Goose winging from Maclean to Lawrence

Nicky and I enjoyed a night tied up to the jetty at Maclean and a leisurely morning. The tide at Maclean is 3 hrs after Yamba and it wasn't low until around noon. I wanted to leave on the flood hoping to get to Lawrence or Brushgrove. There was still a fine NE breeze and it would be a run or broad reach all the way.

Thank goodness that Gary was driving Lee down to join Nicky and I for the day. I hoped he would be able to wave his magic wand over the outboard and it would work again. He tried and unfortunately confirmed that it needed a mechanic's workshop.

I had intended to tack back to Harwood with the tide the next day as the forecast was that the NE would keep on blowing. (The day after that a southerly buster was forecast at 35 knots it came in at 41 knots, so I am glad I decided to make sure I was home before that). However I was counting on being able to motor under the bridge at Harwood on the return trip. It seemed foolhardy to approach under sail with the wind on our nose and to be sure that it was exactly low tide. Gary (blessings on you) volunteered to drive me back from our final destination (whereever) to the Big River Sailing Club so I could return with the trailer. In other words we were able to make it a one way voyage.

It was a great sail from Maclean to Lawrence with wind and tide. We goose winged most of the way. The only downside was that it was a bit hot (see the photo of Pam). The new red awning that we put up in a minute when we are anchored is a real boon. However I covet Peter's bimini on his Farr 6000 which keeps him shady while underway.

Unbeknownst to us Gary was following us down the river photographing our progress but sadly his camera wasn't working well that day. We were unanimous - the Clarence River truly is the Big River. We saw a few tinnies fishing, a couple of jet skis, a houseboat or two, but not one other boat under sail all day. Remarkable.

I had missed out on sussing out Lawrence on my preliminary reconnoitres. As I was approaching I thought the ramp was about 200 metres further upstream than turned out to be the case. We suddenly all saw Gary prancing around on the seawall pointing to the ramp. I swung around rather suddenly and we tried, simultaneously, to drop the sails, get the keel and rudder up and jump over the side to hold her against the strong tide. Well, it is best summarised by saying that we need more practice as a team. But we did arrive on the ramp.

Then we had a problem. It was going to take Gary and me around an hour to fetch my car and the trailer and in the meantime Lee and Nicky had to be left looking after Little Dragon. There was a strong tide and it was hard to work out what to do, we ended up putting out a stern anchor and tying up to a post and hoping to hell that no-one would need the ramp as we were completely blocking it. All credit goes to Lee who seems to have been in the water holding onto Little Dragon for most of that hour while Nicky (true to form) served them both a cup of tea.

We had another near miss with the new mast as we came off the ramp. Gary was driving and he turned right off the ramp down the bitumen road to the jetty and back onto the main road (I would have done the same thing). To our horror there was a nasty noise and we looked up. We had just clipped a power line across the road. If the power line had been a bit lower then ...... no I won't go there. Seems that no harm was done.

After that Gary and Lee departed leaving Nicky and me to pack up and spend the night at Lawrence. Should I mention that the zodiac rowlock had bust? Seems that zodiac's are not meant to be rowed. Ridiculous. There is a great spot to overnight in the carpark just by the toilet block - it sounds sordid but it was more like having our own ensuite.

The next day as Nicky and I are trailing Little Dragon homewards we realise that she has somehow managed to come off the winch roller. It was a very flat roller and I later learnt that I should have been supplied a "V" shaped roller when I bought my new winch (I have now got a "V"shaped roller which she snuggles into far more securely). Anyway there was a nasty hole in the fibreglass and it was dangerous to continue. Luckily we were near the ramp at Maclean so Nicky and I decide to float Little Dragon off and rewinch her back onto the roller. We got organised in advance and were determined to make it a smooth operation. All was going well except that when we push Little Dragon she just won't float off. We push harder to no avail. I call out to a lad fishing nearby to come and help. He looks over and says "has that rope round the middle got anything to do with it? Ignominy, we have forgotten to undo the tie down strap. Well I still say that I will try to avoid the same mistake twice but there seem to be plenty more first-time mistakes.