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

Dodging Ita

It was all happening. After two cyclones this season that turned out to be fizzers, in Cairns at least, we thought that Ita, rated Category 5 before making landfall, would really test our cyclone endurance skills. Matey can admit now, after the fact, that she was feeling a little anxious at the prospect of a Yasi-strength cyclone. Captain, having waited out two non-events in the mangroves, was now somewhat nonchalant even once Ita’s rating was increased to 5. Anyway, off we went into our favourite cyclone bolt-hole on a mangrove creek in Admiralty Island in Trinity Inlet. This location meant that as well as the great protection the mangroves provide from fierce winds, run-off from heavy rainfall on the mainland wouldn’t be surging past at an alarming rate. Any tidal surge would mean the water under us would deepen, but in the absence of king tides, run-off shouldn’t be too strong, or contain too much in the way of logs and litter that might tangle in the anchor chain and wreak havoc. We cunningly sensed this storm could be ugly when we found, a day before Ita was due to make landfall, several boats were already tied up in our creek, (two of which were near the entrance and blocking access for other boats—hurrumph! But luckily owners soon appeared and kindly untied the ropes on the port side so we could squeeze through.) Even the locals were taking Ita seriously …

Ita hit land at Cape Flattery, around 200 km north of us, took around 24 hours to reach us, and by this time had been downgraded to a Category 1 cyclone, yet she still was a destructive force and we were glad we were sheltering in the mangroves, mosquitoes and flies notwithstanding, when she arrived. So well protected were we that we only noticed the rain and the Matey slept through the whole show.

(Tip of the cyclone: stinger suits are a good idea when tying ropes to mangroves. They confound sandfles, small crabs, spiders, green ants and mosquitoes, it seems. Amazingly, Matey seems to have fewer than 10 sandfly bites as a result.)

The wait

What better place to learn something about mangroves and how amazing they are than when surrounded by them?  Not only do these old-growth forests provide great protection for boats in cyclones, they protect shorelines from tidal surges and erosion (and hence property valued by humans), they sequester carbon very effectively, they are fish nurseries and extraordinary ecosystems. We undervalue them at our peril. Guess what Matey was reading?

Let them eat shrimp: the tragic disappearance of the rainforests of the sea, Kennedy Warne.

The importance of mangroves is often overlooked: recommended reading.

There’s just one problem the Matey has with fabulous mangroves: sandflies. She is yet to ascertain the ecological value of these irksome midgets, but no doubt they have one. Any suggestions on this would be most welcome.

Looking upstream before

Looking downstream after

Evidence of a nasty storm. Luckily we locked the bike to the pole rather than the tree. 

Post-cyclone sunset over mangroves

Most beautiful rainforest walk ...

Captain is fond of saying that here we are experiencing 'wet rain'. Once it finally arrived it has been wet indeed. Fabulous as the rain is, it's also good to have a regular break from it  to de-mould the boat. No amount of mould could be too high a price, though, for the rain that makes our beloved rainforests and waterfalls, and yesterday, leeches and wild boar notwithstanding, we discovered our best walk yet in Wooroonooran National Park.

With a few days of northerly winds last week we decided to venture south for a change of scenery. Stops on the way included Kings Beach, Normandy Island, and Mutchero Inlet, where the Russell and Mulgrave rivers converge before flowing into the Coral Sea. Then to Innisfail, where the North and South Johnstone rivers converge. Approximately thirty km west of Innisfail is the Wooroonooran National Park, where the run-off from the hills, including Henrietta Creek, flow into the North Johnstone River. We managed a dip in the Johnstone River, after following a mildly treacherous wet track down from Crawfords lookout. We also did rainforest walks to the gorgeous Tchupala Falls and Wallicher Falls, off the Palmerston Highway. But the best was yesterday, when we did the Nandroya Falls circuit walk. This winds around the valleys and almost every corner has a waterfall, some more dramatic than others, but each beautiful. Admittedly it was wet underfoot, and therefore some sections of the track were slippery, but we saw no-one else.

Captain helpfully points out North Johnston River from Crawfords lookout

First section of Tchupala Falls

The path further down was 'closed' and overgrown. So much effort went into building this, it's a shame not to maintain it (but needless to say it would cost a lot. The quality of the extensive walking tracks is often astoundingly good.)

Fairy path

Wallicher Falls

Fabulous buttress roots with gnome

Silver Creek Falls

Nandroya Falls

Native banana

North Johnstone River 

Cluster figs