WEDNESDAY
We had breakfast, barely conscious, after this hard and sleepless night. We put on three layers of clothes again and went on deck. It was five in the morning. Time to go.
It was dim. The sun was just rising from behind the hills we were about to pass. It was a bit chilly and sometimes you could feel gusts of wind. We unfastened the mooring, Marcin launched the engine and we set off into the great depths. Nothing foreshadowed what was about to begin in about half an hour. I stared into the space between the two rocks that were approaching us and watched the water surface. The color of the ocean was deep navy blue, and it changed with the rays of the sun emerging from the land. We were on the engine for the time being, but with the sail ready to unfold it as soon as we sailed out to the Tasman Sea.
Waves began to hit us on all sides. Sometimes smaller, sometimes larger, sometimes on the side, sometimes in front. It was then that I began to realize that the ocean had not yet calmed down after storm. I really don't know what happened to me then, but in a fit of sudden concern for electronic equipment ... I turned off and hid all the cameras. I don't understand my behavior to this day, but somehow I had a feeling that we might lose it. They were attached mounted to the deck on word of honor, but maybe it could be possible to record some nice shots of what happened next. Or maybe it's better that I didn't record it. Better not to see again: P Anyway, I left one camera close at hand.
This big ... hole was my last take, because for the next three hours or so, I didn't dare to peel off my hands off the deck. Literally.
As soon as we passed these rocks and found ourselves on the coastal bar, of which I mentioned also here, we found ourselves in the middle of a rough oceanic outlet. According to forecasts, the waves were supposed to decrease to two meters, but it turned out that they still reach even four.
With each foot of water we passed, I began to feel more and more anxious. I found a seat on the left side of the cockpit and adhered to it like a frog to a leaf. Minute by minute, with the size of the waves, I clung more and more to the deck, clutching the fingers of both hands of everything I could hold onto. So I had a strong grip on the winch with one hand, the seat under me with the other, and with both of my legs pressed against the seat opposite. And in that position, I spent the next three hours!
Marcin held the wheel and steered. I don't think he sat down for the next few hours, even for a moment. We were in the washing machine. At a wild rodeo. We were jumping up, only to slide down on the wave. Then the waves were hitting us from either side or pushed us from behind, as if we were surfing! Fortunately, we have fairly high sides and the water did not overflow through the deck. Then I would probably piss myself out of fear!
At one point, a piece of the mainsail unfolded, a not too large fragment slipped out of the lazy jack, it fumbled over my head just above the boom and limited my visibility. Marcin shouted to me:
"Get up and hide that sail, because if we get the wind and it unfolds, it will be a problem!"
To which I, the bravest of sailors, a traveler of sea waves, replied briefly:
"No."
End of the discussion. I was so paralyzed with fear that I didn't give a shit about that sail. I was at the stage of staring at the land and calculating if and how long it would take me to swim to the shore in three layers of clothes !!! I was such brave sailor at that time !!! Hahaha!
Regarding my calculations - the answer is: I would not be able to swim to shore, despite the life jacket on! The current was so strong that they probably would have found me a few hours later in a completely different direction! If I had survived, because these vests are only buoyant for 12 hours, did you know that ?! So I had no chance of anything. I had to grit my teeth and somehow survive. My defense mechanism in stressful situations is to withdraw completely into myself. I then have the face of a constant thinker, unsteady, alert eyesight and slow, careful movements (it's good that I don't panic). To calm down, I preferred to look towards the ocean because it seemed calmer there. I preferred not to see the size of these waves against the background of the land and how they crash against the rocks.
On the other hand, Marcin, compared to me, was an oasis of peace. At least on the outside. Well, natural born pirate. I will not say that he was completely calm. At times I saw his nervousness and slight fear, which heightened my feelings, so I preferred not to look at him at all. I turned my back, believing the captain had everything under control.
About four hours passed. It was sometime after 11.00, when we started to sail along the Bight Sand dunes, which I remind, will stretch for the next 32 kilometers. We were about two miles from the shore, the waves calmed down considerably and we breathed a sigh of relief. Eventually, I could change my position and stretch my numb limbs and Marcin was able to sit down and rest his legs and back.
