Shane and the Shark

Mental arithmetic in pyjamas

We're currently on a bit of a fishing odyssey, it would seem, having left the protected marine park zones of the Whitsundays. It all started last Sunday in Shute Harbour when we think Shane hooked a shark. Either that, or he hooked something big and a shark started chasing it. He had a pilchard in the water on a deep sea rod and the brake clicked gently a few times. He got the rod out of the rod holder and upset whatever was nibbling the pilchard, making it swim away from the boat quite quickly. Shane and I both happened to be looking in the right spot when a 1.8m or so shark jumped sideways fully out of the water, showing us its belly. Shane was sitting on the back deck to reel whatever it was in and asked me to get knife and gaff ready. The gaff is a horribly sharp hook on what suddenly seemed a very, very short pole; I really wasn't keen to have a shark on the boat with us. After a few minutes of rather active fighting, whatever was hooked managed to break the line and, I hope, got away and is safely back home in a lovely underwater cave with its babies, and now knows not to bite hooks anymore. Or so it goes in Heather-world... Shane has recounted everything, with much more blokey detail, in his ship's log entry of 11th October.

In Bona Bay

In the 30nm we've covered since leaving Shute Harbour, we've dragged a lure almost the whole way, made two lunch-time fishing stops and fished morning and evening. We haven't landed much but Cam in particular is having fun and learning lots. Amongst all the fishing that's been going on recently, we managed a lunchtime stop-over at Monte's Reef Resort, a small beach resort on the mainland with a pretty good bar and restaurant and are now messing around Gloucester Island, east of Bowen. Last night's overnight anchorage, Bona Bay on the western side of Gloucester, is apparently a popular day-trip destination out of Bowen and I can see why. It has a beautiful beach, camping facilities and is well protected from northerly winds and swell - meaning the kids were able to get the dinghy on the plane really easily!