Drummond Family Adventures

Superyachts in Monaco

2009-09-26T09:40:00.007+10:00

Wednesday saw the four of us head to Monaco via the very pictuesque Cap Ferat ( home to Somerset Maughan for many years), Villafranche- Loubert and Eze. It is a coastal road cut into the rock with the odd short tunnel. The med below is clear and green.

After negotiating the long subterranean tunnel to find parking in Monaco we hit the Monaco Superyacht Show (Only boats over 20m on display!) It was a bit of fun trying to get an invite on board to a rubber neck but Bryan did well. There were boats with sticks and my favourite was a modest 30 m real yacht made in aluminium by Van Hoek in Holland with a full wooden deck and coach house in the traditional style. The detail was very tasteful and not just for show...clearly the owner had sailing her in mind. The agent enthusiastically told us that there was another hull, just waiting for a buyer!!! A lovely Kiwi deckie showed us over another monster yacht Cinderella 4, from Ireland. She had an engine room and an engineer. Bryan was blown away. It was fun seeing the opulent interiors of some of the big stink boats with their gold plated bathroom fittings. They hire out for no less than 20,000 euro per week! It was all too much so we went celebrity sighting at the casino and home. Thn Tursday was our last day so Cait and I had a shop in Nice and we headed off home to Melbourne....30 hours and 6 degrees.

Tuesday on the Cote D'Azur

2009-09-26T09:15:00.005+10:00

Whilst the poor love had to go to work, Mel, Bryan and I checked out the towns in the hills behind Juan and Cannes. I went by bike but Mel had to endure the nerve racking ride in the Renault Twingo with Bryan taking on the navigation (Bob, the GPS voice, seemed to be in conflict with the road signs), the maniacal motor cyclists, the parking and the manual drive with gear stick in the right hand. We checked out the very old and cute Biot, a town of glass blowers and souvenir shops. The local food market was on and we tried deer sausage. I bonked out at Vallbonne, a very pretty village amongst lots of leafy villas whilst Bryan and Mel went on to Grasse where the perfume factories are and did a tour. By the time I reached the Centre Ville of Grasse which was very high on a very big and very steep hill I wasn't interested in perfume or how it was made. Just icecream. We then met up again in Cannes for another gawp at the wonderful classic yachts then back to Antibes for a memorable dinner with Caitlin at the Restaurant Vieux Mur (Old Wall). This was a real delight. It was on the wall looking out to sea. It was a warm,balmy night, the big yachts moored in the harbour were swinging gently , and the food was wonderful , traditional French. I had pidgeon and the others beef. Caitlin chose the wine and impressed us all with her command of the lingo. Bob even got us back to Juan in one piece.

Monday in Juan Les Pins

2009-09-24T08:31:00.004+10:00

Monday was a day of great celebration. We walked in the heat up and over the hill to Antibes where Caitlin is living to meet up with her before she started work at 3pm. Bit of late start though then Bryans feet got blisters causing much complaint about the distance. We made it to the Place de Gaulle and met Caitlin who is looking very sophisticated, got tour of her room at the accommodation then went to the Garden Cafe for petit dejeuner. Frogs were the theme and they have some live ones ....not for comsumption. Caitlin lives in the old part of Antibes enclosed in a wall with trendy arty shops. We then headed further to the Port Vauban to see the "Millionaires Row" of superyachts, hung out , ate icecreams, checked out the superyacht training school and picked up the hire car and a bike for yours truly while Caitlin went off to work. I then road to Cannes and found that they have a Classic yacht Regatta on. The yachts were in and moored by the afternoon so I was able to drool over all those classic lines, varnish, brightwork and polished brass. When I got back the siesta was over and we walked into Juan for a meal. Caitlin came over to stay the night after work.

Split to Nice ...A Lost Day

2009-09-24T08:23:00.002+10:00

Sunday 20th September was a day of waiting. Waiting for the taxi to Split Airport, then at Rome waiting and more waiting for the plane to Nice which was supposed to take off at 9-15 but eventually did so at 11-15. By then we had tried out every food dispenser and checked every airport shop in the vicinity. bryan happily oblivous , was ensconced in the Stig Larson thriller. We arrived in Nice after midnight and Caitlin had gone to bed and Stephan the hotellier of the Villa Nina had waited up. The taxi driver had his own troubles as the GPS in the taxi took us somewhere out of town first! The hotel is old, funkily refurbished, near the beach and close to where Caitlin is working. It is roomy compared to the boat.

