Last season we only managed to get as far north as the Whitsundays due to our late start with Covid restricting our annual migration to Queensland in 2020. This season we have made it to Magnetic Island and we are about to venture even further north via some outer reef stopovers.
Sometimes when you least expect it, long passages can be fun and full of surprises. We have crossed the “paddock” many times in The Bossa. It’s the stretch of water between Great Keppel Island and the Whitsundays. No mainland anchorages, all remote and most are uninhabited islands.
Monkey Beach is a small bay on the western side of Great Keppel Island. It has a fringing reef that attracts day visitors from Yeppoon, along with us yachties who want a quick snorkel. In recent years this reef has looked a bit sad with algae growth,
It seems so long ago that I was in the water with my cameras and at Lady Musgrave, but here we are again in 2021. Having said that, it doesn’t take long to feel like it was yesterday either.
We’re back! I think we managed to navigate the arrival our newest crew member, baby Ava and Covid-19 remarkably well. Yes, we are grandparents and we now look forward to family visits on The Bossa with an eager young one to share our travels with.
Our 2020 season has come to an end and it will be a year we will remember for a variety of reasons, but particularly for the world-wide Covid pandemic. It has been a year of mixed emotions – unfulfilled
There was something special about this visit to Lady Musgrave. The weather window was perfect, the company great, the snorkeling fun and it was just so very picturesque. Perhaps it was just that. We entered the channel on a very low tide so the reef was exposed all around us and with the sun overhead,… Read More »
Yellow Patch is it! We have just spent a wonderful five days at our favourite Yellow Patch. Yellow Patch is so named because of its unusual long orange sandhill, not quite “yellow” but close enough. It serves as a very scenic backdrop to extensive white sand flats,
After our catchup with Waterfront we have now officially headed south. With a lift booked for the 25th November and with a few planned stop-offs along the way, it was time to take the timely northerlies. Our first stop was Thomas Island. I think the little bay on the southern side of Thomas is everyone’s favourite including… Read More »
While the Little Black lagoon offered various reef locations to snorkel and to fish, we decided to explore the neighbouring Block Reef by dinghy. Block Reef is on the northern side of the channel that separates the two reefs. After exploring a
That reef window came! In fact, even though we have returned to the islands, the winds are still light and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think I might be a tad snorkeled out!!
On the northern side of Hook Island are several bays – Pinnacle Bay, Manta Ray Bay, Luncheon Bay, Maureen’s Cove and Butterfly Bay where we picked up our favourite mooring buoy. These northern bays are good protection from the SE trade
Revisiting the Whitsundays region is a bit different from our other destinations. It’s familiar, it’s always social because many cruisers spend time here, it’s relatively compact with short passages between islands, it’s close to the outer reef and it has two
It was a big four days of sailing to get to the Whitsundays … then one more to get to the outer reef. But it was worth it! When we’ve been out of phone range for days and the phone suddenly starts beeping, we can’t wait. Oh how dependent we
I never thought we’d be saying “let’s get outta here” only after a few days at Great Keppel Island. But we did! We arrived at GKI after a visit to the Gladstone Marina with AQ, where we provisioned, washed and even did some sight-
After three days at Lady Musgrave we moved on to Fitzroy Reef with AQ. I have written about Fitzroy a few times so I’m not going to repeat myself other than to remind my readers that there is no coral
How lucky are we??!! It’s not Wakatobi, but being here is not such a bad ‘plan b’. We left Fraser Island and the Hervey Bay whales for a few supplies from Burnett Heads before we headed north for the Southern Reef,
The whale season in Hervey Bay is now! Many humpback whales drop in to Hervey Bay from August to October each year on their way south. Our ‘normal’ cruising season means we are usually further north at this time and while we certainly see whales further north, they do seem to be a bit more… Read More »
Well our journey this year has been anything but a “straight line”! We’ve navigated so many road blocks and detours along the way, the challenges just keep on coming!
