Oso has landed

The MV Eurogracht, carrying Oso from Brisbane, arrived near New Orleans in the Mississippi River on Sunday night.    Karl and I were taken with the loadmaster out to the anchored ship.   It was wonderful to see Oso sitting proudly on the deck after 7 weeks at sea.   We were able to go aboard Oso and begin getting her ready during the 5 hours it took for the loadmaster and crew to prepare her for launching.

 

It was nearly 11 pm when Oso was finally back in the water and we did not think it was wise to begin our 20 mile trek further up the Mississippi in the dark.    This part of the river is loaded with large commercial vessels including barges and many ocean freighters.    The ship's Captain offered to let us tie along side, but we chose to drop behind him and anchor for the night.    It was late August when we left Oso in Brisbane, but the main engine and generator started right up.    She was ready to go!

 

Monday morning we motored toward downtown New Orleans and the Industrial Canal and locks, which lead from the Mississippi to Lake Pontchartrain.   We are now settled in a marina for a couple days of cleaning and provisioning before heading toward Key West and Fort Lauderdale.    It should be a 3-4 day /night run down to Key West where we intend to stop for a couple days before our final leg up to F.L.

 

Everything about our experience with Sevenstar shipping exceeded our expectations!  When I told the Dutch Captain I was surprised she was not dirtier, he said he had his crew give her a fresh water wash prior to arrival. Amazing .......  I give Sevenstar my highest recommendations.

 

We plan on being home for Christmas.

 

Where's Oso?

Oso Blanco is aboard a ship bound for New Orleans, having departed Brisbane about a month ago.   It's not what you would consider a cruise ship, but I am hoping she is enjoying her 9000 mile passage with someone else doing all the work.    It has been a very frustrating 9 month process trying to arrange her shipment and get her safely back to the USA, but we finally found a credible shipping agent and things are moving along on schedule. Last night we were able to log on to the Panama Canal cameras and watch Oso pass through the Miraflores Locks strapped to the deck of her 'mother ship'. It was great to actually see her and it brought back fond memories of when we transited the canal along with Kellie Anne.

 

Plan A is for Captain Karl, of the good ship 4 Pack, to meet me in New Orleans to unload Oso, get her cleaned up and put back together, and head for south Florida as soon as possible.   It will be a bittersweet final voyage aboard our beloved Nordhavn.

 

Other stuff .............

 

Winter is arriving gently here in Park City, but the mountain has been open over two weeks.    Natural snowfall has been spotty and the temps are mild, but the mountain crew is doing a great job making snow and keeping the limited terrain in good shape.    Both Ann and I have joined the Masters (as in old) racing program which trains from 9am- 3pm  Monday – Friday all season.   So far I have skied 15 days and have high hopes for eventually being able to keep up and compete with some amazing skiers and excellent coaches.    I never knew 70 yr old ladies could be so fast.    

 

Bear is adjusting well to the real world and school.   This last week saw a number of accomplishments for him when he finished in first place in his school's "Geography Bee", brought home his first ever report card – with straight A, and qualified for the Park City Ski Team – which is one of the top teams in the country.

 

Eric

 

 

 

 

Finally!!

After six months of frustrations, Oso Blanco is finally on the way back to the US!   She was loaded aboard a Dutch ship in Brisbane, Australia and is headed for New Orleans.   We'll pick her up in N.O., clean her up after her 9200 nm ocean passage, and figure it all out from there!

 

They say stress is not good for one's heart – this is a huge load off of our plate!

 

Eric

Reality Check

It has been a 5 week whirlwind since we left Oso Blanco in Brisbane and headed back to a land life in Park City, Utah.   Since then, we have visited my Mother and friends in Minneapolis, Ann's Mom and the gang in Northern WI, and hung out with Elizabeth and Margaret and the beautiful Grand Girls in Asheville, NC.    After all that, Bear and I did a 'boy's road trip' and drove our car from Minneapolis to Park City.

