8/26/2014 1 Comment Scarborough - Still! We came into Scarborough over two weeks ago now, thinking we’d spend our last few days in the Brisbane region and then head off to Bribie Island, Mooloolaba and the Sunshine coast, and then on to Fraser.
Ah the plans! The weather while we have been here has been somewhat less willing to play along with us and we have been reminded again that some aspects of this sailing life are totally out of our control! We have had to let go of our expectations and relax, and go with what the reality is instead! With a good attitude! The predominant weather pattern for the past 2 weeks, and this week ahead, has been dominated by low pressure systems. There has been one trough after another, East Coast Lows that have been fed by troughs and fronts and as fast as one had collapsed another is on its way. This has resulted in big winds and bigger seas and while if we had a dead-line we would have had to press on and sail anyway, we have decided to wait it out and sail when the seas drop. After all, we are in no hurry and our goal has always been to calm our lives down not increase our stress! So we have remained in the marina, enjoying easy access to power and water, accessible shops and the use of a kind fellow live-aboard sailor’s car whenever we have needed it. We have done our ‘final stock-up shop’ twice now and look set to do it again on Thursday! And we have said good-bye to my sister and her family twice! We have, of course had to practice flexibility! While we have remained, we have made the most of having continuous electricity by doing lots of little niggly jobs on board – as well as some bigger projects. We now have a completely enclosable cockpit so that even in the worst weather we have some protection while sailing – so instead of all of us abandoning Peter in a sudden squall (after making sure he has adequate warm clothes and a hot chocolate of course!), now we can all be in and out and still stay dry. It is fantastic! Peter built the roof so that it looks like a step-up continuation of our existing cockpit roof, adjusting the boom to allow for it, and making sure it blended in with the lines of the boat, and then I sewed (using my awesome Sailrite sewing machine) clear plastic and canvas zip-up sides. Even when we are not sailing, it provides us with a new space on deck that is completely out of the weather – creating an additional dry space to sit when it rains which is wonderful. It is warm and sunny with lots of windows as well as the clear plastic sides, making it quite snug and even if there is a bit of rain – so it has become known as the sun room! Who would have thought that would have been possible! It was actually inspired by our friends Tony and Patricia’s boat Galatea, who we first met in Coffs Harbour. Galatea is a Spray with a centre cockpit/ saloon / pilot house on deck, a comfortable roomy space that you can steer from in all weathers. It looked so cosy and after spending an evening on board we talked about how we could make our cockpit a little more inviting in less-than-pleasant weather. Sadly the element of Argos that Tony and Patricia would like to replicate on Galatea – our unique aft window - is not so easily done! So there has been time to make and sew and build and do the little odd jobs that there never seems to be time for. And when we have not been working on these little jobs there has been a lot of weather watching and planning and decisions that ‘Friday is the day’, and then Saturday and then Monday……as the weather has looked to be improving and then deteriorates again! Sigh! We have, in the midst of all the ups and downs, decided that when we do set off we will sail directly north towards the Whitsunday Islands and by pass the Sunshine coast, Mooloolaba and even Fraser Island on our way up. Our plan at this stage is to return to Brisbane in the summer, spend Christmas with my sister and her family and then head north again and over to some of the Pacific Islands or New Zealand during the winter. So all the places we were going to stop at, we will visit on our way back down the coast – right now our goal is to get past Fraser Island where the weather pattern seems to change, and get to the warm sunshine faster! Right now Friday is the day…….fingers crossed!
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8/7/2014 2 Comments Another Milestone!Yes, another milestone has been achieved by all of us on Argos! We have left the Brisbane River! We came into the river a little over 2 months ago now with hopes of a lovely visit with family and old friends. This would be our first major river anchoring experience in a fast-flowing river and the first time we have made use of fore-and-aft mooring poles. I would have to say that Brisbane has become a place we could live in. We have thoroughly enjoyed our visit, had the best time possible with family and had some very lovely times catching up with people that I used to know many years ago when I was a young social work student at Queensland University, trying to make sense of the years of abuse I had so recently left behind. It was a treat indeed to introduce so many of those who came to mean so much to me, to Peter and the children and a huge treat for him to do a few odd jobs for different ones too! I feel as though we have been blessed and been a blessing at the same time. Brisbane, we will remember you for many things….. Peter says, I will remember you for life being laid back, and for accessibility to the city; For me, it has been all about connecting with my sister and her family, and refurbishing the lounge! For Erina the Chai Cart in Edward st where you can get the best ever slow brewed Chai tea is what she will remember Brisbane for, and happily we have some Chai to take with us and have already brewed some deliciousness this morning on our way! And for Liam it was the place where he discovered the book series about Percy Jackson that he has totally loved reading! There are no doubt many other things we could talk about – but suffice to say, Brisbane has been a highlight of our journey so far and definitely a place we will be returning to! Our plans, when we set off from Albany 3 years ago, were to sail continuously around Australia. We have modified that somewhat – at one stage we were thinking we might spend the winter up here in Queensland and then head south and aim for Tassie for the summer, but we are inclined to spend a little more time in Queensland so at this point we are thinking to take it as it comes, heading further north now, but maybe coming back down to Brisbane for the summer and then heading around the top next winter. One things for sure – we have fallen in love with Queensland and for now, that’s all we need to know! |
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September 2017
Our life aboard Argos has been seriously challenged this year with the surprise departure of our skipper. As a writer, diesel mechanics and the complexities of many aspects of Argos’ on-going maintenance are way beyond me! We would like to see Argos continue to sail and eventually hope to use her to offer support, encouragement and a break to people who are struggling in their lives. Any on-going help towards maintaining Argos would be greatly appreciated and enable us to achieve this goal.
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