Pittwater School Sports

It's the end of the school year and it's been apparent over the last few months that the local schools in Pittwater embrace sailing as a sports option. We noticed, 3 small fleets of boats headed our way to provide entertainment while we enjoyed a calm spot in Towlers Bay.

 

Kids are marvellous in the way that they can do things with equipment that you'd never expect and have unbridled fun.

 Some of the older kids were sent for a swim under the watchful eye of their teachers.

 

 A bit of personal instruction will only get you just so far, and then it's time to fend off!

 Ooops... Wind but no crew!

 Now a crew, but no wind!

 It must literally be like herding cats!

 
It was all too much for the littlies to sail back into the wind and they were all tethered together to be towed home in an articulated crocodile.

Beautiful Bermagui - A Memory From 2015

Being from Western Australia we were not familiar with a 'East Coast Low', an appraisal of Meteye and Predictwind however, told us that this was not going to be pleasant. Having left Eden and arrived in Bermagui a couple of days prior to the low intensifying, we decided to stay put. What a good decision. Bermagui provides an excellent safe haven in Southerly weather. But I jump the gun, let's go back to the beginning and how we came to be in Bermagui.

We left Western Australia more than 24 months ago,  sailed across the Great Australian Bight and then the south coast of Australia throughout the winter of 2014.  We arrived in Hobart at the start of summer and looked forward to some warm summer cruising. You know the stuff,  light breezes, sunny days and wondrous happy hours. Well one out of three ain't bad. The friendship in Tasmania was legendary and the happy hours, drinks and dinners were a highlight of our trip. The weather on the other hand was not as expected and often we found ourselves, along with others, hiding from low pressure systems and cold fronts that brought rain and high winds. Being cruising sailors and having time on our side, we were not disappointed and just look forward to better weather which always follows bad weather. Come March, we decided it was time to head north across Bass Strait and find the warm autumn weather talked about by other sailors.

Lakes Entrance provided still waters and a couple of sunny days but we again found ourselves hiding from some intense low pressure systems. More drinks and hanging on ensued, so one out of three ain't bad. Leaving Lakes Entrance, Eden was our aim and it did not disappoint. More sunny days and calm weather followed and we really started to think that we had 'turned the corner' more than just geographically.  Finally! Better weather, clear skies and rising temperatures. Without a reason to rush up the east coast, we made a plan to visit small harbours and anchorages and enjoy some autumn cruising during ,what is typically, a meteorologically 'settled period'.

Bermagui was our next destination and a call to Sue at the Burmagui Co-Op confirmed that we could raft up to the disused fishing vessel Gracy-M. The council had constructed a new marina section but it was not yet in use. A visit to their web-cam assured us that it should not be difficult to enter the harbour. We arrived in mild conditions with a 10 to 12 knot Southerly and a two metre swell. The entry is well marked and the leads provided an excellent guide into this very protected harbour. The Co-Op jetty is immediately ahead of you when you enter and is overlooked by the local VMR office. The enthusiastic and professional operator talked us in and even came down to catch our lines. This was a great introduction to what was to be a very pleasant stay.

Zofia rafted up between the Gracy-M and "Bad Cat" on the Co-Op Wharf

We were not alone as Bad Cat had followed us up from Eden and also choosing a Bumagui stop-over were quickly rafted up against Zofia. This would prove to be fortunate for two reasons. Firstly, they were great company and secondly they provide additional protection for what was to come. What was coming was a 'East Coast Low', in fact one of the most intense systems  of it's type in known history. The storms that centered on Sydney produced widespread damage and tragically loss of life too. Imagine how bad the seas were, that a cruise liner was forced to stand-off out to sea beyond the Sydney Heads due to 15-17m seas! For Bermagui, this was translated into 40+ knot winds from the south and 4 -5 metre swells. Bermagui harbour took all this in it stride. We experienced only a small amount of surge on the jetty and Zofia got a good wash. Due to an accident of geography the Co-Op jetty faces North/South. The Co-Op building, a wide two-story structure on the southern end of this jetty, provided excellent protection from the strong winds.  Bermagui is also in a wind shadow provided by its hinterland, so our position was well protected and safe.

East Coast low approaches and the swell builds to 5 metres and closing out the harbour entrance.