 

The last two weeks we have been trying to get settled in our new town with Bear adjusting to 5th grade in a 'real' school, getting the house set up, and finding our way around.   Both Ann and I have been working hard at getting into ski shape as we look ahead to the approaching winter.   I treated myself to a wonderful new bicycle and have been enjoying the beautiful fall weather riding the back roads and many trails around our area.   Life is good.

 

Tuesday was "Get your self to school Day" so Bear bypassed the bus stop and we headed out on our bikes for his school.   We were less than a mile from home when I felt strong chest pains, had trouble breathing, and had to get off the bike.   Oh shit", I thought.   "It's the big one".   I told Bear that I didn't feel good and we needed to go home so Mom could take him to school.    The pain lessened and we limped home and immediately headed for the ER, dropping Bear off on the way. 

 

Chest pain is a sure way to get attention when wandering into an ER.     Park City's hospital is a brand new facility with all the latest gadgets and gizmos and little traffic at this time of year.    I was given exceptional care and every imaginable test.     With the initial fear and urgency diminished, little was showing up in the diagnostics.    EKG and blood tests were normal, but they persisted.    Stress test,  pulmonary CAT scans, MRI, and more blood tests showed little.   We had arrived at the ER at 8 am and by 2 pm they had run every possible test but were not willing to give up.    The ER Doc had been working with the Cardiologist in Salt Lake and got a call around 2:30.   "We are going to transfer you to the hospital in Salt Lake", she informed me.   "OK, we'll go home and get our stuff.   When should we go down there?"   She shook her head.  "Now. We have already called the ambulance.   There is no need to change back to your clothes.   They have already scheduled your surgery."   Huh?   We were just about to get dressed and go home to relax.    All of a sudden we had to figure out how to get Bear home from school, make other arrangements, and get wheeled into the 'limo'.   

 

There was no delay for paper work or other admitting details.    I was wheeled to a room and a nurse started explaining what they had planned.    The intercom barked "Prepare 328 for immediate surgery"and the action started.    Luckily Katherine works nearby and she was there shortly.    Ann was on her way down from Park City, but we were rolling down the hall and into the elevator before she got there.   The surgeon explained that even though little was showing up on their tests, they were suspicious of blockage and were going in to check.   If there was a problem, they would fix it.

 

An hour later, I was back in the room with Ann and Kat and dinner was on the way.   The Dr. brought us copies of the pictures showing over 97% blockage of the left anterior descending artery or LAD.  He had installed a stent to open it up and said to take it easy for 2 –3 days before resuming normal activity.  24 hrs after setting off to school with Bear, I was getting dressed in the hospital to go home.    Obviously there is more to taking care of this in the long term, including a row of bottles of meds, but we have once again proven that it is better to be lucky than smart!    Had we been somewhere in the South Pacific this week, this would have been a more interesting story.   

 

During my discharge briefing, the nurse told us that if we wanted more information on what I had gone through, just google 'widow maker'.    Check it out.    Yep, it could have been the big one.  

 

Back on the bike next week.  Ski season is coming.  Take nothing for granted.

 

Eric

BOAT TALK by Bear

The final year on the boat is coming to an end; I will miss the boat much. But to say goodbye I wrote a poem to my boat, OSO BLANCO:

Goodbye Boat

By Bear Bloomquist

Goodbye sweet boat, I hope you always float;

 You are always there and you always have cared;

 You are my dream come true, even though we are almost through;

 We have been to countries and to states; here and there we have met many mates;

 I have been on many boats that float, but you are the best because we have traveled on you from east to west;

 I love you much but we must go on, I will never forget you, never ever.

            Hope the boat likes it, I hope you do too, but like I said it is time to move-on. Goodbye my boat.

Sooooo close, but .........

The good news is we have an answer.  The bad news is we are not on the ship leaving Brisbane tomorrow.

 

It is a VERY long story ........................ I gave up on trying to get info from the agent and was able to talk directly with the ship owners.  They told me they had never received all of the boat information, including all dimensions from the agent.

 

Not so bad news is that they have the next ship leaving here Oct 13 and expect us to be on it. I have started dealing with Nordhavn to make sure the shipper gets what they need. Certainly a disappointment, but some progress.

