Sailing Donetes

Well there we were, boat refuelled, jerry cans filled and secured, boat loaded, even called Fremantle Sea Rescue to log our trip: Snug and comfortable in our newly enclosed cockpit we departed, having carefully consulted all of the weather forecasts.  But sometimes the weather just does not behave.  That north-westerly front built quickly, hitting us with 25 knots of take this and not only turned the prospect of our trip to Mindarie into an uncomfortable one, but the weather window for our subsequent two day trip to Geraldton slammed shut with a resounding thud.:-( Faced with the prospect of an uncomfortable 4 or 5 five days paying extra fees in Mindarie Marina, which is quite exposed in north-westerlies, we reviewed our options and reluctantly decided to return to Fremantle. On the bright side we have a few extra days to stow the boat contents and complete some of the tasks left outstanding.  Weather opens up next week, so mother nature has shown us ...

And so today our journey begins, if in a somewhat low key, motoring to Mindarie. Our Iron Sail for the next few days After finishing the loading of supplies tonight, tomorrow we head off to Geraldton, again likely to be motoring due to northerlies and the need to get to Geraldton before weather closes in late Thursday. A day off in Geraldton Friday will be followed by an overnighter to Shark Bay and hopefully some warmer weather.

Weather dependent we hope to be departing Fremantle on Monday with an easy sail to Mindarie to shake out any issues before a two day sail to Geraldton. New boat card arrived yesterday with all of our contact details.

One Week To Go It is one week to go until we leave on our big sailing adventure.  The past month has been exhausting, frustrating, stressful and expensive.  With three days left at work and a couple of farewell functions to attend major outstanding issues are: Donetes 'straining at the lines' eager to depart: ex sails :-(   cruising permit to Indonesia clarification of check in requirements in Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand  Checkout requirements from Broome Setup of Predict Wind Account for weather forecasts Setup of E:mail on Iridium Go Satellite Completion of new Main Sail, fitting, measuring for patches, removal and refitting with patches Test Sail Move of boat to Mindarie Provisioning Boat Insurance Test Rainman Waterrmaker STOP, STOP, STOP...... Haha Passport Mug Shot Our Iridium Go Satellite modem is now activated.  Our Satellite phone number is 881623484893 It is starting to feel real.

Hello Donetes After a week of TLC farewell Alegria and Hello Donetes.  Catalan for Little Women, the name is a reminder of our wonderful girls, the times we have shared and will share in the future.  They will travel with us.