CYCA Member and member of the Cruising Committee, Denis Doyle, is currently sailing his Cigale 16 Ariki Tai to Lord Howe Island as part of the annual Lord Howe Island BBQ Cruise.
Denis shared an update from Soldiers Point Marina in Port Stephens.
Ariki Tai departed the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia for an extended cruise, taking in the Soldiers Point Marina BBQ, coordinated by Chris Manion.
We’ll do some cruising in Port Stephens and then go on to Lord Howe Island.
We sailed into Port Stephens at 0600hrs Monday 1 November, the first day the NSW regions opened to Sydneysiders after lockdown.
After a couple of days working on scheduled maintenance and some issues arising from dusting off the cruising cobwebs, we went on to the Soldiers Point Marina BBQ on Thursday 4 November, when 8-10 boats arrived via The Basin, Newcastle and Broughton Island.
Ariki Tai spent some time cruising Port Stephens, with two nights at the very beautiful Fame Cove, with dolphins and sea eagles for company.
I spoke with the owner of Aurora, a 33-foot Huon Home Pine sloop, a long-time participant of the famous Wooden Boat Festival. She is currently on an extended cruise out of Tasmania.
Ariki Tai is now at Anchorage Marina for final provisioning, waiting for crew and monitoring the weather before heading to Lord Howe Island for the BBQ on 16 November.
At last call, there were 10 boats due to head to Lord Howe Island, including Nigel Stokes’ Fidelis, Alex Seja’s Sequel, David and Jill Henry’s Sweet Chariot, the inimitable Tony Purkiss on Solo Globe Challenge, as well as Wild Goats, Indefensible, Spindrift, Drive, Polaris and Ariki Tai.
All have been subject to some strict bio-security conditions to aid in the protection of this beautiful World Heritage area.
The weather is currently very unsettled and we’re looking out for a window for safe arrival to Lord Howe Island.
It’s one of the world’s most beautiful landfalls and always brings a thrill upon arrival.
The Lord Howe Island Island BBQ Cruise is an iconic event, which has been running for two decades now and it’s a privilege to be part of. Stay tuned!