A Day in Split

2009-09-20T01:05:00.007+10:00

Split was founded in the 4th century when a guy called Diocletian retired from the Roman public service and built himself a waterfront palace, complete with Egyptian and Greek columns. Its been used since then as a framework on which to build a cathedral, lots of shops,hotels, museums and residential accommodation. Its a bit of a rabbit warren but thats its attraction. Split is also a busy ferry port. Plan is to climb the hill for the view at dusk the have a big dinner with champagne....too hard

The Home Run to Split

2009-09-20T00:38:00.006+10:00

Sad, sad, sad it had to end. We refueled at Trogir but due to the fuel mans erratic opening hours missed the opportunity to revisit our favourite town. We swam at a cove on Ciovo Island then headed back to th Kastela Marina in daylight. No sooner were we in than a diver inspected the hull and the defective headsail was whipped off for repair for the morrows charter. That was when the trouble started. Jen had her ipod on and Midnight Oil provoked a bout of deck dancing, the rest of the wine had to be finished then Bad Kate came out from under the whisky bottle, someone turned up the music, Bryan insisted that his personal physicians examine his chest to confirm the recovery from his chest malaise , someone turned the music up and there was more deck dancing THEN a very large , grumpy Swedish man came up behind me and yelled very loud TURN THE ***MUSIC DOWN and proceeded to lecture me on marina etiquette. He was asked to join but didn't take this very well. screamed as I got a terrible fright. Bryan just said ..."told you so" but it took the wind out of our sails and we sat down to contemplate the many smart rejoinders we could have made then ate the remains of the peaches in Contreau and went to bed.

Zlarin to Vinisce

2009-09-20T00:27:00.003+10:00

Headed south again , this time in much better weather with plenty of east in the wind so we could sail close hauled. Wind about 15kts when the clew blew leaving the headsail useless. On with iron headsail. Cant say I remember much as I had a power nap that lasted all morning and by the time I woke we wereomorred up in this illegal marina in a pretty cove on the mainland round the corner from Trogir. Only problem was the lazy line got wrapped round the prop and I had to dive to free it. That woke me up. Rest of the crew then had their siesta (C/- of the early morning shutdown of the Colins party at Zlarin) the a bit of a walk and swim, bit of pasta and peaches with Contreau and we all hit the sack.

Sibenik to Vlarin

2009-09-19T20:38:00.007+10:00

We set off without breakfast which caused grave disruption to routine. The plan was to get as far south as possible as sadly the days of sailing were running out and we were far to the north. It was overcast for the 3rd day in a row and the (totally unreliable) weather forecast said that the wind would shift to the west from te south east where the "Jugo" had been blowing for a few days. The winds have names and the evil strong NW wind is the "Bora", The wind from the south West, which makes people crazy is the "Sirocco". We pulled in to the tiny town on Zlarin island , from whence the man who invented the Maglite came. The huge wharf was sheltered from Mr Jugo so breakfast was eagerly awaite After excellent pancakes (opinion of others, not just the writer) we set off intending to head to Roganisca to see the Class 1 marina with underwater restaurant. Mr Jugo has other idea and after fully reefing , with gusts of 40kts on the nose and suggestion of returning to Zlarin was easily a consensus. Bernt Paezwold , capt. of the beautiful Beneteau First 47, "Seven" was again there in his green crocs to take our lines. We also saw the most amazing Dutch boat , a one off 30m aluminium ketch with pilothouse, satellite TV , wooden tender, and a galley with granite benchtops..."very thin" the owner assured us , to keep the weight down, "and she really sails!" The wind howled and from time to time it rained but we read, Jenny and Sue went on a leg tearing hike. First, we dropped in on Renato at the Zlarin Yacht Club and he kindly gave us a Zlarin YC burgee for RBYC. The after ripping our attractive legs on feral blackberry bushes, we found the old villa of Sues dreams to renovate and we had a great chat to Bernt and Antya whose daughter is coming to Australia for 6 months. We also met the "partyingest" sailing club in all Europe, the "Colin's Yacht Club" of Prague. 29 boats in the flotilla pulled up and partied till basically dawn. Jenny is joining as soon as she gets back as they do this Croatian thing with racing and drinking every year ....no more Airlie or Hammo...far too passe.

