We started our sail to Flinders island with a cracking 10 knot speed. Everyone was feeling the excitement! This is what it’s all about- being one with the wind, and feeling that rush. Soon enough, the white sands of Marshall beach, Flinders Island were in our reach. The afternoon included a walk to an unusual and impressive rock on Flinders island accompanied by celebratory beers for our first successful day of sailing.

The following morning we were up early, keen to harness that wind again and head north across Bass Straight. The plan was to continue to use the wind as much as possible, so sailing through the night was on the cards. We buddied up and did just that, sweating to get the main powered up. The Bass Straight crossing was everything we had wished for, thanks to some tactful and well timed decisions by our skipper Jason.

After our crossing, the wind again died down to just a puff. We then turned to the trusty motor and continued up to Jervis Bay to beat a strong northerly that was coming our way, which we needed to take shelter from. Jervis Bay provided a beautiful shelter, affording us some time to recoup and for a few of the crew to do a walk up to the local historic lighthouse.

Before our last leg up to Sydney we held a crew dinner. Kind words exchanged and memories recapped, we paused to acknowledge how far we had all come in only 10 days.

Again the excitement was palpable as we cruised into Sydney harbour the next day, taking our time to enjoy the sights, with some well timed and masterful skippering by Jason. As a crew we hoisted John, first mate, up the mast to do some checks on the boat and to capture the moment from a unique perspective! 🤟☺️

Everyone worked together tirelessly over the whole trip, with such enthusiasm for being part of the crew and getting amongst nature and all it has to offer. We all formed some life long memories and have got new goals as a result of the incredible experiences we now have under our belts. Here’s to a “top hat” crew and future sailing endeavours!