Newcastle

Well, folks, this will be the last entry for a month. Tomorrow we head back to Geelong for a few weeks. The boat will stay here under the watchful eye of the Newcastle Marina manager until the last week of June, when we begin our meander northwards again!

Yesterday I drove a car for the first time in two months! We hired a car and headed off to the Hunter valley vineyards for the day. Good fun, but we fogot to take a camera! Apart from that we’ve spent a few days here getting to know Newcastle and (in Jo’s case) getting the shells collected in Eden finally framed and up on the wall.

So here are a few pictures to keep you going until we return. They are of the approaches to Newcastle, of us, and of the marina were the boat now resides.

Last night we both suddenly realised that Meander had in every way become our home – and that cursing, as Jo put it ‘is what we do’. We’ve been getting on wonderfully, and at no time have either of us expressed a desire to spend a night ashore! The boat is great, and this trip is proving to be a truly memorable experience…

So, until the next blog posting…

Love from us both!

G&T in the cockpit












Approaching Newcastle













Entry to Newcastle Harbour, home of the friendly Coastal Patrol









Meander and our friendly neighbourhood Dry Dock

Blackwattle and Broken Bays

Once we arrived in Blackwattle Bay we found an anchorage in amongst the many other boats already there. It was a real international anchorage with two Canadian, one French and one New Zealand boat interspersed with a variety of Aussie vessels. It was nice to see some familiar faces as, on the New Zealand boat as well as one of the Canadian boats, were people we had met in other places. It’s quite common for people to hop into their dinghy and row over to say hello to each other either to re-acquaint or acquaint themselves with other yachties. Strangely enough, four of the boats in Blackwattle Bay at that time had a Michael on board as their skipper!!!

On the way to Blackwattle bay

The international anchorage at Blackwattle Bay

The view from our boat at night

In the three weeks we were there Mike and I found the diversity of Sydney Harbour a pleasure and a surprise as we moved from cove to bay to marina. Each place was totally unlike the one before.

We took a light rail into the city to have one last look around. We went to Paddy’s Market and Mike bought himself several new peaked caps to replace the large number he’s lost, mostly overboard but one or two left on public transport, in a restaurant, or Laundromat, anyway now he has some new $2.00 ones and he’ll probably keep them forever!!!! [Jo was upset that I only bought four caps – she said I should have bought ten – time will tell whether she was right! Mike] We had morning coffee in the magnificent Queen Victoria Building and lunched alfresco in China Town.

Next morning we took the dinghy over to the fish market and stocked up on delicious goodies to see us through our trip to Broken Bay.

After collecting Ben from shore, we secured the dinghy on the foredeck and then we were off!! The weather wasn’t looking too exciting but then it wasn’t looking too threatening either- so we kept our fingers crossed and set off, sailing up the coast to Broken Bay. The trip turned out to be uneventful but very pleasant. We were able to put up the sails and turn off the engine for a short while much to Bens approval. After checking the bible (Alan Lucas cruising the NSW coast) we found a suitable anchorage in Pittwater amongst the beautiful backdrop of Kuring Gai Chase National Park. We settled down to a relaxing evening of eating (the prawns and snapper bought earlier in the day at the market) dinking (some of the red wine brought on board at different times by Ben) and chatting. I think we managed to solve some of the worlds political and environmental problems by the time we finished the second bottle!!!

Ben as Master and Commander

Our aim next day was to get Ben up the Hawkesbury River to Brooklyn where he was to catch a train back to Sydney. The chart indicated that the entrance to the marina where we intended dropping Ben off was quite shallow in places. We made our way up the channel very very slowly, our draught is 1.7mts and we were in 2mts of water a lot of the time. Anyway to cut a long story short we got Ben and the boat safely to the marina and we then cautiously turned around and headed to deeper water.

A relieved Ben back on terra firma!

