Hop North to Ballina

[Kyle]Like our previous leg, in order to arrive at Ballina on the end of the flood after high tide, we had to leave well before the first hint of daylight. To make matters even worse, the moon was below the horizon, so it was very dark. Between the many range lights and our inbound track, we were able to get out with no less than three meters under our keels. There was about a 1½ meter swell just outside the northern breakwater. It foamed along Begonia's starboard hull as it collapsed without making it to deck level before we rolled gently over it. We did that twice and then we were over the bar and into deep water.

Up went the spinnaker and we were zooming up the coast. It was nice, smooth sailing, apart from when the occasional shower went through and heaped things up a bit. About three quarters of the way, we had banked enough distance to be able to switch to an increasingly smaller jib.

Another passage with an early start to ensure all the right conditions, but once in Ballina we stayed aboard and were entertained by the local sea eagles

We arrived at Ballina at the last of the flood having been under bare poles for the past hour. At the entrance, the water was very swirly, but there were no waves to contend with. We stopped here mostly because the wind was about to turn on us for thirty-six hours. Since we had been before (back in 2019) and since we were really in need of one, we decided to stay aboard and have an admin/maintenance day while the rain poured outside.