling green water with the wind pushing us along. Very peaceful.

Yawarra 2 anchored at Cape Upstart

Nick helped us out (again!) last night. I was complaining about how hot it has been – how it's only September and we are sweating like it's the middle of summer in our little aft cabin (bedroom). Nick got a glazed look in his eyes and said that he recalled Max and Gloria (the builders and original owners of Anhinga who cruising through Asia and Micronesia with Nick and Jan) having the bedroom hatch set so that it faced forwards – not backwards. The 'toe-stubbers' on deck turned out to be the steel for the hatch to be secured from the opposite side so that it now faces forwards – HOORAH! Last night I was actually a bit chilly as the wind flew right down through the hatch and onto me as I slept. I may just be able to survive the tropical summer after all!