Skradin to Sibenik

2009-09-19T20:25:00.005+10:00

From Skradin we travelled back up the gorge to Sibenik. This is a big industrial town on a lake separated from the sea by St Anthony's Channel. This was the first time in 2 weeks we had seen traffic and traffic lights. We got a berth right in town on the wharf , got the obligatory coffee/icecream and headed up to the fort atop the hill. From there we cold see ut to the islands we had sailed to. The sun descended with truly speccie views. We then had a wonderful meal in Restaurant Pelegrin in te old town walls next to the cathedral where the church choir was practicing. A memorable dessert called memhudjet was shared. It was a sort of tiramisu but better.

Skradin The Krka FAlls

2009-09-19T20:12:00.005+10:00

In the morning we set off in a boat with hundreds of other tourists , up the river to the lower falls. They are unique due to the limestone which is porous and to which vegetation adheres.."karstic falls". They are basically hairy with green vegetation. The national park has been well done and is clean with informative boards in English. You can catch boats further up river to lake ,one of which has a Franciscan Monastry on an island in the middle. There is a hydro power station , not currently in use , which was the first in the world and second to one in the U.S...so there! Bryan is lifting a turbine . There is also a working flour mill and washing machine.

Primosten to Skradin

2009-09-15T01:00:00.004+10:00

The skies threatened , thunder thundered and rain rained in the part of the world reputed to get minimal rain but navigator Jen and Captain Rob got us there. The worst weather seemed to pass to windward while we headed north up the coast then into the Krka River , past a huge fort ..relic of 2 centuries or more then to the large city of Sibenik the up to the Krka National Park thru winding gorges, under two massive bridges to Skradin. This is a very cute little town...aren't they all? with boats that take yu to the falls The marina is huge here and very full today as sailors flee the weather out at sea. Watching people come into the marina and park their boats is amusing as it must have been for them watching us as Bryan took over the backing and tried to ignore the harbor masters intructions to park elsewhere.

Stari Grad to Primosten

2009-09-15T00:40:00.006+10:00

This was by far the best days sailing. The wind , which varied between 10 and 20 kts was following and shot us north along the coast to the coastal town of Primosten. For some it was just too relaxingfor some . The old part of town on a former island hill with a church and graveyard on top looking over the blue Mediterranean. We discovered another Australian boat with crew from Mentone. After dinner at the Konoba Dalmacja we listened to the town badn play Frank Sinatra favorites and ate icecream....the icecream is v good.

Hvar to Stari Grad

2009-09-15T00:19:00.007+10:00

Captain Kate got a second go at the wheel owing the short trip the previous day. After a late start due to last minute lavender , post card and coffee shopping we set of in bright daylight and no wind.That soon changed as we headed up the eastern shore of Hvar Island then got quite blowy as we turned to the north west causing reefs to be put in expertly then a spectacular practice for man over board when we lost a fender. We put into a small cove to await the abating of the wind and to have lunch which was far more important. We then headed under motor to Stari Grad ...the old capital of Hvar Island until a few centuries ago. We pulled up at the town wharf between to enormous stink boats whose owners ignored us. It was very beautiful with well preserved roman ruins, a museum and tiny streets. A famous poet made his holiday house there in the 15th century. it had the first toilet in Croatia and a nice fish pond. Best thing was meeting Len and Helen, Australians from Newcastle, who have spent the last 2 Australian winters in the Med on board their beuatiful Beneteau Oceanis 50 "Fourth Dimension".

