We left Coffs Harbour Marina at midnight on Oct 6, arriving at Iluka Bay at 11:30 am the same day.
We had a scary moment soon after departing the marina when the engine temperature alarm sounded at the worst possible location, as we were approaching the sea wall to exit the outer harbour. Glenn’s quick realisation that we forgot to turn on the engine sea water intake saved us.
The rest of the trip highlights:
- A beautiful sunrise at sea that shortly after turned into a long pink line on the horizon as the sun was hidden behind the clouds.
- Seeing whales close to the boat. Out of the excitement I forgot to press record on the phone. It happens a lot to me. haha Managed to get some crappy photos when they were further from the boat. But nothing beats the real life experience.
- The rest of the trip we had some rain, some swells, the kind of weather when I go to my passage bed on the floor.
- Dolphins at Iluka bay were the welcoming party.
Our sailing friends from Wind Dancer left Coffs one hour after us, but arrived a couple of hours before us. Advantages of having a modern yacht.
From Iluka, we headed up the Clarence River, stopping at Harwood, Maclean, Brushgrove, Ulmarra and Grafton.