Well stocked with the amber fluid and tucker; Phil, purist that he is, decided we would sail off the wharf and out of the harbour, which we did (after a couple of 360's - Steve at the helm) albeit with the help of the trusty outboard. Beating east across Waterloo Bay, between Green and King Islands, we continued on towards the northern side of Peel Island. With an almost high tide we cut across the coral banks off Cucumber Point (doesn't look like a cucumber at all). With Steve at the helm the entire leg, poor Phil was constantly called upon to "adjust the strings" to satisfy Steve's lust for speed; which just goes to prove, you can take the man out of his stink boat, but you can't get the stink boat out of the man (a bit of sailing trivia Steve, there are sheets, halyards, painters and warps on yachts - but no strings, twine or ropes!)
Gliding around The Bluff, past the wreck of the Platypus, we ghosted under full sail between a flotilla of boats into Horseshoe Bay, anchoring close to the beach in a metre or so of water. Wasting little time we cracked a couple of Cascades whilst enjoying a swim in the cool clear water. Frying sausages, rissoles and onions, we ate the usual Lara-Lunch sitting in the cockpit under the shade of the boom tent, before a second cooling dip in the water.
Had an interesting conversation with the owners of another shoal draft Hood 23 anchored adjacent to us. Hoodwink is an example of the rare factory designed and built cabin topped Hoods.
The thoughtfully constructed coach house provides full standing room in the galley area, and I quite like the look of this variant, the cabin lines complimenting those of the hull without any hint of a "tacked on" look. Would be interesting to convert Lara, although as Phil commented, would probably be cheaper to sell Lara and purchase a cabin version.
Departing Peel mid afternoon westwards around South West Rocks, we beat north on a starboard tack towards some ominous looking weather. The forecast afternoon storm had eventuated and was tracking eastwards across the northern end of Moreton Bay. Adjacent to Cleveland Point Lara was greeted by by a northerly squall which had whipped up a metre plus swell. I'm not sure what the wind picked up to but it was whipping spray off crests as Lara tried to bury her bow in the swell, thoroughly soaking us.
An exhilarating ride ensued with the boat heeling 30-45 degrees under full sail. Interestingly, it was the first time I have seen the mast flexing under the strain of the wind. Phil expressed a desire to reef the main, which would have been a prudent thing to do, however the consensus was that it mightn't be overly safe given the boom was thrashing around a fair bit as the mainsail flogged. Crawling forward Phil dropped the jib, which reduced the strain on the boat to a more manageable level, and using the outboard we motored gently onwards before turning west into the relative shelter of Waterloo Bay, where we raised the jib and headed towards the harbour channel markers. Tying up at the wharf we tidied Lara and left her for the marina boys to rack, absolutely buggered from the big day out.
Sure was fun, I really enjoyed the varied conditions we experienced, which only served to confirm my belief that Hoods are a sturdy, reliable family cruisers. Have to do that again sometime soon guys!