We had decided to stay at anchor again that night. I had seen a place on the map called Smiths Creek which looked fascinating. It was a very narrow arm off Cowans Creek only about 500mts wide but it was between 17 and 24mts deep which really intrigued me. There were meant to be courtesy moorings in the area which make it a bit easier than putting the anchor down. Unfortunately when we got there there wasn’t a mooring to be had plus there were a number of yachts and motor craft already there. We found a spot however and put the anchor down and had some lunch. It was all still part of the Kuring Gai National Park so you can imagine how beautiful it was and why it attracted so many visitors. It was impossible to go ashore with the dinghy because the whole shoreline was covered in sharp crustaceans. It was certainly worth heading up there and having a look even if we couldn’t go ashore.

Entering Smiths Creek

Next day we were going to make the passage to Newcastle. It was going to be a full day so an early start was in order. We decided our best option therefore was to anchor close to the Heads and save time in the morning. We set the alarm for 0530hrs and after having a cuppa and logging on with Coastal Patrol Sydney we headed off.

I don’t know if we’ve made mention before of the Volunteer Coast Guard. They come under a variety of names – Coastal Patrol, Coast Watch, Coast Guard and Sea Rescue, but in essence they are all part of an organisation that is set up all round Australia’s coast, and who are a constant presence on the VHF radio band. Yachties like us rely on them to keep their eyes and ears on us as we create havoc up and down the coast! The protocol is to log on with them as you leave a port giving them relevant details such as size of vessel, number of persons on board, ETA at destination etc. As you move along the coast, they forward your details onto the next coast watch, who wait for you to contact them, and who start calling you if you don’t do this within a reasonable time. The only tricky thing about interacting with them is that you have to get their name right, or they get put out: so when you get to a new coast watch area, it’s a bit of a lottery – is it a patrol, a watch, a guard or a rescue organisation??? The other thing of course is that when you speak to them on the radio you know every other boat out there is listening to what you say and it’s very embarrassing when you inadvertently end your call with ‘Roger over and out’ (a legacy of watching too many American cop shows in times past) Despite this, they are a really excellent organisation, who make those longer passages across open water feel less lonely than they might otherwise be.

The forecast was for SW/SE winds 10/15 knots becoming 15/20 in the afternoon, understandable we thought YES!! this is perfect, wind behind us at 15 knots finally we’ll get to sail and we did for about 2-3 hours the whole day. Never mind it was a lovely sunny day and we always love being on the water wind or no wind, it was beautiful. We made the most of it knowing that we would very soon be back on dry land for a month.

We are now in Newcastle Cruising Yacht Club where we will leave the boat until the end of June. It is a relatively new marina and seems very secure. The manager has reassured us that he will keep an eye on Meander for us while we are away. The rest of this week we will spend doing maintenance (Mike’s already started with some varnishing and having one of the stanchions welded) so I’d better go and look busy too I suppose.

Sydney: Birkenhead

Balls head bay (where the three yachts are)

Tuesday 16^th May

As we left Balls Head Bay this morning, we passed an oil tanker berthed at the Shell oil terminal. The tanker was surrounded by a string of orange floating booms which apparently is a safety measure against oil spills. This precautionary practice, as we’ve learned, is a direct result of a major oil spill which occurred here in 1999 when the Laura D’Amato mistakenly pumped 250-300 tonnes of crude oil into the harbour. You see many larger vessels berthed in the harbour loading or unloading cargo, surrounded by these booms.

It’s a pity that they are not also more concerned with the pollution from boats into the harbour. When we went to pump out our holding tank the other day the guy at the pump out station told us that most boat owners don’t bother to pump out and just let their waste go straight into the harbour. Considering that there is a hefty fine for allowing even your grey water to empty into the harbour it is apparent that it’s not a law that is adhered to very often. No wonder they recommend that you don’t eat any more than 150grms of seafood per month from Sydney harbour!!!

Any real woman's favourite picture...

If I was a real woman (and Mike says I’m not because I don’t really shop much) but if I was a real woman, today I would think I’d died and gone to shoppers heaven. We’ve come from Balls Head Bay to Iron Cove and the Birkenhead Marina and as you step from the boat you enter Birkenhead Point Factory Outlet and Shopping Complex. The reason I love it here is that you can actually get somewhere without having to trek half way across Sydney - uphill…. It’s great!!!. We’ve already discovered the most important outlet…. Yes you guessed it!! there’s a Whitwoths marine supply shop just up the road (and the second most important one – that sells kids clothes [Mike]).