The Bermagui Breakers newest supporter

With our safety assured we were free to explore Beautiful Burmagui and experience the warm friendly welcome provided by the locals. Knowing we would be staying a while, we attended the Saturday football match to barrack for the Bermagui Breakers and cemented our place in the hearts of the locals. A good day at the football was followed by Happy Hour at the Oyster Bar in the company of the Bad Cat crew. Reasonably priced wine and $12 a dozen for delicious oysters was just what ardent Breakers supporters needed. Then came Sunday and what better to do than a roast Sunday lunch. The crew of Bad Cat were willing participants and combined resources culminated in a feast of roast pork and vegetables followed by poached pears in chocolate sauce. Either it was the soporific effect of the meal, or perhaps the several bottles of wine, but for some reason we all forgot about the storm raging outside and hunkered down to pleasant and stimulating conversation; oblivious to the rain and wind.

With ANZAC day approaching we decided to stay, however, our Storm buddies saw a break in the weather as an opportunity to sail further north. We bid farewell to Bad Cat with heavy hearts. Our friendship had been forged in the storm and the delights of Burmagui and we doubt that any of us will forget this particular 'East Coast Low'. Burmagui had welcomed and protected us, its people are friendly and it has all the services that a cruising sailor would require. We doubt that we will come this way again as our course is set to round Australia, but you might wander this way, and if you do we strongly recommend that you visit Beautiful Burmagui.


Bermagui Fact Sheet

Bermagui is a small harbour comprising the Co-op Jetty as well as a new marina with floating pontoons. There is water and power available on both as well as clean and spacious showers at the Co-op building. The town has two supermarkets including the new and reputed to be most-expensive-to-construct Woolworths, several excellent coffee shops (our favourite was a hipsters one called Mr Jones), bakery, laundry, an excellent Italian restaurant in the Co-op building as well as superb clothing store (the Pineapple House) at the harbour.
There is a small Chandler and haul-out facility, large Mitre-10 hardware store, plus garages for fuel and gas. The Country Club is also near the marina and for the sports minded, Bowls, Tennis and Golf are on offer.
Bermagui is the closest port to the edge of the continental shelf along this part of the coast and is therefore a popular departure point for game fishers.

Sausage Roll Table of Fame - December update

The Bloke here,

We'll it has been a while since we conversed on the topic of sausage rolls. I could use medical issues as an excuse, however, the real reason for the prolonged silence is there has been very little to talk about. Sydney and the surrounds have been disappointing in the availability and quality of sausage rolls. There may be many reasons for this lack of commitment by our largest city to the sausage roll. Is it the multi cultural influences diluting the availability of the true Australian cuisine, or could it be that American culture has taken the city tastes in another direction. For what ever reason there simple is no commitment by Sydney to the sausage roll. So in the culinary desert it has become difficult to find an oasis of relief.

Recently, however, two small patches of salvation have been discovered. The first, "The Mews" at spit junction

and the second, "Cottage Point Cafe". At last we discovered someone prepared to honour the sausage roll and proud to put their name to these little bundles of joy.

Now where do they rate? What a difficult question. Both of these sausage rolls show great potential. That is to say we felt neither has yet matured into it's final form. Both are a work-in-progress and both have had a very good birth. Like a good wine, we feel that these sausage rolls could become top 10 or even top 5 offerings, however, at this stage in their evolution, they both need nurturing and encouragement. The sausage roll from "The Mews"  suffered from too little pepper and needed additions like sage or other herbs. As for the " Cottage Point Cafe" sausage roll more salt and some attention to moisture of the meat, it was a little dry, and removal of the carrot is all that is required to make these good sausage rolls VERY good sausage rolls. Both are a good size and both had some of the best pastry we have sampled. So where do they rate? We feel "The Mews" comes in at 13 and "Cottage Point" at 12, however, we know theses sausage rolls will mature with time and when you sample them you may feel we have been a bit harsh. We are excited by their efforts and would encourage both to stay the course. It will be worth it.

Restistance is Useless - Bothersome Batteries

It's not been 6 months since we replaced our batteries, so waking up to discover that the Bloke had been up half the night supervising the battery consumption and eventually switching off the fridge and freezer, was something of a surprise. What the heck was going on? Apart from the fact that the batteries are so young, we'd also been scrupulous in not letting them fully discharge; in fact rarely letting a day pass without some form of charging 'top-up' over and above the solar panel input. We were perplexed. In the previous 36 hours we'd run the 'gennie' for several hours; motored off and on for at least 5 hours; had plenty of sunshine, PLUS, when we called into the marina to top up water, we seized the opportunity to hook into shore-power for at least 6 hours before setting off for the run up the coast from Middle Harbour to Pittwater. To be sure, running all the nav gear while sailing (+autohelm, VHF radio etc) will chew some amps up but this trip was of merely 2-3 hours duration. We thought we were fully charged before we left and somehow overnight we'd gone from seemingly fully charged to not. Only the fridge and freezer were on duty while we slept. Where did the amps go?

