King River - delayed due to network coverage

King River in the early morning

11th June We were all more than ready for some rest by now. King River 11 degrees 49. 7 South and 133 degrees 31. 46 was the place to recuperate for 1 1/2 days.Looking forward to and all excited to visit a place of interest where old remains of settlement could be found we arrived in this truly spectacular place. We even thought that maybe a walk to the ruins could be a great possibility.Well a walk was not to be had.We all quickly realised that this was a crocodile haven with a capital C. After a quite evening and very noisy night with crocodiles making huge splashes for several hours we deserved a good sleep-in. In the morning we opened our eyes to lots and lots of red fly looking insects quickly anticipating severe pain from their bites. No bites no pain just good looking red insects. That was surely a great start to the day. Maybe even a good omen? "Night Moves" invited the whole group for a look around the river area.

One of the beautiful speciments

The beautiful and dangerous creeks with mangroves

Tess told us of the rotting crocodile smell they experienced at night as they slept outside in an open area (see picture) and the crocodiles moved under their bed. I could hear them brushing on the hull. The day was hot with lots of smoke in the air from the burning off-that is done frequently to prevent serious bush fires.We really enjoyed looking around as the area was truly beautiful.Even managed to catch a fish for dinner. Than we had a fish revenge - something very big came took the whole fishing rod all the fittings to the boat-the lot.No one had seen what it was and all suspected a big shark. Bad luck for the $ $400 rod.

Tess Tinker and Kelly on the outside bed while looking aroun...
that was absolutely great

Our catch of the day

Robert admiring the beautiful animal

Tinker and "Bobby" enjoying the moment

Police speaking with Night Moves

AND FISH IS GETTING READY

After taking some photos with crocodiles we all returned to our boats. I was getting ready for the feast on Cognac that night and was happily cooking my curry sauce for the fish when Robert told me not to throw onion peel outside (something that is normally OK to do) because there was police outside.Right like where I thought. Police in the middle of nowhere! Well they were there 2 boats with an Aboriginal elder Ralph who was concerned that we were fishing boats and he was making sure that proper payment was made to him as the land owner.It was quickly established that we were not fishing boats.We parted on very friendly terms where an invitation was extended to us to visit an Aboriginal settlement the following day. The day finished of with BBQ fish on Cognac which was a bit of a feast as all parties brought delicious foods.We had aromatic cous cous saffron rice curry and spicy sauces for the fish and a lots of laughter.

Pink sun-the photo is untouched

Smoke in the air making everything look golden and us
 being concerned for sail safety

Rolling Bay - delayed due to network coverage

Such joy...there is something very special
 about little dolphins with mums.

10th of June Lovely dolphins a mum and a baby kept us company on the way today.We are always so happy to see them I wait for them and call them over.Did you know that when you spot them around you can actually call them by tapping on the hull (the front part of the boat ) AND THEY COME... AND STAY... AND PLAY! It feels like when they are near nothing bad can happen to us and the boat and that it is going to be a great day.

Rolling Bay 11 degrees 52. 66 South and 133 degrees 58. 60 East
This landscape looks a lot like Sidney Nolan's artwork.

 Well the sail was great and the fish and chips evening was great too. Loosing a dinghy wasn't.Almost touching ground at night in strong wind (despite checking tides carefully) wasn't great and not sleeping most of the night wasn't great either.

Our lost dinghy that drifted away silently.
Perfect example that one shouldn't relay on mechanical parts too much and
 that one needs almost double of everything when on long trips

There is always balance in anything and that was our balancing day and night. Sleeping on water is so different than the regular house based bed. You ought to try some day

"Golden Legend" rescued the escaping dinghy

"Night Moves" trying to tie "Golden Legend"
to their side to help them during the expected heavy rolling at night
.It did not work out.