Now it’s Thursday 18^th, we’ve been here at Birkenhead Marina for 2 days. We’ve stocked the pantry, had the laundry done and had a wander round the shops (I only spent $3.60 on some Maxwell Williams essentials!! (She really IS my kind of woman! [Mike]). This is a very friendly marina and full of massive motor cruisers which dwarf our little 36 footer. We have an outer berth and can sit on deck watching the world go by, there’s never a dull moment, especially as this week was the commencement of an anti terrorism exercise here in the harbour. There are Blackhawk helicopters, navy and police boats buzzing in and around the bay. We are not game to take any photos just incase they mistake us for spies.

Iron Cove bridge from our marina berth

Today we are heading over to Blackwattle Bay, just around the corner, near Darling Harbour, where we will anchor just off from the fish market. The smell might not be too great but we hear that the fish is fantastic.

We’ve booked our flights home and will return to Melbourne on 29^th May. I must say I’m hanging out to see my youngest granddaughter, Indira. She’s learned to crawl since we’ve been away…. and after me telling her she wasn’t allowed to do anything new until I got back!

Despite all this excitement, we are well and truly ready to head off again - and that we will do on Saturday morning when Ben will join us for a short sail up the coast to Brocken Bay. From there Mike and I will sail (weather permitting of course) to Newcastle, where hopefully we will be able to leave the boat for the 4 weeks we are away.

Cherrio from
Me and 'im
and also from
Me and 'er

Sugarloaf Bay

Sugarloaf bay






After sailing under the Spit Bridge we made our way to Sugarloaf Bay. We had read in Alan Lucas’s book ‘Cruising The NSW Coast’ that there was a very secluded anchorage in here and he wasn’t wrong. This picturesque tree covered hilly bushland circled by a fringe of public reserve was such a surprise. It was hard to believe we were just a few kilometres from the heart of Sydney.

Early morning

The first evening we sat in the cockpit with the radio off and sipping our G&T’s, just listening to the birds and watching the moon rising. We could have been in the middle of nowhere …and in some respect we were.

We sat on the boat all the next day doing nothing but listening to the radio reading and watching the fish swimming around us. The following day we decided to explore our surroundings, so we took the dinghy ashore, which soon proved to be an exercise rather more difficult than anticipated. The entire shoreline was carpeted in oysters which were extremely sharp. Our dinghy is an inflatable so as you can imagine we were quite reluctant to bring the two together.

We eventually managed to get ashore with ourselves and the dinghy intact. Our initial intention was to follow our map and the walking track indicated on it, and find civilization (preferably somewhere that had a café which served decent coffee). However, it was after 16.00hrs and it starts to get dark here about 17.00hrs. We quickly realized that it was a very long and rugged track, and that if it got dark before we returned, we would have no torch. So, being sensible (for once) we abandoned the reconnaissance mission and decided to try again the next day.

Jo

Meander from the walking track

Next morning, after having our usual coffee in bed and listening to the radio for an hour or two we made an attempt at going ashore once again. This was achieved without scratches on ourselves or holes in the dinghy. So we commenced what turned out to be a two-and-a-half hour walk to a very small shopping centre embedded deep in the nearby suburbs. Great bread shop, great veggie shop – and great coffee! And seeing as it was Mothers Day, I decided to shout Jo a slap up meal in the café… The salad looked and tasted great! She didn’t seem to mind that it was me rather than one of her kids shouting the meal…(they would have taken me somewhere much 'posher' [Jo])

The irony is that we didn’t need to go ashore for a coffee – later in the afternoon a cappuccino boat arrived and asked if we wanted one – or an ice cream! Isn’t private enterprise wonderful! (we declined the offer, actually – all coffeed out by then!).

Cappuccino anyhone?

Monday we headed back to Balls Head Bay, so that today (Tuesday) we would be within easy striking distance of shops and supermarkets.

So today, we SHOP!

Mike

Sydney: Cammeray

We left Balls Head Bay to make our way to Middle Harbour. The breeze from the night before persisted but it had eased off somewhat. We couldn’t resist letting out the foresail just a little: after all we have done very little sailing in the month we’ve been away. It was a an exhilarating feeling sailing under the bridge and down Port Jackson dodging ferries, motor boats and even a large container ship. As usual I took the helm and Mike kept an eye on the GPS and traffic around us.

