Great Barrier Reef

Testing out the Snorkel Gear

After a year of hiking.....not diving, we decided it was time to get back in the water.

Lion Friend Sue Takes Us on a Rainforest Hike

We've been wanting to do some diving out at the Great Barrier Reef, but didn't want to hassle taking Worrall Wind out of her slip. Anchoring in this area can be tricky because of the bombes (coral heads).  Russ and I signed up for a three day dive trip on the Anaconda III, a large sloop.  As it turned out, even the Anaconda had some difficulty and lost its main anchor.

We boarded the Anaconda on a Friday night and sailed out to Blue Pearl Bay on the backside of Hayman Island. We were probably the oldest guests on board, but it didn't matter.  We met some wonderful people from around the world on this ship.  The captain and crew were delightful and made our trip fun and relaxed.  Photos below are of the Skipper and his crew.

In the morning, we had our first dive.  Saw some great fish, including a giant wrassse that was very curious about us.  Russ and I were side by side, and the wrasse was right under Russ.  If he dropped his legs down he would have been riding the guy.  Since it was our first dive, I didn't have the new camera out yet.  I wanted to spend my time re-familiarizing myself with my dive gear first.

After our dive, we headed out to the Great Barrier Reef.

We snorkeled at Hardy Reef.  The reef extends for miles.  Dropped off at the top of the reef, the current carried us back to the mother ship.  Snorkeling turned out to be a better option than diving.  The water clarity on top was better than the diving clarity below.  Here are some photos.

We opted out of the next two dives, the night dive and the dawn dive, but did do a mid morning dive at Bait Reef.  We swam through some lovely coral head canyons and saw some fish, but nothing as lovely as the day before.

This is where the anchor got stuck, and we had to leave it behind.  The skipper and crew were quite disappointed.  That's a big investment of chain and anchor sitting on the ocean floor.

On  Sunday we sailed back to the Whitsunday Islands where we dove again later in the afternoon at Luncheon Bay and then found a mooring at Stonehaven Bay.

Due to our lack of anchor ability, our plans to spend the night at Whitehaven beach had changed.  The following morning we motor sailed to Tongue Bay where we could pick up another mooring.  Cruisers hiked over the rise to get the spectacular view of Hill Inlet and then enjoyed a day walking in the beautiful white silica sand.  We sadly then headed back to the mainland, enjoying a great sail.

Russ enjoying someone else raising the sails.

We returned to Airlie Beach on Monday afternoon, had a fabulous curry dinner prepared by Lion friends, Harry and Faye, and their friends Suzette and Adrian.

On Tuesday, we prepared Worrall Wind for departure, rinsing and stowing the dive gear, provisioning, bar-b-quing meats for passage salads, laundry, stowing, folding up the port note, putting on Hydie's wind vane rudder, putting up the jack lines, finding our life vests, gloves, harnesses, checking the weather, and working on the this blog to get it posted before we no longer had cell reception.  We had dinner on Tuesday evening with Russ's sailing buddies.  I will post these photos at a later date.


Wednesday, September 19.  We are going to the fuel dock within the next hour to top off our tanks then starting our voyage south to Brisbane.  There will be spotty cell reception along the coastal islands.  You can follow our progress by watching SPOT.  We hope to make it back south in a couple of weeks.  The winds are not favorable in this direction, so we we may be motoring if there are no winds or hanging out in sheltered bays if the wind and waves are too much on our bow.  It's all about the journey.  Good Bye Airlie Beach and Whitsundays.  Cheers!

All is Well with the 2 Sail R's on SV Worrall Wind

2 Sail R's Together Again

The 2 Sail R's are together once again on one continent....Australia.

I arrived back in Australia on Friday September 7.  Russ greeted me at the Prosperine Airport with a big grin and a bouquet of Australian flowers.   Worrall Wind was decked out with her flags, and her brightwork shone in the setting sun.  Lots of spit and polish had been going on while I had been away.

I thought the natural sheen was green.

It was great to come back "home".

During the last week, I have been meeting some of the Aussies that Russ became friends with while I was away.  He has been active in the Whitsunday Lions club.  This club is very active and sponsors the Saturday morning market in Airlie Beach.  They are, as one would expect of Lions, a great group of folks who enjoy helping others and having a good time doing so.