I went below deck to check if it was very messy, I took coffee thermos and finally we could enjoy a beautiful sailing in the afternoon sun. Unfortunately, we did not manage to unfurl the sail, the wind died. To be able to sail "on rags" that day, we would have to go deep into the sea about 20 kilometers from shore, because there was little more windy there. We didn't have time to deviate that much from our course, however. We had to enter Lake Macquaire around 2pm, when the tide was starting. The trail on the lake is quite shallow and if we do not make it before the outflow of the water, we will be stranded. And the opening of this drawbridge, which is only at full hour, requires an appointment by phone, and after 4 p.m. they do not open it at all, because there is afternoon traffic on the street.
There is nothing left for us to do but trust the old Japanese Yanmar 2GM 20 engine and sail on it until the very end.
Note, I put a photo with a very serious face. This is what I looked the whole cruise, and now I'm laughing at myself so much that I can't stand it! But I was really focused.
Meanwhile, we could finally start enjoying what was happening around us.
We finally found an agreement with the boat and the waves. We finally started to read and understand each other. The feeling when at some point the boat was pushed from behind by a three-meter wave was fantastic - we were surfing on the wave !!! We then reached a maximum speed of 6.8 knots, which is a staggering 12 km / h. But remember that the average speed for our motor boat is 5/6 knots! And that moment when the depthmeter shows 200 feet of water below the keel (60 meters)! What can I say, folks - the ocean is beautiful! Mesmerizing. A wonderful vastness of navy blue, blue and green. This space, this distant horizon, this freedom is breathtaking. You stare into the distance and take your mind off everything. You are here and now. You forget about all your worries and problems, about the whole world! There is only a mighty element around. You feel the sun on your face, the salty taste on your lips and this amazing smell. And at the same time, you feel incredibly calm. Your senses are heightened to the limit, but in such a pleasant way. You feel alive. I really understand sailors, navy, fishermen. I understand what draws them so much to the ocean. I understand it can be addictive. I understand that the people of the ocean miss it, that they write songs and books about it. I understand that despite the fact that it can be difficult and dangerous, they still and constantly come back to the big blue. I really understand it!
And when the dolphins arrived, I went crazy with happiness. There were a lot of them and they accompanied us almost all the way. They swam with us, next to us, below us, sometimes they disappeared completely under the water for a few minutes to emerge a hundred meters away, jump a little and swim back to us. They were jumping and spinnig and looking at us curiously. They were not even afraid of the sound of the engine. Scientists still do not know why dolphins are so interested in sea units. Especially the not big ones. There are three theories:
crustaceans attached to the bottom are a delicious snack for them
they love to surf on the wave that forms under the bow of the boat
or they are just social and want to meet you.
I like to yell in front of them, because they have excellent hearing, and they are very interested in various shouts and squeaks. They are beautiful!!! I was running around the deck with my camera from side to side, trying to capture them, but it was hard! But what I saw is mine!
Here is one I managed to catch:
In these very nice circumstances, we were approaching the port of Newcastle. It is never a good idea to cross the sea's trade route. But sometimes there is no way out. We were just in this situation. And we were a little bit bored with staring for an hours at this great beach of Stockton Bright Sand dunes. I thought it would never end. : D But yes, they are really impressive and beautiful.
Did I mention that Newcastle Harbor is the largest port on the East Coast of Australia ?! They are definitely bigger in the world, but it is by far the largest commercial port I have ever seen in my life.
Below, I am posting a nice video from their site showing its size, so that you have an idea of what sizes we are talking about. I sincerely recommend it, because it's made nicely. And you can see where, if necessary, we had a place for an emergency stop.
In the previous post, I also showed you a video where you can see how a close encounter between a sailboat and a large container ship can end. We had two on our way. One red - was flowing in, and the other - blue - flowing out. Centrally in front of us. While the red one moved surprisingly fast (like in a leaps, it stopped for 5 minutes, and then the full engines power and in a few minutes it crossed a few miles), while the blue one seemed to stand still and it was difficult at first to even tell which direction is it going. And we need to know this to plan how to avoid them efficiently - from the bow or the stern. So in order to plan the steps of avoiding container ships, you need to make a friendship with binoculars and keep an eye on both objects. If you have a radar - you have all the information about the units: what are their names, how much they weigh, where they are going and at what speed. If you are not, and you feel insecure, you can contact the captains by radio and make an agreement about the courses. Or, like us, politely wait for your turn, gently mark your course and hope that the gentlemen on the captain's bridges will read our intentions correctly. It is not that scary. Container ships are far away, although they grow in eyes as they approach. But the relief after passing them is great. We managed to avoid both of them efficiently and it was a very interesting experience and learning for the future.