Paklinis to Hvar

2009-09-12T00:11:00.004+10:00

The crew of Jelena awoke , SLOWLY, and after Bryans seawater wash headed , with Capt Kate at the helm, to Hvar. This took a whole hour and when we arrived some thoughtless ship had left its tender in the only available spot so we shouted a bit , they moved it and we slipped in to a prized position at the main wharf. We are dwarfed by the super stink boats "Casino Royale" and " Cloud 9" but the Australian flag on Jelena flies proudly. We set off on an expedition to the summit of the hill where the fort Spaniola is to see a wonderful panorama. There is a very large 5 masted clipper at anchor looking just so elegant , in the harbour. "A royal clipper , 14 deluxe suite offer the ultimate in cruising comfort, with private veranda and whirlpool tub. Like a fine resort all the amenities are here , private bathroom, safe and comfortable furnishing " etc etc The crew are trying to wrangle a ride out there. We enjoyed lunch in a garden restaurant ( it never rains here so they are all open air)and attempted find the fabled nightlife at the Palace Hotel. Alas after one drink we were all ready to hit the sack. The peak season and its verve have passed.

Vis to Uvala Vinograzisce

2009-09-11T23:59:00.005+10:00

Now in Hvar and after a night of Contreau fuelled scrabble its hard to recall what happened yesterday. I think we took off from Vis with regret and were heading to Hvar when we decided to detour for a swim ot the inlet of Stoniicia which was a tiny inlet with quite a few boats moored. Jenny was capitan for the day amnd managed to put down the pick perfectly and we all had a swim in clear Mediterranean water. That made it unlikely that we would get a berth at the Hvar waterside which we had heard was very crowded. Its first come , first served. We then detoured to the inlet of Vinograzisce on the south side of ST Klement in the Paklini Islands. This was a recommendation of Don from RBYC. It was hot and lot of people were swimming ...some butt naked including varois members of te crew. We have the photos to prove BUT the bloody photos wont load onto the blog. A hunting party went over the hill to the marina to get things for dinner and forgot the tomatoes so another party had to go...there was a very nice bar there. After lots of swims and Jenny had finished perving at the naked men in te adjoining boat we had pasta and retired for scrabble. the scrabble genius and partner in crime cleaned up despit the consumption of Contreau and everyone woke up theis morning to yet another sunny day paarched.

VIS 2

2009-09-10T07:32:00.005+10:00

Today Rob and I hired bikes, Bryan and Jen hired scooters and Kate and Mel went by bus to Komiza on the south side of the island of Vis. It was 20 km with some decent climbs but the view along the cliff top coastal road was very spectacular. We stopped by the Konoba and Vineyard Roki where the cricket team from Cambridge first played the Croatian team 5 years ago and its become a place to go for the between season s overseas tour including the MCC this year. We met Niko Roki (Croatian born, raised in Australia and returned to Croatia in the 80's before the war) and returned for dinner to have Peki...a slow cooked meal in cast iron vessels over coals. He served his own Placa (red wine) and Vugava (white wine) the some very dangerous grappa. At Komiza it was very pretty and we hung out and had coffee and lunch and a look at the beach although nobody swam. The ride back was very steep at first then a long down hill. Tommorrow off the Hvar Town to hang with the cool people.

VIS

2009-09-09T17:38:00.005+10:00

We set of from Milna with a following wind and with some difficulty and a great deal of shouting erected the pole. The non navigators pointed out were heading to the wrong island but as we sailed on to wards the distant speck, navigator 1 suggested we were way off our course. After braving the pooh poohing the amateurs conceded defeat and we headed for the right island barely half an hour away. We anchored in a sheltered cove quite a distance from Vis Town and went various ways, Kate via a gallery where she bought a local painting. The weather was puzzling as there was a drop over an hour of 4 points on the barometer but in the subsequent 4 hours the sun shone and the wind backed to the west and stayed at 10kts. As we were anchored on shale which does not provide the best holding and our new best friends on Kalimera ( Civil Service Sailing Club...Captain David Croft and crew) were at the town wharf, we headed there at speed to beat the other 3 boats to the remaining 3 spots. It was a tight squeeze between and anxious looking man in a similar sized yacht and a very large 2 masted galleon styled party boat full of dancing Americans from California. We enjoyed a meal of sausage and mash cooked by Bryan, with a very phallic presentation, and the wind hit bouncing the boat and all those lined up along the pier like corks. Bryans stomach dictated that he sleep n the deck until the storm abated round 3 am.

