Making a Steep Point

Arrived at Steep Point about 8.30 after a sail of about 100 nautical miles. It was a relief to know that just around the corner lay the entrance to Shark Bay and some respite from the drunken, angry waves of the Indian Ocean. 

Getting close to the shore again was spectacular. The waves were battering the Zuytdorp Cliffs with an unusual ferocity; stark white breakers against the dark foreboding cliffs. In places, where the relentless pounding had carved caves at the cliff base, the waves would explode with such ferocity that they would shoot out of the caves as a cloud of water vapour like a regurgitation from an angry monster.

Despite the name, Shark Bay was the refuge that we were seeking and on turning in to follow the south side of the channel the roller coaster finally became a haven of calm seas and champagne sailing. Just beyond the entrance, on the south side is the appropriately named Shelter Bay and I can understand why it carries that moniker.

Following the lead provided by Divided Sky and Aqua Vitae we turned north to follow the markers. I think Nick is a racer at heart as he always seems to be in front! Maybe it's just that his Catalina is a fast boat or maybe he just likes to be followed by a 'Moonshadow'. (Sorry about that!)

Just south of Tumbledown Point we headed north east towards a narrow passage through the sand flats that would save us valuable time to get to Denham in daylight. The chart showed a navigable depth of 2.1m, which is not a lot of wriggle room for a yacht with a draft of 1.8m. We found the passage just north of Cape Bellefin to be well marked and we all made it through unscathed. Another channel on the sand flat named Heirisson was also well marked and we finally emerged into the Denham Channel, a wide expanse of clear water, that gave us an easterly bearing for the town of Denham, ten nautical miles distant. 

The calm water enabled me to indulge in some photography and I even bolted the GoPro to the bowsprit for some shots the back end of Aqua Vitae. The GoPro has very wide field of view but I managed to persuade Margie to get in closer than her comfort zone allowed to get some spectacular footage of Mike and Karen's beautiful yacht.

As we approached Denham, the 'Three Amigos' sailed side by side into the anchorage area. It would have been an imposing sight from shore and we were welcomed by a charming lady manning the Denham ACRM radio station (ACRM is a club that monitors sea safety. Bless 'em) who told us that she had been watching us negotiate the way in and that we were faced with 'sand over ribbon weed' in the anchoring area. I thought, at the time, that this information was given as a warning and I should have trusted my instincts. The problem was that there were no moorings accessible for our draft so we all prepared the picks as best we could. 

Margie at the helm chose a place for Moonshadow and we brought our girl to a halt. The sound of the chain running through the capstan was music to our ears and as we drifted backwards with the wind, the reassuring bite of the anchor on the rollers gave an immediate sense of peace. Letting out 30 metres of chain in 3.6 metres of water seemed a bit excessive, but as a famous sailor once said, 'chain in the locker does no good at all!"

A passage like this one leaves the boat in a bit of a mess, and of course it takes considerable time to get things ship shape again. Everything is encrusted with salt above decks. Everything below has to be reorganised and stowed properly. We felt an urgent need for a shower as we were two salt encrusted sailors as well. That done, it was time for a self congratulating, celebration drink on Aqua Vitae before the sun was over the yard arm! 

Hoisting the dinghy over the gunwhales and mounting the outboard on Moonshadow is no easy task but with an envious eye on the davits of the Catalinas, otherwise known as the 'dinghy danglers' we managed to join the others for a barbecue on Aqua Vitae, enjoying a wonderful steak and salad, cooked by Karen and Mike, and our first real meal in 36 hours. 

We all compared notes of our adventurous crossing from the Abrolhos like some kind of 'post mortem' trying to describe the conditions we all faced and concluding that this was definitely 'not in the brochure!' As darkness fell, Nick realised that Divided Sky was not adorned with an anchor light and had to make a quick trip to turn it on. 

By this time we were all dog tired from lack of sleep and thought it best to return to the sanctuary of the cabin for a well earned rest.

Welcome to Denham.