We departed the Wessel Islands on the 2nd June bound for Pt Essington 280 nm away on the western end of Arnhem Land. We left early in the morning hoping to cover the distance before dark the following day. We mostly had good wind and some pretty steep seas, but arrived just after sunset and anchored at Black Pt barely inside the large Pt Essington bay. There was a lot of smoke about from burning off along the coast. We spent a pleasant night there and the next day prepared for the final voyage around the notorious Cape Don and Vernon Islands to Darwin. This is a 140nm sail with some narrow passages to negotiate that can experience fast tidal flows which when combined with opposing strong trade winds can cause very dangerous sea conditions. Timing your passage through these sections is critical. We decided to make the passage overnight as the winds are usually lighter. On checking emails just before departing we received the devastating news that Dianne's mother had passed away that morning. She was very ill and we had been on a mission to get to Darwin as soon as possible so Di could fly home to be with her. With heavy hearts we set off on the overnight sail and it was then that I realised that I'd calculated the tides incorrectly and we were 4 hours behind. A frantic review of tide heights and wind strengths indicated that conditions may not be too bad, so we pressed on. In fact as we rounded Cape Don, conditions we quite good and we continued on and crossed Van Diemens Gulf where we experienced gusty winds and some pretty confused seas. We managed to pick up some time and still had a bit of tide to assist as we entered the passage through the Vernon Islands as we exited the Gulf. Phew I made it by the skin of my teeth!! As we sailed towards Darwin the first we could see of it were a couple of high rise buildings appear over the horizon and then our mobile phones started to work and the messages flooded in. Before anchoring in Fannie bay, with help from family , we had already arranged a flight home for Di that night. We traditionally celebrate the end of each significant voyage with some sparkling wine consumed as soon as possible after arrival regardless of the time of day! S o this time we cracked a special bottle of sparkling red chilled from the day before and firstly drank an emotional toast to Di's mum and then to our little ship's successful voyage.

FIrst Light III will remain in Darwin until we set sail for Indonesia late in July.

The photo is of Fannie Bay Darwin. First Light III is anchored way out, a 10 minute dinghy ride.