Pancakes at Pancake...

We spent a peaceful night in Pancake Creek but on waking and looking around could see we only had about 60cm of water beneath us – eek. Although we had sat safely in this place through both a high tide and a low tide with no issues we decided to move to get a bit more water under the hulls with the winds expected to increase to 30knots over the next 24 hours. Before lunch the winds had indeed increased and the fairly full anchorage was crowded with boats dancing furiously at the end of their anchor chains. We spent a very apprehensive afternoon watching the boats each side of us come to within metres of us then pull away, the big worry as the tide went out was that the increased swing room would mean the boats would actually hit each other. None did, but many worried skippers moved their craft to other parts of the creek, some even left altogether preferring to be outside rather than in.

Bustard Head Light

It was with huge relief to us (envisaging a wakeful night keeping watch) that in the afternoon the wind eased right back, the dancing stopped and we had a very pleasant sleep, waking to a beautiful day.

Bustard Head Lighthouse beckoned us. Bustard Head light was the first light to be built on the Queensland Coast – (the light at Moreton Bay is older but back then it was the New South Wales Coast as there was not yet a Queensland). The lighthouse was constructed from cast iron, prefabricated in London, bolted together then taken apart, shipped to Australia and reconstructed within ten months with the light first shining on June 29th 1868. The lighthouse was manned until 1986, then fell into neglect and sadly vandalised until a group of volunteers repaired and restored it, opening it and one of the lighthouse keepers houses to visiting public in 2001.

We set off on the walk up to the light in the company of Rob and Marg (from Run to Paradise), and after exploring the lighthouse we walked over the ridge towards Jenny Lind Creek, so named as a schooner, the “Jenny Lind” was wrecked here back in 1857. The view south encompasses the creek, a long stretch of beach and the towns of 1770 (named by Cook in 1770) and Agnes Water. After, we visited the cemetery, a small, sad group of white fenced graves, some unnamed, some being those of merely babies. The Bustard Head Lighthouse has earned itself the name Lighthouse of Tragedy and there is a book about its tragic past written by one of the lighthouse keepers, Stuart Buchanan, which we purchased.

Pancakes at Pancake Creek - Roger, Julie, Dennis, Bruce, Jamie and Kay

No stay in Pancake Creek would be complete without pancakes!!! And a group of seven of us joined Roger and Julie on their Schionning “Clawdette” to enjoy afternoon tea of pancakes with topping choices including maple syrup, lemon and sugar, jam, Nutella and fresh cream – delicious!!

A fire, Finska, and dinner ashore, a lovely last night in Pancake Creek

Our last night in the creek saw us on the shore, with a raging fire and a pot-luck dinner, playing Finska before the light died away. We had a very enjoyable evening with Robert and Sylvia (Phoenix X), Steve and Laura (Eaglehawk) and Rob and Marg (Run to Paradise). It was sad to say farewell to these lovely people we had met, most people are travelling north at the moment and we are going south, but we hope our paths do cross again one day.

It was delightful however, as we sailed out of Pancake Creek, to be waved away by Steve and Laura, braving the chilly morning in their jamas.

Our Bundaberg anchorage - right up in the city, by the bridge

A great sail to Bundaberg, this time we went right up the river to anchor just in front of the bridge at Bundaberg Central. A totally different outlook for sure – lights and city noises not being what we have become used to.

Saturday and Jamie’s birthday, poor man, I dragged him off to the shops – not his favourite pastime – in fact not even his second or third favourite!!!  I think I was forgiven though when I cooked him roast pork with crisp yummy crackling for dinner.

That afternoon some truly considerate person lit a fire that spewed large black globs of ash all around. Sol is covered with this horrid mess. There is a wedding party having photographs on the riverside, they are being covered with this horrid mess. The water in the river is covered with this horrid mess. The air all around us is full of this horrid mess. And – there is nothing we can do about it but close all the hatches to try to keep as much of it outside and wait until tomorrow to wash all this bloody horrid mess from our boat.

Sunday morning it was back out to the best fresh fruit and vege markets we have seen yet, we completely stocked up, coming away with the sweetest little pineapples, passionfruit, avocadoes, as well as salad ingredients. The markets are not just fruit and vege though, so along with our fresh produce we now have a serious new (second-hand) fishing rod and reel which will hopefully ensure we catch some big fish when trolling off the back of SOL. We also found some rod holders that fit in the top of the winches and a couple more lures – guaranteed to catch the big ones said the man who sold them to us.

