A Perfect Day

Foggy morning at Mackay - Image by Navman

Today was the perfect Queensland day……absolutely everything you could wish for in boating. 

It was foggy early and we were up early so that we could be at the fuel jetty when it opened.  

We set off from Mackay in brilliant sunshine and no wind. Endless Summer was loping along at a steady 20knots cruising speed.

By lunchtime we were at Hamilton Island to refuel both boat and bodies. It was but a short stop and we were soon off again at quite a pace.

The forecast for the next couple of days is for increasing wind, so we wanted to make the most of today's good condtions by reaching Townsville this evening. 

And perfect it was. It was so flat that Captain Bligh could have skied behind Endless Summer. 


There were fish, birds, sea snakes and dolphins to observe, and plenty of lively conversations and funny stories that were told.

Hamilton Island Yacht Club - Image by Navman

Sea-Dog at the helm on a perfect Whitsunday Sunday.

The Whitsunday Islands came and went, then our course took us away from the coast and we cruised all alone out on the open ocean until dusk. 

 At this stage we still had nearly 40nm to go to reach Townsville and we thought it would be necessary to reduce speed so that we could maintain good visibility.

The wind was on our side today though, and as the sun fell into the water ahead, conditions improved even further.

The full moon rose astern of  us to light our way. The surface of the water was so glassy that we could see every tiny thing breaking the surface. 

This enabled us to maintain our 20knot speed right up to Cape Cleveland on the outskirts of Townsville, even though the last light of day was long gone.


Once inside Cleveland Bay, Sea-Dog and I came down off the flybridge to have a beer and prepare dinner.

Captain Bligh stayed on the flybridge to guide us to our anchorage, albeit at only 10 knots as the visibility was now reduced. 

It was not all bad news for him though because when we dropped anchor he was able to have a beer, then sit down to dinner straight away.

It was a night for two bottles of red. For the day we covered just under 200 nautical miles (360km) in 11 hours including fuel stops. 

Endless Summer chases the sunset - Image by Navman

The moon rose to light our way- Image by Navman

We are now anchored in Townsville’s answer to Bum’s Bay. It is a well sheltered anchorage just outside the Townsville Marina. The marina will be our destination for our lay day tomorrow. 


We have a couple of issues to address with Endless Summer. One is a persistent high oil pressure gearbox alarm on the starboard engine at idle speed, and the other is a leak n the stern compartment of the boat when we are moving at high speed.

We will need to address these issues (and do some washing) before we leave Townsville early on Tuesdy morning.

You will recall we left our NSW South Coast base two weeks ago. We have travelled over 1250nm and now have only 200nm to go.  

The water temperature is ideal for swimming so we might take a few hours to enjoy the delights of Far North Queensland before we arrive in Port Douglas later this week. The dark times that we experienced late last week are now firmly behind us.

Late afternoon in the Whitsundays - Image by Navman

It has been a perfect day, but it is now well past midnight and I need to sleep.


Sweet dreams,


Navman