We are now at Cammeray Marina in Long Bay and to get here it was necessary to go under The Spit Bridge. There are special times when the bridge is open so we needed to be in the vicinity of the bridge at precisely the right time. We really didn’t know what to expect so we gave ourselves plenty of time. We were early and discovered to our delight that we could pick up a casual buoy and sit by the bridge until it opened. I set about making a cup of coffee (Mike never says no to a ‘cuppa’) after all it was 10.00 am and everyone knows that’s coffee time!! But even before we had finished our morning tea we heard the ringing of the bell indicating the imminent opening of the bridge. Mike started the engine as I let go of the buoy and we cautiously made our way under the now raised bridge. It was strange seeing the cars, trucks and buses waiting for us to pass beneath them.

The bridge opens for us

Middle Harbour.
The view on the other side of the bridge

Cammeray Marina

A wreck in Long Bay

We had been in touch with the Marina and they gave us directions and were waiting to help tie us up (they must have heard about our past experiences tying up at other Marinas!!) This Marina has no road access and sits at the bottom of a steep cliff. The only way in is either by boat or by climbing down or worse still climbing up 100 or so steps.

Because there is no access by road there is also no regular garbage collection to speak of, so cruisers like us must either take their rubbish with them or take it by dinghy just a short trip across the bay to Tunks Park where there are recycle and garbage bins. Contrary to what we believed, there are no pump out facilities here so to reduce the risk of our holding tank filling to overflowing, and so that we don’t have to make the trek to the marina toilet in the middle of the night, we have invented something we call a‘guzinto’: that’s like a ‘guzunder” but it’s a pot that goes into the toilet as opposed to a pot that goes under the bed!! Mike has the job of emptying it in the morning because, well, he is the captain. What a life hey? Don’t each and every one of you wish that you could experience all of this??!!

It’s always nice coming to new places and meeting different people. Some of the first people we met here were a New Zealand couple we had exchanged stories with in Eden. When we first met them, they had just come across from Tassie in 60knot plus winds and were repairing some of the damage the wind and waves had done to their boat. They certainly looked much more relaxed this time.

Our newest acquaintances are a pair of very large ducks who introduced themselves by knocking with their beaks on the hull of our boat. When we didn’t acknowledge their presence, they proceeded to quack at us very loudly. We are trying very hard not to feed them so they will leave us alone - but they are trying equally as hard to wear us down. Let’s see who wins this battle!!

Ducks coming knocking...

We have travelled around Cammeray and further afield by foot and public transport. We walked into Northbridge to do some victualling and to find a good coffee shop, then next day we took a bus to Crows Nest (Mike was having Whitworth withdrawals.) I needed to have my legs waxed… and we had to find a coffee shop.

The mad Irish woman who waxed my legs left half the wax on in some places and ripped half the skin in others. Those of you who put themselves through the agony of waxing will know exactly the pain I went through.

Today we took another bus and headed to the City and the aquarium. It was great. I packed some lunch and we had a lovely picnic on the steps overlooking Darling Harbour (…then we found a coffee shop!!).

Well, that’s it from me now. It’s Wednesday night and that means TV night. Spicks and Specks and Glasshouse. Good that we are just across the way from the ABC transceiver …..perfect reception!!

Jo

Balls Head Bay

We arrived here last Thursday, and now it’s Sunday afternoon and we are still at anchor in this lovely albeit busy (probably because it’s now the weekend) bay.

Peace before the weekend...

We’ve made the uphill trek into Crows Nest a couple of times mainly because there is a Whitworths store, for you non-boating people that is the yachties’ equivelant to Bunnings hardware store. There is always something that needs repairing, replacing or replenishing on the boat and Mike loves it!!!

We also took a train ride to the nearest Bunning store to buy a solar garden light. No I haven’t gone crazy and planted a vegie patch in the cockpit. We learnt from fellow yachties that a solar light works really well for an anchor light, which must always be on at night when at anchor. So, to save on battery power we now have a garden light on a pole on the stern…works very well too.

