Thanks Townville

Back in November 2021 we were contemplating heading back to the Yongala Lodge to work a few months while we were waiting for the islands to reopen and that is exactly what we did.

As we had previously worked there we knew it was a good job and was very handy to the boat which was brilliant. We ended up staying there until the end of April which meant our savings were looking healthy plus we were able to buy extra “necessities” for the boat which we wouldn’t have been able to without us both working. The three main necessities we purchased was a large inverter which means we can now convert our solar power (12 volt) into normal power (240 volt) or in other words we can now use normal household appliances such as a blender, sewing machine etc.

Another fantastic purchase was an air conditioning unit which Craig cleverly install in the master bedroom giving us cool air on those tropical hot nights.

The last big purchase was a petrol powered water pump which Craig is very excited about but me not so much.

An unexpected bonus of working at the Yongala was Abby. She is the cutest little dog who’s mum and dad live on one of the boats in the marina. While they were both working or on occasion went away on holiday we would become Abbys surrogate parents which was hugely fun and needless to say she got spoiled silly.

The beginning of May saw us back on REAO where we worked to get her ready for sailing again. While I focused on the smaller jobs like cleaning, de-cluttering, making her even more of our home, Craig focused on the bigger jobs like fixing some tears in the sails, buying new anchor chain, getting the anchor regalvanised, organising for the hull to be scraped.

Finally all the jobs were done and it then became a test of patience waiting for the right weather window for us. We had already decided that we would sail to New Caledonia, however to sail there from Australia the majority of people sail from around the Bundaberg, Brisbane area as it is a good angle across the ocean.

As our cruising permit for Australia had expired back in November 2020 we were unsure whether we would be allowed to cruise down the coast and then out so we decided to just head out from Townsville, hence waiting for a wind we could use.

Luckily for us we only had to wait for a couple of weeks before we saw what we needed. After checking the wind forecast for a couple of days and still seeing it looked good for us we started making preparations to leave.

We booked in for a RAT test which had to be undertaken by a professional within 48 hours of leaving the country and then officially check out of the country through Australian Border Force. Lastly we had to fill in all the pre arrival paperwork and send it off to Noumea (the port we would be arriving at).

Everything went suprisingly smoothly and we even managed one last social friday night gathering with our breakwater marina friends.

Early saturday morning (this morning) we took REAO into the marina one final time to fill up on fuel and water before setting sail. Our intention (and we got permission from border force for this) was to sail across to Horseshoe Bay on the first day to ensure everything was working a-ok and to say our adieu to a few boaties we knew there.

This is where we are now, Craig is tackling the last couple of little jobs on the boat while I am using the last of our wifi to update our blog. Tomorrow we set sail along the palm island passage and out into the big blue yonder. We estimate it will take us 9-15 days to sail across all dependent on the wind.

So for now its eyes on the horizon as we set sail into new adventures.