The practicalities of life afloat.

So far, we've had 5 days with just the 4 of us. 5 days bobbing up and down on a mooring - no escape other than donning spray jackets and canoeing to shore, or wrangling with the dinghy.

It's weird.

Weird not to be able to step off the boat and sneak off for a latte. Instead, if I want to have a [coffee], I either have to turn on the generator to boil the kettle, or wait 35 mins for the 12 volt kettle to boil. Perhaps an even better option is to break out the portable gas stove and heat the water in a saucepan - far quicker.... (Be sure to think about this when you next flick the switch on your spunky stainless kettle).

Washing is another issue - as we never quite decided about how to wash our clothes, we handwash our 'smalls' - takes me back to my backpacking days - or go to the laundromat. Having not used a laundromat since the um, 80's, I nearly FELL OVER with shock at the price (could have been the drunken sailor legs again tho'). That said, there are apparently more laundries per square metre in Syd's northern beaches than everywhere else in the world put together. It seems the locals don't like to do their own washing. How lovely for them.... We are lucky to have the car parked nearby on land (at least we think it's still there) for said laundry excursions...

Cooking is great - mostly use the microwave, portable gas stove, and BBQ on deck. We DO have to have the generator on to use the microwave however, so it does get a bit noisy inside.

Our shower is fab! Great pressure, and very hot. That said, as we have limited water,

we get wet.
turn off water.
lather up.
turn on water.
rinse off.
turn off water.

I spose it's the equivalent of stage... 10?

I'm slowly getting 'boaty'. I actually tied a 'thimble' onto a rope using a 'scaffold' knot! How clever does that sound? We also ventured out on the yacht, just the 4 of us, today for the first time.

We are moored tonight in The Basin, on the edge of Ku-ring-gai Chase NP, There are wallabies grazing in the grassy area, and a huge lagoon which is cut off by a sandbar during low tide. We are on a mooring which apparently you can just 'pick up', but as they belong to other people, if they happen to come by and need it, then you move. Pretty relaxed arrangement. These ones are free. We plan to stay here for a few days (or until our water runs out), and will make the most of the bushwalks - or at least as much as Roo & Cooks allow us to...

following are a couple of happy snaps. x





Making superhero capes out of left over shower curtains.