Position: 37 50.56 S 144 55.13 E
At
anchor Hobsons Bay
Wind: West, F6-7 Strong breeze to near gale
Weather:
Mostly cloudy, occasional showers, cool
This morning when I awoke the front had not
yet come through. I stuck my head out the companionway, looked around, smelt the
air, umm'd and aah'd a bit, and eventually decided that it would be wise to move
over to the western side of the Bay while the breeze was still in the north and
before the westerly change came through. After a quick tidy up below, I had the
anchor up and Sylph reaching out to the west under a double reefed mainsail and
a partially furled jib making a surprisingly quick six knots. As I looked about,
while my initial intention was to make for Altona Bay about six miles away, I
thought why not Hobsons Bay which was less than two miles and should provide
excellent shelter from the forecast winds. So I hardened up on to the wind and
less than an hour later we had anchored in five meters of water about 300 meters
off the beach, thence repaired below for breakfast.
And not a few moments later, or so it
seemed, while I was enjoying vegemite on toasted crumpets and a hot cup of tea,
the change came through, the wind picked up to about 25 knots and shifted into
the west accompanied by a few spots of rain. I congratulated myself on my good
timing, though had to admit I was lucky that the front had not come through a
few hours earlier while it was still dark. Undoubtedly we would have been OK
back at St Kilda but it certainly would be a lot less
comfortable.
We haven't been making many miles over the
past couple of weeks but I am exploring the nooks and coves of Port Phillip more
thoroughly than ever before. While the beach is only 300 meters away, with the
wind as it is I reckon I will leave going ashore until tomorrow when the wind is
expected to moderate. But it is also supposed to shift to the southeast so we
may as well head back over to St Kilda.
I finished reading Virginia Woolf's “A Room
of One's Own” yesterday. One of her criticisms of masculine writing is how it
overshadowed by the word “I”. Hmm. Oh well, I guess it is all just a bit of
fun.
All is well.
