Out and About in the Whitsunday Islands, again.

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Capt’n Log:



Distance travelled over 16 days totalled 184 nautical miles (340 km). This includes 4 days in Airlie Beach between crews (11 to 15 June).



Well, after saying goodbye to Simon and Alison, I had a couple of days in Abell Point Marina, so I cleaned the boat, did the washing and restocked the larder. One of the things I enjoy in port are good fish and chips meals (though often it is fish cakes and potato cakes) and the Fish and Chip shop in the main street of Airlie Beach (surprisingly called “The Airlie Beach Fish Shop”) was a good one.



So on Saturday night I was in there buying my dinner which I was going to take back to Hakura and eat with a cup of tea (again, you will be surprised at that). While waiting for my order I start chatting to this lady with white hair who had smiled at me earlier in the day (I am a sucker for a smile).



Well it turns out she was travelling up the coast on her own, and yes she would come and have a cup of tea with me on Hakura. So, with my order in my hand, we headed back to Hakura and the before mentioned tea. During the course of the tea I asked would Miriwinni, that being her name, if she would like to come sailing around the Whitsunday Islands for a week or so. A bit to my surprise she thought it was a good idea and would think about it over night. Also she needed to find a place to leave her car.



Next morning I received a text saying Mirrawinni would love to come for 6 days. So the next job was to quickly restock the boat with fresh food, re water and fuel up. We did a shopping trip to the supermarket in Airlie Beach and trudged back with our food. Next morning we were off and heading back out to the islands. It turned out that it was “back” for both of us as Mirrawinni had worked on many of the resorts in the 70s and 80s and sometime later she had sailed around on a 28 foot Warren catamaran with 2 small daughters and a partner.



The weather was fantastic with very little wind, few clouds, lots of sun and a still sea. We visited many of the usual anchorages and had no problems getting moorings whenever they were there. This was due to the very low numbers of vessels around. We visited Butterfly Bay East, Cateran Bay on Border Island and even stopped at Whitehaven Beach. The final over night was near Ian Point in Stonehaven (western side of Hook Island) and then a day at Blue Pearl By on Hayman Island.



The evenings were very calm and Mirrawinni spent the first half of most evening lying in the cockpit looking at the stars (and boy there were lots of them).



We arrived back in Airlie Beach on Friday 10 and had our last evening together on the usual mooring. Next day I run Mirrawinni into the Airlie Beach foreshore and was back to solo sailing. I enjoyed the time with Mirrawinni, one of the few times I have sailed with crew of my own age. Thanks Mirrawinni.



Now there was still 15 days to go before my next booked crew (Lorraine and Becs from NZ) so I checked all the ads I had placed on the various websites and started to get some hits. There were the usual “We are really interested But the weather is not looking good” stories. In the end I found two crew for a week trip, being Simon an English guy and Kaylee a Canadian gal, both in their late Twenties.



Again, we did the food shopping run but this time we had so much stuff, plus Kaylee’s gear, that we took a supermarket trolley (which Kaylee run back before we left) to get our stuff to the dinghy. I run the stuff out to Hakura, and after a quick stowing, brought Hakura in for a re water and fuel up.



We were off again, this time heading for Nara Inlet because (as you may have noticed above the comment that “the weather is not looking good”) the weather was not looking that flash. Just some rain and wind for a couple of days. We ended up staying in Nara Inlet for 2 days, though we did move up to the head of the Inlet for the first time.



On day three the weather was significantly better and we headed around to Ian Point, again. There is good snorkelling there plus the chance of the visit from the small green turtle.



There are a couple of things about Simon I had noticed (and one he had told me) – he was deaf, he was not a good swimmer and neither of these things were going to get in his way of having an adventure. Over the time aboard, Simon and I started to develop hand signals for sailing, though I would say it was very early days.



So we came to our first snorkel and Simon say that he had only been doing this for a few months and the first time he had a panic attack. I suggested that he wear a lifejacket while snorkelling, which he did. After the first time, Simon did without the lifejacket as he had gained more confidence. For someone who was not a good swimmer he was keen to jump in the sea anytime. Go you good thing.



Two of the many interesting things about Kaylee were that she is one of the few people who whole heartily got and supported my views on conflict (that positive conflict in good and essential for creativity and for people getting along) and she was a committed Christian. As you most likely guessed, this came up during one of my many rants about the impact of missionaries on the peoples of the South Pacific. I told her I would not debate her religion on this voyage and we all managed to get along famously (that is very well, not famously for being very bad).



One of the activities that Kaylee and Simon would undertake each evening was an ongoing chess tournament. I think Simon won most though Kaylee did win a few and some by a significant margined. I would note that they had not developed the strategy side of the game and seem to win by taking all the opponent’s pieces. Whatever, they had a great time playing chess, possibly a first for Hakura.



Overall, the weather improved after the initial two days and we visited most of the usual anchorages. On our last night out and about we tried a new anchorage, in Macona Inlet on the southern side of Hook Island. It is just along the south coast of Hook from Nara Inlet and it is not as sheltered though still a great place on the quieter nights.



After dinner two events occurred, firstly a giant moth viciously attacked Kaylee and Simon manfully defended her. Well he took a photo of it and sort of shoed it away. After several minutes of reassuring Kaylee that it had gone and that it was not dead, she reappeared. I think she was partly glad it was not dead though also suspicious that we might be keeping it somewhere. The second event was a bit later when we could hear lots of splashes around the boat. I got out the big torch and yep we were surrounded. Not by hostile towns folk with burning torches and pitchforks but lots of small fish. Boy, did they not like the big light. We could drive many of them ahead of the beam, with the fish repeatedly leaping out of the water.



