Cruising Log—3...Mooloolaba to Fraser Island

We felt a lot of relief having arrived safely and having finally left the marina and started our cruise. Getting started is always so difficult, no matter what you are doing. Although we were both stressed we knew that Masala wasn’t even puffing from the effort of the trip – through the fog of our brains we could sense she loved it and that she is a fast and comfortable sea boat and we couldn’t ask for better.

But the stress returned when the great weather window we thought we had for getting over Wide Bay Bar at the southern end of Fraser Island began to close. I felt I needed two nights at Mooloolaba to recover my composure and that is what the original window allowed. Now, however, we would need to leave the day after arriving at about 4pm and go overnight to arrive early morning for the high tide.

Leanne got everything ready to leave “just in case”. I radioed Coast Guard Mooloolaba and got the phone number for Coast Guard Tin Can Bay. I phoned them and was able to get a report of bar conditions from them as reported by vessels that had crossed it during the day. It sounded OK and the forecast was for decreasing wind and sea state.

So just on sunset, at the last possible minute, I said “OK, let’s go”. Leanne’s face lit up. It was only possible to leave because of her foresight and encouragement. She helped me overcome my fears of leaving the safety of Mooloolaba. It was a very important moment in hindsight – if we hadn’t left it would have been a big setback for our cruising and mental attitudes.

We came out of the river mouth just after dark. The sea was very lumpy and on the beam and there wasn’t quite enough wind to fill the sails – full genoa and staysail. We still weren’t game to sail at night with the main sail especially since we weren’t sure what the wind would do.

We did manage to sail most of the 55 nm to Wide Bay Bar, with speed ranging from almost nothing to 7kts under the edge of the odd squall line (no rain, though). It was a magical night with a full moon shining from before sunset right through to sunrise the next morning.

The crossing over the Wide Bay Bar was fairly uneventful despite its horrendous reputation, although one wave in front of us did break all the way across.

We continued straight on to Garry’s Anchorage on the west coast of Fraser Island, a lovely peaceful spot in totally natural surroundings. We stayed there four days and finally began reaping the rewards of all our hard work. We lazed around on the boat enjoying the sun and walked along the sand flats at low tide, watching the myriad crabs. We also went on an 8km walk along one of the old closed vehicle tracks that runs south down the west coast of Fraser Island.