we made it!
we have navigated the rip and we are in bas strait for the first time. quite a calm day, up to 20 knots of wind and about a 2m swell to work with. quite a different sensation to sail with a swell compared to the chop and waves you get in port philip bay. this is a nice day in the strait, whilst it is overcast it is a good way to get the feel of the ocean as we head towards torquay.

we spent the afternoon sailing and avoiding a large number of craypot buoys thanks to my observation skills - just in time! buy the time we headed back through the rip to queenscliff we had to navigate between 5 commercial vessels coming in. we had a flood tide just to add to the excitement which made for interesting sailing as the heads managed to develop 6 different conditions - whirlpools, water boiling, straight shafts from the reef edge and glassy calm flat sections, swells and choppy waves!
all adds to the experience.