Sydney

Sydney, what a great city. We are anchored in Blackwattle Bay, near the fish market for those who know the place. The anchoring area is quite cramped, so we have close encounters with a German boat, a British boat, and a charter yacht depending how the wind is blowing. Luckily there is no tidal flow, and very light wind so no problems so far.

We sailed under the Harbour Bridge, did our best to avoid the ferries leaving Circular Quay at great rate, and then under the Glebe suspension bridge - which, having two supporting pylons, in true Aussie fashion, has been nicknamed Madonna's Bra (whereas the Harbour Bridge is known as the Old Coathanger). At night time we have a fine view of the lights of the city, the best free accommodation around!

The fish market not only has fish and seafood for sale, but is also full of sushi bars and fish restaurants. Whereas the fishing fleet is almost entirely owned and captained by two families with Italian names, the produce is sold almost exclusively by Asians. And the majority of purchasers are Asian too. That is one of the big differences in the population of the city since the seventies.

On day one we walked to the Opera House, and had a tour around it with a guide who we are sure is a 'resting' actress. Very interesting and with a voice that was music to listen to. The building looks just as fantastic close to as from a distance (more Aussie-speak, the 'shells' look like praying nuns or coupling turtles). We hadn't realised that after months of trying to work out how to build the shells, the architect Utzen used sections of a hemisphere which were all curved the same amount, and could be made easily in similar sections. Utzen fell out with the change of government during the building process, resigned, and never returned to see the finished product. We were taken into the concert hall where a rehearsal was in progress so for about 15 mins were able to listen to some wonderful cello music.

Yesterday's destination was the bridge, enormous when close up, and very noisy with the constant traffic. It is possible to do a 'bridge climb' up the maintenance walkways to the very top of the arch, and we could see a group up there in helmets and harnesses. We were quite happy to be at road height, quite high enough.

We have been lucky with warm sunny weather, and it is a city to enjoy outside. Parks, pedestrian shopping areas, and pavement cafes everywhere. Also plenty of water fountains - London please take note.

And to keep us busy on the boat, we have a non-functioning wind speed indicator, so G has been up the mast a couple of times. Also we are still investigating solar panels - G managed to drop a screwdriver onto one from a height. Not possible to get one to match its twin on the deck, so we want to buy two smaller ones, and use the remaining old one in a different position. Australia is a pricey place at the moment though, the exchange rate gets worse by the week. They have plenty of minerals to export to China, and also produce nearly all their own food so have jumped out of recession very quickly.
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Easter in Ulladulla

Easter was spent in Ulladulla. Another fishing port, though we had our own bit of 'visitor's dock'. Not designed for a sailing boat as it was very difficult to fender ourselves off from vertical black rubber buffers which made a horrible mess of hull and fenders until we found a plank of wood to separate one from the other. Also at low tide it was a long way up to the jetty, and with the wind blowing us off, also a giant step over the gap - this life keeps one agile!

Great festivities over the weekend. The Blessing of the (fishing) Fleet on Sunday so all the fishing boats had been cleaned up and were decorated with bunting. The priest later did the rounds of the harbour so we also got a sprinkling of holy water! Then there was a parade with floats and 4 kilted pipe bands amongst other music-makers. It is only a small town, and most of the population must have been involved. Lots of food stalls and side shows and luckily perfect weather after the torrential rain of the day before. We were in the right place for an excellent firework display in the evening - let off from the breakwater only 100yds away. Had the wind been blowing in our direction we might have been a bit worried.

On Easter Monday we had a reunion with Sue Lloyd and her husband. Sue was our bridesmaid all those years ago; I first met her in South Africa. They now live in Canberra. It was perfect picnic weather, and local prawns and salad plus a glass or two of white helped to make it a special occasion.

Since then we have been making our way up the coast, and are now nearing Sydney suburbia. Two nights were spent in Jervis Bay, (35 08.080 and 150 44.886) the official port for Canberra (capital cities have to have one!) though mainly used as a naval base. National parks surround much of it, and we had some good walks along the coastal path. Saw several kangaroos, a kookaburra, and later a fairy penguin fishing near the boat, the former having been particularly lacking on our walks in Oz so far.

