Day 22, Thursday, February 25 2010
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Early in the morning we got up, checked-out and headed for the ferry back to the main land. Once on the main land we got back on the bus and then headed for Airlie beach at the Whitsundays.
We arrived at the Whitsundays at around 1 in the afternoon. There we went to check-in for the boat, paid our reef taxes and 4 of our crew also decided to dive thus they paid the diving fees in advance.
Afterwards we went for lunch which consisted of us going to the super market and getting things to eat lick a fruit, or packet of chips or maybe a bread bun.
At half past one we went to the dock and were ready to board the boat. At 14:00 the British Defenders crew came and after making sure we had all guests, as there were some extra people from other tours and also single people we then boarded our boat. The funny thing about boarding the boat was that it was low tide and the marina needed dredging so the boat was overloaded with all 28 people and our baggage. So to board the boat, the boat was brought out into the canals and then we boarded the boat by dinghy. To leave the marina, all passengers had to move over to one side of the boat put the legs over board and thus make the boat tip to the side, thus bringing the hull a bit higher up. Now there was only as much as 100mm left beneath the boat but we could steer free of the marina!
Once out on the ocean the crew introduced themselves and told us about the boat, what we were going to do and then also all the safety procedures and measures we needed to know. The boat is something over 22m long and about 7m wide and that with something over 30 people on it, it was a tight fit. Showering is only allowed for 30s where I opted to not shower as sea water was good enough for me, at least for these two days.
After all that we were told to secure ourselves on the boat, and then get back on deck where we sat on the high side of the boat. Now 6 people helped put up the sails and we were off. There was quite a bit of wind, thus the boat tilted extremely as we were steering perpendicularly to the wind. The boat actually tilted so far that the low side was practically in the water and when a larger wave came, then the whole front was covered in water. It was definitely cool.
After a couple of hours of sailing we landed at our destination for the evening. There we set anchor and then those that wanted to get put on their stinger suits and then go for a swim. I of course took the opportunity and was delighted at the nice water. The current was quite strong there so we had to watch out that we were not washed away.
After that dinner was served and even me as a vegan was suberbly catered for! We then enjoyed a comfortable evening where those that had brought alcohol drank that and the rest drank whatever they wanted. Sooner or later everyone went to bed. Sleeping on a boat has its drawbacks, one is that a double bed is really just something over 140cm wide and sucks pretty much if you still have your luggage on it…
The worst part was that it rained all the time! Since we stopped to sail till the next morning it was raining, on and off, lighter then a bit harder to even really hard down pores, the rain kept on coming.