Cape Stewart - delayed due to network coverage

All islands are different - flat is the theme
 and will be until we get to Darwin

8th June A longer day - 42 nautical miles around 8 hours travel and 220 NM to go. We had some rather unusual visitors that came from nowhere and very quickly too. My first thought was "surely these could not be pirates in Australian waters" as they approached in two hi speed boats each with about 4 to 6 people.
We waived and noticed their uniforms that were unknown to us. They disappeared just as quickly as they appeared did not want to engage in radio conversation either. Let's put that down to unexplained mystery???

Friends...pirates...miles from anywhere

 Tess was in a baking mood and baked enough beautiful fresh scones for 10.Thank you Tess! Cape Stewart 11 degrees 57. 45 South and 134 degrees 44. 13 East was announced a formal dress dinner party.As funny as this sounds it makes such a difference in the whole experience for all to make an evening a little special one to remember. So formal we dressed up and thoroughly enjoyed  laughter and a beautiful chicken stir - fry dinner with yet another beautiful Northern Territory sunset ready for a quick sleep and and a sail to Rolling Bay the next day.
We find it hard to capture the atmosphere of the evening. How does one describe being in the middle of nowhere with people whose company one really enjoys on a balmy night listening to great music...different and really special ...or brilliant and magic ?  Wishing you all evenings and memories like that... and lots of them.

Far away on a deck of a boat relaxing and taking in the moment

Music - easy unrehearsed and whatever felt right in the moment...
simply brilliant

And another sunset.Some have stopped taking photos of sunsets.
How many can you take they say?
I continue taking lots as each is completely different and unique.

Robert arriving at the party in style...

Inglis Isalnd to Howard Isalnd- delayed due to network coverage

"The Trio" travelling together

Beautiful Cadel Stright

6th and 7th of June Inglis Island 12 degrees 01. 19 South and 136 degrees.09.13 East was a short sail away from Elizabeth Bay.Still just easing into sailing again.We have managed to lose yet another couple of lures...gone...bye...bye.Must have been some "enormous" fish or... So far what we have heard of Northern Territory fishing "there is so much fish that they jump on your hooks and all you have to do is to pull them out" remains a MYTH. "Night Moves" have been lucky and caught a rather sizable tuna. Inglis Island was not the most memorable place so we made our own memories by having a singalong at sunset with Indian  curry fish and saffron rice for all on Cognac which started dinner parties over the next few evenings.The crossing to Howard Island 12 degrees 06. 07 South and 135 degrees 27. 88 East the following day

Picture perfect part of the team from Golden Legend

was what we all described "the perfect sail" with perfect wind and perfect timing of tides(the travellators) We all had a beautiful day with a pinch of uncertainty in few places . We had to travel trough Cadell Strait which had a tricky bit at the entry.A very shallow sandbank so much so that we could see the bottom of the sea lots of Eddies(the whirly bits) and crocodiles

And crocodiles are always there like"walking logs" don't listen to anyone
who
tells you otherwise

All went well.We all concluded over Italian pasta and Roy Orbison music in the evening that it was the kind of day that would make you forget all the bad bits that happen along the way!

"Tinker" enjoying the perfect day...

No fish...stilllllllllll

Sand bank where we could see the bottom

Hennessey Cognac on anchor at Howard Island

Gove to Elizabeth Bay - delayed due to network coverage.

From 1st June - 5th June. What followed our arrival in Gove 12 degrees 13. 185 South and 136 degrees 41.66 East was  first quick assessment of the boat which seemed to be mostly ok. I was only able to lie on the deck for a while as the whole world seemed to be turning around me rather quickly while Robert came to the rescue with a meal of bacon-there is something about bacon in situations like this. We had another visit from the Australian customs which took photos of the newly arrived boats and asked more questions.

Yet another visit from our very friendly customs. They even passed on message
for Golden Legend that was reported missing.

Let me introduce "The Trio Clan". From left Robbie and Tess from Night
Moves centre us and on the right Greg now "the master mechanic" and his
supporting act wife Kelly from Golden Legend at the Gove sailing club.

