We are in the South Indian Ocean making our way from Indonesia to the remote Australian territories of Christmas and Cocos-Keeling Islands (aka Cocos Is). Indonesia was a quick stopover but we had enough time for the crew to fly to Perth and pick-up a valuable piece of equipment and visit family, while the skipper …
Continue reading Leg 10 Lombok to Christmas Island and Cocos Island.
I was lucky enough to be invited to sail from Darwin, Australia to Lombok, Indonesia last week with Fies and Matt. It helps that Fies is my sister so Matt had to ask me. It was 4th to 11th September 2023, the week that the wind did not blow in the Timor sea I arrived …
Australia is a land of such extremes - we arrived in horrendous gale-force conditions and are now leaving Darwin in less than 5 knots of wind. Darwin has been a unique stopover full of gritty Australians happy to give a hand to us “yachties“ traveling through. It is called the outback state and is known …
Australia is a big country and we had 1200 miles of it to sail from Mackay to Darwin. We finally left Mackay after doing more boat repairs and maintenance and the always necessary provisioning. Mackay was so pleasant it was hard not to stay. We bid a sad farewell to our friends on Mistral. They …
We sailed across the Pacific Ocean from Panama to Australia. This final leg of 1050 miles was by far the most challenging, treacherous and difficult. This was the homecoming we’ve been so excited about but did not realize that it was going to be in such horrendous conditions. Our departure was scheduled for Thursday July …
Sailing is a very fickle endeavor and our Fiji to Vanuatu sail encompassed the farthest reaches of comfort. The 450 mile sail from Musket Cove, Fiji to Port Resolution, Vanuatu was our best yet. A fast and comfortable reach with 15 to 25 knots of wind off our beam in mostly moderate swells which was …
Fiji is beautiful with stunning anchorages and epic diving spots, warm and friendly people with a ready “Bula” greeting and consistent warm weather. "Fiji Water" We decided to pull the boat out in Fiji for some urgent repairs and fly back to Melbourne for a few days to visit family and friends. Our encounter with …
Yesterday we endured a harrowing experience. We ran aground on an uncharted reef off the remote Eastern Fijian island of Vanua Balavu. The skies were overcast and the light was very flat. We were travelling with two other sailboats. Matilda was in the middle following the Swedish flagged Hallberg-Rassey 64 Hoka Hey with the Dutch …
We are racking up the miles, having just completed a very uncomfortable downwind 280 mile journey from Tonga to Fiji. It is a widely accepted fact that the term “rock and roll” originated in the South Pacific as sailing vessels were sailing downwind and being violently and continuously tossed from one side to the other. …
We made it to Tonga after a brief layover in beautiful Niue. The Pacific Ocean has dealt us many different situations and we are glad to be hiding out in Tonga for a while. Niue was a quick stopover and was very welcoming. We were among the first visitors to the island since the beginning …
Sailboat Matilda 