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10/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 206 August 9, 2019

Today we spent in the airport.....our flight from Sydney to Brisbane was delayed seven hours. In about 45 minute increments. Lars watched a Netflix on the computer and I read Dan Brown’s new thriller, Origin. We finally made it to Brisbane and had a three hour layover before we headed back to Mackay. A long long day. We made it back to our boat at midnight.image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 206 August 9, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 206 August 9, 2019
10/08/2019

Selkie - Finland for Selkie

The Finnish Archipelago started out slow and easy with hikes and berry picking amongst the islands at anchorages. We were the first to squeeze into Helsinki, and I knew that we loved the marina and the town straight away. The best part of getting around were the glorious electrical scooters. Blekholmen, the yacht club island we all docked at, had beautiful weddings all weekend. After Helsinki, we went back out amounts the islands hoping for the best. We were quickly humbled on day one. The islands and rocks are everywhere, and we managed to go straight towards one. Locals quickly helped us, the mysterious beauty became a dangerous, stressful one. Don’t get us wrong, we rated Finland as one of our top three favorite countries right from the beginning, but everyone has to be very. read more...


09/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 205 August 8, 2019

Our last day in Sydney. It went by way too fast. Started the morning with a tour of the lovely old Endeavour ship replica. Like going to Mecca for us wooden boat junkies. We’ve been sailing in the wake of Captain Cook for five years. How amazing to be on his replica Endeavour. A very sweet treat! Then we had lunch in the beautiful legal districts a street cafe. From there, we enjoyed a tour of the magnificent Sydney opera house. What a piece of art it is!! We strolled through the streets, found a yummy Turkish take away place to grab a delicious dinner at, and savoured this beautiful city one last sundown.image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 205 August 8, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 205 August 8, 2019
09/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 204 August 7, 2019

We started the day sorting out our phone/WiFi situation. This culminated in the purchase of an I phone 8. Nuff said. From there we explored The Rocks district, climbed the pylon tower look out on the Sydney bridge, strolled throughthe Park, caught a ferry to Manly Harbour. We fell head over heels in love with this quaint sea side town. The golden beach is framed by majestic pine trees, and a lovely boulevard walk for miles along its gentle curve. When we came back on the ferry we explored the Queen Victoria building after dark.image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 204 August 7, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 204 August 7, 2019
09/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 203 August 6, 2019

We awoke at 04:00, jumped in a taxi at 05:15, jumped on a plane at 07:30, and were happily ensconced in our Ibis room a little after 14:00 in Sydney. It is a beautiful , vibrant, clean, city. We are in Cockle bay at Darling Harbour and are extremely spoilt for choice on eateries, tourist venues, and lovely streets to walk. A perfect holiday for us.image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 203 August 6, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 203 August 6, 2019
06/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 202 August 5, 2019

In the morning we availed ourselves of a couple more hours of WiFi, then attended the skipper’s briefing. Due to the big swells generated by the high winds of the past few days, we decided this was a perfect time to hop on a plane and visit Sydney for a few days. The boat is safe in Mackay marina, the weather window for Sydney is brilliant, and it just made sense to book it. We leave at 05:00 tomorrow morning! Today was spent packing for our little adventure, rolling out the entire anchor chain, flipping the attachments at the ends, remarking, and re rolling in in again. In the evening we attended the Bon Voyage party for Andrew And SWade. How we will miss them! image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 202 August 5, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 202 August 5, 2019
04/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 201 August 4, 2019

Wallabies on the beach, prize giving and delicious dinner, and bittersweet fellowship.It was a full day! At 05:00 we were on the bus to Cape Hillsbouroughwhere we watched a bunch of wallabies jumping, boxing, and eating in the predawn light. Just amazing! Then we enjoyed breakfast at the camp there. When we returned to the boat Captain scrubbed, sanded, polished and then touched up varnish. We packed up and came to the Clarion Hotel to use the WiFi, enjoyed the best WARC dinner of the entire journey, laughed and cried through the prize giving and came back to the hotel room to partake of more WiFi. A wonderful day!image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 201 August 4, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 201 August 4, 2019
03/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 200 August 3, 2019

This was a “free” day. We slept later than usual and after breakfast I went back to the coffee shoppe of yesterday to purchase two more bazzmzn pies and a loaf of bread. Too bad, no pies until Monday!! I was very sad. Then we went to find the bus stop. Here we met two lovely folks from further south in Australia that invited us to share their taxi ride to the shopping mall. At Caneland shopping mall we had reverse culture shock. Here we were back in a firstworld country! Wow! The most amazing shopping day ever! We set out with our list, and lo and behold, at the end of just three short hours we had found every single item on the list! Unheard of! Fantastic! We came home via taxi and put all our stuff away. Debra from Tumi came by and dropped off a world famous pinnacle pie. A really nice. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 200 August 3, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 200 August 3, 2019
02/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 199 August 2, 2019

