Hammo to Townsville

S 19^o09’.50’’, E 146^o51’23’’

 

Hammo to Townsville

Overview: the past 10 days, with friends Pam and Will aboard for this section, have been filled with great days of sailing and some lovely anchorages. The crew and skipper all indulged in our daily ration of grog (read spirits and wine) but not the usual British Navy ration of ale – 1 gallon per day (4.5 litres in current parlance).

 A day or 2 visiting favourite haunts on Hammo.

Either a small ship or a large toy. Either way its just proverbial dick waving.

At the impressive Hammo Yacht Club - for a look see

At the Hammo yacht club, succumbing to drinks

Sailed briskly across to Woodwark Inlet from Hammo in 15-24 Kts breeze. No swimming there due to it being mainland hence croc territory,  - met 3 Robinson Crusoe types on the beach who seem to eke out an existence on creaky old yachts held together with fencing wire, by catching fish off their boats and having a daily BBQ on the beach, with copious amounts of grog. Sweet until the liver gives out.

Old disused lighthouse

Then to Gloucester Passage / Monty's, a narrow channel between the mainland and the large and very hilly Gloucester Island. Idyllic conditions and we stayed 2 days, just chillin’.

Modern cameras get so much user friendly

 

A rolling cloud at Cape Gloucester

Bowen mural

Pam takes the wheel

A quick day visit to the town of Bowen – a VERY quiet place almost moribund without the large murals, then onto the cutesy named Cape Upstart  for an overnight anchorage – again a brisk downwind sail at speeds to 13.1 Kts in 18-24 Kts breeze with the sails partly furled (reefed), where we explored the beaches and rocks.

Then a slower sail to an overnight stop at Cape Bowling Green – so named due to the cape headland being a very very long sand spit – as flat as the proverbial bowling surface? Fishing in murky waters yielded 3 nice 75cm juvenile sharks, which went back in to grow some more. And next day another brisk 34 nM sail onto Townsville – the second largest city in Qld, but the city centre seems oh so quiet. Like many places we have visited, the locals seem to prefer to frequent the suburban malls rather than the so called CBD. John visited a dentist there for a filling fix etc. The Strand beach front is a stand out for a walk to the mornings coffee fix. Just as well caffeine is still legal.



Star jumps for exercise

 

Another jump

 

Captains seats on the beach

 

Cape Bowling Green

 

J&J and Cape Upstart rocks

 

Cape Bowling Green - deserted and unique

 

At Monty's

 

Kirra Kirra in the background

Good museum and Maritime museum at Townsville.

Bulky gloves were one way of slowing
down the bosun's drinking

Nice rocks

Seafront Townsville art



Lateral branches on the figs are self supporting -
just like Kirra Kirra

Seafront baths  - named after WW-II battle
reflecting Townsville's army association



Mock up of the Pandorra in the Townsville museum,
the ship that retrieved the mutineer's from the Bounty on Tahaiti



And we bid adieu to Pam and Will, who were sooo enthused to fly back to Melbourne, now experiencing one its’ coldest winters for some decades. Good snow season down there though. Our temperatures here on the FNQ coast moving higher daily with top temps about 25-28^oC and sunny with no rain for some weeks now and low humidity – nice.

 

Now I will have to admit that a taste or 2 of Small Cask Bundy rum that Will smuggled aboard was very pleasant and changed my view on the Bundaberg distillery – they can make decent rum, just not that often.

 Major disappointment of this section – no fish!! In fact one day Will and I fished for 2 hours and couldn’t get even a bite!

The Strand - Seafront Townsville

Highlights of the last 10 days:

·         Having friends Pam and Will aboard

·         Visiting Gloucester Passage and Monty’s resort  - swims off the boat and beach

·         Reaching Townsville and exploring its’ attractions.