Sometimes it is the unexpected that makes a passage enjoyable. We have done the trip from Port Phillip Bay to the Gippsland Lakes countless times. But this passage was just that: a series of surprises that made it fun.

We enjoyed a purple sunrise at Sorrento, a calm crossing of the Rip. We raised the main and jib once out and sailed at wind speed when we expected to motor-sail. In fact it was so good that we skipped a stop at Phillip Island and kept going straight to Wilson’s Promontory, arriving there at 9.30 pm. We watched seabirds soaring. We reconnected with cruising buddies on Purrfection we had not seen in years and shared a breakfast on Anui at Oberon Bay. We got a break in the weather and made it to the Lakes sooner than planned, albeit after a long day of motoring. It felt so good to be on our way!

Here are a few of our favourites shots along the way.

Back to our real home port

We are now sheltered at the Gippsland Lakes. We made it through the Lakes Entrance bar on Sunday night, arriving there at the wrong time, with the tide rushing out, but those big engines of ours worked a treat. We powered in… what a difference!

Having arrived during a long weekend and at the end of the Marlay Point race, we were warned that Paynesville was very busy. So we opted to pick up a mooring along the Reeves Channel not far from The Entrance and stayed there for the night.

It was totally calm when we woke up so we dinghied across the channel to the little beach on Flannigan Island and practised launching and landing the drone on terra firma. We are a bit nervous about using the new beast from the deck and are still learning how to use the Smart Controller. Chris thought she had taken dozen of photos… only these two were recorded – still a bit to sort out!

We moved to Paynesville later in the week and it was like a home coming. We might have Melbourne plastered on the back of our boat for our Australian ship registration, but Paynesville is our real home port. This is where we kept our successive boats over the years when we were still working. Felix, Medina, Take It Easy were all moored in the Gippsland Lakes, so we have a soft spot for the region, and know quite a few people here. This is also where we spent our first lock down on Anui two years ago! It was a no brainer to head straight for The Lakes to hide from strong winds, the remnants of a huge easterly low which devastated the East Coast of Australia.

We are having fun catching up with friends and have been very social, although us being on a mooring for part of the week rather than tied to a jetty made it a bit awkward. Gippsland Ports have added quite a few moorings throughout the lakes, but jetty-side spots are limited these days to 4 hour stays, so not as convenient as it used to be. We use the dinghy to get across the McMillan Strait, the body of water separating Paynesville from Raymond Island!

As you can see from these aerial shots, we had another drone flying practice. We are now all sorted! Precision landing, good control and high speed in the air, longer battery life, excellent vision on the new screen even in full sun, and we are impressed with the camera both in terms of colour rendering and sharpness of focus. We figured out what was happening with the trigger button too. The new controller has a half press shutter release to focus the camera, like a normal SLR. It was just a matter of holding the trigger button a bit longer to take shots! Duh!

How long are we here for? A little longer! As well as waiting for the easterlies to pass, we had to stay till our replacement visa cards arrived. Both were compromised and had to be cancelled. So now that they have turned up, all we need is for the wind to shift west and we will head off… It is looking promising for early next week.