We left Port Hacking early and motor sailed up the coast to the entrance of Broken Bay. The winds were calm, hence the motor sailing and the sea state was around 2-2.4m, but mostly on our beam so a little rolly. We could see Sydney Centre Point Tower from out at sea as we cruised past the entrance of Port Jackson/Sydney Harbour. Once we were inside Broken Bay, we then turned left straightaway and headed down Pitt Water to find a place to stop for the night. Very crowded with mooring balls, and unfortunately mostly taken and so it wasn't easy finding a spot. The depth of Pitt Water is deep and so not many anchoring spots and the shallow parts are around 14m deep. We were a little unsure about which mooring balls we could use, but decided to take one of the few without a boat on it for the first night. We found out after talking to the marina at Holmesport and some locals, that it was okay to use them and rarely do you get asked to move. Thank goodness for that, as Neil wasn't keen on anchoring in such deep water.

The next day we headed across the bay and picked up a mooring ball in a beautiful spot in the national park called Coasters Retreat. We then went down Pitt Water and stayed 2 nights at the Holmesport Marina. There was a couple of reasons why we ended up staying there and one was because we had a blocked toilet and we also thought the other toilet had a leak, so no working toilets. We wanted to use the pump out facility at the marina to assist in unblocking the toilet, which it did. The mysterious leak seemed to have stopped and so we have two toilets working again. Another reason we stayed was because there was no moorings available in that location and we wanted to go to shore to get the bus to Mona Vale to get supplies and the cost of the marina berth was a lot cheaper than we thought it would be. It also gave us a place to fill up the water tanks, as the water in the river is not suitable to run through the water maker and we had one empty tank. The marina is located at a place called Church Point and we spent time going for a long walk along the foreshore admiring the lovely homes. We also went walking while in Mona Vale and explored the coast line and had coffee at a cafe on the beach.

After our stay at Church Point, we headed back to Coasters Retreat to catch up with 2 other boats, one couple we met who are from Tasmania and other couple we met in Tasmania, but they are from Perth. We enjoyed afternoon tea on Zofia with Brian and Eva and then Rose and Chris from Honour Mission came to our boat for drinks. It is always good to hear how others are doing and especially the guys from Honour Mission as Rose is new to cruising out of Tasmania and a little nervous. We both talked about how there are times we just want to get off the boat and fly home, but the good times always out weigh the bad, especially when we were currently enjoying the sun setting in such a beautiful setting. We are hoping to catch up with them again soon.

We decided we would then head to Refuge Bay, as the weather was going to be cooler and high chance of some wind and rain. Refuge Bay is in Cowen Creek and the next creek in from Pitt Water. Refuge Bay also has the reputation of being one of the most protected bays in the world, hence the name. It also has a beautiful waterfall which you can see from the boat. We stayed there a couple of days and then made the move to the end of Cowen Creek to Bobbin Head where the Empire Marina is. There is a small area outside of the marina where you can anchor and that is where we currently are.

Last night was Saturday night and so even though the day had been very rainy, we decided as there was a small break in the rain to go to shore and have dinner at a local place. I had read about the nice fish and chips at the restaurant at the marina and that there was an Inn called Bobbin Inn. As soon as we got into the dinghy it started to drizzle, but we still thought it was a good idea to head to town, as there might be something on, maybe even some live music. We tied up the dinghy at the public dock and then walked to the Inn, but it was shut up and closed and so we walked in the rain to the marina and that was closed as well. So, this sleepy little hollow obviously is only open during daylight hours. By the time we got back to the boat we were pretty wet. We stripped off our jackets and jeans and I cooked us a lovely dinner of pasta instead.

Today we went back to shore to have a look around. There were lots of people coming to the park setting up for kid's birthdays and family gatherings. We went for a great walk along the mangrove boardwalk up to the start of rainforest track and then we continued walking along rainforest track to the end where the creek ends and there are rapids. The walk took us through a mangrove swamp, then red gum and sandstone forest and then into the rainforest. It was magical. After the trek we then went to the marina to have a look at the boats there and met a lovely couple who knew people that Neil had worked with in Queensland in the 80's. We ended our time ashore sitting on the decking at the marina restaurant enjoying lunch in the sun. Tomorrow we will head back down Cowen creek to a different bay. The boat is anchored in such a beautiful and calm spot, and I am writing this blog sitting in the cockpit listening to birds and watching as the sun is setting over the hills.