We woke to a beautiful calm morning in a beautiful bay. After breakfast we weighed the anchor around 8.00am and made our way round to the south side of Thomas Island and went ashore in the dinghy. The bay was delightful and we were the only ones there. We skirted over the coral on the way to the beach, scaring a stingray and some other large fish. Once ashore we walked through the shallows and along the rocky shoreline, where rocks we covered by oysters in their thousands.

Back on the boat by 10.15am we motored for Brampton Island. We arrived on its northern shore just before 1.00pm and after dropping the anchor we quickly made our way, with a picnic lunch, to the resort. We honeymooned at the resort in 1977, some 37 years ago, but unfortunately, not only did we not recognise any of the buildings but those that were there were in serious disrepair. While we saw, but did not speak to a caretaker, the gardens are completely over run, buildings were left wide open with sand blowing up to the doors, many of the paths had been destroyed by storm front waves crashing in to them and a one time railway that ran from the jetty to the resort had been completely destroyed by waves.

After a quick lunch we were back on Breezly by 2.30pm. While I raised the tender Louise decided to go for a swim and did a couple of circuits of the boat. We motored away from Brampton Island and after rounding Carlisle Island, it's close neighbour, we set a course for St Bees and Keswick Islands. We arrived at our destination for the night around 5.30pm and anchored in the passage that separates the two islands. The bird calls from the shore were amazing and we were a little surprised to see quite a number of houses set on Keswick Island.

After sausages and veggies for dinner we were concerned that we may have been dragging so we raised and reset the anchor, this time paying out even more scope. Let's hope for a quiet night!

Tomorrow with be a long day as the pilot books refer to the next section of water as "the back paddock". There are few islands and fewer suitable anchorages. The winds persist in easterlies or south easterlies and are therefore on the nose. Another long day of motoring looms.