We were effectively approaching the goal of our trip. We have approximately 20 miles from Newcastle Harbor to Lake Macquiare. After we passed the harbor, we soon saw Redhead Beach turning into Blacksmith Beach, at the end of which was the entrance to the Swansea Channel leading to Lake Awaba. The closer to the shore, the larger coastal bars, where we fell into a small cauldron again, but here the waves were not so high anymore and it was even fun to ride on them. However, as I mentioned, we had to make an appointment with the bridge's staff to open it. It was around 1.20pm and we figured we would be on time. Marcin called and the very nice lady explained to us what and how. She asked where we were and how long it would take us to get to the bridge. Marcin replied that he sees the entrance to the canal, but we are sailing on the engine, we are here for the first time and we do not know if we will reach the point at 2 p.m. The lady replied that if we found out that we would not be on time (because we MUST be on time!), we must call her cancel the opening and book it again for 15.00. She also informed us that there are three moorings right in front of the bridge, to which we can crouch for a moment, for a WHILE, if we are too early. So Marcin kindly asked if we could dock there now and wait for the opening of the bridge, to which she replied that ABSOLUTELY NOT, because these mooring are for a WHILE and you cannot just stand there and wait. What a twisted logic, I don't know ....
Nothing you do. You won't go one-legged into an arse-kicking contest. Full speed ahead and we go.
We're sailing. We're sailing. We're sailing.
And this damn channel wasn't coming any closer.
"Marcin, we won't make it. No chance. We don't know yet how much it gonna takes in the channel itself." - I stated. The canal is very narrow and has a clearly delineated but rather complex waterway that goes between the shoals. You have to maneuver the rudder hard there.
"You're right." - confirmed the captain - "I'll call and book the opening for 3 pm. The worst thing that the tide is starting, this is our last chance. If we don't manage, we will be stuck on the lake."
Well, nerves are on edge. The real fight for life has begun. The most difficult part of this journey. We had to plan it.
Marcin reduced the engine speed and we slowly reached the canal. Now, in turn, we had too much time, more than an hour, but we kept shortening the distance. As a result, we were tacking or circling about 20 minutes in front of the canal in this wave washing machine on coastal bars. The route of our "slowdown" you can see in this screenshot:
Well, it was impossible to behave more stupidly. That's what I thought then.
Finally I shouted to Marcin:
"I don't give a shit!!! We sail to these moorings right now and we'll stop there. At least we'll be safer there (don't count your chickens before they hatch) and we'll have time to sail the canal calmly, not like here - we are spinning like gadflies! What will they do to us?! Chase us out?! They will shout at us?! What is this about with this bridge anyway?! Is it a 5 stars restaurant that we have to be there on time?!
Yes. I felt tired and nervous, so my determination grew.
So it's time to introduce our favorite method of dealing with difficult situations, which is:
BATTERING RAM!!!!
and then will see...
Full steam ahead and we sail into the channel! Okay, not full because you have to be very careful there. There is only a narrow, winding waterway that we had to stick to. See for yourself:
This was our route. I also marked the wreckage of the yacht and moorings for a "SUPER SHORT" stop.
And here you can see what awaited us right after passing under the bridge.
Maneuvering carefully, we entered the canal. Slowly, maintaining a constant speed, we approached the moorings. We had about 30 minutes by 3 p.m. I prepared the grapnel and went to the bow of the boat. A crampon/grapnel/boat hook is a long, foldable pole with a hook at the end. It is used to catch the rope that floats attached to the mooring's buoy. Once you catch it, you quickly pull the boat hook up, because at the end of this floating rope there is a loop that you have to put on the cleat and after securing everything the boat can stand still. Why am I writing about it in so much detail?! Because that damn grapnel ... but from the beginning.
