Windy old Shark Bay
It was another early rise and departure from Carnarvon. Our neighbour, Sid, was up pretty quickly to say goodbye and help cast off the lines, once we kicked the engines over and rudely awakened him from his slumber. No doubt we will see Sid again next season when we return; he was staying put in Carnarvon and was already doing some work around town.
As earlier indicated, the forecast wasn’t great, but it was really the only window south for the past ten days and looking forward for the next ten days! Joys of cruising the WA coast - it can be tough when you are trying to head south against the prevailing winds. Anyhow, we were off and had a SSE wind to get us moving.; albeit sails up and one engine running.
One engine running for a reason - the starboard engine was spitting a bit of salt water where I had changed the heat exchanger and the seal on the end cap wasn’t quite 100% so I elected to turn it off. Added to that, there was still a small temperature differential - so something still wasn’t quite right and I wasn’t sure if it was the end cap or something else. So, our port engine was doing all of the work with some assistance from the sails.
We had decided to head to Cape Rose, which is located on the east side of the Peron Peninsula, about 5 miles north west of Monkey Mia. We hadn’t stayed here before, but it was protected from the southerlies, so we were keen to try it out. After 55nm, we arrived, the last 10nm being virtually glassy under the protection of Cape Peron. As we were approaching our anchor spot, we saw Kiko heading over from Monkey Mia. No doubt we would be having a catch up over a beer and wine - an opportunity for Nicky to meet Steve and Kerry.
We spent two nights at Cape Rose, including a sundowner with Kiko, and plenty of beach exploration before heading up to Herald Bight to sit out a forecast 30+ knot southerly. We had sat out similar winds there last season and so we new it was a great anchorage. The forecast winds arrived and being anchored in just under two metres of water we were comfortable inside Singularity. We had a few days of wind before a light easterly would allow us to sail around to Denham.
We did another hike up to Herald Bluff, retracing our steps from last year, noting how much drier it was this season compared to last. Certainly less wild flowers and native fruits such as the bush tomato, but still beautiful all the same. The colours of this area are amazing with the red earth contrasting against the azure blues of Shark Bay. Never get sick of the view and walking the long shallow bank back out to Bob and Singularity.
Our weather window arrived and we managed a little bit of sailing up and around the Cape before a complete glass off. Typically it is either blowing 25+ knots or nothing; and usually from the direction you want to sail in. The result was a very chilled passage around the Cap and then south towards Denham. Conditions were so sublime that we decided to anchor in the shallows just outside of Big Lagoon and then take the dinghy in for a look.
As the name suggests, Big Lagoon is a large estuary located about 10nm north of Denham and is accessible by 4wd from the Cape Peron road. It is a popular spot for tourists as it is an easy day trip, but also provides camping options, BBQ’s and shade shelters which are located next to the water. Small dinghies, kayaks and sups are the order of the day to navigate the shallow waters outside the main channel and the lagoon literally runs for kilometres and kilometres. We were able to explore the first two or so miles before it got a bit shallow and continued on as far as the eye could see. Denham was calling and we wanted to be in the anchorage before dark so we were soon picking our way across the shallows back to Singularity.
Safely back in Denham, we were awaiting arrival of a part for the engine to sort the little issue we were having, but it was also a chance for some socialising. We also had some admin to attend to, more on that later, and so a dinghy and walk down to the Community Resource Centre was in order. Steve and Catriona Reynolds live in town and Cat helps run the resource centre so we were soon reunited and having a catch up on the last 6 months since we passed through. We were able to get some printing done before the legend himself, Steve OAM arrived and we headed downtown for a coffee.
Steve is a Ranger with DPIRD and looks after wildlife in Shark Bay. He is not only passionate about it, but a walking talking encylopedia so we love spending time with him. We knocked off a coffee and then Steve offered to give us a quick run around town, including a run to Little Lagoon which is just outside town and is a fabulous spot for an explore and a swim. Steve was excited to share that our long time buddies, Roger and Lisa, were heading to town for a few days and so dinner plans were made and we were excited to have an opportunity for a big catch up.
Encouraged by Steve, we did a dinghy run in Bob from our anchorage up to and into Little Lagoon. Super shallow on the outside flats and we had to pick our way into the entry point, but were rewarded with super clear water as we snaked our way upstream to the actual lagoon. After a walk and explore it was back in Bob and downstream and back to the boat.
Next day was AFL grand final, so we headed to the most westerly pub in Australia to watch it - the Shark Bay Hotel of Course! Roger and Lisa arrived, dumped the caravan and joined us and we squeezed into the front bar for a burger, beer and our first game of AFL for the season! We had a few days hanging out together, including a run out to the hot springs at the Peron Heritage precinct which is located not far from town. The site of the original Peron Station still has the original shearing sheds and quarters and was a real delight to wander through. We even managed a few minutes in the artesian hot tub before heading back to Little Lagoon where we parked right on the water and cracked a couple of beers. Back to the boat and then back to shore, walk to pick up Roger and Lisa from the Caravan park and up the hill to Steve and Cat’s place for dinner. All good fun until it comes time for the night dinghy run back to the boat - in 15 knots of southerly of course!!
Our engine part arrived and, in between squalls, we headed west to Dirk Hartog Island and onward to Shelter Bay. There looked like a weather window for the run south and so we were keen to get to Steep Point, where we could hang out and explore. The trip over was pretty lumpy with a stiff southerly squalling in and out, and up to 25 knots. The trip was made a little more bearable once we were in the relative shelter of Blind Strait, the passage between Dirk Hartog and Herrison Prong, which is essentially the mainland. A lot less fetch = more pleasant conditions!
We spent the next five days anchored up in Shelter Bay and the wind didn’t really go under 20 to 25 knots from the south and south east for the duration of our stay. It was howling to the point you couldn’t put anything down on the front deck or cabin roof without it quickly disappearing over the side! We still managed to get some walks in, including east down past the Ranger’s house and west up towards Steep Point itself.
Pete was super stoked to finally resolve the niggle in the starboard engine, part of the MacGyver solution being to stick the kite pump into the sea strainer, place his thumb in the outlet hose and then pump like hell with the other hand forcing air back down the sail drive inlet. It seemed there was a small shell or some other growth restricting water flow and, after a couple of goes, it was clear and Pete was high-fiving himself. We were back in business with two good functioning engines. Happy days!
As the weather window got closer, more and more boats arrived and soon we had half a dozen neighbours, including a very impressive little super yacht called Akiko, all preparing to head south. A couple of the boats left the day before, which just makes you second guess your own forecasting, but the majority were shaping up to leave on the Saturday. The forecast was pretty marginal, but once again the first window in about four weeks and it would be at least another few weeks before we got our next opportunity.
Saturday 7th October…. 0445 wake up for a 0515 departure; our plan to be sailing out of Steep Point right at first light. Only 190nm to Geraldton!!
