Start Loc: Michaelmas Cay (16o 36.28'S, 145o 58.40'E)
Narrative: The anchorage at Michaelmas Cay was a lot more comfortable than at Vlassoff Cay, and we all got a reasonable sleep. At 9:30am we all went ashore. People are only allowed to land on a small part of the beach, and only between 9:30am and 3:00pm. The first tourist boat arrived at 9:30am as well, so we only had about 15 minutes before they all came ashore; but that was long enough.
After putting the outboard on its bracket, raising the dinghy on the davits and completing the other preparation, we dropped the mooring buoy at 10:08am and set sail for Port Douglas. The forecast was for SE winds at 15-20kts, but we had S at about 15kts. That suited my heading of 280 degrees just fine, so with one reef in the main and full head sail we sailed on a beam reach, making 5.5-6kts through the water and 6.5-7kts over ground. Seas and swell were 1.5-2m, and it was good, comfortable sailing.
Unfortunately, it didn't last. By midday the winds had swung SSE and eased slightly to 10-15kts, so I had shaken the reef out of the main to maintain similar speeds. By 1:00pm the winds were more SE and weakened further to around 10kts, and the apparent wind was still a few knots less. The broad reach under full sail only had us making 3.2kts through the and 3.8kts over ground. At this rate it was going to take us a while to get to Port Douglas!
We decided that we really need to spend Monday in Port Douglas as well, as we want a sail maker to take a look at our main which will need some repairs shortly, particularly at the head of the sail. Hence, Heather rang the marina and changed our booking from Sat/Sun nights to Sun/Mon nights. We decided we would anchor up the river overnight tonight and then move back downstream to the marina in the morning. To help us get there, we dropped main and head sail and raised the spinnaker. From 2:00pm we sailed in SE to E winds of 6-8kts, making 3-4kts through the water and 3.5-4.5kts over ground. It was slow but comfortable sailing, and we were no longer in a hurry to get in.
At around 4:00pm we snuffed the spinnaker and motored into Dickson Inlet at Port Douglas. By 4:30pm we were anchored in the east-west stretch, just before the bend where Dickson Inlet becomes Packers Creek. The creek is lined with mangroves, but has deep water close to the banks and good holding mud. After mozzie proofing the boat, we took the dinghy downstream to the yacht club and had a cold drink. It was not a bad day.
End Loc: Dickson Inlet, Port Douglas (16o 29.63'S, 145o 27.47'E)
Distance run: 33nm (cumulative: 1681nm)
Engine hours: 1 hr, 10 min (cumulative: 8 hr, 45 min)