It’s that song again! We have been at Boatworks for four weeks and yes, we had a long list of jobs to do and mostly annual maintenance, but unfortunately the list did grow and two weeks stretched in to four weeks. It was the longest stretch we’d left The Bossa out of the water since… Read More »
We have made it to Queensland, to The Boatworks and finally to The Bossa. What a crazy time it has been. Our annual March maintenance visit to The Bossa passed us by,along with our planned May departure.
Our 2019 sailing season is nearly over … and it’s definitely a wrap for my snorkeling season! My last snorkel was at Lady Musgrave Island. We snuck out to Fitzroy Reef and Lady Musgrave after we were doubting we’d
We’ve been to Lady Musgrave Island several times and we love it, particularly this time of year as it’s turtle nesting season. It was a hard decision … stay at Fitzroy Reef for an extra two nights, or spend some time on LM island hoping to see a turtle lay
After five fantastic days at Yellow Patch we had hoped we’d see at least a few days of outer reef weather and we did! Fitzroy Reef and Lady Musgrave Island were ‘sort of’ on our way south so we grabbed the opportunity. We entered Fitzroy Reef with
In 2016 we visited Yellow Patch on Curtis Island. We have finally returned! Yellow Patch is a treasure! A large orange (not yellow) coloured sandhill slopes down to a deep water beach, extensive white sand flats fill the inlet and endless mangrove creeks meander deep in to the inlet, further than the eye can see.… Read More »
It’s timely being at Great Keppel Island. My friend Chris from Anui (ex Take It Easy) has just had an article published, ‘Keppel Magic’, in the Australian Multihull World magazine, Sep/Oct edition. (Multihull World used to be Neville’s ‘must read’
We dropped Tim at Hamilton Island last Sunday with the northerlies having just arrived so it was time to go south! No time to wash the three sets of bedding and towels, and no time to provision. I am very grateful for the IGA on Hamilton Island at least,
After a few days at Bait Reef we then entered Hardy Lagoon. Hardy Lagoon is a large lagoon and it is a little tricky to enter. There is a very narrow entrance and its recommended to only enter close to or at high tide, when the water has stabilised. We
Soooo … we were left with Tim (and his drone)! We had another week with our son on board and we struck gold … an outer reef window! Could not have been better timing. We dropped (a sad) Kaycee at Hamilton Island airport, picked up a few necessities, refuelled and we were on our way.… Read More »
Damn … got the layout wrong! Thats what happens when you are chasing internet … here’s Take Two! (Ignore the last email post.) Yes, it was busy on board with six of us! But a special time too. We enjoyed watching the Tigers winning the GF while at Hamilton Island and those that didn’t, they… Read More »
Here’s a few pics from a few snorkels around the Whitsundays during the last few weeks … Butterfly Bay, Chalkies Beach, Waite Bay and Langford Reef. I’m really looking forward to some calmer days out in the water! Getting buffeted around by
Now for a different experience on The Bossa … family visits … and with partners. We’ve often had Tim and Abbey join us here in the Whitsundays, usually at different times, but this is a first with each having their
I wonder if there’s a “five-year rule” on boats?? Bossa Nova turned five last November (how time flies!). We had already replaced our VHF hand-held radio a few months back, then, not long after we officially turned south just recently (which means this season is half over 🙁 ), our toilet holding-tank pump stopped working, our… Read More »
Finally, after some false starts, we got to the outer reef. We have several waypoints for reefs off Orpheus and Dunk Islands so we have been keen to explore them. But like all outer reef ventures, it’s the weather, particularly the wind and tide, that guide our decisions. Beaver Reef was our first reef
According to our Alan Lucas ‘bible’ the Hinchinbrook Channel “is the most scenic, calm waterway on the east coast of Australia”. We like it! We were fortunate enough to see quite a lot of whale activity on the way in to the Hinchinbrook Channel. A pod of five or six whales kept us entertained but… Read More »
Sexy or sinister … I have stolen this title from a friend! I am talking about clams. We have just visited Orpheus Island after a stopover at Townsville and the ever popular yachtie haunt at Horseshoe Bay on Maggie (Magnetic Island). Orpheus Island has a Research Station in Pioneer Bay. Threatened with extinction many years… Read More »