Border force...checkBio security ....checkSniffer dog....checkCustoms...check Immigration...check10:00a.m. Legal in Australia! All that cleaning and staging was worth it....they went over the inside of the boat with a powerful flashlight. We passed. Not one thing had to be removed! Afterward, we had to move the boat to the outer dock in 22 knots ofwind! SWade came onboard to help us, and a whole village of folks on the dock caught us. Captain did a masterful job of getting us alongside in that huge crosswind, and our friends rallied and caught lines and tied us up. Yahoo! Once the boat wassecured, we explored the options on land; chandlery, laundry, coffee shoppe with bazzmanpie! Yum! We caught up with Ed from Aurora B and Glen from Danica 1.After lunch we walked the lovely beach just. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 199 August 2, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 199 August 2, 2019
01/08/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 198 August 1, 2019

05:14 ....29 knots of wind on the port bow, two knots of current in our favour. Every little bit a wet dog shake wave rushes across the bow. We are drinking coffee and attemptingto cheer each other up. We are making good speed..6.8 knots, and really enjoying watching the helicopters bringing the pilots to and from the big ships. We timed it right, riding the flood tide all the way til 11:00. By then, we were far enough in that current was negligible. There was the most magnificent army of squall system clouds coming from the south east. All day long they formed ranks, marched across the sky, blew 25-30 knots of wind that sent usgalloped along in, and dumped big drop rains on our salty boat. We were very happy for the beautiful rain washing a lot of the salt off. Of course, more waves. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 198 August 1, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 198 August 1, 2019
31/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 197 July 31, 2019

We have settled on a target time to tackle the enormous tidal flow at The Bond entrance to the Great Barrier Reef.( somehow I’m thinking we need Helen Mirren calling the shots here and bringing Bruce Willis as back up...oops or maybe I have my movies mixed up...flying cars and “shaken, not stirred” anyone? ) At any rate After much research, deliberation....feels a bit like a high school debate team sometimes....we have decided to make a go of the incoming tide at around 03:45 a.m tomorrow morning. Our hunch was gloriously backed up by Aurora B’S statement that they were aiming for the incoming tide at 16:00 Vanuatu time this afternoon. That puts us 12 hrs 45 minutes later as we are using OZ eastern time. Anyway it confirms that our calculations were correct. Yay! Especially after hearing. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 197 July 31, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 197 July 31, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 196 July 30, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 196 July 30, 2019
30/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 196 July 30, 2019

A “pose” for meditation on the 196th day of our circumnavigation....Time is a strange concept; it is six o’clock, no it is five o’clock, it is yesterday in my hometown, while now I am traveling in the land of tomorrow . My thoughts are arrested by the key word, “now”, now is the constant, the great forever. What matter the numbers we have ascribed to time in an effort to delineate it’s parameters, control it’s influence, dictate our motions in it? There is truly only now. Now it is daylight or now it is night, now it is the in-between of dawn or twilight. Now is eternal, immortal, an illusion sublime.Now is this place, momentarily mine. Oh my goodness, somehow, I’ve gone and written a poem!But it is only half poetry, the other half, prose. What to call that,now? With great amusement I. read more...


29/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 195 July 29, 2019

It is 06:00. To the east a slim smiling sickle moon peeks out of a teeny window in the clouds. At this point in it’s cycle, Sirius is outshining it in a bit of sky that is not overshadowed with condensed water particle vapour. On the horizon there is a sliver of light between the cloud bankand the edge of the dark sea. Not enough to matter yet; we have moved far enough west so as to be quite east, and the sun takes it sweet time rising in this place. The wind is erratic, alternating between howling in the rig at 22 knots, and allowing the main sail to flap when it drops down below 11 knots. Our speed vacillates from 8 to 5 knots depending on the strength of the wind. The waves however, are unrelenting in their consistency. Every five to six seconds one rolls under or against the side of. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 195 July 29, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 195 July 29, 2019
28/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 194 July 28, 2019

