Hard and blast

To purr, every contented boat needs a regular dose of TLC; out of the water and perched on the hardstand. Just days after Ita passed we were scheduled to be hauled-out and on our blocks applying said TLC at the Cairns Cruising Yacht Squadron. Being unusually narrow and just fitting in the slings, we were probably one of the few catamarans to have been hauled out there, and so were surrounded by monohulls, with not another cat in sight (apart from the resident but elusive 'ship's cat' — with paws, to the Matey's delight).

It was a relief to have Ita behind us and mostly clear weather forecast for the week ahead (someone had helpfully pointed out that it had rained constantly for two weeks after Cyclone Yasi). Following the water-blast to remove barnacles and excess remaining anti-foul, a busy time ensued, with much scrubbing, sanding, patching up of gelcoat and application of fresh anti-foul, stripping and painting of the drive leg, cleaning and waxing of interior wood, and several confrontations with recalcitrant humidity-induced mould (expletives may have been heard on occasions). As the week came to an end we received two solid days of tropical rain. So much for the War on Mould! (More expletives were most definitely uttered at this point.) Our trusty dinghy also received a scrub and good-naturedly glowed mostly white once more.

To keep us entertained, the port rudder cable broke just before we were hauled out. Hmmm. With family due to visit at the end of our sojourn on the slipway we were hopeful of receiving the replacement cable quickly and fitting it while out of the water. Alas, with Easter public holidays this was not to be, so we sailed to Fitzroy Island on one rudder and ‘occy’ straps rigged up to keep the other functioning. Fortunately the wind and swell were kind and we made it there and back without incident.

Happily, FNQ delivered perfect, clear-blue-sky weather for a week for our southern visitors, who managed to thaw out in the sun, enjoy the delights of Fitzroy Island, admire the sunset and become acquainted with TC.

The sad truth

Hard at it

New TC

Sunset view from the bar

Oops ... camera has sunstroke

Dressed for dinner

Fitzroy Island sunset