The Joy of Mooring Balls

One phenomenon that I did not anticipate in Australia (at least on the east coast) is very strong wind events. The wind will rise to 35 knots for a period of time and then drop back down. Since the wind events seem to correspond to dramatic wind direction shifts the anchor is very likely to drag for a bit before resetting. I had this problem in the Brisbane River. There it was caused not only by wind events but the daily reversals of the current. As a result Reboot "walked" slowly from the original point where I would drop.

In Brisbane this was a real problem as Reboot "walked" slowly out into the river channel. When I arrived in Brisbane the normal wheel and wire steering was not working. I would wait until slack wind and tide to use the autopilot system to get anchored back out of the channel. I had to wait as the response of the autopilot was quite slow for close maneuvers. The delay in resetting did not endear me to the Citi-Cat captains. (The steering was repaired as noted in my blog previously.)

It is nice being on a mooring. The peace of mind is quite rewarding.

Fair winds and following seas :)