Passion for Cruising

Vessel Name: Truest Passion
Vessel Make/Model: Seawind 1160 Catamaran
Hailing Port: Southport
Crew: Stuart Simpson & Nanette Black
18 May 2012 | Mooloolaba
02 November 2011 | Mooloolaba Marina
30 October 2011 | Sandy Straits
29 October 2011 | Bundaberg
27 October 2011 | Pancake Creek
26 October 2011 | Great Keppel Island
25 October 2011 | Pearl Bay
24 October 2011 | Middle Percy Island
21 October 2011 | Mackay Marina
16 October 2011 | Mackay Marina
14 October 2011 | Goldsmith Island
13 October 2011 | Turtle Bay Whitsundays
12 October 2011 | Gloucester Passage
11 October 2011 | Bowen
10 October 2011 | Rattlesnake Island
09 October 2011 | Haycock Island
08 October 2011 | Hinchinbrook Channel
07 October 2011 | Dunk Island
06 October 2011 | Fitzroy Island
02 October 2011 | Half Moon Bay Marina
Recent Blog Posts
18 May 2012 | Mooloolaba

Good News-Bad News

Hello to all our yachtie friends, it is so long again since I have posted a blog, but the moment has at last arrived that I can talk to you all.

02 November 2011 | Mooloolaba Marina

Home!!

The last lap, so we left Garry’s Anchorage at 5.50am to catch the incoming tide to cross the bar. No wind at all. We started down the “mad mile” towards the bar crossing – not for the faint hearted today, it was like a washing machine, however the largest wave we saw was about 3 metres. Finally [...]

30 October 2011 | Sandy Straits

Yankee Jack Creek

Off yet again at 5.45 am, I was almost sleepwalking as the skipper did his usual, go, go, now.........

29 October 2011 | Bundaberg

Nearly Home

We had a lovely quiet day in the creek, we even played cards and Scrabble, beaten again!!!

27 October 2011 | Pancake Creek

Dawn Start

Up at 4.30am [we must be mad]! To get to Pancake Creek before tomorrow, when a S Easter is forecast, means a very long haul today. We will pass Cape Capricorn at about 10am before sailing down the outside of Curtis Island and Gladstone etc.

26 October 2011 | Great Keppel Island

Another Ripper!!

Another day, this time up at 5am and underway at 5.40am. The water is like oil, not a breath of wind. The clouds are quite heavy at present, but it is very early yet.

Back to Phuket

27 May 2009 | Au Chalong
Nanette
Anchor up at 6.40am, a lovely 8 - 12 knot breeze from the SW so a quick start for the 56 miles to Au Chalong, under sail all morning with no engine required. Halfway there about 20 miles from Phi Phi Don the VHF DSC alarm klaxon went of giving a distress position within 1 mile of Phi Phi Don. We tried calling on 16 but no response. "China Grove" a yacht that we know answered as they were only a few miles away from the distress location. On arrival they found nothing probably someone in the anchorage fooling around with the emergency button on their VHF - although why they did not say so on 16 is a mystery - a full scale search and rescue could have been launched. NB Norm - yes we made all the correct log entries!!!
A couple of hours later the wind died and went on the nose so we dropped all sail as a number of storm cells were fast approaching. We tracked them on the radar but then out of nowhere the gust hit the masthead at 30 knots not become noticeable at deck level until several seconds later. This is the typical storm up here the wind literally drops out of the sky. We have learnt to take in sail as soon as a cell is closer than 4 miles.
We are, as I write this, one hour out from Au Chalong and it is pouring, visibility awful whilst watching for fish traps and pair trawlers with the net strung between them. It is now 3.45pm and I am finishing this blog as we approach our usual anchorage. Too late to clear in so we will do it in the morning. Just taken a photo and as you see all is obscured, it must be scotch mist!
Anchor down 4.30 another storm coming - hitting at 40 knots this time and testing our freshly set anchor - this is a very crowded anchorage so dragging - us or them - is a big problem.
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