- rather later than expected, partly due to a lot of writing over the past few months while Nereida sat at a dock in Port Stephens, NSW, and partly due to several major jobs then needed on board before being able to set sail (replacement VHF radio, faulty Starlink dish, autopilot problem...).
I had planned to return to Fiji, which I really enjoyed last year, but so much time spent writing meant this late start made New Caledonia the more sensible destination - I shall gain nearly two more weeks spent there rather than at sea, if sailing on to Fiji.
I'm looking forward to New Caledonia, never before having visited there - it looks to be full of lovely anchorages with excellent snorkelling and has been on my 'to-visit' list for a long time. The thought of some good French cooking is rather tempting also!
After several days of delays, I finally left last Saturday from Newcastle, NSW, clearly named after the English city renowned for its (past) coal industry - the Australian Newcastle is a bustling port, extremely busy with very large ships loading coal to take to China and elsewhere. The reason for my being there was to clear out of Australia in order to head offshore - but, to my delight, I was made very welcome at the Cruising Y.C. by many friendly sailors - a lot of them keen racers - so my stay there became a very pleasant one. (I also found myself being interviewed by the local radio and newspaper!)
Unfortunately, my sail is being extended by unhelpful weather - a large High Pressure area causing north, often light, winds across my NE path, so the expected 6-7 day passage looks to become more like 7-8 days (ETA probably not until Sunday or even Monday). We'll see how that works out. So far, apart from my first day out, I've managed to keep sailing, rather than motoring - hopefully, that will continue. My AIS seems to be transmitting well, giving up to date position reporting (Predictwind.com and Marinetraffic.com)
With my Starlink connection not 'alive' just now, I've reverted to the reliable, old-fashioned SSB/HF radio for voice calls several times a day, along with position reports, sending & receiving emails and getting weather info. When the Internet fails, radio will always keep going!!