We had a delicious feed of fish the other evening, fresh from the harbour. We didn’t catch it, a couple of guys in a little fishing dinghy nearby did! They pulled up next to us and asked if we would like it as they had only caught the one and they didn’t think it was worth taking home. So, on went the BBQ and on went the fish….yum… we tried not to thnk of all the dioxins.

Mike relegated to the dinghy for cleaning the fish

Ben arrived yesterday for a visit - this time armed with a BOX of red wine instead of just a bottle!! I think we are going to have to sign up for membership with A.A. when we get back. We took a bit of a sail (motor) around the harbour which was a bit hairy as there were Motor Boats of the very large kind, Jet thingys that behaved like rollercoasters on water, and numerous Ferries of various shapes and sizes. It was lovely sailing back under the bridge though.

Mike and I have really settled into this life of boating. Our days are filled with a variety of chores and entertainments. Mike enjoys keeping the boat in good working order and I find it a full time job keeping things clean and tidy. As you can imagine everything must be kept in its place when you live in such a confined space. This morning I spent some time re-oiling all of the teak in the forward cabin which is our bedroom. There is a lot of teak throughout the boat so I try to do one area at a time otherwise it would be a very big job.

As you can see, I am taking very nicely to not having a job at the moment. Working on the boat isn’t like working at all……I love it!!

It’s not all work, far from it. We spend time listening to the radio and most evenings watch the news on TV. I’m really into Sudoku and crosswords and when at anchor we often take the dinghy ashore and do some exploring. There is a lovely park and lots of walking traks on shore here at Balls Head Bay.

Jo

Some of our neighbours at HMAS Waterhen in Balls Head Bay

Sydney

After a long uneventful motor/sail from Wollongong we passed by Botany Bay and made our way into Sydney Harbour. I must admit the first glance of ‘The Bridge’ and ‘The Opera House’ from the water was a spectacular sight.

A first glimpse of 'The' bridge..

Our first port of call in Sydney Harbour was Rose Bay where we had planned to anchor for a day or two. We had to adjust our itinerary slightly though, as we needed to catch up with Gary on Somoya to deliver a phone and sun glasses which he had left in a taxi in Wollongong. He had headed over to CYCA in Rushcutters Bay so we decided to follow next day.

It took us a while to find a mooring in Rose Bay. We had been told by a friend of a friend that there were public moorings for the taking. After searching we decided that we would tie up to a mooring near the shore. In no time at all we spied a small boat making it’s way towards us from a building on shore. We figured that if we picked up a mooring that was a ‘no go’, someone would soon tell us and when they did we could then ask which moorings were free. Our plan had worked!!! We were directed to a mooring belonging to someone who had gone up North and wouldn’t be back for a while. We were set for the night at least!!

Meanwhile Ben was on shore waiting for us and after securing the boat we put the dinghy in the water and Mike rowed out to pick him up. He was a very welcome sight (and not just because he came armed with a nice bottle of red).

The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia is where we are as I write, and a very nice place it is too. This is the home of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race. The facilities here are great and the people very friendly (although don’t mention the women at the reception area to Mike). I always get a bit nervous when it comes time to tie up at or leave a berth, there are so many things that can go pear shaped (and they usually do!). In this case, the pear turned out to be a sudden wind gust just as we were about to enter a very tight pen. Happily, there were plenty of people on hand to help. The outcome of this particular pear was quite ironic, because we had made a mercy dash over to CYCA to deliver Gary’s phone to him, and while he was helping us not to bash into the very expensive yachts in the berths around us, he managed to fall in the water and -yes - his phone was in his pocket!

Jo

Mike and that bridge

Jo and that opera house

We ended up spending three nights at the Cruising Yacht Club as we had to wait for spare diesel filters and a fuel tank sender (the third!) to arrive. Today we sit in Balls Head Bay at anchor, just a hop skip and a (rather lengthy uphill) jump from Crows Nest and its shops and restaurants. We’ll be here a few days and then we’ll explore the delights of the Sydney waterways a bit further.

The new sender works. I must say it’s very nice to have an indication at last of how much fuel we have in the tank…

Mike