Welcome to a Coast of Contradictions....

We spent a day out at sea on Friday and then arrived at the Gold Coast late at night.

Aaahhhhh! Sun!

We arrived.... it wasn't exactly picturesque. We had anchored near the bush where a few people were camping, next to us were heaps of massive, noisy, stink-boats (yachtie slang for over-sized motor boats). On the other side of the river was typical Gold Coast high-rise it was kind of bizarre...

Navigation lights!

Ooooops! city!

Brekky in the cockpit

Our first mangroves

Anyway the next day we woke up and having sorted a marina berth near Brisbane we set off through the winding maze of canals they call  Broadwater. It was a place of contradiction, it was full of wildlife and speeding, fishing people in jet skis and tinnies (sigh). One of the prime examples was when we passed a jet ski dude that was fishing from his jet ski. I am not sure he realised that a sea eagle was circling above him, obviously paying interest in whatever the jet ski dude was fishing. Although neither of them got the catch because right at that moment a dolphin showed up and became a party pooper and claimed the fish for himself..... contradiction alright.... Anyway unbeknown to us this tangle of canals are teeming with sand banks that don't show on our chart, so when one of my brilliantly intellectual parents decided to turn down one particular inlet we stopped. We just stopped. Sand banks have become my new nightmare. We would be stuck in one and then get out and get wedged into another one. With some of the sand bars we would be stuck there for hours but some of them we were only stuck for a few minutes. On one particular bank we stopped for longer than usual and we ended up getting super frustrated (parents.....). But we got out of it..... eventually. Without any help from coast guards. I hate sand bars.  w.
ritten by Lucia