Milna

2009-09-07T23:23:00.005+10:00

September 7th the forecast was for gusts up to 45kts but the sun was shining and the sea was blue and there was very little left to do in Kastela so we bit the bullet and set off. The barometer fell 2 points and fluffy white cumulus clouds were spottd sitting on the hills above Split. The wind was behind us and the speeds that Jelena reached were up to 8kts in the big gusts. She had a double reefed main and half a heady . It was disconcerting for the helmsman CPT Bryan as the GPS was down stairs and he was compelled to obey the orders of the 2 gun navigators Sue and Jen or fly blind. By now he was regretting not purchasing the charts for the portable GPS. With impecable accuracy Sue and Jen guided Jelena in to th harbour at Milna and it was so gorgeous we are staying the night after a long lunch. Bryan had his chest examined by his personal physician and immediately improved . In the arvo we caught the bus to Bobovisce around the next cove and walked back seeing some disturbing road kill...a tiny snake. Bobovisce was a tiny village with a beach and some holiday appartments.

A Day In Trogir

2009-09-07T22:58:00.014+10:00

Its tiring business..full time tourism. September 6th saw us awake to huge gusts of 40kt plus so we decided that it might be better to wait til the weather was a little more settled ans we caught the local bus to Trogir a UNESCO world heritage site. It is a small town on an island in the gap between the mainland and Ciovlo Island (Otok in Croatian). We has been caffeine deprived so we sat in the square in front of a beautiful and in use cathedral bit of which were built in the 12th century. The narrow streets were paved with stones smoothed by the feet of lots of people over lots of centuries. There was a town hall with ionian columns and a squareand we had lunch at cafe Mirzec ...nothing exotic ..just pizza. We then caught the bus half way back and waled the rest of the way along the coast with its castles. Mel , as usual, found wild produce and ate heeaps of figs that had strayed over the fence form someones back yard. Dinner was a pasta on board. After that there wasn't much action. We were all a bit stuffed and retired ready for the sailing. Finally a picture of Jelena a 40 ft Elan with 3 cabins and a generous saloon berth. Sehs an old girl by Croatian charter standards ,launched in 2002 but comfortable. She is the racing version , witht the traveller in the cockpit and a dangerous loop of main sheet ready to garotte the unsuspecting if a crash gybe occurs. Lucky were professionals???

Arrival In London

2009-09-05T08:59:00.002+10:00

Were here after one hell of a long Friday. Bryan's cold is worse but nothing a good pint wont cure tomorrow. No one really felt like taking photos as we waited in the immigration queue for 1.5 hours. Off at 1130 hours tommorrow for Croatia

6 Hours In Hong Kong

2009-09-05T08:50:00.005+10:00

We found our way to the Peak Railway and ascended in the steamy heat. It was super smoggy but the view was still quite spectacular and gave a good perspective on the layout of Hong Kong. Wasn't long before we needed lunch in a cafe gazing at the view. It felt like we hadn't really left Australia as the environment is very like Sydney with its tropical vegetation and hills. it doesn't even smell Chinese where we were. Jenny is proudly displaying her first overseas stamp in her new passport.

We've made it to Hong Kong

2009-09-04T11:23:00.003+10:00

Mel, Jenny, Bryan and I got on the right plane. Bryan had to buy last minute bathers which he insists WILL fit without a try on.

Then we endured 9 hours of dehydration , then Bryan fainted mid flight so the hosties gave us a bit more water. Pre flight drinks probably didnt help. Its 29degrees and a bit steamy. Mel confessed to 2 symptoms of flu and got a free health check before she was unleashed on the unsuspecting HK public. We plan to walk the Peak Station then catch the tram up but its a bit smoggy today. The trick will be to get back in time for the plane to London .

Jude's wedding

2009-05-20T18:35:00.001+10:00

Good things come to those who wait! Jude looked abfab and thought he day was a bit on the chilly side even for Hobart the sun was shining and the snow glittering on Mt Wellington.

2009-03-27T18:30:00.001+11:00

To follow the lastest exploits go to www.wisc07.blogspot.com

Long Time Between Posts

2008-11-14T07:51:00.002+11:00

Drummonds have been doing stuff since March. Sue has been cycling in France...see www.psychlingsue.blogspot.com and Bryan has been in France and Italy and Ireland during September. Photos will be posted ....soon. Chris is in the UK (London) with Megan working as a bicycle courier but on the lookout for cheaper accom, Ali is veging at home and Caitlin is in Melbourne working as part of her degree. Planned is a relaxing Christmas , some sailing at Skandia Geelong Week in late January and a cruise to Tassy in March. Caitlin has to find a job next year somewhere they speak French so we are helping her choose !!!!!

