The last miles to Mackay
Miss Molly 4
Bob & Peggy Wilkerson/Geoff & Merel Pettifer
Tue 22 Jun 2010 23:59
149:56.70 E
Dear all,
The reef did not give us the protection we had hoped for, as it blew
straight into the 80 Nm wide entrance leading up to Mackay. So we spent
another day at the mercy of the big waves. Miss Molly could have sailed
faster, but we were now trying to time our arrival for daylight in the
morning, rather than in the middle of the night.
We had barely turned into the reef when an aeroplane flew over and contacted
us on the VHF radio. It turned out to be Coast Watch Australia. "Gidday,
Captain!". They asked all the questions customs officials wants answered, as
well as our estimated time of arrival. So we told them we would be in the
marina in the morning.
Only the last couple of hours the wind has died down till about 18 kts. The
seas are a lot calmer already. On the horizon we can see the glow of about
60
cargo vessels that are anchored off Mackay. It's the biggest gathering of
cargo ships we've seen since Panama!
Only 40 miles to go to the
entrance of the marina. We will see how strict the clearance procedures are here;
Australia is famous for helping you get rid of your stores, but sometimes
they are allright. We will let you know how things went and when we move on
to the Whitsundays.
Cheers from
Geoff, Merel & James