After a longer-than-anticipated stay in Melbourne, we are on our way again! Our next planned stop is Apollo Bay, approximately 15 hours of sailing away… so I’m departing this afternoon to catch the slack tide at The Rip (Port Phillip Heads) and carry on overnight for a daylight arrival.
Our stay in Melbourne was much longer than planned because I arrived rather exhausted after our passages (from Sydney around the southeast capes), and Windfola’s engine was in need of some serious love. While in Melbourne, I also had the opportunity to travel north by train and visit some friends in New South Wales that I’d had to speed past to catch weather windows down the coast. Zia and I even got to do some camping! I also came down with a bad bug and spent a week very sick in bed… I haven’t done the best job of balancing passage making and rest, so it was a big reminder to me that I need to take better care of the skipper in future. 😅
I gave a talk and taught an Intro to Inboard Diesel Engine Workshop for women aboard Windfola for members of RMYS, all to raise money for their upcoming program to get care-experienced young people out on the water! So stoked they’ve taken our message to heart and are finding a way to provide more opportunities for these young folks in their own community.
As we sail westward, I am always looking for opportunities to connect with state care-related or at-risk youth-supporting charities and their young people. If you know any people or organizations working in those spaces, please reach out to me!
Next up: Apollo Bay on March 10th, 2024
GOAL: West Australia by 1 April, 2024 ⛵️