The Good Ship Sunny Spells in Hervey Bay

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A perfect day…

I got up at 4am, weighed anchor and motored up the Ship Channel to get into Hervey Bay. The south-easterly started picking up while I was still in the channel and I made sail and stopped the diesel; bliss…

The kettle soon boiled and a mug of strong coffee and an “Ouma” rusk kept me company as the sun came up. The crew started emerging from their various bunks in drips and drabs after 8am.

As we set course for Rooney Point we came on to the wind, which was now a steady 20 knots, and soon I took two reefs in the main. We raced across Hervey Bay and dropped anchor inside Rooney Point not long after midday. The video says it all…

Great Sandy Strait to Kingfisher Resort, 31 May 2009

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By the time we dropped anchor in Kauri Creek I was brain dead. It was about 1AM after a long day of downwind sailing and crossing the Wide Bay Bar in the dark was nerve wracking to say the least. So we motored up the creek and I knew full well we would not be able to get out at low tide the next morning… still…

I got up at 6AM, and started motoring down the creek. As one would expect, we were soon stuck in the mud. Just as advertised, we only had five feet of water, and we needed six… So, we turned off the engine and made breakfast! Two hours later we motored out without any problem whatsoever.

The passage up the Strait was uneventful, requiring concentration, timing and a reliable engine. At about 4PM we anchored off Kingfisher Resort for a peaceful night.

Peaceful anchorage at Kingfisher Resort, Great Sandy Strait, Fraser Island

Southport to Tin Can Bay, 30 May 2009

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We had quite a productive day in Southport, re-provisioning, re-fuelling and a rip-roaring party on the dock, hosted by Rooster and the marina staff. The crew took us on a tour of the super-yacht “Platinum” and we all “oohed and aahed” at all the opulence. In the end we all crowded into Sunny Spells, put some good vibes on the stereo and drank and chatted into the early hours. There was a competition to see who could fit into the upper pilot berth, always a tight fit!

A great day of sailing today, downwind most of the time with good breeze. Downwind between Cape Morton and Double Island Point. Not Sunny Spells’ most comfortable point of sail – she tends to roll a bit – but we made really good miles with 20 knots of south easterly breeze behind us.

As always, when sailing by the lee, the main was prevented out and the boom brake set tight to avoid any gybe dramas…

Crossing the Wide Bay Bar just before midnight was a bit scary, even though it was at the slack high tide. Got the latest coords for the leads from the Coast Guard and then motor-sailed through with the motor ticking over and the double reefed main keeping us powered up and stable. Had everyone on deck, with life-jackets and clipped on. Only took one swell over the port quarter that drenched us, but that was enough!

The bucket story

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A story by Helen Dudley in which the Chief Protagonist is a Bucket as requested by Gerhard who has a Peculiar Bucket Fixation.

Once upon a time there was a very lonely bucket. The bucket had an almost constant companion in his partner, the spade and formerly they had been the best of friends. However, about a year before this story takes place, they had a serious disagreement over who was responsible for them regularly becoming covered with sand with each blaming the other and consequently they were no longer on speaking terms.

One day the children who owned the bucket and spade took the bucket out of its cupboard leaving the spade behind. The bucket was surprised but pleased by the prospect of a solo outing. It was taken to a small wooden jetty and filled with water. Shortly afterwards a strange creature was placed in the bucket.

“Hello” said the bucket, “what are you?”

“I’m a shrimp” the creature replied. “What are you? And why am I inside you?”

“I’m a bucket and I’m afraid I don’t know what you are doing here” the bucket said. “But I am glad that you came as I’m very lonely” and it related the story of its life with the spade.

While the bucket told its tale they were joined by lots more shrimps and soon they were all talking happily. The bucket couldn’t remember when it had last enjoyed itself so much.

All too soon the children had finished their shrimping and decided to return home. They lifted the bucket and started to tip the shrimps back into the sea.

“Goodbye!” they called to the bucket as they fell.

“No! Please don’t leave me” the bucket begged.

“We can’t help it” they replied, “Come with us! You can live with us on the seabed where you will always be surrounded by friends.”

“Yes!” the bucket cried and it suddenly twisted itself out of the hand of the child who held it and fell into the sea where it rapidly sank.

And now the bucket lives happily under the sea where its friends the shrimps play in and around it all day. The children bought a new bucket which soon became great friends with the spade who told it many tales of the strange and unreasonable behaviour of its predecessor.