So I sit in the bow looking for the rope. Marcin maneuvers and looks for which side she is on. Unfortunately, since the tide was low, we were both convinced that the rope would drift towards the ocean because the water from the lake was FLOWING OUT. Lake level was falling. So that what rules of physics says. However, only at the last moment it turned out that the rope was drifting towards the lake (till this day we don't understand why) and from this side we also lined up to catch the rope. Already sailing instinctively, I felt that I would not be able to lift it from this angle (such a rope weighs heavily), but it was too late to think soberly. I submerged the hook and instead of taking the rope from underneath it stuck centrally into its center! It jerked my arm and pulled me between the rails and the pontoon (during cruise the pontoon lays upside down on the bow of the boat, so there is very little space there). For a second I wondered what just happened, then half of the grapnel stayed in my hand and the other half hooked on a rope drifted in the water ...
Well, we were in a deep shit. First, we are in the middle of the canal, right in front of the bridge. Second, we have no way of stopping. It would be possible to drop the anchor if she was really prepared. Our anchor was lying on a bunk under the deck. As an excuse, I can only say that we were to use it as a last resort. And it was lying on a bunk, because we do not have a bow anchor spot done. Thirdly, we could only count on our engine, which had been running non-stop for last 10 hours. If it choked and died now, the current would be carried us to the bridge and there would be a rescue operation. We would have crashed.
But luckily Yanmar kept on spinning. It was worth taking care of it, changing its oil, filters and treating it with a fresh water rinse every time it was turned on. We started circling around until we stood upstream, with our backs to the lake, and Marcin reduced the engine speed so that we seemed to be standing still. Can you see that yellow route in the screenshot below ?! This is how we tried to stay - literally - afloat!
And so for 20 minutes. Until three o'clock. I stared at my watch and counted down the seconds. In just 10 minutes, in 5, in a minute, in 30 seconds and .... nothing. The bridge will not budge. What the hell?!
Suddenly the phone rings!
And this is the bridge lady yelling - why didn't you cancel the opening of the bridge at 3 p.m.!!!???
To which surprised Marcin answer that WE ARE HERE. Have we been here circling for 20 minutes! Is this the right bridge?!
"How can you be here, if you can't see you ?!" the bridge lady shouts.
"I don't understand, I am here - it's impossible not to notice us. We are the only boat in the canal!" - Marcin replies.
"But I can see that there is no one from the lake side!"
"But we are on the ocean side. We want to FLOW INTO the canal!"
And than the Lady finally turned her head from her vantage point and noticed us! She confirmed that she was already calling the staff and opening the bridge!
HALLELUIAH!!!
The moving parts of the bridge began to rise. It has opened to us like heaven's gates! We breathed a sigh of relief and headed the boat towards the narrow isthmus between the spans!
Guess what. At this point, the batteries in both cameras have died, and one camera has damaged our memory card at all so that wonderful moment when we finally cross that damn bridge is not recorded! i suck with these cameras. Something is not working out for me...
There really was not much left to reach the destination, maybe two nautical miles. And they turned out to be the worst moments of this whole trip. Sailing in these shallows was terrifying. The trail there is very difficult, winding and marked in a strange way. At some point, I have lost my sense of which buoys we should be sailing between! I also saw that Marcin was getting nervous. It was really scary! The depthmeter alarm was beeping almost constantly! At the worst moment, he showed that we have 0.2 feet under the keel! So we were 8 cm away from hitting the bottom!!!! I felt hot and sweat was running down my back. In addition, it began to gusting - really strong. The wind was increasing minute by minute and the waves began to splash us on all sides. We were at the end of our strength and in a state of very high stress! Fortunately, in the end the color of the azure lake water began to darken more and more, and finally the water was dark blue. We came out of the shallows into deep waters! It worked at the last minute! It took us almost two hours to cross that few miles! If we would come an hour later - a complete failure! The water level would be too low!
But it's not over yet! Hahaha! I know, I guess you already have too much of these emotions. Then imagine how we felt!
Now the task was to find our mooring. Between a hundred other boats. We've never been here. We only saw a photo of our buoy with its number. And we knew more or less its location.
Oh, and we didn't have a boat hook. After all, it stayed in the mooring line in front of the bridge. We didn't know how to get the rope out of the mooring.
We only prayed that perhaps the service had installed a new type of buoy for us. That is, there was a meter and a half long stick going out of it, long enough that you could grab it from the deck with your hands and pull the rope up to the cleat.
Our mooring was somewhere here:
While I was trying to read the numbers from the buoys through binoculars, Marcin was maneuvering between the boats. We had a plan that, as a last resort, we would reach the pier - although we were completely tired. Finally I spotted it! And instead of shouting:
"There is our buoy", I shouted in complete euphoria pointing my finger at our place:
"STICK! STICK!"
