Arrived Camden Haven

Where Next?
Bob Williams
Fri 8 Nov 2019 01:58

Position: 31 39.11 S  152 48.04 E
At anchor off Laurieton, Camden Haven
Wind: N  F4 moderate breeze
Sea: slight  Swell: nil
Weather: smoke haze, warm
Day’s run:  89 nm

We enjoyed an excellent sail yesterday afternoon up until 2200 when the wind grew light and fickle. However, by this time we only had about ten miles to go to Camden Haven. Unfortunately the tides were all wrong for crossing the bar with a small but still significant north-east swell running. Also, I was not keen on entering the river in the dark so we allowed Sylph to drift slowly towards our destination.  We arrived off the entrance at 0330 and while the breeze was light and the swell had eased, the tide was low and ebbing and the moon had set. So I wore ship and opened the coast to await daylight and the rising tide. At 0500 with insufficient wind to tack Sylph around, I furled the jib and started the BRM. Smoke haze has followed us since Coffs Harbour and while we had only proceeded a few miles offshore, all the shore lights had disappeared. We motored back into the murk relying on GPS to guide us in. About three miles off the haze cleared and the shore became visible.  At 0540, with the smoke-hazed sun rising, we entered through the breakwaters, handed the mainsail and motored two more miles to come to anchor off the Laurieton United Services Club.

Checking Sylph’s logbooks, Sylph was last here 3 January 2002. It doesn’t look Laurieton has changed too much.

All is well.