Weather to go, whether to stay?

So far sailing the coast of Australia has been exhilarating, enlivening, extraordinary, and at time exhausting. Roo Bin Esque has given us a mostly comfortable ride in style, if not at any great speed. We’ve met many amazing people and visited beautiful and remote islands, but now it’s time to step outside our comfort zone. Continue reading


Cooktown to Cape Flattery

Yay for Telstra! We still have internet!! This may be the last post for a while as the internet quality at Lizard Island and beyond is more than questionable… We had a wonderful day sailing yesterday with a good solid breeze on a beam reach. Great to feel Roobi come alive under our feet. Our track Continue reading


Mackay Cay

Mackay Cay is everything we hoped it would be! A pristine coral atoll with nothing but birds for company, surrounded by azure water. And then there’s the snorkelling… So many different fish, gardens of vibrant coral, and even a couple of relaxed turtles who really didn’t care whether we swam along with them or not!  I have Continue reading


Cairns to Low Isles

We snuck out of Blue Water marina, disturbing the mirror finish on the water, and headed into the sunrise. The valley to the south of Cairns was hiding in rain, but the sky to the north was clear. There’s a certain tension to every departure. Will the forecast be accurate and our next anchorage welcoming? Continue reading


Why are ships so fascinating?

It seems I am my father’s daughter… I don’t know whether my fascination with ships started with Dad being an engineer on oil tankers or whether it’s a genetic thing, but the older I get the worse it gets! I was delighted to find a bulk sugar carrier in Mourilyan Harbour when we sailed through Continue reading


Farewell to Hinchinbrook Island

For eighteen years I looked down on Hinchinbrook Island from the cockpit of my Dash 8 as we flew between Cairns and Townsville and I marvelled at its moods. Quite often the skies would be clear accept for the thunderstorm brewing over the craggy island. Under the care of Captain Lyle Cook I joined a Continue reading


Exploring Orpheus Island

Our day started with a leisurely kayak ashore as the tide reached its high for the morning. In the shallows a black-tipped reef shark did its best to pretend we weren’t there.   The walking track to the ridge line starts from the picnic table. It’s loosely marked with varying colours of tape and string but easy Continue reading


Under the waves

What a day! We’re both exhausted from exploring, kayaking and snorkelling. If you get the chance to visit Orpheus Island then take it. The fringing coral reef is spectacular and my photos don’t do it justice. Even more special is the clam garden which is full of giant clams. They were bred here in the Continue reading


Orpheus Island

We had a delightful sail from Horseshoe Bay to Orpheus Island – although I lost count of the sail changes as the wind was up and down. When it reached 17 knots in a rush, and we still had our beautiful pink spinnaker up, I think we were both a little concerned we were headed Continue reading