My original plan was to bring Sunny Spells back down south to at least Rosslyn Bay (Keppel Bay Marina) before returning to Sydney. Graham Friend had been flagging the Sydney-Southport race on Seaquest (an Adams/Radford 50) for a while, however, and the call to arms came as soon as I was comfortable established in our apartment on Hamilton Island for a five day rest.

Work and other commitments meant I would have to return to Sydney sooner, so on 13 July I single-handed Sunny Spells to Airlie Beach where I had decided to leave her until I could return to sail her back to Sydney.

Graham said he’d never done the passage in less that 3 hours, so I was well pleased with doing it in 2 hours 55 minutes. Running wing-and-wing with a 1.5 knot northerly set on the ebb tide did help! The downwind sail also meant I could comfortably make bacon and eggs on the pushpit barbeque and it turned into a lovely sail. A great way to end this adventure…

After another day of relaxed downwind sailing in the prevailing south-easterly trades, we were escorted into a berth at Hamilton Island Marina early afternoon on 7 July 2008. Our mission was to replenish water, ice and perishables as quickly as possible before sailing to Whitehaven Beach where we intended to anchor for two nights.

Mission accomplished we set sail around 1600 and headed round the northern tip of Hamilton Island and up the Catsey Beach side of Hamilton Island. We were soon close-hauled into the south-easterly, with the crew enjoying the conditions perfectly suited to our boat.

This was the first time the crew had to tack the boat in 10 days of sailing! It was great to sit on the high rail and feel the power in the rig blasting us through the chop, with spray flying everywhere.

With the south-easterly breeze set to persist and strengthen, we elected to anchor off Haslewood Beach, directly opposite Whitehaven Beach. Two boats were already anchored in the best spots, and we found an anchorage in the northern corner.

The bottom shelves very steeply in this anchorage, and it can be hard to find a safe spot to drop the hook while keeping a safe swinging distance from the fringing reef. We anchored just after low tide and, knowing that our water depth would be greater than at anchoring time through the night, I resolved to get up early and review our location. Nonetheless, I spent the first 3 hours watching the bottom on the sounder to make sure we were not swinging too close to the reef. Next morning I was up at dusk, continuing my assessment. I realized soon enough that, with the scope we had paid out the previous night, our swinging circle would soon be bringing us closer to the reef than I liked. The windlass was used to slowly bring us closer to the anchor and away from the reef. One of the boats left early and we soon pulled up anchor and relocated south. Shortly after, the other boat, located in the best spot, also left, and we dropped the hook just atop the shelf in about 7 meters (low tide) and put out 40 meters of rode. This left us swinging comfortably clear of the reef but still provided almost 4:1 scope at high tide.

A little later, almost at high tide, we were treated to the sight of a chartered Beneteau 32 steaming into the anchorage at 5 knots, straight across the fringing reef, to drop anchor inside the reef, about 20 meters from the beach… A potential disaster at low tide was averted when they soon decided on a more prudent course of action (possibly after radio discussion with the charter company) and relocated across the passage to Whitehaven Beach, where about three dozen charter boats were safely anchored.

The day was squally with lots of rain and gusts up to 28 knots. We were appalled when monitoring the weather broadcasts from the charter companies to hear forecasts for 10 to 15 knot winds…

Towards the evening we all had to get out, and I went for a lovely snorkel on the reef. My one regret is that we didn’t really have great diving weather. While it was fun snorkelling, the lack of direct sunlight meant everything was pretty grey and low-contrast, so there was no point donning the Scuba gear. Oh well, there is always the return passage!

On Wednesday morning the crew went for a quick snorkel while I got Sunny Spells ready. We pulled up the anchor at around 0800 and the crew soon had the full main up as we motor-sailed out the passage. A boat coming the other way (looked like a 40ft+ Beneteau) was running downwind with three reefs in the main and just as I was about to make a remark on the weatherliness of modern boats, I checked myself and called for two reefs in the main. As we came out of the passage into open waters the full strength of the south-easter hit us, and we were soon broad-reaching towards Hamilton Island in 25 to 30 knots of breeze with the spray flying. This was the perfect way to end our ten day passage. The crew were working together like they’ve been doing it for years and I realized I was going to be very sad to see them go…

While I’m quite happy sailing Sunny Spells on my own, doing so 24/7 is probably not the most sensible thing to do. So I advertised on FindACrew.net. The passage from Mooloolaba to Hamilton Island would take place during the school holidays, which must have suited a lot of people, because I was inundated with interest. Let’s face it, sailing the Whitsundays is not an unattractive prospect either! I was spoilt for choice, so I could select what I thought would be a good mix: one experienced sailor, who could be watch captain, and two competent crew, to be… competent crew! I also tried to match the ages, so they ended up all being in their late twenties.

Matching the personalities was harder to do. While I spoke with all of them on the phone, trying to judge their sailing experience, it is impossible to really assess personalities on the phone. All I can say is that it’s worked out great! Sarah, George and Vicky got on really well with each other and it’s been fun watching them work and play.

Everyone has participated one hundred percent and it has been great to see them settle into the boat and start working together as a team. The cooking has been fabulous and we have lived like kings. Even more remarkable has been the willingness with which everyone has pulled his/her weight when it came to cleaning up. The dishes always seemed to wash themselves and whenever we anchored the crew immediately, and without prompting, started cleaning and tidying the boat before relaxing. Very impressive!

I’ve obviously been very lucky, but finding these people certainly has restored some of my faith in humanity. It’s marvelous what you can find on the internet these days…

After a very rolly night at Middle Percy Island, we set sail for Scawfell Island at 0645 on Saturday 5 February 2008. The forecast promised 20 to 25 knot south-eaterlies so we played it safe: poled-out no.2 genoa and main by the lee. The wind averaged around 15 knots all day and we managed a consistent 6 to 7 knots boat speed. By 1630 we were dropping the hook in Refuge Bay, Scawfell Island.

We spent a lazy day at anchor, snorkelling and fishing (I should say angling because we caught nothing…). In the evening we played a game of monopoly, which the skipper won despite the collaborative best efforts of the crew to prevent him by any means, however devious – sorry guys!