After we had washed as much of the aforementioned horrid mess from SOL, we left Bundaberg Central and motored down the river to anchor just inside the heads again. Ready for an early departure further south to Hervey Bay.

Looking towards 1770, Agnes Water and Jenny Lind Creek

Hitchhikers on the way to Bundaberg

Mr Toad, seen on way to lighthouse

In Foodie Heaven...

So, we sailed overnight from North Keppel Island past Cape Capricorn (so named as when Captain Cook was here back in 1770 he found it to be on the Tropic of Capricorn – however it has since moved, or the Tropic of Capricorn has – I’m not sure which but now the Tropic of Capricorn is slightly to its north !!!) and at 9am we were anchored in the Burnett River clutching a cup of coffee, too wired still for sleep even though we had been up since leaving North Keppel at 7am on Thursday.

Another sunset, beginning our night sail

The wind was perfect and the night sailing went without a hitch. We had a great run with the screecher out for a couple of hours, taking it down just before dark and continuing with genoa and main.  

It took nearly two hours to pass all the large ships anchored outside Gladstone waiting for their turn to be loaded with various goods – primarily coal, and it was a huge relief to see the lights of the last one fade behind us.

There is something about an overnight sail, the quiet is even more quiet at night!! The moon was just two days short of full moon so was huge in the sky, the stars were out – I even saw a shooting star at about 230am!!

We stayed in Bundaberg Marina on a “pay for 5, stay for 7” deal for a week, doing the usual few repairs – this time the starboard water pump seals needed to be redone and the anchor light had decided in North Keppel to no longer work which meant a trip up the mast for Jamie to remove it so we could fix that as well. They do say BOAT = Bring Out Another Thousand and it sure seems that each time we go in to reprovision we must repair something or other.

My birthday lunch - crab, prawn and a glass of white - what more could a girl want!!!

For my birthday - on the Saturday night, we had a fabulous meal out at the Baltimore Restaurant and it turned out to be a superb food filled week. Sunday morning, we took the marina’s free bus to the Shalom Markets where we loaded up with fresh fruit and veg – pineapples, avocados, passionfruit as well as the usual. Then to the fish market just beside the marina to purchase fresh prawns and spanner crabs which we devoured for lunch along with a glass of white. In fact, that became the pattern each day, up to the fish market for the days fix of prawn and crab and to pick a nice piece of fish to cook for tea. Life is good – we are in foodie heaven!!

A fishing boat leaving Bundaberg with entourage of following birds

The marina berth we had been allocated was right beside the fuel dock so we had a constant stream of boats coming and going beside us and mostly we jumped up and offered to take the incoming boats lines, (it is always nice to have someone to take your lines and as I say, mostly we did – sometimes we hid though!!! Hahahaha). Turns out it is a great way to meet a lot of lovely people. One night we were fortunate to take the lines of a power boat with, shall we say, slightly inebriated deck hands – it was the night of the rugby league State of Origin and looks like the boys had started early!! Anyway, we took their lines, chatted while they refuelled, then just before they left, one of them says – you like crabs, do you?? Then he raced away, came back and presented us with an armful of freshly caught blue swimmer crabs – YUMMO – Thank you, Ted.

Blue markers each 5 metres, 1 red at 10m, 2 reds

at 20m, 3 at 30m etc. Lovely new galvanised chain

Having heard that Kenco Galvanising in Bundaberg is the place to go we took the opportunity to regalvanise the anchor chain, no longer do we have a rusty mess in the chain locker but now we have a bright, shiny 60 metre length, newly marked every 5metres so we can easily see how much we are letting out and more importantly, how much we still have to pull in when we are raising the anchor. We had organised to hire the ute from the marina on Tuesday to do this and the nice man in the marina office also suggested to someone else who wanted the ute for the same purpose that they get in touch with us and share the loads, consequently we have met Robert and Sylvia from “Phoenix X”, an absolutely beautiful Cole 43, which they showed us through, and enjoyed their company at the free cruisers bbq held on the Friday night at the marina.

 We also had the genoa and storm sail restitched while we were here - the sun and sea are not kind to the stitching and over time this becomes fragile and this is not ideal!!! Now they should be good for another three to five years, we hope. Certainly something that needed to be done before any blue-water (offshore) cruising was undertaken.

We will be back to your foodie heaven, Bundaberg.