en route

We didn't get very far today. When we left the mooring to go to the jetty to fill up with water we made hardly any progress. Our mooring lines were covered not only with mud and slime but also barnacles, so we assumed that the prop had acquired growth too. The only solution was to put on a tank and dive into the murk to clean it up. We had warnings from two people that there were bull sharks in the river, so it was with great trepidation that G. covered up in a black 'skin' and went in. The prop was indeed a ball of growth, so he did as quick a job as possible and the rest will have to be done some time in clearer water.

Because of this we were later leaving than planned, but in fact the tide was still coming in a bit, and we made very slow progress down the river. Then across Hervey Bay to Fraser Island, not much wind so plenty of motoring. Having left at 4.45am, we eventually dropped anchor at 6.30pm - the total hours of daylight. We will never get to Sydney by new year at this rate!