14th December. Arrived back in Mooloolaba after a fairly quick trip down from the Whitsundays.
28th November. Left Cid Harbour and the Whitsundays for our trip south to Mooloolaba. Left in strong SE winds which was quite uncomfortable.
1st November. In the Whitsundays for the past three weeks. Time spent at anchor either in places like Cid Harbour or Shute Harbour, getting supplies or doing laundry.
7th September. In Bundaberg, almost a week now, although we only intended staying for 2 - 3 days. Strong N - NW winds are not what we want, as that's the direction we want to sail. A SW change tomorrow might let us escape. Bundaberg is a nice city, so we don't mind staying here.
Late August - Early September. We came into the Great Sandy Straits on the inside of Fraser Island. Despite its reputation, the sea at the Wide Bay bar was flat and the crossing was uneventful. A few days spent at Garry's Anchorage were less than pleasant with winds to 35 knots from the NW. Another stop on Fraser Island was Kingfisher Resort, anchored offshore. It was a bit exposed, so we sailed/motored across Hervey Bay to Bundaberg (Burnett Heads). We didn't see any whales.
July - August were spent moving from Southport via the Broadwater, Manly, Scarborough, Mooloolaba and Fraser Island. In every case, a planned 1 - 3 day stop turned into a week. In each place, there has been something to do on the boat. We actually spent 6 weeks in Southport having a lot of work done, including rigging work, engine work, and a new generator bought and fitted. In Scarborough we bought an inverter which I fitted.
20th June 2000. We actually took possession of the boat in Southport. We had driven up from Sydney with the station wagon and a trailer full of our worldly possessions, including Liani our 11 year-old Siamese cat. After getting a few things done on the boat, we will head north, following our friends who left here a few weeks ago.
12th June 2000. We finally had a sensible offer on the house, which we accepted with some degree of relief. It had been a long time since it went on the market, and we were despairing if we would sell it before we left.
21st May 2000. We bought a boat!! After going to Southport to look at a steel boat, we decided against it, but bought another. Its a 45' Roberts Mauritius, center cockpit cutter. We take delivery on th 20th June. More details here.
29th April 2000. My contract at AM Corportation came to an end, and with that my working life - I am now retired.
February 2000. Well, soon it all goes! House, boat, racing car, amateur radio gear (some) - all has to go as we prepare to move onto our boat. We are still looking for the ideal boat, but if we don't have one by the end of April, we will head north to sunny Queensland and look for one there. The house has been tidied up and will be on the market soon.