We let Coffs Harbour at lunchtime Saturday for the 230 nautical mile sail to Mooloolaba, arriving on Monday morning. It was sad to say goodbye to our close friends in Coffs but exciting to once again be travelling.
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| Waving Goodbye |
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| Special Friends in Coffs Harbour |
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| Aratika 2 leaves Coffs Harbour |
We were joined on the trip by our mate Chris and it was great to have his company for the 44 hours the passage took us to complete. Not the least we enjoyed the increased sleep we got with 3 of us doing watches. Thanks Chris!
We motor sailed the first part then the breeze filled in and we had good sailing conditions up into Queensland. Ava was determined to stay in her pyjamas for the whole passage. A feat she achieved with no trouble at all.
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| Ava in her passage attire |
We saw lots of Humpback whales on the way which was fantastic. Many were slapping fins, spy hopping and breaching quite near us. It's so great to see this population coming back in big numbers on the Australian coast.
Passing Cape Byron at dawn was very nice as were the views of Mt Warning as we crossed the border to finally be in Queensland and the Coral Sea.
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| Cape Byron |
Coming in to Mooloolaba we crossed the path of the giant US Navy Super Carrier USS George Washington. We were on a collision course and had to get them to give way as power gives way to sail!!
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| Power gives way to sail |
We are looking forward to seeing friends here in Mooloolaba as we spend a few days exploring the local area and attractions
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| Sailing North |
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no picking on the US navy, mate!
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