Morning radio net brought sobering news that Danica1 was having some medical issues. The bright side is that in true excellent seamanship andkindness, Alora was shadowing them and standing by to put one of their crew onboard if necessary. All day we galloped along. Captain did research about our engine, ssb radio, and Mackay. I grimly hung on and cleaned up the salon. Each day of this whirlwind journey has found me battling grime in out of the way places like bilge access covers, cubbyholes, and hard to reach corners, as well as scrubbing floors, ceilings and walls. The goal was to do one room a day. I’m almost on track; having completed three and a half rooms in four days. All this toil is because rumour has it The Australia border patrol is quite picky, and a clean boat should help. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 194 July 28, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 194 July 28, 2019
27/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 193 July 27, 2019

All day we romped along on a screaming beam reach. The wind went from 16-22 knots, just perfect for our heavy boat. The only unfortunate bit is that the waves, which have had several days of over 20 knot winds to kick them up, are directly on the beam. It’s a very rolly, wet, ride. Occasionally we get a wave not quite in synch with its neighbors, that leaps at the bow like an unruly puppy. These waves tend to splash all over, just like a wet furry dog shaking itself. We are so happy for our silly “solarium” enclosure. The deck is getting a salt water bath, but we are snug and dry. At 17:00 the squalls started again. This is the third evening in a row that it has rained! The wind went up to 26 knots, so we tucked the reefs back into the main and Genoa. The wind clocked a bit to the east. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 193 July 27, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 193 July 27, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 192 July 26, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 192 July 26, 2019
26/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 192 July 26, 2019

We sailed all night in the company of Cadence, an Aussie Catamaran on her way home, Danica 1, Aurora B, and Alora. We also saw a few big fishing boats, all very well lit. In the morning Captain shook out the reefs and we were off like a race horse in the squally weather. After lunch with sustained wind in the 20 knot range, Lars put a reef in the main. Alora shot ahead and we lost sight of them both visually and on AIS. Danica1 passed us at supper time after we had tucked a reef into the Genoa and yet another into the main. A big squall hit with 27 knots of wind and lashing rain. I called Aurora B on VHF to warn them, as they were downwind from us. The squall hit them and temporarily knocked out their wind instruments and they had the adventure of an accidental gybe. We heard them. read more...


02/08/2019

Selkie - Russia for Selkie

Nick has studied Russian history with his dad all his life. It was the only history class that he received perfect scores in. A few years ago, Bill (Nick’s dad) died after a nine year battle with ALS, but we could feel his excitement for us after we cleared customs and headed into St Petersburg.Warning to all, though dangerous due to boat traffic, do not steer away from the buoys upon entry. I did. Oops. Nick always comes to the rescue. In Russia, they apparently love the jet ski. Big boys with toys paying attention to no rules. Anyway, tied safe and sound with the fleet at the yacht club, Selkie quickly found a playground and got some rest. In the days to follow, we toured the Hermitage and saw loads of art. We ate stroganoff at the nearby nightclub and enjoyed watching young adults. read more...


25/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 191 July 25, 2019

We paid our marina bill on Wednesday afternoon and received permission to depart before opening hours today. Our goal was to depart at 08:00. At 07:40 we let go the dock and mooring lines, drifted over the mooring balls and set off towards the land of OZ!One of the supreme advantages of our full foil keel with the propeller set in two feet above a steel bar running along the extension of the keel to the bottom of the rudder is this uncanny ability to slide over obstacles that would catch most rudders and props. Right out of the box we had wind! It was at 150 degrees to port so we put up the Genoa on the pole on the port side , boomed out the main to starbrd on a preventer and sheeted the trusty old Hoyt midline tight! Woohoo! Rocking and rolling we were off! By 16:00 the wind had shifted. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 191 July 25, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 191 July 25, 2019
02/08/2019

Selkie - Tallinn, Estonia for Selkie

On our morning upon arrival, our engine, which had a hiccup the night before and had been patched up by Nick, died again. We informed Mark and Cecilie. They were kind in finding us a raft up to to haul us in, but were also happy to catch lines if we sailed in. Nick got to work on the engine, and it was, of course, playgrounds and ice cream for the kids and me. We tried out the Hop On, Hop Off bus, and we got a bit of history and a bit lost. The next day, with engine part ordered, Nick joined us on the bus and we visited the Eppingi Tower. It was small and perfect for the amount of time we had. Walking along the wall, you come to an open door. There are no big signs and the medieval wall itself is breathtaking. Inside, the kids dressed up in every costume they could get their hands on,. read more...


