Last Sunday (22nd June) was still blowing a gale and had another day not leaving the boat, although we had Peter & Barbara (kiwis) on Musketelle for morning coffee and muffins and Kassoumay for dinner that night. Monday we went ashore and walked a 7km return trip to the Research station and did the tour which was most interesting. The research station is completely privately funded and they have students and scientists from all over the world going there to do research and study of the Barrier Reef and it's environment, staying anything from a few days to several months. Lizard has some wonderful diving and snorkeling but the weather was not at all conducive to either which was unfortunate.

A little piece of history from Lizard is that when North Queensland was being populated by a hardy race of folk a lady by the name of Mary Phillips married a Mr. Watson who with a partner worked beche-de-mer (sea slug) from their base on Lizard Island. Mr. Watson & partner sailed north to fish the slug and left Mary with a new baby on the Island, alone with her two Chinese servants. After a month one of the servants went to the garden and was never seen again. His pigtail was found on the mainland many months later. Aborigines then kept Mrs. Watson and her remaining servant under surveillance until they eventually ambushed the servant, spearing him twice before he escaped back into the house under cover of Mrs. Watson's gun. Badly wounded the servant helped launch a beche-de mer boiling tub in which the three of them made their escape from the Island. Offshore they became a plaything of the trade wind which carried them to Watson Island after a worrying stranding and escape from a reef en route where the aborigines were encountered. On Watson Island the three perished from thirst, their bodies being found a few months later by the Aboriginal member of a passing trading schooner. They were interred in Cooktown where a memorial stands and the diary kept by Mrs. Watson during her last few days, and the tub, were sent to the Brisbane Museum where they can be seen.

We left Lizard Island, along with Musketelle and another kiwi yacht, Te Wai Pounamu (who were on the Tonga rally in 2004, on Tuesday (24th)at 6.15am and had a great trip to Flinders Island with SE 25 -30 knot winds, virtually flat sailing with only the genoa and we did the 83 miles in 11 hours, dropping the anchor at 5.15pm. It was a delightful anchorage and absolutely flat calm with no wind blowing at all. Would have liked to have spent another night there but as time is running out needed to keep going.

Next morning we were up again with the larks leaving at 6.15am again and had no wind until 1pm when it hit us with a vengeance and we had a full main and genoa up and at times were rather over powered and we had the wind on our beam which was a big change from the flat sailing we have had since leaving Bundaberg. That leg was 62 miles and we spent a rather windy, but secure night at Morris Island.

Yesterday did another 60 mile leg to Portland Roads at Cape Weymouth and the anchorage was nice and calm when we arrived but by early evening the wind had got up. We did have drinks on board Te Wai Pounamu last night along with Musketelle and an Aussi boat, Solar Driftwood. We were up and away this morning just after 7am and did a 48 mile trip to Margaret Bay at Cape Grenville, arriving at 1.30pm. Was very pleasant sailing until the last couple of hours when we had frequent gusts of 30 knots. As we were coming into Margaret Bay we caught an albacore tuna - had some marinated for dinner tonight which was lovely and Dave will smoke the rest. Was the first fish we have caught since the ghastly queen fish. Think we have been travelling too fast.

We are really having to be on the alert coming up the Queensland Coast now as we are coming up the shipping lane as on either side of it as there are many reefs, islands, cays and rocks as the Barrier Reef comes closer to the Coast.

Tomorrow morning we are really going to be up early and leaving here at 4am along with Te Wai Pounamu and Keshi (an Aussi catamaran whom we met today and have been sailing with us since leaving Lizard)and have decided to miss Escape River if we can get to the Albany Passage by mid afternoon in order to go through the passage on a flood tide and round Cape York - a big milestone!! It is an 84 mile trip to the passage but we should make it okay if we have the same winds that we have had the last few days as we seem to average more than 7 knots. It has certainly been great sailing up the Queensland Coast and is a pity that we did not have more time to do it leisurely.