Cid Harbor

60^th AUS Trip Blog 9

 

 

The offending dinghy

 

We all awoke early Monday morning. Whether it was due to the gentle rocking and creaking of the boat, the wind whistling through the rigging or, for me, the banging of the dinghy against the hull right outside my berth, we all emerged around 6 AM. Tea was brewed. Kank of course swam to shore as a prelude to  her run on the beach, walk on the track and kayak around the cove. All before breakfast.

The Commodore checks the wind while the radioman checks in

Our 8 o’clock radio call confirmed what we were experiencing – the wind was freshening. All boats with our charter company are required to be at their radios at 8 AM to hear the latest weather and tide information and to tell the company our plans. If they like our plans, well and good. If they think we are being foolish, they suggest alternatives.

 Our plan was to sail around the top of Hayman Island, which is open ocean, and then run down the east side of Whitsunday Island in preparation of visiting Whitehaven Beach on Tuesday. As we would be sailing into the trade-winds all day, we were preparing for a long sail with much practice in sail handling as we tacked down the coast.

 Radioman Dave relayed this plan, which was rejected. The base said that winds were building and that small craft warnings were expected in the afternoon. They suggested that we keep on the east side of Hook and Whitsunday Islands to use them as wind screens as we tacked south. So, consulting our chart, we decided to head for Cid Harbour, one of the most protected anchorages in the whole  chain.

 

On the way to Cid Harbor

Once underway we found the going was slow, even in the lee of Hook and Whitsunday Islands. Nonetheless, the boat handled comfortably and we all got a chance to man the helm and trim the sails. We got more comfortable with our GPS navigation system and even tried out the auto-pilot . We got to Sawmill Bay in Cid Harbor in the early afternoon, and anchored for the night.

 Approaching Cid Harbor, anchor crew on deck

With the afternoon before us, we decided to climb Whitsunday Peak, the highest peak on Whitsunday Island. At 437 meters elevation it did not seem that tall to me, but it was a steep and very winding track. In no particular rush it took us about 1 ½ hours to reach the summit. Kank was the first to reach the summit, of course!

 

 Kank rests at the top of Whitsunday Peak

We were rewarded with magnificent views in every direction. We also met Nick, a schoolteacher and coach, who had sprinted up the hill in 27 minutes. We felt like old fogies, which we actually are. 

From Whitsunday Peak we could see in every direction; as the sun began to set we wound our way back downhill to Margaret, who was busy in the galley whipping up a tantalizing pasta dish with pesto and caper sauce. We ate well, drank a bottle of wine and retired early.