Zero Four Dark Thirty

Once again we were off at stupid o’clock! Actually, it’s been a while since we’ve done that but a 55nm passage from Bundaberg/Burnett Heads to Pancake Creek needs an early start to ensure arrival in time for 5 o’clock drinks. Just kidding: just following the ‘time your departure for your arrival’ rule as taught by Carolyn and Andrew, our sailing mentors.

Coming out of the Burnett River at night was pretty easy, taking the lit highway with synchronized strobing port and starboard lights.

We didn’t seem to be on the whale super-highway with nothing remarkable spotted even though we knew the migration was well under way.

The wind, being ‘up our bum’, necessitated The Bloke to do some pole magic to enable us to goose wing once the wind switched to the SE. We also got the benefit of an outgoing tide for 6 hours which was a gift of an extra knot in boat speed.

Our only challenge was to negotiate the imaginatively named Inner and Outer Rocks off Bustard Head.

  

Bustard Head Light on the Headland

All in all we enjoyed a brilliant day with minimum motoring. Yachts departing Bundaberg the following day were less lucky and arrived in freshening conditions. A crew on one catamaran failed to adjust their sails ahead of the headland where the gusts were getting a little wild. They blew out and then shredded their headsail. The Bloke went across to assist them untangle the mess once they’d anchored and learned that they had only moved aboard their boat 5 days before and had traveled up from Mooloolaba. They were understandably shattered. The Bloke was dispatched with a box of cake slice. We hoped they could still feel there was something nice in the world after a less than glorious first week.