Cruising Log—6...Pancake Creek

I think I need to clarify the skewer and the toad fish. As these fish are poisonous and everyone throws them back in, there is an over population of these monsters (up to 30 cm long and very heavy). I therefore thought it might help to kill some off. I was catching so many! We tried our filleting knife thinking we could end their lives quickly and hopefully painlessly but they have such thick skin we had difficultly piercing it. So I thought a skewer might do the trick.

Leanne’s “Commodore’s Corner”

For those of you who do not already know I am affectionately called “Commodore”. When we first bought our trailer sailer “Mirage” some nine and a half years ago (how time flies) Grant wanted to be “Captain”. He was surprised how quickly I agreed, seeing we both like to be in charge! I said that’s fine darling I’ll be the Commodore and ever since I have outranked him.

Perhaps it is a throw back to my childhood where both parents were keen fisherpeople? My mum and dad used to put me as a toddler in a fish pen on the pier to stop me wandering about and falling into the water. They would then throw the catch into the fish pen with me where I used to entertain myself by poking their eyes out with my fingers. It’s a bit yucky when you think about it.

It’s funny how conscious you become of water usage when on a boat. With only a finite quantity you quickly learn how to economize. We don’t use the shower on board as you tend to use way too much water. We instead are using our solar shower from our camper which holds 20 litres and does about 4-5 showers. This at least lets you know exactly how much water you are consuming.

If you’d seen us as the storms approached you would have thought this lot’s gone crazy. We’re running around the decks getting totally saturated me in my bathers and Grant totally starkers transferring water from the catchment containers to our permanent water tanks and temporary water storage barrels. I’m sure it must have appeared that we were pagans worshiping the rain god. You couldn’t do this in Melbourne and luckily for the neighbours it was dark so they didn’t get a fright at the sight of Grant. So we have been gone a month and now have more water than we started with and are yet to visit a marina. Not bad hey!

24/07/2006 Third Epistle from Masala: Pancake Creek (Gladstone area) to Keppel Bay (Yeppoon / Rockhampton area)

Dear Friends,

This epistle covers the period from around Thursday 15 June until now (Monday 24 July). We are currently at Keppel Bay Marina, which is at Rosslyn Bay, just down the coast from Yeppoon. The nearest major town is Rockhampton, and nine miles off the coast is the magical Great Keppel Island—what a place!

We are not in the marina entirely by choice. We were out at Great Keppel Island last Sunday week ago, planning to leave next day for Port Clinton or Pearl Bay, which are 45 miles up the coast and, despite names, remote and isolated wilderness areas. Then, at 9:30 am on the Sunday morning, the Coast Guard read out a Notice to Mariners saying that the whole area was closed for military exercises from midnight that day until Thursday 27 July. An 11 day closure with just 14 hours notice!

The whole Shoalwater Bay region is a vast military playground. No-one is allowed inland but vessels are allowed to use the anchorages and beaches except when it is closed. It contains some of the best coastal scenery and anchorages on the east coast, and makes day hopping easy, so you wouldn’t want to miss it. Hence our wait.

You might remember from the Second Epistle that we were into our third week anchored in the delightful Pancake Creek estuary, waiting for a weather window to sail out to the Barrier Reef (the Bunker and Capricorn groups, including Lady Musgrave and Heron Islands). Instead, each day the forecast wind got stronger and the swell bigger. Fortunately there was a great deal to do, mostly exploring by dinghy and on foot, and watching the passing parade of yachts stopping for a few days before continuing up the coast. At least there were plenty of people to talk to.