Our first albatross and seal!

Port Hacking to Eden, 13-19 January, 2015

We left Cronulla marina at 1100 on Tuesday in light winds and motored until 1315 when we finally had enough wind to get the spinnaker up.  By 1500 the north-easter was up around 15 knots and we were making good time towards Jervis Bay. The breeze continued to build so at 1845 we dropped the spinnaker and by 1930 we had a double reef in the main and were rocketing towards Jervis Bay.

Well named Point Perpendicular guards Jervis Bay

We got hit by some 30 knot gusts going into the bay past Point Perpendicular and set a new Phase2 speed record of 17.8 knots!  We motored up to Hare Bay and dropped anchor at 2230 in what we discovered next morning to be a pretty bay with a white sandy beach.

We had an early start to get to Batemans Bay at high tide over the bar, and up the river under the opening bridge.

We anchored off Budd Island where there was much less tide than further downstream. This was a great 2 sail reach in a strong NW that eased by luchtime. We spent the Thursday night off Snapper Island in Batemans Bay as we wanted an early start to cover the 91nm to Eden.

The sea was a bit sloppy initially and we motored until 1000. Slow progress until we got the spinnaker up at 1300. We carried it until 1745 when the wind got above 20 knots again. In half an hour we had a double reef and in another hour we were motoring in no wind! About this time another pod of dolphins joined us and we sighted our first seal and albatross.

We dropped anchor in Snug Cove on the northern shore of Twofold Bay (Eden) on Friday night but moved Saturday morning to East Boyd Bay after a strong southerly came in. Anchoring inside the navy wharf in crystal clear water and white sandy beach, this bay was an unexpected delight.

Today we kayaked around to the historic Davidson Whaling Station which operated from the 1860s to 1929. We were fortunate that the family cottage above the station was also open to visitors. Worth a visit if you are in Eden.

Cave in East Boyd Bay

We are about to head back to Snug Cove (doing the Eden shuffle it is called) as a northerly is expected tonight. At this stage, Wednesday is looking good to head across Bass Strait.

PS Unlike Brisbane it is cold down here and we have the quilt on the bed. Print this post