The next few days were spent recuperating laughing to tears at each other stories of the crossing and getting to know the place we were at-Northern Territory East Arnhem Land the the town of Nhulunbuy which was only a taxi ride away (our taxi driver was from Baghdad would you believe).Arnhem Land  and Nhulunbuy are one of Australia's last strongholds of traditional Aboriginal culture. We had to get a liquor license( so I now have a license attached to my driver's license) as this area has alcohol restrictions and Aboriginal people are only permitted to drink half strenght beer.There were a lot of them drinking every day at the sailing club which is the only club that serves beer and it serves other functions as well.

The centre of Nhulunbuy where they even had a post office.That is special.

We heard some really funny stories from sailor friends.Golden Legend arrived 24 hours after us and Robert and Robbie from Night Moves solved their engine dilemma in the middle of nowhere really to the point that they were able to travel.

"Bobby" entertaining us as the Gove wine hustler.

After several days of rest we were sort of ready for the next very short sail to Elizabeth Bay11 degrees 54.35 South 136 degrees 33.66 East . Guess what the sea was "angry" again. Some of us connected with their buckets again...oh well. Golden Legend was doing well for a while and at the end had to be towed to Elizabeth Bay in between pearl farms pearl farms.After a little more work on their engine the problem was found and by disposing of one part they were able to continue on with caution. With such exciting news some had a brilliant idea to take a visit to the beach because there were no crocodiles there and after seeing crocodile prints (BIG ones too...) made their way back to the boats.

Hey crocodiles are here definitely absolutely and undoubtedly...!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Crocodile footprints if you can call it that.

Seisia-Gove crossing the Gulf of Carpentaria-delayed due to network coverage

Leaving Seisia with other boats

30th May - 1st June Gulf of Carpentaria so romantic and adventurous 340 nautical miles of sailing over two days nights and possibly another day- very exciting. The weather was promising 15-20 knots the first day and 20-25 knots the second day. We left Seisia early in the morning in a rather large convoy. We even pulled our main sail for this great journey and I managed to make a bit of a boo boo and will blame it on under-management LOL.

Customs plane

Visit from the Australian customs

The day was absolutely fabulous everything you could possibly imagine from a travel brochure. The bluest water the sun the gentle waves and soothing breeze...well maybe much less than 15 knots and still with the help from the engine we managed 140 miles at the end of day one and were at the lead of the pack. With had plenty of time during the day. General idea was to get rest during so we were reasonably fresh at night. So we did. Robert read I took photos and deliberated life. We had a visit from the customs which is rather formal. You have to response to their call identify your boat tell them of your last port and next port. A French boat was asked of next port of call…their response” wherever the wind takes us” it was rather funny and not well received.

Robert finishing his Demons and angels book.

Check the beautiful colours on the opposite side to the sunset

The night started well with me taking the first watch. This mean that I had to look out for any danger passing traffic etc etc…our safety depended on this being done. Sailing during the night is definitely different. Somehow the sun gives a sense of security certainty a certain grounding. It has never been so important before. When it got dark and we were in a middle of absolutely nowhere there was ultimately just us making sure we were safe. I was supposed to look around every 20 min and I think I was looking every 3 min waking Robert up as he slept in the cockpit to be near. We were travelling at 9 knots and getting tired. Both of us ended up on watch together. The winds started to strengthen and we heard of very strong rain from our friends on” Night Moves” and “Golden Legend”. From this point on the perfect picture from the travel brochure was no longer there and the real truth of what sailing can be emerged very quickly and very intensely. The winds increased to over 25 knots which is a lot in that sea with 4m waves and incredible swells. The exchanges on the radio were more of who is sea sick and unable to function any longer. With 1 ½ days and a night to go this was not comforting. We had all safety equipment on and were strapped to the boat with epurbs hanging of our life jackets. Conditions were worsening and the night was falling. Hmm not a comfortable feeling. Golden Legend had both crew sick Night moves had Tess permanently in “Tessi bucket”. I was focused on a single star of our flag. After trying most of the sail combinations to stable us we ended up with maybe 1/3 main and the engine on and were still being thrown around by now 40 knots gusts 5m waves and that swell. Golden legend had some sort of engine failure with oil all over the boat. We had a some non sea water on the floor and strange smell a bit like petrol and were concerned that we were leaking fuel stored for our dinghy. There was no way that Robert could go to check it was way to dangerous. It turned out to be white spirit bottle that broke in the kitchen. Situations like that don’t happen very often in life-really when one is extremely extremely tired concerned and thrown around.

