Saturday 2 June 2012

Alcaro Bay to Port Essington

Hi everyone,
We had a great sail today from Alcaro Bay to Port Essington. We departed at 1000 and arrived at 2000. We logged 57nm for a route which should ideally have been 30nm. Unfortunately the winds were easterly which meant we were beating all day. Worse than that, the current was against us all day - only its strength appeared to vary. Our average speed by the log was 5.5kt but the average over the ground was 4.4kt. We tacked through about 95 degrees but our course over the ground changed by 140 degrees. Current is cruel! ;)

Zen Again Track
Despite the contrary currents it was a great sail. Clear skies. Winds of 10-20 knots. Seas/swell up to only 2m. We were accompanied by two dolphins for an hour or so, and saw one turtle. We also saw plenty of overfalls and small whirlpools near the headlands we passed.

Anchored off Black Point
We are now anchored in the bay immediately north of Black Point, which is on the eastern side of Port Essington, just south of the entrance. We'll clean up tomorrow morning then expect to move further south. There are about 8 good anchorages in Port Essington and hope to try several over the next few days.

Our last day at Alcaro Bay featured a run ashore and walk along the beach. Didn't see any sign of crocs, but we did see turtle, wallaby and (we think) buffalo tracks on the sand. The Wallabies appeared to have been digging up crabs.

Alcaro Bay beach
Zen Again at anchor
Wallaby tracks
Shark!
Turtles?
Hope all's well where you are.

No comments:

Post a Comment