Nimrod catamaran: South for the summer

We decided to bring Nimrod south to Raby Bay in Moreton Bay for the summer (cyclone-prone) months. We left Abell Point Marina on Saturday October 28th and enjoyed a catch-up with some friends in Turtle Bay on the south coast of Whitsunday Island.

Then we set off south, taking advantage of the gentle northerly wind to put up the kite and get down to Keswick Island on Sunday and Middle Percy Island on the Monday. We caught a Big-eye tuna; magnificent sashimi!

Red cliffs in Dolphin Bay, Middle Percy Island, at sunrise

Next day, another kite run down to Shoalwater Bay. There was a military exercise on, but the affected area left us room to go on the west side of Townshend Island and sneak up Canoe Passage between Townshend and Leicester Islands.

For those who don't know the procedure, the best way is to check the 'Notices to Mariners' on the 'Capricorn Coast—outside pilotage areas' website. On this occasion Notice '431 T of 2017' applied, but showed a chart indicating where we could go.

We could hear some distant gunfire, and some thunder. Crab pots were put out, but three were broken, one badly, presumably by a crocodile.

Rumbling noises in the west

The forecast was for an inconvenient Southeasterly, building to 25 knots. We decided to motor round Townshend Island and spend the Wednesday night in Strong Tide Passage near the Triangular Islands.

Thursday a short hop around the coast to our favourite hide-away; Island Head Creek. Beautiful, deserted, and a good place to practice using the Mavic Pro drone.

Then, although the wind direction was adverse, the sea was pretty quiet, so we decided to press on and motor-sail to North Keppel Island, where there are some lovely bush-walks.

Mangrove roots

Grass-tree stump

Sometimes cruising is easy; sometimes things go wrong, or the weather turns against you. Recently we have had a few technical challenges: a pesky flashing light and annoying alarm on the engine panel. A dodgy freezer. An oil leak from the genset.

All of these have been overcome successfully, but now we face about a week of strong SE winds making further progress south difficult.

We will sit the gale out in Rosslyn Bay Marina near Yeppoon and enjoy a bit of land time.