Still at Cid Harbour

Friday 3^rd July 2015

The forecast strong winds turned up at the usual time at around 6 am. We had no desire to leave our anchorage here, which is relatively well protected. Everyone felt the same, so we stayed where we are.

High tide was at 10.35 am, and it was time to have a serious go at fishing, so I headed out in the dinghy with a rod and lure to troll along the shoreline to see what was there. Within 20 minutes I had a nice Broad Barred Mackerel, about 75cm long. They are reportedly good eating, so it was promptly filleted and put in the fridge.

Another run yielded nothing, and dropping a bait in a few areas around the reef nearby also failed to produce any results. Anyway, at least we have caught our first feed of fish.

After lunch, we went ashore and walked the track to Dugong Inlet, a pretty beach that was the base for a bunch of kayaker/ campers, who we later found out were university students from Latrobe University in Victoria, undertaking part of their degree in  some Sport and Outdoor Activites, and they were undertaking part of the practical part of the course which involved getting here by sea kayak and camping at Dugong Inlet for a couple of weeks under pretty basic conditions.. Anyway, one of their kayaks was in need of repair and they didn’t have the tools to do the job.

Kim, Carole and Mark at Dugong Inlet

Steve approaching the kayaks under repair

After a good look around the beach, Steve offered to help repair the kayak, and they agreed to paddle around to his boat, where a full set of tools was available. We are all anchored in the bay around the corner, so for them it was a fair paddle around and for us, a long walk back through the bush to Sawmill Beach.

Along the way, Steve sheared  pin on his outboard prop , hitting a hidden rock, so we towed him back to his boat. The repair task was bigger than anyone expected, with a couple of stainless steel set screws firmly frozen into the aluminum they were screwed into. After all else failed, we used a battery powered angle grinder that Mark has on board Koonya.

During the process, Kim made the 2 kayakers a cappuccino, which they took many photos of, to show their colleagues when they returned. They still need a part coming from the mainland to complete the repair, but at least it is fixable.

We gathered on Wilparina for sundowners, and then back to our own boats for dinner. Tomorrows plan will be worked out in the morning.