Point Cook

The forecast was for light northerlies, swinging round to moderate South westerly in the afternoon, about as good as it gets this time of year. Anne agreed to come out with me today, her inaugural trip in the Core Sound. Our past boating outings have not always gone that well, so I was keen to make sure all went as smoothly as possible.

Light variable winds meant it took a good few hours to get past Point Cook - slow but pleasant. Soon as we turned to go home, the wind kicked up. We followed the coast around, and anchored off a sandy beach. We had lunch and a spot of beach combing for old times sake.

When we set off for home, the wind had picked up, and we surfed along on a broad reach aided by about 15 knots breeze, top speed 6.3 knots. It was fantastic to feel the surge of speed in the gusts. The boat feels wonderfully stable and sure footed in those conditions.

I decided to anchor off AYC to furl the sails but dropped anchor in weed, not sand. The result was a rapid backwards progress towards the sand bar, as the weed choked anchor skidded across the bottom. I managed to get sails furled and engine going before we beached, but it was a bit rushed and I was not as organized as I would have liked to be heading back to the ramp. Moral, make sure there is sand for the sand anchor. I think I was getting a bit tired by this stage, and our docking, while not catastrophic or damaging, was a little clumsy.  Nonetheless overall it was a thoroughly enjoyable sail.  The Core Sound is a lovely boat, and we are looking forward to many more adventures with it. About 11 nautical miles, top 6.3, moving average 2.5.

We read when we got back that a couple in their sixties capsized their boat - a new power boat, not a yacht -today in the bay at Blairgowerie, with the chap now in hospital in a serious condition. A sad reminder that things can go very wrong very quickly on the water.