Helping Out in the Food Booth

He has also been racing with the Wednesday night sailors.

Forward:  Colin,  Dave, Alison; Helm: Glen, Di

Paralympics and Journalism

Sailing is inherently challenging.  Try sailing, cycling, running, or swimming with missing limbs or no vision.

While the Qualifying American Cup Races were Happening in San Francisco, the Paralympic co-ed Sailing Races Were Going on in London.  Australia athletes came home with 85 medals.

Spectacular Closing Ceremony of Paralympics 

Russ installed a new flat screen television in the lower saloon during the Olympics.  He enjoyed watching the Olympics, and then turned his attention to the Paralympics which received in depth coverage and reporting here in Australia.  In phone conversations while I was still in the states, Russ kept asking if we were watching this amazing event.  We were not, and not for the lack of trying.  It simply wasn't on the television as far as I could see, although I hope there must have been some coverage somewhere.

Upon returning to Australia,  I was soon introduced to the Paralympics. The Aussies had full coverage of this fabulous event which for me eclipsed the regular Olympics.  There were over 4,000 athletes from 150 countries participating.  

Sadly in the USA, even though we had 216 participating American athletes, most Americans didn't even know this event was going on.  Held in the same London venue as the Olympics, with over 2.7 million tickets sold, the Paralympic games were one of the most uplifting and inspiring events we have ever witnessed.  It is sad that Americans were deprived of watching this event.  Many of our war vets who lost limbs participated in the events.  We should have been supporting our athletes better.   These are indeed super-humans!  Here are some images that I snagged off the Internet:

So what's with our news coverage in America or Lack of News Coverage?

The lack of coverage of the Paralympics is symptomatic of American news in general.  Even on the cable channels it was impossible to find coverage of significant world news.

As an American and trained journalist/educator, I am disturbed with what is happening in America in terms of news coverage?  Having just been in the states during the Olympics and two political conventions, the news appears to be slanted right, left, trivialized, ignored, or omitted.   We are fed sound bites of "news" that lack depth and twist the integrity of the full and factual story.    I had a chance to see quite a bit of "news" while at home and was shocked by the out-of-context bites and opinions that were espoused as news.

This type of reporting or editing of the news is reaping the rewards of an increasing polarization and dumbing down of the public.  Where is the center?  What are the facts without the spin?  How do these facts fit together to give us a real and complex picture of what is going on with appropriate information from which to make decisions, to come up with solutions, or celebrate human diversity?

Americans are becoming increasingly insular and ignorant of world events.  It has been said that knowledge is power...enough said!

Speaking of Croc!

Even though Russ looks close, he is safely on the boat.

Since we are in Croc country, we decided it was time to visit the reptiles in their natural habitat on a Croc Safari.   We had a great day on the banks and on the water of the Proserpine River, home to an abundance of wild life.

Russ and I were picked up by the Safari bus at 8:30 and driven to the base camp where we learned of the flora, fauna, and non-croc creatures on the banks of the Proserpine.  After tea and campfire bread, we headed down the river in a very sturdy barge.

We got a kick out of the safety talk where we were instructed in maritime safety procedures, i.e. how to put on our personal flotation devices so we wouldn't drown if the boat sank.    We could then float around in these bright orange vests as targets for the Crocs!  We learned that Crocs can see in color.  Crikey!  This boat better not sink.

Three Little Babies - Less than a Foot Long

But they Grow Up !  And Look For Orange Life Vests!

That's it for now.  We are packing for a three day trip out to the Great Barrier Reef to do some diving this coming weekend.  More later.

All is Well with the 2 Sail R's on SV Worrall Wind

Celebration of Life Memorial for Sail R Roz's Mom

My mom, LaVerne Monico, passed peacefully on August 3, 2012.  A Celebration of Her Life Memorial will be held on August 19, 2012 in Elk Grove California.  If you knew her and would like more information about the memorial, click HERE.  Thank you family and friends for your support and condolences. ~ Roz

2 Sail R's on 2 Continents

Temporarily the 2 Sail R's are on 2 continents.  Russ is with Worrall Wind in Australia, and I am living in Elk Grove, California taking care of my folks in their apartment.  My brother lives only a couple of miles away, and I am happy to be here to lift some of the burden from his shoulders and to provide the 24/7 care that Mom needs, and support that Dad needs.

