Saturday, 18th March 2017
What a magic way to spend the Labour Day long weekend. Great weather, great company and time spent messing around on boats!
Ten boats headed down the Bay on Saturday morning aiming for Queenscliff. It was a very pleasant day with flat seas but not quite enough wind for most of the yachts. Oh well, on with the motor and look forward to the destination. Most boats spent the night at QCYC, many making use of the pizza oven. What a fantastic selection of toppings.
After dinner George Shaw hosted a quiz session, with much laughter shared and prizes, presented by Gill Stubbs, for the best answers. With the winds picking up overnight and coming from the east there was much discussion about destinations for the next day.
The group planning on overnighting at Martha Cove waited until the wind had dropped below 20 knots and headed out the Cut at about midday on Sunday in brilliant sunshine. Sails were soon hoisted and all were looking forward to a pleasant sail but alas the wind had abated completely. So on with the Iron Sail again. Entering Martha Cove was a nervous time for some as the depth at the sandbar at the entrance was a concern. All managed to enter without touching the bottom but it was very close for some. Refreshments and stories were shared on the dock before dinner. A beautiful sunset in totally calm conditions, Magic! After dinner most crews found their way to Meltemi for dessert and more shared stories. After a leisurely breakfast most boats headed out for the trip back to SYC. Light breezes greeted us again but there was just enough to tempt Endurance and Kaos to hoist their spinnakers. Three hours later it was time to drop them and enjoy an exhilarating beam reach for the last hour back to SYC. Meltemi and The Secretary had to wait for high tide in the afternoon but they too enjoyed a great sail back.