I was so happy to see that damn stick! Marcin set us up, I ran to the bow and grabbed it. But I was so exhousted that I couldn't get the rope out on deck anymore. I didn't have the strength for it all anymore. Marcin put the engine in neutral and quickly replaced me in this activity.
WE MANAGED TO DO IT!
In the photo below I have caught Marcin, just after catching the mooring rope, where for a few minutes he was just sitting on the bow, completely tired, gasping for breath, staring straight ahead ...
I could only say one thing:
WHAT A NIGHTMARE!
We were exhausted but incredibly happy. We relocate Justine to her new home! Our own - independent of anyone - mooring, where it will be safe. Where we will have closer to her from Sydney. Where we have a very large parking lot, with sanitary facilities and even a barbecue area. There is also a pier to which you can, like a normal man, moor and throw all gear from the land and not carry everything 15 times in a dinghy. Where we can finally start a proper renovation. Where, finally we can sail, because the lake is huge with numerous islands and coves. Where there are also plenty of beaches and places to swim and we will be able to swim NOT IN A SLUDGE and MUD of shallow channel. Although it is a saltwater lake and as many as six species of sharks live in it, including lemon sharks, hammerhead sharks, bull sharks and even white sharks, but also dolphins and turtles. : D
The last fatal shark attack in this place was in 1970, so easy. Okay, the last bite was in January this year. But only in the leg. We'll make it, now we are fearless!
No, I am joking. A little. : D But yes, have to be careful.
To end our whole story (you know I wrote almost 30 pages in total!) After a moment of rest, we deceided to stay on the boat for the night. We did not have no more strength to bring everything ashore just now, go for the car that was left in the Lemon Tree Passage, and for the next three hours driving back to Sydney so that we might be home around midnight. We deserved to relax. We unpacked, finally refreshed, had dinner and a beautiful sunset came. With swallows flying into our cabin in search of a place to stay! Crazy!
We went on board to admire the spectacle of the ending day full of emotions. Of course, we took out the moonshine and celebrated the happy and safe end of this journey. One shot for Neptune, one for Justine, and one for us! Well, maybe two. Or three: D
As dusk fell, the sky became starry and the windows of the costal houses lit up. At one point I felt like I was on the coast of the French Riviera, it looked so great. Lovely place!
Then the light went out. My light. Literally. Apparently I put my head to the pillow, Marcin turned for a moment and wanted to ask me where his toothbrush was, and he couldn't wake me up. He was shouting at me, calling out, shaking me. He thought I passed out. He even checked if I was breathing, but when I snored right in his face, he made sure that my batteries were completely down. I was knackered.
And the night was very calm. At least for me. I wouldn't have woken up by an atomic bomb.
THURSDAY
The next day we got up refreshed and happy. It was very hot and pleasant. We started packing and taking everything to the shore. On the way from Sydney was our friend Jola (to give us a lift to the car at Lemon Tree). And then at the very end The Drunken Hare, our little dinghy engine, refused to obey our last dinghy ride, so we swam the last meters of our sea adventure on oars! : D
And finally the end has come. While waiting for Jola, we talked to a local resident. Such an old man, about 70 years old, who lived next door in the caravan park. It was he who told us about the sharks in the lake. In the end, Jola arrived. When she saw us, first she wrung her hands at the sight of our sun-scorched faces, and then gave a tight hug saying how glad she was to see us alive, because she hadn't slept for two nights, she was so worried!
That's all folks! We got home calmly and talked for a long time about what we had just accomplished. For next three day I had constant smile on my face. I felt incredible satisfaction and pride! There was no end of story tellings and laughter!
It was a great adventure.
This was our first see expedition.
It was our dream come true!
We will do it again. Definitely.
While I am writing these last sentences, it is raining outside the window and Marcin is repairing the Drunken Hare in his mans cave. It turned out that the engine probably died for good.
And yet we have to somehow get to the boat next time.
Unless we swim!
Thank you very much for reading it to the end. I hope that I managed to present you at least half of what we faced and what emotions we experienced. My goal was for you to experience this adventure with us. I hope you could felt these rolling waves, this wind in hair and this level of stress! I would be delighted if you leave a comment and share our story.
And remeber:
"The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever" -
Jacques Cousteau