My mom, LaVerne, has late stage lung cancer and is currently bedridden in her Elk Grove apartment.

As she was when she was healthy, she is always most gracious as she approaches the end of life.  She is a devout Christian and looks forward to being released from this body and being with God in Heaven.  For those of you who know my mom and would like to know her status, you can go to http://www.supportcircle.com.  Key her name LaVerne Monico.  From this site you can receive a daily update, read messages that others have sent her, and if you are so inclined, send her one of your own.  She looks forward to these messages every day.

Russ has stayed with Worrall Wind as we do not know how long we will be separated.  Worrall Wind will need to be sailed south back to Brisbane before the hurricane season.  We are seriously considering listing WW and seeing if we get any bites.  This wasn't a part of the master plan, but given our options of going around South Africa or through Pirate Alley to the Med, we are thinking this might be a viable option while the boat is still in prime cruising condition.  Shipping the boat to the Med is still an option from Thailand if we continue our cruising and our pocket book can afford the expense ($65,000).  We got a quote of $85,000 to ship the boat back to the US, ouch.   While this is tempting, it also tempting to sell the boat in OZ and buy another boat (or not) wherever our next destination.

In the meantime Russ is getting the boat sale-ready.  He and WW are still in Airlie Beach inside the Great Barrier Reef waiting for my return if it is before October.  If not before October, he will be looking for crew to help sail the boat south.  He would very much like to take the boat out and do more sailing around the Whitsunday Islands, but has promised not to solo sail.



If any of you vicarious or real salty sailors want to visit Russ and Worrall Wind for some cruising in the Whitsundays or are interested in crewing with Russ back to Brisbane, or are interested in buying Worrall Wind prior to being officially listed, please contact us.  Check the Worrall Wind - Nauticat 44 Spec Page (left hand column of the blog) for specifications and additional photos when they are available.

Will You Still Love Me, Will You Still Feed Me, When I’m Sixty-Four?

When the Beatles sang this song, who could even imagine turning 64?!
I never did.  And today, I am!  Ouch!  


Granted this is written from the young male perspective when 64 year olds must have seemed very old and sedentary, nevertheless this is my birthday poem for this year.  I am happy to say, the answer is YES!  

When I’m Sixty-four

When I get older losing my hair, (Still have lots left, along with my own teeth, yeah!)
Many years from now, (That's today!  How did I get so old?)
Will you still be sending me a valentine (My sweetie does.)
Birthday greetings bottle of wine? (ecards and Chardonnay, Shiraz, Merlot)

If I’d been out till quarter to three (Or on watch, throughout the night)
Would you lock the door, (Hatch maybe closed to keep the water out of the boat, but never you)
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, (I hope so!)
When I’m sixty-four? (Yipes! Still can't figure out how that happened.)


You’ll be older too, (ah ah ah ah ah) (Sadly, that's the way it works.)
And if you say the word, (43 years worth of yes from my sweetheart)
I could stay with you. (Yes and sail the world)
I could be handy mending a fuse (And everything else that goes haywire on a boat)
When your lights have gone. (Literally or figuratively?)
You can knit a sweater by the fireside (Ha! Steer the boat through stormy seas, more likely)
Sunday mornings go for a ride. (In our patchwork dinghy)
Doing the garden, digging the weeds, (Not a chance! Maybe diving on a coral garden.)
Who could ask for more? (We certainly can't)
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, (yes, yes)
When I’m sixty-four? (Yikes!!, how about 104?)

Every summer we can rent a cottage (How about a mooring buoy in South Pacific?)
In the Isle of Wight, if it’s not too dear (Whitsunday Islands are pretty dear)
We shall scrimp and save (That's why we live and travel on a boat)
Grandchildren on your knee (Not yet, we're surrogates for lots of cruisers children and grand pets)
Vera, Chuck, and Dave (More like Misty (dog), Balou (cat), and Noodles (dog))

Send me a postcard, drop me a line, (Email or FaceBook)


Will you still need me, will you still feed me, (not on a feeding tube yet)
When I’m sixty-four? (The answer is YES!  Yeah! Yeah!)
Whoo! (Hoo! - It's been grand!)

All is well with the 2 Sail R's on S/V Worrall Wind