Posted August 18, 2023
about September 14, 2022
We woke up early as we had a long trip ahead, approximately 50 miles from Curlew Island to the city of Mackay. Below, a map of our approximate route.
As I mentioned in my previous post (Mysterious Curlew Island), we weren’t all that happy being anchored at Curlew Island, but at least it seemed, initially, like we’d gotten out of the swell. As it turned out, not so much—during the night conditions became rolly for a time. Not terrible, but these days Rich seemed increasingly intolerant of rolliness.
In studies on Negativity Bias, the human brain’s tendency to emphasize negative experiences over positive ones, there’s a 5-to-1 ratio of positive to negative interactions in what’s considered a “good” relationship. While I can’t imagine the numbers are that definitive, I do believe something to this effect is true, not only for human relationships but for people’s relationships to their environment and/or lifestyle.
In terms of cruising we have mentioned our own E/A (ecstacy/agony) ratio. While mine was currently OK here in Queensland, Rich’s was getting increasingly out of whack. I hoped having some city and marina time in Mackay would be good for us.
We set out early into a beautiful day, a 12-knot breeze from behind giving us a glorious downwind sail. It was pleasantly sunny and warm, and islands dotted the sea all around us. Inspired by these conditions, we ended up making one of my favorite sailing videos so far. Rich already posted it; so here’s a link to that post.
The trip took between 8 and 9 hours, and for most of the trip, the current was with us. When it did turn against us, it wasn’t too strong–it seemed we’d left the most extreme currents behind us.
I’d been excited to see the city of Mackay, the place where we planned to enter Australia before our Lord and Master, the weather, told us no, you’re not going there; you’re going to Gladstone. As a result, our arrival here had been delayed 2 months! This turned out to be a good thing: we’d missed the windy and crowded peak cruising season in the Whitsunday Islands, which lay just north of Mackay.
Weather conditions were still pleasant as we neared Mackay. Since this is a mining city with a huge shipping port, there were large number of ships anchored for miles outside the city. It was unnerving to make our way through them, especially when some were moving about.
I could see signs of the coal shipping operation on shore, and not surprisingly, it wasn’t attractive. The day was hazy with light smog, and we joked that we’d discovered the San Pedro of the South Pacific. (San Pedro is a large shipping port near Los Angeles). I was worried now that Mackay might be not be an appealing city.
After we got through the shipping lanes, we saw some tall buildings on shore, and the scenery now morphed from San Pedro to Long Beach, a more cosmopolitan and attractive port city next to San Pedro. Still, I was concerned—will Mackay be a city to enjoy or a place to endure?
Below, some photos of our approach to Mackay (click any photo to enlarge).
We motored into the outer port that fronts a huge breakwater surrounding the marina. At this point we could only see masts peeking up from behind the massive rock wall. Out here it looked fairly industrial; so I just hoped the marina would be nice in spite of these surroundings. We’d already been assigned a slip; so now we headed in, prepared to seek out our spot in this large marina.
As we motored in past the breakwater, the marina came into view, and what a shock! Suddenly, it looked like were in Honolulu, and the rapid change in my perception felt disorienting. But how wonderful to be so pleasantly surprised.
We found our slip and got tied up easily. Next it was time to head up to the office and check out our new home (for the next few days anyway). –Cyndi
