Tuesday 2 April Destination Southport, Queensland

Gold Coast looking a bit like Miami

Easter weekend in Coffs isn't the most exciting place to be. We were anchored between the pier and the harbour wall were we could watch the lemmings, also known as holidaymakers, throw themselves off the pier, the surf life saving club using us as a marker buoy to swim around and 10% surcharge in the restaurants and coffee shops because it's a holiday. Perhaps I was jaded from being here before Christmas for three days and being ready to get back to the sunshine. It's been a rainy weekend.

We departed Coffs Harbour for the final 160 miles to Southport after breakfast on the assumption of an average 6nmph would give us an arrival time of midday next day coinciding with high water to cross the bar. Our cunning plan was thwarted once more with strong southerlies and current with us in the 1 to 1.5 knots. As we shot up the coast under twin headsails and a perfect down wind sail our arrival time came forward to pre-dawn. OK let's anchor overnight once more. Byron Bay was just ahead of us. We came in at 10pm so dark and although we have electronic charts and radar to confirm we were in a safe place it still takes care to come into an unknown bay. Again, the overnight stop was well worth it. Byron Cape offered wind and swell protection – a large open bay – and another quiet night's sleep. At 3am we were both sleeping rather than one on watch and one trying to sleep. A far nicer scenario.

whopper wahoo

We left at dawn once more but as we had altered our clocks to Queensland time (1 hour ahead of NSW in the summer) dawn was 6am. It was a beautiful day for a down wind sail in light winds, current with us again and sunny. The highlight of the day, the trip up the coast was catching the biggest Wahoo David has ever caught! A 1.4m / 4' 18 kgs beauty. We got the bite as we were coming around the reefs at Point Danger, the most likely place to catch a fish, and he was filleted and in the freezer before we reached Southport Seaway spot on high water slack. Coming in over the bar was another easy ride and then a short motor south down the channel and to the anchorage in front of Sea World known by locals as Bum's Bay.

Looking back on our trip down to Sydney and the sail back I would say good, very good and not the harem scarem expedition we had been led to believe. Sailing south with the East Australian current on the 100m contour was super fast. Returning with no time constraints allowed us to pick and choose the best weather windows to hop from harbour to anchorage and keeping close to the coast found favourable 'going our way' current which smoothed the journey. And of course, we had 6 great weeks in Sydney and an opportunity to see more of NSW.