It was all go when we picked up our friend Bill on Sunday at Airlie Beach and took off towards the Whitsunday Islands.
It was a tad windy: two reefs in the main hard into wind, we were going great guns showing Bill the power of Anui… 10 knots speed, flying and looking good to the point where another cat going the other way posted this on Facebook! « Sorry Anui, this pic does not do you justice. Just before taking the photo you powered up looking great ». Always special to get a photo of her under sail!
A few minutes later we blew the webbing on the clew of the jib and had to turn back to Airlie for a sail repair! We got some great service at Ullman Sails the very next morning!
A couple of hours later, we were back on board, putting the jib back on the furler!
Take Two, Sailing away
With all three of us keen for some nice sails, the odd walk and a few snorkels, we thought South Molle, Border Island, the Northern end of Hook Island and Hayman Island would be good destinations.
We have also been watching the nasty weather coming through as we post this. We are hiding… again! We have been out of internet coverage for a few days, but are having fun testing out Bill’s new underwater camera housing and dome lens for his iphone 12, and just chilling out. We’ll share more photos in the next post!
Our first snorkel was surprisingly reasonable at Border Island, Cateran Bay. We mainly saw soft corals and did notice significant bleaching but as usual we tried to focus on the positive.
We then moved to Manta Ray Bay at the northern end of Hook Island, to shelter from strong weather… again. We are out of internet coverage for a few days and will share more images in our next post.
It would be nice to be able to go out to the Outer Reef, but the weather reigns supreme, so we will see what we do next!
Sv-Anui 
Wow, it’s always something with the boat it seems, but I’m glad the sail was quickly repaired! The underwater photos look a bit hazy as though there is a bit of mud in the water column. Happy sailing!
Hi John, yes maintenance is always needed on Anui! The visibility was very ordinary at Border Island, hence the haziness of some of the shots.
Stay safe but have fun. Can’t believe the sail went. Bad luck but close to Airlie
Hi Sue, it worked out well – easy and quick fix! We were underway again the next day.
Sounds like it is all a bit wet and wild where you are. We have also had it wet and wild on and off but today got blue slies and over 30! But we are currently not having to deal with waves and swell. Hope to see you sometime later this season. Stay safe. Xxx Trish
HiTrish, yes the weather has been very odd. Making the most of what we get! Hope the trip is going well for you. See you when you get back!
Great to see you guys getting some underwater time finally! Great pics as usual.
How about that sewing machine at your sailmakers! Looks like it could sew steel plates together …. I fondly remember doing minor sail repairs with a hand turned Singer … good fun …
Yes the machine were air assisted! Serious set up and interesting to watch them in action!