23 54.09 S 152 24.23 E

We came through the very narrow pass through the reef into the lagoon just after 3 pm yesterday; this pass is the most narrow entrance through a coral reef that we have seen across the Pacific....particularly, given the tidal current flow.

The timing of our arrival had us entering at about 90 minutes into the flood tide and the tidal current was moving at about 3 knots into the lagoon. I had to keep some boat speed up to be able to have steering but I kept that at the lowest possible (about 1 knot) to just have enough steerage to keep the boat aligned with the narrow channel. I would not have wanted to be entering a couple of hours later when the flood tide current would have been at its peak. This is our first experience with Australia's tides...we will have MANY more over the next couple of months between here and Darwin.

Yesterday, the wind provided good sailing for the first 5 hours but then died and we had to motor the last 4 hours; definitely a most pleasant start to our 2012 cruising.

Water temp is fluttering between 25 and 25 C (77-78 F) so that is pretty cold when it comes to water temps we have been in since leaving New Zealand at the first of May of 2011. I will have to brave the briskness and get into it as the water line is badly in need of being scrubbed as I have not been in the water to do that job since mid-February. The dirty looking Burnett River water was not conducive to being in the water...plus the reality of the presence of bull sharks regularly roaming the river. We have no concerns about crocodiles in this lagoon nor are we concerned about sharks at this location.....so those aspects are all great....just the colder water with which to contend.

Our Vancouver/Canadian friends, David and Marian (S/V Kilkea), plan to join us here at Lady Musgrave tomorrow as they sail north from Brisbane. It will be great to be back in their company as we continue north, then west and on into south-east Asia. We have not been in their company since Panama to French Polynesia in early 2010 which was a nice reconnection after cruising much of the time with one-another in the Mediterranean during 2007-2008.

Time for breakfast.....cheers, John and Cheryl