At midnight the temperature is still nearly 80 degrees and muggy. Ugh. We are now in the Timor Sea, the first part of the huge expanse of sea that is the Indian Ocean.
In the pitch black of the cockpit (there’s no moon whatsoever) I sit and think about our time in Australia. We spent far too much money there, and then even more cheering ourselves up about spending so much. Our time here has been marred by problem after problem with the boat and therefore has been frustrating in the extreme at times, but there have been some amazing times too. The magic of Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsundays, and the amazing experience of being Sydney, both made even better by being with Johanne, Steve and Isabella. I would not have missed either for the world. I wish I had seen some kangaroos in the wild (although many of them were seen by other crews as roadkill so maybe that sight was better missed) and that we had seen crocodiles on a sunny day rather than in the drizzle. Too much time was spent hanging around waiting for the boat to be fixed – anyone who thinks that old houses are a money pit has never owned a boat! I wish we had had more time to explore the interior and now understand why so many people leave these rallies and join the next one a couple of years later.
Apart from Sydney though, I really don’t think that it’s a place I could live. It’s so similar to home in many ways but different enough to make me feel off kilter. I don’t think I would ever get used to the ‘in your face’ attitude of the locals, the brashness which feels like rudeness but actually isn’t. I’m obviously just too ‘English’.
A large ship appears on the radar and I get my first chance to use the AIS system. I can see immediately that they are not going to collide with us so that’s good. The wind has all but disappeared (we’ve had the sails out for a whole half an hour so far since leaving) and we are motoring with two knots of current going against us, and the weather files give every indication that this is the way it will be for the next few days.
At 4 am I go back to bed and when I wake, it’s 10 am and I have miraculously slept right through. I get up and Mike crawls into bed.
We are still motoring and it is hot. All around is the usual blue, white and occasional grey. The customs plane flies overhead and calls us and until the evening that is all we see. We catch no fish and see no evidence of any life in the water.
There is absolutely nothing to take photos of. I certainly don’t want any photos of me looking sweaty and tired. Thank god for sunsets and beautiful evening skies!
In the evening on the distant horizon, we can see a tiny light from another yacht, not one of ours but heading in the same direction.
Our position is: 12 deg 18 min S, 127 deg 58 min E
Distance so far: 12156 nautical miles
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