Year 2 – 20 March 2025 – Bundaberg (“Bundy”)

If anyone reading this and is free from late June to mid July 2025 to come to Australia then do contact me as I am short of crew during this period at present.

It was a bit more promising when we woke and Trevor cooked bacon and eggs to cheer us up. I had caught Trevor’s cold and my nose was streaming. Odd catching a cold in a warm climate. David Phillips was arriving at about 12.30pm at Bundaberg and I had had a message from him when he got to Singapore. We went ashore to the marina to leave the dinghy and spoke to the marina who wanted to charge us $20 to leave the dinghy (bit cheeky). We wanted to provision and it was a 20 minute walk to the shops. Luckily one of the marina guys said go up to the commercial wharf, it is free and it is only 200 meters from the shops.

We went up to the commercial wharf and moored the dinghy. It was weird as we were in the middle of nowhere. We walked toward some properties and asked directions and came to a small shopping centre. We managed to get a load of stuff but it was not a large supermarket. We got it all in a trolley and wheeled it back to the dinghy. We returned to Stormbird and packed everything away.

Trevor got on with a job and stuck one of the lazarette tops and I started to look at planning year 3.  The sun came out and it was a pleasant rest of the morning. I had not heard from David as he said he would message when he was in a taxi from the airport. I looked over to the marina at about 1.00pm and there was a man wheeling a case. I waved and he waved back and he had arrived.  

We collected him and brought him aboard and gave him a welcome beer. David bought my last boat Luce di Mare a Halberg Rassy 412 and he is a keen sailor. We showed him around and had some lunch and he got settled. Trevor carried on with his job and we chatted and the afternoon passed pleasantly.

We decided to go ashore but the restaurant was closed so the only alternative was a hotel bar near the shops. We therefore went back on the dinghy and took the supermarket trolley back. The hotel bar was like the inside of a betting shop with a bar and some tables. The food was ok and the beer was cold but it was an odd place. David decided to stay in as he had a tiring journey and would have an early night.

Outside the hotel was a bottle shop drive in and these Ozzies turn up and fill up their trucks of course ensuring they do not overdo it on the sherry!! The picture of the day is one such shop. Trevor and I returned in the dark and I went to be early as I did not feel great. We now have one more ccrew member and one more to follow now on Saturday. We will go and explore Bundaberg tomorrow.

Need/Opportunity Year Two

I am in need of more crew from late June to Mid-July so if of interest do email me at  hine.nick9@gmail.com  

In year two I will be going from New Zealand to Sydney and hen up the Eastern Australian Coast, Indonesia and then through Bali, Singapore and on to Thailand to end year two about the end of November 2025.

The blog will continue as we continue the journey. If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog then do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com