Sunday October 29
Departed Cape York this morning to cross the Gulf of Carpentaria to Gove on the west side of the Gulf
Monday October 30
We are halfway across the Gulf of Carpentaria and the water is still only 170 feet deep. Our anchor could still reach bottom here. It is making for some pretty steep waves, being so shallow.
We had quite a large shark swimming behind the boat for part of the day! And a couple of times we’ve seen lots of jumping fish with shark fins circling around them.
Wednesday November 1
Arrived in Gove
Gove with the Rio Tinto bauxite smelter and port in the background
There really isn’t too much in Gove. Most of Gove is the huge Rio Tinto bauxite mine which boasts a 25 km long conveyor belt running from the mine head to the port. The bauxite used to be refined into aluminum here but is now shipped offshore to be smelted. Those are the old smelter buildings on the far shore.
The Gove Boat Club dock
The only other things in Gove seem to be a campground and a boat club
Two sharks have been circling our boat all day. The smaller shark has a black tipped fin and the big one is very light in colour but I can’t make out the fin tip. Hopefully they don’t know something we don’t…
A large sea snake swam by the boat as well and was a good 6 to 7 feet long. Definitely don’t feel like dangling our feet in the water to cool off today.
Thursday November 2
There is a rather large brush fire burning next to the mine site but nobody seems that concerned about it. There were large chunks of ash falling out of the sky. which really helped with the post apocalyptic look around here.
Wildfire not too far off along with one of the countless shipwrecks scattered all along the top end
Friday November 3
Left Gove this morning and heading for Cotton Island.
Our anchorage at Cotton Island
Cotton island with Wigram island in the background. Can you spot Saumure? It is right in the center of the photo
At our anchorage off of Cotton Island there was a very large shape moving around under our boat. We couldn’t tell what it was.
Heading in to explore the cliffs and caves of Cotton Island
The cliffs and caves of Cotton Island
We had planned to explore some of the sea caves of Cotton Island but with the large number of rather enormous saltwater crocodiles in the area we decided it probably wasn’t the wisest idea to go crawling around in the caves.
Saturday November 4
Departed Cotton Island enroute to Victoria Settlement
Leaving Cotton Island
Mending our already tattered Canadian flag
Cianan preforming boat gymnastics to get under the shade cloth
A misty sunset
Tuesday November 7
After three days of drifting and extreme heat we are motoring into Victoria Settlement
Our permit, allowing us onto Aboriginal land, where Victoria Settlement is, came through yesterday and we are allowed to stay until the 10th.
Wednesday November 8
Arrived at Victoria Settlement
Victoria Settlement beach with Saumure anchored in the bay
Victoria Settlement
We seem to be the only people here
This pretty much goes without saying up here in the Top End
Victoria Settlement was an ill conceived attempt by the British to establish an outpost in the Top End of Australia in 1838. The settlers were poorly equipped for the harsh climate and were hard hit by tropical diseases. The settlement was finally abandoned 11 years after it was set up but not before a large number of the inhabitants had died.
The powder magazine
Cianan inside the magazine Note dead cane toad on left
The family quarters
The family quarters fireplace
Blacksmith forge. You’d want to be careful with the sparks…
The remains of the hospital with the hospital kitchen in the background.
Pretty much all the inhabitants of the Victoria Settlement passed through the hospital at one point or another, many with tragic results.
To build all of these stones structures required huge amounts of lime for the mortar. To achieve this the settlers built massive stone lime kilns into the hillside. The lime was rendered from firing large quantities of seashells from the beach, which in turn needed large amounts of wood for the kilns, this all in 40C+ daily temperatures!
The entry into the lime kiln at the bottom of the hill
The lime kiln looking down from the top of the chimney
The lime kiln chimney at the top of the hill
Termites converting a tree into a new fortress. A tree fort?
Well, looks like the park outhouse burned down in the last wildfire.
Thursday November 9
Leaving Victoria Settlement this morning for Darwin
Last night there was really bright bioluminescence and when we were sitting on deck, we could see the anchor chain glowing all the way to the bottom. There was also some very large glowing shapes moving around under the boat. We couldn’t make out what they were but are guessing they were either saltwater crocodiles or sharks.
Cianan fixing a broken jackline
Some light reading
Fixing our autohelm. It turns out it needs a new 12v motor. Hopefully we can find something in Darwin that will work.
Light to variable or white to terrible….Motoring to Darwin
Friday November 10
Tonight is not quite going according to plan. We are currently working on a search and rescue operation for a fishing boat with engine troubles. It is pretty hard to understand them on the radio. We are about 50 nautical miles out of Darwin, so out of range of the Australian Coast Guard and any other boats apparently. It looks like it is just us and we are really low on diesel. Hopefully we find them before it gets dark.
Running before the night on an SOS call
It turned out that a boat from a nearby fishing lodge was able to tow them in. It was really good all round because we were really low on fuel and will just make Darwin.
It is a tricky situation up here, as piracy is a real issue, and false SOS calls are a way of luring in unsuspecting boats, yet maritime law states one cannot ignore an SOS call. This is our fifth SOS call we have responded to in the last couple of years.
Saturday November 12
On our approach into Darwin we ran through the worst oil slick we have ever seen.The water was thick with oil and iridescent. Presumably it is coming from the refinery just outside of town.
A sign in a Darwin store. It says it all about sailing and so much more…
We will spend a few days in Darwin resupplying and doing required repairs to the boat before heading out again.