Sunday morning was bright, clear and sparkling. Unlike Margie and I who had spent the night cleaning, sorting and organising until about 4am. With that complete we were able to prepare Moonshadow for a 10am departure schedule with Aqua Vitae for a sail to Rotto and back.

We had invited my son, Daniel, to join us but he was working late and had overslept. An apologetic phone call and a promise that he was on his way kept us in the pen until he got to Moonshadow. We cast off, and set out to catch up with Karen and Mike in Aqua Vitae who were waiting for us just north of Carnac Island.

We set the mainsail and with much joy we turned off the engine. There is nothing quite like the sound contrast when the engine is silenced. The wind starts to sing in the rigging and Moonshadow just comes alive. She feels different, it's like suddenly she lets her personality loose and starts to talk to us, grateful to be sailing and not stuck in a pen. The waves break on the bow and the thrust of the wind pushes us to over 7 knots. We unfurl the Genoa with the wind aft of the beam, and Moonshadow settles down with this stable and balanced rig.

All the systems have so far checked out OK. No leaks, except where I left a hatch open, but Margie spotted it before it did any damage. The new chartplotter is amazing; big screen, accurate and now complete with a fish finder that gives us depth readings! The Autopilot is working perfectly and we are able to relax a little and tidy the sheets.

Margie and Daniel are feeling a little seasick. Margie ventured down below decks, which is always a mistake, thinking of making something to eat, but she soon came back up with only a coffee!

We thought we would head back to Fremantle so we turned around and took a leisurely sail back to FSC.

Test sail complete and all systems are go for Saturday.

Our departure is now four sleeps away! Still much to do. I would rather be this busy doing things and getting organised than being morose about leaving family and friends behind as we embark on this 'Sea Change'.

OK. Time to post and get on with it!