Shute Harbour to Townsville

We now feel that we've "done" the Whitsundays (and sailing the Whitsundays is a glamorous holiday that all trendy Australians strive to have "done") and we are ready to move on. Besides, we need to restock on groceries, diesel, water, gas etc. Fresh water in particular is always a problem. We considered paying 136 Aussie Dollars a night for a swish marina just so that we can re-provision, but then discovered that water is available at jaded rundown Shute Harbour, described in the guide book as a place "worth diligently avoiding". My kind of place! So that was our next anchorage, where we were greeted at the anchorage by a friendly turtle.

Anchoring is not quite as easy as it seems. If you go too shallow then you can hit the bottom when the tide runs out, and the tidal range can be up to 4 meters around here. If you go too deep then you can't see the bottom and if it's rock or coral rather than mud or sand then the anchor might not hold and we could drift into another boat or wash up on rocks if the wind picks up while we're asleep. Or the anchor might get stuck, and I can only dive down to about 4 meters to get it free. The amount of anchor chain that you let out needs to be about three times the depth or else the anchor will be pulled upwards rather than horizontally, and the anchor won't hold unless it get pulled horizontally. So when you're ready to anchor you need to know how much the tide might drop so as to be clear of the bottom and how much the tide will rise so that you know how much chain to let out. If you let out too much chain, because the water is deep (or because your sums were wrong) then when the wind or current changes direction in the middle of the night, and it always does, then you could drift onto another boat. Or you could drift onto a bommie. A bommie is a coral covered bolder that sits on the seabed and can be two or three meters tall and rises up to be shallow enough to whack your keel but is too deep to be easily seen. So all in all, finding just the right spot to drop the anchor is really quite tricky, as this snapshot of our GPS track of us wandering about in Shute Harbour records.

To experience a place one needs to see it warts and all, and Shute Harbour is definitely a wart in the Whitsundays area. First it lost out to Airlie Beach as the stepping off point on the mainland that serves the Whitsunday Island resorts, and then it was hit bulls-eye by cyclone Debbie in March. 260 km/h winds can do a lot of damage! We saw a few sad, washed up and abandoned broken boats.

But the boat ramp is repaired and in service and has a steady stream of friendly Aussies launching sport fishing boats. And there's a tap less than a hosepipe's length from where one can tie up a dinghy, so after 3 trips each with six jerry cans we've filled our water tanks. Shute Harbour has no shops, so after only one night we sailed on. It was a fast and pleasant sail with mild winds and strong current in our favour.

View from the helm with both headsails out, "gull-winged", an ideal sail configuration for a short dead downwind run:

In an hour and a bit we had covered the ten nautical miles to Airlie Beach's popular anchorage.

That afternoon we found our first supermarket in a month, an event that was quickly followed by fresh fish and salad for supper. We spent three full days in Airlie, stocking up on gas and diesel and groceries.

We took a bit of time off to just be tourists, strolling along the seafront boardwalk and gawking at the fancy yachts and rows of jet-skis in the fancy marina.

And finally we got to have a barbie! And a state sponsored one at that. In public parks all along this coastline there are these free electric barbecues. You just press the button wait a few minutes for the cooking plate to get hot and then you braai your meat.

After Airlie we needed to cover some distance before we get to the next destination where we'd like to spend more than just one night. So we sailed onwards and northwards, through the top of the Whitsundays with little islands to starboard ...

... and little islands to port:

Our routine for a few days became one of sailing on to the next safe anchorage which could be anything from two to eight hours away and setting the anchor for the night. Then, usually, launching the dinghy and riding to the shore, taking a walk on the beach, back to Pegasos for a wash, dinner, a  movie and bed. And then off again the next morning. Its a spectacular coastline largely undeveloped with super beaches.

From Airlie Beach we sailed 19 miles to Jonah Bay. 

Next day we sailed and motored through the Gloucester Passage, a narrow beaconed channel 

where we saw a whale a bit closer than we'd have liked right at the start of the narrowing channel. 

Then we anchored at Queens Beach a pretty suburb at the northern end of the town of Bowen with gardened walkways along the beachfront. 

Next day was a long 38 mile but very pleasant sail round Cape Upstart, this rather nicely shaped headland into Shark Bay (where we did see a shark!)

Next was a long tiring day of big swells and too little wind. We anchored behind a thin low flat sandbar called Cape Bowling Green which didn't give much protection and we had quite a rough uncomfortable night. 

And finally we sailed and motored 36 miles to where we are now, the City of Townsville.