Leg 19 - Flinders Island to Coffin Bay - expect the unexpected

Not only did I expect to night-over at Flinders Island I also expected to miss out on Coffin Bay. So here we are in the basin off the Coffin Bay town jetty having abandoned what appeared to be a very secure 'blue patch' of sand not far from the Homestead on Flinders Island. When the weather forecast finally downloaded  (yes there IS internet at Flinders Island) it was apparent that the cold front would be arriving about 12 hours earlier than originally predicted. The price of dilly dallying would be to keep us in The Bight for a further 5 days or so. Having crossed it, the Bloke and I are well and truly 'Over it' yet still on it, albeit the very edge. We gobbled down our second last packet of Esperence Fishing Harbour fish YUMMY and haeded out to sea once more by last light at 19:30.

For anyone who'd like to visit Flinders Island in the Investigator group we can confirm that the anchoring in a sand patch is great off Homestead Beach and there are lots of sand patches. A bay just north of Pt Malcolm, although a bit complicated to get in  (think bombies and bits of reef) did look very calm and protected from both the SE wind and the SW swell. Not an outcome you'd expect looking at the charts but one recommended by commercial fishermen. They definitely know a thing or two.

Anyway, off we went. As usual the wind vane on our bow was putting the wind right on the nose! Darn it, slamming into it again. Adjustments to our motoring speed located one that would make the trip tollerable. Unexpectedly after a day with negligible wind, the evening delivered gusts to 20knots off the back of the swells. Oh happy day - NOT! The gulls and dolphins provided some night-watch entertainment.

Our overall lack of progress last night meant that we have reevaluated our ambition of getting to Thistle Island by Friday. Coffin Bay is now on the menu as a place to take refuge. News from Urchin and Easy Tiger who left Sceale Bay 12 hours after us, was not good. They also were hammering into it and after 6 hours of being sea sick, returned to the shelter of the splendid cliffs of Cape Blanche. Suitable weather windows on The Bight are slim and few.

So very unexpectedly, the Bloke decided that Point Sir Isaacs could be bested by Coffin Bay.

After a 2hours slalom ride through some 18 channel markers and 2 groundings we are here!  (very picturesque). There is nowhere in the town basin to anchor; it being both full of active moorings and abandoned ones that make the sea bed too foul to throw down the pick. You can only get in an out of the town basin during high tide and we nearly stumbled at the last hurdle . The 2 port markers that lead into the basin. TIP: pass them to port of course but on the shore side and not tight on. If you stay with the channel markers you'll ground .. like we did. The Bloke will take days to recover so I'm very much hoping that the "any old mooring" we picked up in desperation will be both suitable for us and available for 4 days! Some chap by the name of GLEN is the oracle on these maters and is being consulted as I type. Our bailout will be the town jetty overnight because we can't leave again until high tide tomorrow at the very earliest!

One of 18 channel markers. Bird deterrents not successful.

Do you see lunch in ou future?

Our next fruit of the sea looks like the enormous mussels that the Bloke just hacked off the mooring leads... latest news suggests the mooring should be OK but we'll attach our own line and monster shakle to the chain and not trust the existing ropes. Aaaah ...what a relief!