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Easter 2008

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2008-02-16T07:34:00.005+11:00

Tried to turn thid shot around but couldn't. This is us on the home run with the Matterhorn,,,well at least some of itin the back ground

2008-02-14T08:09:00.005+11:00

Big and wideand not particularly steep.

2008-02-14T08:05:00.003+11:00

This is the view we had down to the Italian ski resort of Cerviniaand we actually skied down there

2008-02-14T07:56:00.003+11:00

We did come to do some skiing.There are 3 mountains joined by gondolas, cable cars and chair lifts. As you can see, the sky is blue and the mountains white..as i should be but rarely is.

2008-02-14T07:45:00.005+11:00

We spent the first two days walking inthe snow to try to get the legs working. There are some spectacular walks out form Zermattand this one took us up to the village of Z'mutt. As with walking or skiing there is a lovely chalet with hot chocolate or beer an some sort of torte and the ubiquitous fondue, raclette and rosti.

2008-02-14T07:29:00.003+11:00

The blog is going weird on me so I can't make it write in black or stop underlining the text. Bear with this. Last Saturday we arrived by train in Zermatt. The train ride was spectacular even before we turned into the Zermatt valley at Visp. Zermatt is the largest ski resort in Europe but bits of the old town with its traditional wood chalet style houses is preserved. There are far to many watch shops but just enough clothing shops to make browsing a delight. Above Zermatt looms the Matterhorn and in the town next to the catholic church is the "Climbers Cemetry"..self explanatory.

2008-02-14T07:14:00.006+11:00

The town of Martigny is just across the French border and in the heart of a valley with flat agricultural land. It has a beautiful Art Museum complete with famous sculpture garden and museum for beautifully retored old cars..the drawcard for Bryan.Interesting sculptures too!

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Another older clock tower @ Evian behind the old spa.

2008-02-14T06:48:00.002+11:00

The clocktower at Evian which houses the police station

2008-02-14T06:44:00.002+11:00

A traditional house along the lakeshore.

2008-02-14T06:41:00.002+11:00

We found another "Folie" at Evian

2008-02-14T06:29:00.003+11:00

We took the boat from Lausanne to Evian des Baines..the home of Evian water. Evian is a spa town on the south shore of Lake Geneva. The spa is long gone and the water is bottled at Amphion 6km down the road but the town is quaint and had crepes and galletes and lots of boats.

2008-02-14T06:17:00.003+11:00

This is the Swiss Hotel school in Caux above Montreux located in an old palace.

2008-02-12T04:16:00.001+11:00

This is the view from Montreux out the hotel window at day break

2008-02-12T04:12:00.001+11:00

this the view I'm talking about!

Rocher ges Nayes

2008-02-12T04:03:00.001+11:00

We headed up to a little local ski lift at the top of the mountain above Montreux where the view is even more spectacular. The trip is by rack and pinion railway. As you go up you see the terraced vineyards.The local wine of the Vaud region is very easy to drink. Its quite sweet by comparison with Australian wines

Bryan & Sue take on Switzerland

2008-02-12T03:52:00.000+11:00

After 38 hours flight via LA and a train trip on the quietest and cleanest trains on the planet Bryan made it to Montreux and settled in to the Eden Du Lac Hotel on the shores of Lake Geneva. The hotel is 112 years old and the first hotel in Montreux and is suitably old withe trademark yellow awnings.The view across the lake to the mountains in france is the reason its here. It is a stunning place. The conference was attended intermittently by Sue and the rest of the time the was a bit of sightseeing.

2008-01-05T22:05:00.000+11:00

Due to work Sue and Karen had to return to the mainland by air on Sunday but the blokes stayed on enjoying as BBQ at the boat club and a trip to the cheese factory and the town of Naracoopa courtesy of Glen's wife who had her car volunteered. The weather window looked good for Tuesday so the crew of 4 set off before the wind turned to the north and enjoyed being blown back in 16 hours. The trip from Queenscliff to Melbourne was also conpleted in record time of 4 hours with strong southwesterlies.