The fridge is our own version of the 'canary in the mine' as a tell-tale indicator of low voltages. The compressor won't kick in. Then the situation gets worse because in attempting to kick in, it draws yet more amps and because the fridge is meantime warming up, the thermostat keeps triggering the compressor. More amps are sucked from the batteries and before long the food's getting hot and my 'Amp Nazi' skipper is also in meltdown.

     

The Creeks are no longer empty at this time of year. 

The Bloke made sure we'd have company for 5'ers.

Thoughts of a nice 3 day stay in the gorgeous Smiths Creek were shattered after only a single night. We had to head into a Marina; access some 240v shore-power, get a phone and internet signal and not necessarily in that order. The Bloke, already cranky from sleep deprivation, now had an intellectual problem too and barked instructions to contact a nearby marina; PRONTO!

In recent weeks we've stayed on a swing mooring owned by the D'Albora Spit Marina. When ashore to use the showers, we've been listening to promotional messages piped into the bathrooms. "D'Albora Marina's..... Blah, blah blah". The endless and daily repetition of these messages kicked in.... The Akuna Bay Marina in Coal and Candle Creek, the one adjacent to Smiths Creek and therefore not far from where we were, is also a D'Albora Marina and as such, we were allowed to 'visit' under a reciprocity arrangement. Brilliant. There would be no need to exit the Creeks. A phone call was greeted most welcomingly and enthusiastically. ".. No problem. Come straight in. We have electricians on hand. We'll find you a pen. Just pull up at the fuel wharf and contact me on the courtesy phone. We'll have it all organised by the time you get here". WOW! Our day just got better in an instant! Assisted by not 1, but by 3 Marina staff, we were alongside and connected to shore power in no time.

Step 1: We would need the batteries to be 'fully and deeply recharged' before they could be checked by an electrician. The Bloke called Battery World Caringbah to discuss our issue as it was potentially a warranty matter. They were hugely helpful and reassuring and provided plenty of additional information, but first things first, the batteries would need charging and testing and we'd need to be alongside for a minimum of a day. In the end we stayed 2!

Step 2: The Marina electrician verified that the batteries were in top condition. Great news. So what was the explanation for the apparent fridge failure?

Step 3: Open all the tool boxes and especially the F@€k  box.

Step 4: The usual - tear the boat to bits!

 

Step 4 accomplished.

     

A cabling upgrade in progress.

6mm to 10mm wire from thermostat to compressor and across to bus board.

This story has a happy ending. Still heeding the doctor's directive to "avoid playing golf and tennis", the Bloke contributed to his speedy post-operative recovery (not) by proceeding to do the usual boat-repair-contortions in 40C heat. The loss in voltage needed to be traced and like a water diviner, the Bloke probed every connection in the 'refrigeration' cabling with the 2 prongs of his amp meter. "Resistance is useless!" being his mantra! There was a small voltage drop from one end of the cabling to the compressor junction, so a purchase of some heavier gauge 10mm cable as an upgrade to the existing 6mm one, provided all the occupation a fellow could want for the following 4 hours. this would reduce electrical resistance and potentially maintain the voltage across the electrical run from the bus to the compressor.

Inevitably, what was his job also became my job since I was required to shine the torch, pass tools and 'not' pass comment!  Eventually my smaller hands and thinner fingers were more useful in some instances that brute force and the entire contents of the F*@K box. The job was completed and the Bloke's reward was some end of day drinkies aboard a neighbouring boat.

 Just back from Noumea, the owners of MV Karajas hosted us on their gorgeous Nordhavn.

Moonrise signalling the conclusion of a VERY long day.

Post script: So far, so good. The new cabling has made a BIG difference and Battery World Caringbah provided fabulous back-up and a new table for assessing residual battery capacity. Golden!

Jen and Fastie - Golfing Groupies

With the summer Australian Golfing calendar now in full swing and the Australian Open being played in Sydney, Fastie and Jen were reuniting as golfing groupies together with respective partners to follow Rummy and Darts around.

Based in Towlers Bay it was possible to make a run in Marilyn to Church Point for breakfast and for a quick catch up. It was just like old times. We could have been at St Andrews!

