WIIN #1

WIIN 22 April 2008

We have been travelling for six weeks now and it has gone so fast – it just feels like last week we left Fremantle on our sailing sabbatical.

On our journey so far we have covered 600 nautical miles and visited Mindarie, Jurian Bay, Geraldton, Abrolhos Islands and are now at Shark Bay. The sailing has been great with the biggest problem so far being cray-pots which are everywhere. We have had to watch out for them all the time and at night we have tried to sail well off the coast in an attempt to miss them. The current count is at 3 – all in the thick of the night and in very deep water!

We now sit at anchor in Denham, Shark Bay - after a 33 hour sail, of which we motored for 21 as the wind gods left us - where friends and family have been holidaying. It has been great fun catching up with them all. We have visited the discovery centre, Monkey Mia, Ocean Park, and the eating and drinking places around town. Gary, Lisa, and kids (Aldebaran Bay) have now returned to Perth, and the Steddy families leave tomorrow.

The Abrolhos Islands were fantastic. We spent more time in the southern group than planned due to cyclone Pancho up north, sending some strong winds our way. We were safe at anchor at Middle Island, protected by the surrounding reefs. There we stayed as the gales and strong winds passed and the big seas subsided.

Some of the islands are little more than large rocks rising out between the reefs. The bird life amazing – the Guano jetty named for the Guano which used to be an industry on the islands in years gone by. We were out of range of phones, email, and shops. A few other yachts were sailing through and we were in the company of Eloise from Fremantle. Some of the islands are inhabited by the crayfishing community for the season which lasts for 15 weeks. The rest are bare.

We arrived into Geraldton nearly a week later than initially planned and spent a few days catching up on washing and re-provisioning. We then headed back out to the Abrolhos, this time to the Wallabi group. We visited West Wallabi Island and the remains of forts from the Batavia mutiny.

The fishing to date has been a little dismal, however have managed a few meals of fresh fish, and squid (thanks to Jasmine), but no crayfish (not through lack of trying). The snorkelling and swimming has been fantastic. One spot where there was a huge selection of fish, coral, and sea life was on the wreck of the Windsor.

We have come across dolphins everywhere. At Middle Island in the Abrolhos they were constant companions around our boat, and playing in the bow waves of the dinghy as we travelled around exploring and fishing. May sea-lions also swimming and frolicking in the clear blue seas entertained us. In Shark Bay we have seen Dugongs and sea snakes.

So now we continue on our way. Next we will visit more bays around Shark Bay, including Boat Haven loop, Meade Island, Dirk Hartog Island, Monkey Mia, and then on to Carnarvon.