Monday, October 2, 2023

Monday 2nd October 2023 – Darwin

I was up at 0600, as I had a lot of things to do before leaving the marina. I had booked the lock for 09:00 as we had to get out on the high tide, and I would have to do the remainder of boat jobs on anchor at Fanny Bay before heading off. 

I also had to do a quick last-minute trip into town to pick up some items we had forgotten and needed. On the way back I picked up Luke who I had asked to come with us through the lock for assistance. 

We made it back to the marina just in time and right away we threw the ropes and headed off into the lock. I managed to get through without touching the sides and headed out through the channel on the fast-outgoing tide. 

I dropped Luke off on the public fisherman’s wharf, and Claudia & I continued on the five-mile trip around to Fanny Bay where we were to spend the day, before heading off around 5 pm. I got distracted at one stage and managed to hit a channel buoy along the way taking a bit of bark off on the freshly painted port bow. 



I dropped the pick at Fanny Bay and did a lot of the remaining boat jobs on my list and finally programmed in all the way points for the sand bar crossings for the King George and Berkeley River’s. I had also been trying all day to get the GPS tacker going on my satellite phone while I still had GSM coverage without any success.

At 17:00 I pulled anchor, and we headed off into a beautiful sunset on our way to the King George River. I hoisted the main, but it was mostly for aesthetics as the wind dropped right off and the sea began to glass out.

 

Finally, at 18:00 with one bar of signal showing on my phone, I got an email from my satellite phone service provider saying if I still wanted to have GPS tracking, I would have to upgrade my subscription to a higher level and pay extra. I have been using this service for the past four years and now these basteds want me to upgrade and pay more for the same service, well after this trip I think I’ll investigate changing to StarLink.

I just managed to upgrade my subscription just as my phone lost connection and I messaged Luke on the satellite phone, and he confirmed my GPS tracking was now working.

The breeze kicked in after dark and conditions became a little choppy, but I was able to sail all through the night averaging 6 - 7 knots.


Track Sirocco’s progress

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