In case there is any doubt... Jen is the worried blond. A groupie still!

3 O'Clock Sport

As with caravan parks, anchorages tend to fill up by around 3pm. Most cruisers wish to be secure for the night by this time and then send off the day with 5'rs. Of course it's quite a sport to watch new boats arrive, observe their location selection and execution of the anchoring, mooring procedure. There is lots of 'curtain twitching' going on. No pressure!

Predicted N and NE winds made Coasters a less appealing option as the swell creeps in and it gets rolly so we headed for Towlers Bay which is no good in a southerly but great in a northerly. We were among the like-minded. Looking out at the yachts as they arrived during the afternoon we spotted first Yaraandoo II and then Insatiable II pull in. We'd met both these crews in Tasmania.

The Bloke was just in the mood to play and immediately raced off in Marilyn to invite them for 5'rs. These two crews are old hands. Jim and Anne from Insatiable II are American and must be closer to their 80th birthdays than most and have lived afloat for at least 30 years. They spent the winter in Vanuatu and New Caledonia. Mike and Sue from Yaraandoo II spent the winter in the Whitsundays and will head south to Tassie again for around the 20th time. Not much these folk can't tell you! Seeing as friends of our sailing mentors Andrew and Carolyn, just pulled in too, it made sense to introduce the crew of Amaranthe II so that they could top up their 'info in-tray' ahead of their Tassie quest this summer.

 Insatiable and Yaraandoo

By mid-morning on Saturday, Towlers was also home to Meander who we know from Lakes Entrance, Southern Belle (RPAYC cruisers we met in Tassie) plus Judy and Martin on Goondiwindi II (RPAYC cruisers that live on Scotland Island). By Sunday, Pandora was in the bay and the skipper who we'd met a few times before asked if there was anyone there that we didn't know?!

Meander getting a morning coffee from the Cappuccino Man.

(In Bantry Bay a couple of weeks ago)

We get the feeling that the longer we stay out on the water the more we are going to keep running into (metaphorically) the same cruisers!

A Lazy Cruise up the Coast

With a couple of weeks to kill ahead of Christmas, and in pursuit of some quiet time for the Bloke to recover from recent surgery (no golf, no tennis was the instruction) we decided that a return to the Pittwater pond was a good idea. In any event, Gail and Debbie would be presenting at the RPAYC Cruisers First Friday on the subject of their visit to Port Davey, Tasmania during the last summer. Of course we'd be there to support or to heckle them! We wanted to sail up there. All that we needed was a slightly moderate southerly so we could enjoy a not-too-strenuous downhill ride. Getting back to Sydney for our flight to Brisbane  wouldn't be a problem as the winds are mostly northerly at this time of year. All we needed to avoid, was a 'Southerly Buster' to get up the coast.

As luck would have it, after some exceedingly hot days the conditions we wanted presented themselves. We were off again out into the ocean, even if not for long or far.

 Feet up. Its a downhill ride.

 Yup! Relaxed allright!

 

We rounded the Barrenjoey headland and aimed straight for Coasters to 'Our Mooring'. As always it was vacant. We have no idea to whom it belongs and we'd love to give them a couple of bottles of wine in gratitude. Even on the busiest of days, no one seems to want it. It's quite a hefty looking mooring, a longer rope than on most and a pretty heavy duty chain. We met a lady at the Palm Beach bus stop who we recognised as being 'the camping lady' who spent the whole of the winter in the National Park camp ground all on her own living out of a one man tent. She sat on the ferry jetty each day fishing in a floaty long dress which is why we noticed her. It was unconventional attire given the weather and activity. In conversation with her we mentioned the mooring and she thought it belonged to someone who had a chronic illness and therefore was unable to use it.  Sad to hear but lucky for us. It's a private mooring and not a club one like the majority of others and apart from always being available, nobody has even looked like they might ask us to move off it.

 'Our' mooring.

 Arrived in time to watch some racing under Barrenjoey Lighthouse.

For Captain Paulie..... yes, this lot are catamarans!

 The sun now disappeared, leaving as silvery dusk to settle over the anchorage.

How is that not restful?

Celebrating a Verdict

When did it ever get to this: choosing a marina because it's on a bus route to the Dr's or a hospital? Anyway, it's one of the practical considerations that made the Bloke's check up a little easier. Seeing as we'd brought the boat alongside from the mooring for a bit of shore-power recharging we were able to invite friends aboard to share the Bloke's good news. Relief was palpable and it was smiles all round for the first, second and possibly even the 3rd round of bubbles!