28/07/2019

Charm - Vanuatu: Tanna Wild

Tanna Wild:Ashboarding Adventure in Port ResolutionThe day after arriving in Port Resolution and doing the night tour of the volcano, we did some adventuring with a new group called Tanna Wild.They took our family, Aurora B’s foursome (Ed, Gemma, Eva, Henry), and the children of Manihi (Patrick, Alec, Max, Daisy) on a multi-faceted adventure tour.We started with a swing from a giant banyan tree, overlooking the bay where the boats were anchored.This was basically a leap of faith out into the void of the drop-off under the tree, which was growing on a hillside.Tully wanted to do it, and based on her bravery at Cloud 9 (a floating restaurant in Fiji where people jumped off the second-floor deck), she probably would have done it but they didn’t have a harness small enough to contain her. read more...


Charm - Vanuatu: Tanna Wild
Charm - Vanuatu: Tanna Wild
Sweet Dream - Day 190 July 24, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 190 July 24, 2019
24/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 190 July 24, 2019

One last trip to the market for provisioning, a couple of meals cooked and stashed in the fridge, a trip to the fishing gear store,( thanks to Ian on Alora for telling us about this fun shop!), a few more licks with scrub brush and soap, flags down, kayaks washed out and lashed in, dinghy covered and also installed in back deck, Davits away, and we were ready. We attended the skipper’s briefing. It seemed like the time allotted to travel the 1150 miles wasn’t long enough. Especially given the weather forecast of two days of 15 knots of wind followed by a day of 10 knots. It seemed an impossible leg to complete. Even though we are not racing we didn’t want to arrive after a Friday afternoon and incur overtime charges. That leafs us just eight days to complete the journey. An average of 6. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 189 July 23, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 189 July 23, 2019
23/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 189 July 23, 2019

We took a tour to the beautiful Mele Cascades waterfall in the morning. The road meandered past a strange dichotomy of industry and poverty with no real rhyme or reason to the layout beyond the resorts which were perched high on the hills overlooking stunning water views. The waterfall park was gorgeous. Flowering plants spread their profusion of colour about, the clear green water flowed from pool to pool to pool as if the universe had sculpted its very own Japanese fountain right here in paradise. It was a very soothing, soul satisfying, peaceful place. After lounging about in chaises in a shallow pool, we climbed to the base of the falls and swam in the refreshing clean water. Most thankfully, I never saw the sacred eel that was swimming with us, and Lars didn’t tell me about it til. read more...


Charm - Vanuatu: Tanna Wild
Charm - Vanuatu: Tanna Wild
Charm - Vanuatu: Tanna Wild
Charm - Vanuatu: Tanna Wild
28/07/2019

Charm - Vanuatu 3

July 27, 2019 I just finished playing sailor and it turned out OK.We’re on the third night of our passage to Australia, with about 460 miles to go of a 1,200 mile passage.So far, the wind and waves have combined to make it a fast, if lumpy, ride.Fast and splashy.All of the hatches are shut but it has been cool out since Niue so people aren’t sweating too much down below.I am in fuzzy pants and my only jacket, which is just right for these conditions.A far cry from sweating on night watches in the Marquesas and Tuamotos! Back to my playing sailor – I came on watch at 9 pm with Joe and Steve off to bed.The winds were lower than they had been so I decided to take in the jib and put out the gennaker.The main was reefed and we had slowed to about 6 – 7 knots which felt quite slow after two. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 188 July 22, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 188 July 22, 2019
22/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 188 July 22, 2019

Captain started the day with 2 dives in the company of Helmut and Glen. I cleaned out the refrigerators and tidied the rest of the boat, then visited the very colourful farmer’s market. We ate lunch when Lars returned, took another afternoon nap, did a couple of errands then had a wonderful time catching up with everybody from the WARC at the sundowners party graciously hosted by our yellow shirt team at the yacht club bar. Another early turn in and good catch-up sleep finished off this lovely day.image1.. read more...


Charm - Vanuatu 3
Charm - Vanuatu 3
Sweet Dream - Day 187 July 21, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 187 July 21, 2019
21/07/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 187 July 21, 2019

We had a wild romp of a sail to Port Villa. After all the passages where we could barely eek out five knots of speed per hour, this one was the opposite. We spent the whole night reining in our eager filly. It seemed like the more we shortened sail, the faster we would go. By four am we were down to just a triple reefed Genoa and smack in the middle of the fleet. We made the decision to ease out between the boats and make a big arc towards Port Villa. We had been told not to arrive before 08:00 so we just went for a few extra miles sailing until 07:30 when we came into the big bay at Port Villa. The staff at Yachting world marina are amazing! Lemaura and her crew greeted us, escorted us by boat to a place on the wall, put a very nimble Willie on board with us to take care of the. read more...


Charm - Vanuatu 3
Charm - Vanuatu 3