2008-01-05T21:57:00.000+11:00

Other highlights were Peter catching a poor little Port Jackson Shark twice, a birthday dinner for Sue at the Currie pub complete with cake and candles, and seeing the local police sergent, Glen, doing donuts in the sailing clubs brand new rescue boat. By Sunday 30th December the sailing club members were making the club spick and span for the arrival of kids from all over for the Stonehaven Cup (International Cadet Dinghy competition. Gangajang (SYC)arrived with a rather shaken up crew having beat into 40kt winds during the night en route from Apollo Bay.

2008-01-05T21:54:00.000+11:00

Pottsie took to hoooning around in the dinghie

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And Karen got some reading in.

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Dovie took to torturing fish

2008-01-05T21:46:00.000+11:00

And this...ROb (pictured) and Helga arrived in a S&S 30 from Hastings planning to go down the West coast of Tassy. I'm not sure why Rob didn't just jump in the water.

2008-01-05T21:38:00.000+11:00

We arrived at King Island Round mid day to be greeted by Ray, the cafe owner who gave us a quick tour of Grassy ( it didn't need to be long...pop 150) a badly needed cappucino and an intro to his mate next door who makes things out of kelp. We stocked up on milk and bread at the Grassy supermarket, located the pulic phone ...only CDMA and next G work on the island..., checked out the pub and hit the sack early. Next morning I was confronted by this.

2008-01-05T21:32:00.000+11:00

We set of at 1500hrs and made it to Grassy 22 hours late which is quite respecable. There was a windshit to the north east at 0100 hr which caused a few unintended gybes and a bit of a disagreement with the auto pilot. Bryan had to come up to sort out the techology.

KING ISLAND DEC 07

2008-01-05T20:45:00.000+11:00

Bass Strait is one of the most dangerous stretches of water in the world. The big swells come in from the Southern Ocean to a Strait that was formerely a land bridge between Tasmania and the mainland. When superimposed on the local wave , wind and tide states huge waves can arise. On the Western border of Bass Strait, midway between Cape Otway in Victoria and the North West Tip of Tassy lies King Island. It is large (30 by 80 km) with the main town being Currie on the west coast and the second largest town being Grassy which lies 2/3 of the way down the east coast. The harbour has been built because of a scheelite mine which was in operation until 1997 and will possibly be opened again soon. King Island is famous for its dairy products and crayfish. A great weather window presented itself on 28th December and the crew of Folie A Deux set off out the Port Phillip Heads at 1500hrs and set coiurse in a modaerate southeasterly to King Island.

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Geelong Trip Cup Day Weekend

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2007-10-08T21:20:00.000+10:00

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weekend in Hobart with Jude

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Whilst attracting the fish with weetbix Chris took a series of stunning photos with the underwater camera. The water was crytal clear to 10m or more.

2007-07-12T21:05:00.000+10:00

You might have to look closely but there is a whale coming towards us. Chris sighted a pair breeching in the distance so we headed over , joined by a whale watching boat. There were 2 whales and they spent quite a time mooching about. The whales come to the sheltered waters of Vavau from Jult to November to mate and raise the calves.

2007-07-12T20:56:00.000+10:00

This is us at the fabulous La Paella Restaurant. It is beautifully situated above the sheltered lagoon on the island of Tapana and run by a family of Spaniards who serve really fabulous food , the highlight being paella. Then the music starts and every one is provided with a percussion instrument to join in. Other highlights were the pursuit of a small goat around the restaurant and the lizards on the ceiling. We're all looking a bit the worse for wear.

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More sundowners

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Her's a bit of whats under the water

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Each anchorage was populated by one or two other boats at most. This is the island of Taunga which was surrounded by turquoise water . We discovered that the Warwick chain of hotels is planning a big developement which is a bit sad.

Like many of the lagoons we visited, the coral is dead . The "Coral Garden's " between Vaka Eitu and Nuapapa was reasonably spectactular but this presumed that you could get through the break over the reef in one piece. Onlt 2 of us managed. I suspect the coral is so good because its inaccessible

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Tony and Carol enjoying sundowners the first night

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Our first stop was at the "Swallow's Cave", a sea cave where swifts (and Bats and a giant spider according to Ali) hangout. This is under the water inside the cave.