Sailing mentor, Martin.

The Bloke and the ever effervescent Carolyn.

Thanksgiving Lunch on Scotland Island.

Plan A was for a Thanksgiving Day feast to be in the form of a gathering on the beach at Towlers Bay. The weather wasn't being cooperative so the venue was changed, after much consultation among the American girls, to Scotland Island. This was just as well because I'd hate to guess how the 9kg turkey was going to be transported.

Judy from Goondawindi II, one of the ring leaders and the venue host.

Everyone chipped in, which pretty much meant that everyone ate way, way, w a a a a a y too much. All offerings needed to be sampled. Heck, someone had to do it! The Bloke was up for it and so was everyone else. We began with our contribution of small sausage rolls which although not traditional, were eagerly gobbled. No leftovers for the poor Bloke.

 

Part of our problem might have been the size of our wine glasses!

We retreated back to Zofia almost unable to bend in the middle and declared drinkies and dinner to be CANCELLED.... Possibly indefinitely!

In Pursuit of The Elusive

The Bloke must be recovering from his operation because he today, wanted to go on an excursion to find a Sausage Roll. A malingerer he isn't, so it was off to catch the 144 or 143 bus to Spit Junction. Surely another worthy Sausage Roll could be found? Even the crew of Easy Tiger were trying to assist by conducting some advance surveying up the coast at Rosslyn Bay Marina Café, Yeppoon. Luckily for us, the $8 offering there didn't get a recommendation because his convalescence would possibly have been compromised still further by the urge to sail rapidly northwards. The Urologist said no golf or tennis for  6 weeks - no mention of sailing!

The Mews - Spit Junction

Last week, we discovered a rather nice coffee shop which we thought worthy of a revisit. What a lucky day, they sold home made sausage rolls. Staff informed us that they'd won a gold medal at the Royal Easter a Show. Oh, Happy Day! The Bloke could hardly believe it. So we decided that it warranted a proper photo.

Drumroll... Where would it sit on the Table of Fame.... Will the Tasmanians be knocked off?  You'll have to wait for the Bloke to update his Table of Fame but here is what it looked like.

Not What the Doctor Ordered - Boat Maintenance!

"Take it easy and don't do anything too strenuous". We've all heard that bit of advice before but this was the directive from the Bloke's favourite Urologist. So the post-surgery recovery goes like this:- One day not much. Second day boredom. Next day too much. Following day, recovery from the day before. Then boredom. Then too much activity followed by a day of recovery and so on...

We'd noted during our routine inspections of the boat that there was a little bit of sea water accumulating in a small bilge compartment near the exhaust/seawater elbow bend muffler. It wasn't much, probably not even 250ml but we do like a 'dry' boat (not to be confused with an alcohol free boat) and we prefer seawater outside the boat rather than in it. So with not very much other than  'recovering from surgery' on his agenda, the Bloke decided he was feeling quite 'up' for a little bit of boat inspection work. What might be the source of the water? Step one; is it salty or fresh? We'd just had huge amounts of rain. We were delusional of course, this particular bilge area is made up of several small tray-like areas specific for capturing leaks from the propeller shaft, gland and motor; water found here could only be sea water. Just checking!

Lots of careful sponging and groping around hose pipes and clamps and the Bloke was pretty certain that the culprit was the exhaust/seawater elbow bend muffler. Research on the internet revealed that Jeanneau owners have frequently reported a problem with the exhaust/seawater system. There was a recommendation that a manifold be replaced due to cracking. A manufacturing problem with the Yanmar engine. A diesel mechanic recommended that the part be replaced every 500 hours. Great! That might mean that we were long overdue a replacement if our manifold was one of the faulty ones. Whoo spooky. The Bloke's scrutiny of the area suggested that the manifold was not one of the 'bad lot' and was not the sources of the leak. What else could go wrong? "We'll dismantle it a bit and just tighten things up". What could go wrong? As usual, this activity was in a space requiring a certain amount of contortion and although it was agreed that this job was not critical, once the tools were assembled there was no turning back and no possibility of waiting until the directive to "Take it easy and don't do anything too strenuous" was lifted.

Manifold looking good

Air extractor in the foreground.

The effort of separating the black pipes from the elbow box have pretty much separated the Blok'es pipes.. doh!