Then we saw them. The fish with the red eyes, were they some devilfish? Well no, just a fish that’s eyes reflected back the red wavelengths of the light from the torch. Watching these guys kept us busy for nearly an hour and only ended when all the other fish had gone as the red-eyed fish were trying to eat them.



After a slow breakfast, we headed into Airlie Beach. I was hoping to sail in under the BRS but no wind. The up side was that we got a last swim in before we reached Airlie Beach. It was very refreshing. Good idea there, Kaylee.



That afternoon I took the crew ashore, at the Yacht Club, closer to town so they did not need to carry their gear that far. That evening we meet for a final dinner at the Airlie Beach Fish Shop. We all enjoyed the food and then we said goodbye, as was Kaylee catching the evening bus to Townsville.



Another great cruise with a fabulous crew. Thanks guys for the fun, discussions and the cups of tea. And that brings me to an issue that I have not included in these blogs before but one that all the crews know very well. I am a tea fascist. I like tea that is made properly and I know how to make it properly. And as I am Captain of Hakura I state that tea is to be made properly.



I believe that you should set stands for your life and live by those stands and ask others to live by them when in your place and around you. I have set standards that include no steeling (hence I don’t like pirates), no putdowns (of others or yourself – and in the latter I do not succussed as much as I would like), and making tea properly. There are others but they can wait for another blog, maybe.



So I ask people on my boat (and wherever I live) to make tea properly. Whenever I make tea I do it properly, wherever I am. I also considered how people make tea before asking for, or accepting an offer of, a cup of tea. I don’t always say no if somebody is making it wrong, however, I always make a choice about the acceptance.



So how do you make a proper cup of tea? Firstly, you need some equipment, a teapot, some cups or mugs that are a good size and porcelain or glass, and loose leaf tea. I prefer Indian or Sir Lankan teas, especially those from the Assam Province of northeastern India. You can choose your tea, however, it must be loose leaf. Tea bags are right out. So far out they’re that the next universe is still too close for me.



The next step is to put on fresh water to boil. While waiting get all the other steps ready, the tea caddie, the cups, the milk and the sugar if you must. As the water begins to boil, use some of the water to warm the teapot.



As Molly Bloom says “Poldy… Scald the teapot.” from “ULYSSES” by James Joyce.



Now black tea is made with boiling water, not recently boiled water, or worse still, water that has been boiled some minutes ago. It is made with water that is boiling, i.e. at or as close to 100 Celsius as it is possible to get. Green tea is made with water at 90 Celsius and coffee at about 85 Celsius. So take the pot with the tea leave in it to the boiling water and add the water to the pot.



How much tea to use depends on the size of the teapot, the ones on Hakura are 2-teaspoon pots. They always have two spoons irrespective of the number of cups being made.



Now one must wait between 3 and five minutes before poring. Not 2 or 6 or more. The enamel pot on board has a good built-in indicator. When the metal handle is very hot to hold, almost too hot, the tea is ready. It takes 3 to 4 minutes to get this hot and after another 3 minutes the handle begins to cool.



Now for one of the big issues in tea making, milk or tea first? I prefer milk first because that is how I learned to do it. The Queen (of UK, Australia and NZ) has her tea first. You choose.



Now sit down with your friends and enjoy. Discuss life, the universe and everything. Put the phones down. Look at each other and enjoy life.



These are the rules on Hakura and which I bring with me wherever I go. And yes I travel with a teapot, tea leaves and a mug or two.



It takes new crew a few goes to get it right but they all say it makes for a better tea. The hardest step seems to be using boiling water. People seem to think you must turn of the gas as soon as the water boils. No I say, use that noise to make you faster at getting ready if you are not already ready.



If you think this is just me I suggest you read the essays by George Orwell and Christopher Hitchens via this website – http://www.openculture.com/2015/04/christopher-hitchens-and-george-orwells-ironclad-rules-for-making-a-good-cup-of-tea.html



If you chose to follow these rules, I believe you will start to make better tea, you will enjoy your tea breaks more and you will share you teatime with each other more.



Also, make a cup of tea and share with somebody you don’t like, don’t know or even who you are afraid of. It will take time but I think you will feel better about yourself and maybe better about them. And even they might feel better about you (though that is their issue not yours).



So again, thanks to Mirrawinni, Simon and Kaylee for making the trips great, lovely cups of tea and the enjoyable shared times.





Capt’n Doug.

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Photos

On the helm
What more could you want while at work, a cup of tea and a GPS to guide you.

A cuppa
Another photo of our shared good times over a cup of tea.

Sailing downwind with just the headsail.
This type of sailing is common in the Whitsundays.

Comments

[frances nicol]

some fun crews you have!!
Great blog again Doug. You certainly have some interesting crews. Shall take it up to Dorothy. She enjoys them. Not sure what she will make of the tea making extraordinaire!! Bruce was quite amused:) Dorothy going OK. Scott coming to Hamilton for work this Friday so staying weekend here . Dorothy was extolling the virtues of her 3 boys today!! Thats after she had read the riot act to one resident-then been put in the "time out" spot . As the nurse said-it is nice to see she has some life in her. Cheers Frances