After three weeks of strong winds and very rough seas, things are improving and so we are seizing the opportunity. Buoyweather forecasts ESE - SE winds of 15 - 20 knots for at least four days, with much lower seas than the 3.5 - 4 metres that have prevailed recently.
So, reluctantly in some ways but with a keen sense that one must go when the weather is right, we are off today. We filled the diesel and water tanks this morning (putting the diesel in the diesel tank, of course) and will be off later this morning (Thursday). The journey duration is uncertain, but is likely to be 8 to 10 days, although it's hard to predict exactly. We will be making landfall as far south as possible - Coffs would be nice but highly unlikely, Brisbane is possible if the wind direction is OK, and Bundaberg is the fallback - we'll know more in four or five days.
We'll put up some updates as we progress - we'll see you all soon!