Perceptions change-dramatically. At the beginning of night 2 we got an egg timer set it for 20 minutes to wake us up for a wach. The egg timer would fall on me or Robert. We had 11 hours of dark and 33 waches. I remember waking up from a short sleep looking out the window and shaking Robert because I could see a mountain ( and I definitely could)He pacified me and said that he saw trees too and that there is no mountain. Greg from Golden Legend felt a little better and was seeing islands. It sounds funny now and was very real to us. Golden Legend was now about 60 miles behind us and in trouble. Greg who was severely sick was contemplating confessing to any crime over the radio so that someone would come and get him. All in all we made it. Exhausted and really ready for some sleep. We have not eaten in 3 days and had one bottle of water between us. I guess that was one time when going to the toilet on all fours after holding for several hours was an incredible achievement. Robert wished that he had a camera. This was a leveling trip.

Don’t believe in travel brochures and if you are near Gulf of Carentaria FLY!!!!!!!!!!!(Golden Legend was reported missing and arrived 24 hours after us safe.)

Cape York we made it!!!!!!-delayed due to network coverage

Thursday the 27th May We finally made it to Cape York and than Seisia 10 degrees.50.86 south and 142 degrees 21.78 east. We reached Cape York sailing trough the Albany Passage. With a small window of time to go trough the passage on full tide we were there right on time travelling with two other boats. The water in the passage was travelling very quickly adding almost 5 knots to our speed (it was like sailing on one of those travelators at the airport) Because of the quick flow of water there were lots of Eddies ( rather strong whirl ) and other little intricate white balls of foam that looked like little buoys ( markers on water)The passage is beautiful- it felt like achieving this special prize…getting to the top of Australia. We made it Cape York!11 Almost like making it to New York…LOL Would you believe that there was something right there on the Cape in the total wilderness. Robert said that there were 2 people. Absolutely surreal – people. I had my own ideas. I could see red and thought it must have been a statue of Captain Cook and really had to laugh when we got closer and indeed there was a lovely couple sitting on a bench. I even got a chance to say good morning. This still makes me laugh…We clearly had to celebrate so got out and stood on the point with couple of glasses of Limón cello from Italy (for the girls remember” Under the Tuscan sun” ) .Than guess what? We made a left turn! Not travelling North anymore.

We just had to stop sailing and visit Cape York in person to celebrate

Cognac and friends catamaran "Night moves" in a beautiful bay while we were celebrating at the Cape

A turning point!!! We continued to town called Seisia to be welcomed by this absolutely amazing silver 1 m stingray jumping out of the water. The little town is little and it has a supermarket petrol station even a restaurant (well something like that).It is steaming HOT and the ground is red. Had a small celebratory party on board.We will be here for 2 nights and are already getting ready for our first overnight crossing 2 nights 3 days (no anchorage until we get to Gove).Friday 28th May. We already have diesel on board all safety equipment in place charting and are now only waiting for wind which should be acceptable tomorrow (10-15 knots) to start our journey west. I am a bit nervous and excited as this will be my first night crossing. Robert is very reassuring. Send us some positive vibes. Much love

Limón cello from Italy

Pearl farm in the morning-we had to be very careful to maneuver the nets

Almost at the Cape

Laugh if you want...that is Seisia all over

Us at the beach at Seisia in our "water car"

The last two pictures were taken at the same time on the left the moon rising and on the right the sun setting.This is called "Stairway to heaven"

Sun setting over a rusty wreck