A reef weather window at last! Bait Reef and maybe the Hardy Reef lagoon were our destinations. Unfortunately, Bait Reef was everyone’s destination. As we approached Bait Reef it was apparent we would be travelling further on to Hardy Reef as the 5 moorings were already occupied, with another 5 boats anchored. Busy! Bait Reef… Read More »
We are currently sitting out a few days of ordinary weather with strong winds, showers and cooler days, in Cid Harbour. Time to catch up on my blog, watch a film, read, clean and cook. Fortunately, we are getting some intermittent phone signal, thus internet, so it’s not too bad. But we are a tad… Read More »
With the wish to be in phone contact with home and our friends on ET, we decided we would only venture a short distance to Whitehaven Beach. We have two ‘must do’s’ when we visit the Whitsundays … Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet. Our friends on Chances and Vivacious were at Whitehaven and had been… Read More »
This is one of the more difficult posts I’ve written. When we return to The Bossa each year we leave our family and friends behind for six months. We’ve always felt ‘connected’ though, with our mobile phones and the internet. We are only a phone call away we would say. And then only a flight… Read More »
After our extended marina time in Keppel Bay we were ready to ‘escape’. The strong winds and big seas had eased and the Shoalwater Bay military training zone had reopened which was quite timely. We had no wind! One extreme to the other. After two days of motoring we revisited South Percy Island for a… Read More »
We have been in the Keppel Bay Marina now for two weeks. We originally came in for birthday celebrations and the need for a VHF radio repair. We’ve been here ever since! After enjoying a fantastic run of beautiful weather from Boatworks to Great Keppel Island, we are now waiting for strong winds and BIG swells… Read More »
We had a great sail from Heron Island to Great Keppel Island. Flat water and a steady 10-15 knot breeze. Dinner was covered for five nights with a spotted mackerel caught on passage and we enjoyed some repeated breaching by a very energetic whale off our starboard transom. While it was too far away for… Read More »
Heron Island has one of the few resorts located on the GBR. Unfortunately, it doesn’t welcome yachties who might venture out this far, however there’s always a walk around the island on offer as we have access up to the high-water line. We did visit reception though and they were generously agreeable to us having… Read More »
Apologies to my email subscribers, another try … There are so many coral cays out here but the weather and time dictates how many you can visit as sheltered anchorages are a must. If there is an island, they are quite small. We can usually circumnavigate them in under an hour by foot, so it’s the… Read More »
It’s so wonderful to be back in the water! A warm and calm patch of weather over the last week has meant I’ve unexpectedly been able to enjoy my underwater world in the Bunker and Capricorn group of coral cays and islands, in the southern section of our wonderful GBR. We are now back in… Read More »
Woohoo, our 2019 east coast journey begins! After we left The Boatworks we caught our breath with a few nights in the Broadwater, familiarizing ourselves with our ‘second home’. Living between two homes involves some clumsy moments remembering just where things are. Of course, on The Bossa, it’s a tad more important as many things… Read More »
I think we left Melbourne at the right time! Winter has well and truly set in now with wind, rain, hail and even snow. And it’s COLD downsouth!! Sunshine and 25 degrees up here. We are now on the water enjoying a rest … and the sunshine!As per the previous four years, we left The Bossa… Read More »
Take two! I’m trying to improve on my layout for you email subscribers. This is what your post update should have looked like … It’s that time of the year again … when we swap ‘homes’. Our 2018 sailing season has come to an end. We have arrived back at Boatworks and packed our boat… Read More »
Take two! I’m trying to improve on my layout for you email subscribers. This is what your post update should have looked like … It’s that time of the year again … when we swap ‘homes’. Our 2018 sailing season has come to an end. We have arrived back at Boatworks and packed our boat… Read More »