Today we are in Port Hacking (34 04.803 and 151 09.905); one side of which is part of the Royal National Park (the second park in existence after Yellowstone), and the other a very desirable residential area of greater Sydney. We've picked up a mooring on the park side, very close to a beach (only a few inches of water under the hull at low tide). In NSW is is forbidden to anchor on seagrass which is home to many creatures and plants. So anchoring is only allowed in water deeper than 10m. in seagrass areas. Decided to take the dinghy to Cronulla, a town on the other side of the bay. A 2-mile trip but easy in calm water and no wind. A bit more splashy on the return trip. A walk in the national park had the interest of some Aboriginal rock engravings, but also the shock of a large black snake on the path that I nearly trod on - other people had warned us that they had seen snakes there too, and being Australia it was probably a poisonous one.

An interesting evening was spent with a S. African couple from Durban, and also the author and his wife of the definitive cruising guide to New South Wales. He and his wife have been producing the guide for the last ten years, so know every nook and cranny of this coast. They have also sailed the world so had many tales to tell. 40 years afloat! They still use paper rather than electronic charts, and although have GPS, they miss the satisfaction of using a sextant for navigation. They say it kept them busy on long passages!

Eden and onwards

Eden is a fishing port, though as in many other places the fishermen now do harbour trips, whalewatching, and charter fishing. A few fishing boats for sale, but others definitely active. We enjoyed watching the unloading of a huge mixture of fish - not many of any great size. Fresh fish and mussels available to buy, and good fish and chips which we sampled.

Once the town had a whaling industry - started by an English stockbroker whose investors pulled out when they found out what they were investing in and left him stranded. However he got it going and also several other businesses in the area. One whale is a local legend, it rounded up stray baleen whales and herded them into the harbour. Then when they were harpooned it even covered the poor creatures' blow hole. As a reward it was given the tongue and lips of the carcass. What a gruesome tale. The skeleton of 'Old Tom' is in the local museum.

When we arrived we tied up to the fishing dock, but were worried that the 'Kingfisher' whose spot we had taken would return. Fortunately another yacht left in the evening; he had been rafted up to another fishing boat that was no longer used. We moved, and at midnight 'Kingfisher' came in to dock. It would have been quite a performance moving in the dark and finding somewhere else to moor.

Being a small town, we got chatting to several people strolling down the dock, and were even offered a lift to the petrol station to fill up diesel cans. (Also a bed for the night at his house if we were desperate for a night on dry land!)

A bit of maintenance turned into a general turn out. We thought that one of the fans for the engine compartment had stopped working. The spare was down at the bottom of a stern storage area that we seldom have to open. To our surprise it was wet - never had been before. Water dribbling from the bolts of the windvane steering. Of course the (salty) water had then dribbled through to the under-bunk lockers. Luckily lined with plastic as they were full of bedding' but at the bottom was the copper sheeting and netting that helps the radio signal - now a wonderful turquoise and deep red. In the end we found that the fan we thought was kaput was just running quietly, the other one was very noisy and had the problem!

Today we had the best sail for ages. In spite of a gale warning we had perfect 15 - 20 knots of wind behind us all day. The gale never happened, at least not where we were. We're now 40 miles further north in an attractive and tiny harbour called Bermagui. Also a fishing port, but now quite a tourist spot as it has pretty beaches and rocky headlands. Once again we are rafted up to a fishing boat that is in port until after Easter. This one is a bit fishy, and this evening its very high pitched bilge alarm went off. Eventually we found someone on another boat that phoned the owner to come and turn on the pumps. Blissful quiet, it was worse than a hundred mosquitoes.

Fishing hasn't been too successful recently - particularly annoying as we have had to buy a fishing license in New South Wales. Today lost a mahi mahi and a good size tuna, but did in the end land a small 'little tunny' which tasted pretty good. G enjoys hanging a line over the side in the evenings just to see what comes, not to eat, but quite a selection of different species.

As we get further north it is getting warmer and greener. Much more rain than in eastern Tasmania. Washed all the thick fleeces the other day only to have to get them out again today as the south wind felt as though it was coming from the South Pole while we were at sea. On land though it was warm enough for short sleeves.

A Happy Easter to all, don't eat too many Easter eggs.