20th March
Day 3 in the boatyard. So industrial and big is Harwood Marine! Everyone is very friendly but I had to laugh when insect silverfish crawled out of my borrowed hard hat. I stood out in the bright pink strolling through the yard. All so I could bring the hard working captain his lunch. He’s ground down and sanded the worst bits and is waiting for the wood to dry out before he can patch with fibreglass. It doesn’t look as bad now. There’s great big strong pillar things holding Valiam up. It’s certainly a different experience to previous boatyards.

18th March
Well she’s out of the water… 3 cheers for Bills crew Tim who got up early to assist for the 8 nautical mile trip to Harwood Marine. Also thanks to John on the gigantic travel lift for 400 tonnes 😳!! Valiam is 10 tonnes. There’s more damage than Bill thought including the keel and many gouges on her starboard hull where she was against the rocks. Lucky he got her upright with ropes that day and immediately off the rocks just before high tide on Saturday 8th March at 2.30am winching her slowly with the strong ropes tied to the dinghy pontoon. If she’d been on her starboard side on the rocks for another tide, Bill says she would have filled with water and we would have lost her. She took some pounding that’s for sure…. He estimates that he will be busy fixing the damage for a couple of weeks. Mostly grinding and applying new fibreglass over the exposed wood and keel. Another ‘adventure’ to write about! The rudder is ok.
19th March
Found some hi viz clothing at the op shop to be allowed in the boatyard. 💗hee hee Covered shoes ✅ Long pants ✅ Long sleeved hi viz shirt ✅ Just need a hard hat.

9th March
Hmmm "a chain is only as strong as the weakest link...."
So this is what caused our 9 tonne yacht to break free and end up on the rocks. A weak link.
10th March
Valiam is safe now in a much more protected part of Iluka Bay. (The first one on the right as you come in past the Fish co-op). Finally feeling more normal emotionally after the near disaster of her on the rocks after the first mooring chain broke in the more exposed part of Iluka Bay.
12 th March
Valiam is sitting tranquil once more. This 2nd mooring is temporary for the moment until things sort themselves out. Bill is checking her each day removing a small amount of water trickling in. We are contacting local slipways to hopefully get her hauled out as soon as possible so Bill can repair her. Still a bit shellshocked by the whole incident of ending up on the rocks during cyclone Alfred but glad she was strongly built by Bill 30 years ago. She kept us safe during our 40,000 nautical miles together around the world and in Oz so now we have to keep her safe. We've taken the dirty soggy Turkish rug home to clean and dry out. I bought it in Turkey when we were on board Lati sailing to Turkey.
So now we wait for a local slipway to get back to us on when we can haul her out. She's a little soggy in places and not sinking that's the main thing.

8th March
What a gut wrenching exhausting 24 hours! My brilliant captain Underpants extricated Valiam off the rocks at 2.30am as she had begun to float 2 hours before high tide. I rushed down there and could see her light coming towards me. Overwhelmed with relief. Bill had secured her to very long lines ashore yesterday with the help of wonderful friend and neighbour Tim. He was there again this morning at that ungodly hour! I had also dragged our tenant Claire out as I saw she was awake...
One of the lines was secured to the small jetty meant for tinnies. We tied the lines around the pylons. Coffee and cake picnic at 4am in the dark was enjoyed by exhausted captain & crew. Daylight finally arrived and they headed off to Valiam's new and 2nd mooring in a much calmer and protected part of Iluka Bay. The relief is unbelievable! There's a few gouges in the hull that will need patching asap so she will need to be lifted out at the nearest boatyard.
We will sleep well tonight.
Ex Tropical Cyclone Alfred has gone further north I heard this morning but we are still going to get plenty of rain. Many towns around us are already flooding including Lismore.