The big delivery

Port Macquarie 
Unfortunately, the motor kept over heating at anything over idle, and with winds heading us from the north we didn't make it to Port Macquarie until 9:30 pm. Not a problem, except by then the tide had started to ebb, causing the seas to build up into surf. I was at the helm on the approach into 'Port', when I heard a thunderous noise behind me and Ian warning everyone to brace. We copped a breaking wave over the stern which drenched the cockpit and pushed the boat side on to the waves. We recovered direction and kept going with the depth sounder wandering between 20 and (gulp) 5 feet as the waves rose and fell beneath us. Sticking  as close as we dared to the starboard breakwater we eventually found still water and much to our relief tied up at the public jetty for the night.
Imagine Burney's delight when next morning she popped her head out of the aft cabin hatch to be greeted by the general public starting their day near the middle of town. One little guy asked us if we were real pirates since we were flying the jolly roger. Having organised a mooring at the marina, we set off but took a wrong turn and had a scenic tour of the Hastings river instead. Sadly, Pete, our trusty engineer, decided that there was too much work piling up at home and he had to head home on the night bus. I felt sad to see him go, but was thankful for all his contributions to the trip. The last of these was to test each section of the cooling system to identify the cause of our over heating problem. Eventually, we got to the thermostat, and confirmed with the local diesel expert that it looked stuffed. So, we removed the guts of it and replaced the housing - problem solved. The next day I was able to report to Pete that the motor kept to a moderate temperature even at higher than normal revs .
A crew change is a significant event and always makes a boat feel different. There were a few moments of introspection and discussion on some of the things that could have been done better and the lessons learnt. For me, the big one was "Never under estimate a bar".
We spent two days at the marina waiting for favourable weather, and Alf, the manager looked after us, loaning a drill to fix the rollocks, introducing to the mechanic, and organizing a laundry service. Greatly appreciated. The final evening we were especially glad to be hanging off a secure mooring. A big cold front blew in from the west with winds strong enough to partially unroof a nearby school and uproot a small pine tree. Ian was still ashore and I had to wait for a lull before venturing out to collect him in the dinghy.
What a difference when we woke up to a still morning today (fri) and after taking on fuel and water set off for an uneventful bar crossing. We are now motoring north in calm seas on what we hope will be the final push to get home.