Except for a few hours one morning when we motorsailed in light winds, our last couple of days sailing in to Cairns were more of the same great trade wind conditions and good speeds.  I got up at about 2 am on the last night to keep and eye on our course as we wound our way in through a shortcut in the Great Barrier Reef.

Our arrival was well timed.  There was no night traffic to contend with and the sun was coming up as we neared land.  As we neared the quarantine line, an Australian warship came out of the harbor and started maneuvers in the bay, offloading a couple large RIBs that started racing back and forth as well.

Warship

Almost there!

We made our way up the river to Marlin Marina where we cleared customs and quarantine. Customs/immigration was quick and easy, but quarantine is a bit of a nightmare here.  The quarantine charge is $330 (without overtime) and includes two hours of inspecting interior wood for termites (the new big deal here), taking down history on bottom painting, checking engine water strainers for mussels, confiscating all our popcorn, fruit, and veggies, etc., etc.  In the end, because we’re from the US (which is apparently a high-risk area for termites) and have a fair amount of wood in the interior we were given only a limited pratique instead of a full pratique.  The limited pratique is good for a year, so it shouldn’t matter for us.

At least the Quarantine officials were really nice

The most comical part of the whole experience was Shiroma and her boyfriend Mishka.  They haven’t seen each other for 6 months and he was there on the dock to meet us.  Because of the strict quarantine rules and the quarantine team being a bit late in showing up due to another job, they just had to stand and look at and talk to each other from a few feet away for 2 hours or so until the quarantine team gave the nod for us to take down the yellow “Q” flag and step ashore freely.

Mishka waiting patiently

The first order of business was showers, and the Marlin Marina has hot showers like no other.  They’re hands-down the finest showers we’ve ever had ashore since we started sailing.  There must be eight of them in each bathroom, with a modern interior design and a giant overhead showerhead that rains down all the warm water you want.  After a 9-day passage, showers were definitely the topic of conversation for a while with terms like “life-changing” and “spiritual experience” being tossed around.  I do remember thinking to myself after the first hot shower I had when we arrived in New Zealand (after months without a modern hot shower) that people who are accustomed to one every day (myself included) really do forget what an incredibly great experience it is.

Happily contemplating a shower

Cairns itself is a cute town with a bustling tourist industry.  We were shocked by the number of large tourist vessels that streamed out of the marina entrance one after the other as we waited for the quarantine berth to open up. The marina is right next to the touristy, youthful downtown area, and Lauren and the crew have had a good go at the western-style nightlife over the weekend.  So far my clock is still set to go to bed early and wake up when it gets light out.

This morning we moved out of the marina to the anchorage on the other side of the river and have already had to move once after swinging too close to another boat in the current and wind.  Boats on moorings (with short scope) and boat at anchor with a longer swing radius are interspersed, so it’s a bit more difficult than it looks to pick a good spot, especially in the murky river water.  We may touch bottom at low tide in the spot we picked today.  It’s just soft mud though, so it shouldn’t be a big deal if we do.