The Boat

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We hired a Wright 41 catamaran from the Moorings franchise. She was an old boat and had seen better days but the accomodation was good and most important things worked. Unfortunately the GPS we had brought along was inaccurate and constantly needed to be recalibrated but on the other hand line of sight navigation was perfectly adequate. Apart from one day of rain, which didn't stop the intrepid snorkellers we had clear blue skys amd warmth (av 25C) . The boat in the foreground is a Beneteau.

The First Glimpse of Vavau

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Below are the islands we sailed around

TONGA SAILING

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The Drummond and Chenco families (9 of us) escaped the Melbourne winter chill and headed north east to the Kingdom of Tonga to sample the islands lifestyle around Vavau. Tonga is made up of 3 island groups and Vavau is the northern most. It is a small group of islands surrounded by a fringing reef and is thus sheltered from the pacific swell. Here we are at Sydney Airport before the 5 hour flight to Tongatapu, the Southern most group where we landed at the capital Nuku'alofa.

2007-06-11T20:46:00.000+10:00

Here's Bryan enjoying the sunshine after having performed an amazing 3 point turn and a soft landing on the QCYC wharf. More adventures to follow now that we've actually gotten her back into the pen at RBYC

2007-06-11T20:45:00.000+10:00

Another beautiful sunset over Swan Bay

Queens Birthday Weekend

2007-06-11T20:36:00.000+10:00

This is the maiden voyage of our new boat "Folie A Deux". We set off with our crew, Caitlin , Karen, Peter, Pottsie and sailed in fairweather to Queenscliff. Although we had a bit of a late start in the race it took us only 3 1/2 hours to sail the 30 NM . The wind was from the SE so we had a beam reach down all the way even through the West Channel. We stayed at the Q'Cliff Cruising Yacht Club, shopped at Q'cliff , dined at the Queenscliff Hotel (lemon and pomegranite tart to die for) and hatched plans with the QCYC commodore and our next door neighbour at RBYC fro a trip to King Island in the New Year.

2007-04-27T22:04:00.000+10:00

Some colourful staghorn coral off Thomas Island.

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The A Frame on Middle Percy Island is filled with mementos from passing cruisers. Sheepy engraved our names on the broken dinghie paddle ( a casualty of our captain's encounter with a large Spanish Mackeral) and hoisted it up onto the roof . I also managed to leave my water bottle. Hopefully , in years to come I can retrieve it.

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One turquoise beach after another!

The trip went from Gladstone to the mouth of the Fitzroy River, Great Keppel Island , Pearl Bay, The Percy Islands, Mackay, Wigton and Prudhoe Islands , Thomas Island and Hamilton Island.

Tides of 4m made for interesting currents and thoughtful anchoring.

Did quite a bit of snorkelling hoping to outsmart the Irukanji with my wetsuit until I realized that any Irukanji trapped inside my wetsuit would be mighty angry.

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The view at dusk from the lookout at North Keppel Island NP.

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Here is just another fabulous sunset with the foredeck crew about to drop the pick. in anothe beautifully sheltered anchorage.

Whtisunday Adventure

2007-04-27T21:19:00.000+10:00

The last 2 weeks I (Sue ) did a "mile-catcher" with Sunsail to increase my experience.

The Whitsunday sailing adventure was supposed to be an arduous slog for which I had brought wet weather gear , beanie and polar fleece but if you bring all that stuff ..well ..you dont get to use it. It was hot and downwind 15-20kt which required the iron headsail to get it up to a respectable speed. The most onerous aspect of the whole trip was trying not to keep up with my fellow crew members sundowners. The second challenge was not to be stung by the lethal Irukanji jelly fish.

The boat was named "Girofle" (? a bunch of cloves or a town on the French island of Reunion) was a Jeanneau 45 and the skipper Joel, and second in command Mark and the supernumerary Sheepy taught us well so that we got to where we intended and anchored securely even after dark. We were intending to sail from Hervey Bay but the trip South was truncated by awful weather sothat we boarded her at Gladstone but still managed to get the 300 miles sailing experince necessary for the Coastal Skipper qualifications.

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The beautiful JJ Frog at Cygnet

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Vice Captain Roger Coastal Skipper RYA certified..unfortunately they didn't cver mountain bike descents!

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Trev looking the part