Of course the job could wait. The boat was not being flooded and the ingress only occurred when the motor was running. At present, this is mostly just to heat up the hot water system and assist with a bit of battery charging. It could definitely wait but once you've seen the problem you can 'unsee' it and the Bloke felt compelled to see the task through. Leaving things semi-dismantled to effect the repair in stages just isn't the Bloke's style and he professed to feeling so much better. Mistake!

The job ran to pattern with sockets and nuts frustratingly dropping into impossible-to-retrieve places. Thank heavens for the telescopic magnetic probe I bought, for no particular reason, at the $2.00 shop. It's been a life saver so many times!

How we love this telescopic thingy.

Escapee socket attached... yeh!

The culprit for the leak was eventually located. A perishing gasket. Attempts to replace it would normally be complicated except for the Bloke's cheeky personality. There is a 'Little ship' in the marina. Talk on the jetties is that it was formerly owned by Dick Smith and had been built to do some research in the Antarctic. It's certainly huge and constantly being washed and polished by an attentive crew. The Bloke reasoned that a little ship like this would definitely carry 'spares' for it's ocean adventures and might have a suitable gasket they could offer until a replacement could be sourced. Better still, it turned out that the ship's workshop had a gasket cutter and the crew very generously manufactured a replacement in a jiff! What luck. I think it will require a 6pack of beers or a tray of pumpkins scones for reward. What's your vote?

The repair is now completed and tested and without doubt the next couple of days are going to be 'recovery days'. The little job, as usual, turned into a BIG JOB and I'm just hoping that the Bloke hasn't burst a gasket of his own in the doing of it.

Remembering Rememberance Day

So, this year at the 11th hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month, we were on a Sydney Transit bus. At 10:58am  an announcement  came over the bus radio from the operations base instructing drivers to pull over at the very next bus stop, switch off their engines and observe a 1 minute silence for Rememberance Day. Our driver complied, allowing us to also hear a broadcast of a bugler playing the Last Post. With the exception of a couple of Asian tourists, who couldn't be blamed really for being unaware of what was happening, everyone was duly respectful of this moment and what it represents. Just stunning. We were moved to tears!

Prostate Cancer Pin-up Boy, November 2015.

11/11/2015 - A day to remember, or is it a day not to forget or even an unforgettable day? This year, for us, all of the latter apply. From this year forward, Remembrance Day will have another and quite unconnected significance for us. The Bloke attended his post-operative doctor's appointment. Robotic keyhole surgery to remove a cancerous prostate was confirmed to be successful.

Phew!

We'll spare you the gritty detail unless you'd like a private conversation but like to take the opportunity to remind all you fellows out there, to take Prostate Cancer seriously and not evade medical checks like sissies! 3,000 premature deaths are annually attributable in Australia to this cancer. It need not be so.

In June this year we'd calculated that 4,100 nautical miles had so far been traveled on our mission to circumnavigate Australia. In the circumstances we are so glad that we took off in 2013 and not waiting for official retirement age. Since June, we have restricted our voyaging and spent 5 months around Sydney enclosed waters and Pittwater to facilitate a medical journey. Surprisingly, we've added a further 400nm to our log just around here! Very happily too, sharing some of these miles with Bullet, the Professors Martin, also Sister-in-law Jan and the 'General'. Sydney sailors are lucky indeed to have so many destination options without much of an ocean challenge. We've seized the opportunity to savour some of these cruising grounds, reconnect with friends plus add some new ones. We have so much to be thankful for.

For now, we are in recovery mode and rewriting our sailing plans for 2016 -  in the sand at low tide of course!

General Alert!

What began as a 2 day visit finished up a 3 night affair and there could just be 2 pairs of kidneys being checked into rehab as a consequence. The Bloke's brother, 'the General' (an organiser of note) and sister-in-law Jan, made a visit with us on Pittwater. We were delighted to share with them as many of our favorite spots as time allowed. They had such a good time that they stayed for a bit longer which meant we could go deep in.

 The proof of life 'selfie' sent home to Mum.

The General and the Bloke leaving for a spin.

Ashore at Bobbin Head

 

Shep joined us for lunch at Bobbin Head with a special delivery.

Just in the nick of time, we were almost out of wine.

The extra night meant we could visit our most favourite of locations 'up the creeks'.

Smiths Creek.

Peter and Debbie's latest fleet addition - Novae, just happened to be there too.

  

Thanks for visiting Keith and Jan... and the Bloke thanks you for the hangover too!