 

So we are on to Plan 37.9C.    We are scheduled to fly out of here on Thursday.    Back in the States this week!    I'll have to come back to Brisbane in October for the next chapter.

 

Eric

Hurry up, and wait ...........................

We have been docked at Rivergate Marina, on the Brisbane River, for the last 10 days preparing Oso Blanco for a long ship ride back to the USA.    We are working with an agent in Florida who is supposed to specialize in shipping yachts around the world and have prepaid 50% of a large shipping fee.     Oso is scheduled to ship from here next week and we have tickets to fly back to Minneapolis on August 30.

 

Unfortunately, the shipping line has "concerns" about loading Oso due to her size and weight.    The agent continues to say they are "negotiating" our shipment with them and there is still some hope.   Neither the shipper nor the agent excels at communication and with time differences, updates are few and far between.    Each morning this week I have had to get up between 2-3 am to attempt a call or emails with the agent.    Success has been rare.

 

One way or another, we intend to be in Minnesota late next week.    If Oso has been loaded, everything will fall into place.   If this particular ship does not take her, our agent will continue to find other options, although nothing will be in the short term.    I will come home and return to Brisbane when loading is rescheduled.    Preparations for shipping are similar to what is necessary for 'in water storage' so all is not wasted.   If we need to leave Oso here, we will have to arrange for regular cleaning and care to assure all systems are happy.

 

Friday morning update from the agent was, "We are continuing negotiations and appreciate your patience."

 

What patience would that be?

 

E

Ekka

Think Minnesota State Fair meets Bayfield County Fair and you have the beginning of understanding of the Ekka - the Royal Queensland Exhibition of Industry and Agriculture. The event had all the traditional displays to which we are accustomed - with an Aussie twist. There were carnival rides, fried foods, animal barns, crafts and the grand-stand. We watched blacksmiths make and mount real horseshoes and lumberjacks hack through mega logs in record speed. We indulged in fair food: dagwood dogs (foot-long corn-dogs on a stick that barely stayed upright) and fairy floss (cotton candy - ok, we didn't actually get any fairy floss but I couldn't resist putting the name in the blog!)

Then there were the Show Bags (I only capitalize the name as they are such a big deal to the Aussie Fair experience). Show Bags are unbelievably popular plastic bags of over-priced, Chinese-made junk toys and trinkets. The selection ranges from AC-DC to the Wiggles and everything in between. Housed in a gigantic, white, circus tent, several hundred booths line up to sell their bags of crap (pardon the expression) consisting of dime-store paraphernalia you wouldn't give away at a kids birthday party. Yet thousands of Aussies paid $5 - $50 per bag to score their favorite iconic novelties and parade around the fair grounds carrying their Justin Bieber or Elmo treasure bag. Just didn't get it....

Our favorite was the animal barns. There we saw (truly!) newborn lambs that were birthed on display behind glass at the fair; their bloody umbilical cords still hung from their scrawny bellies. Show dogs were meticulously groomed; some looking absolutely stunning with shiny coats and manicured appendages and others appearing ridiculous as in the inconsistently shaved standard poodles with pom-poms on their butts and buffont hair-dos. (Think of the movie "Best of Show" and you get the picture.) In the horse barn, they had spectacular displays of the various types of horses in Australia explaining their origins, uses and characteristics. For each, they had a live horse in a stall for viewing. It was very informative. We also learned that there is one non-allergenic cat as its fur does not contain the protein to which people are allergic. So, there you go.

All in all, it was an enjoyable day and something for everyone. Bear got to chase down Dad on the bumper cars and shoot some arrows into a target. Eric missed out on the classic cars but got his fill of turkey legs and ice cream. Ann was happy watching the horse jumping and walking through the animal barns. It wasn't the Minnesota State Fair but it was a nice way to spend the day.

Footy

 Footy - that's Aussie-speak for Australian Rules Football - is a popular  Australian national sport which, to an American point of view, combines several better-known games into a fast-action, intense and grueling competition of 18 men per team vying to put a bouncy, spherical ball through a set of four posts at the end zones of a large field. Players move the ball by kicking it (like soccer), bumping it (like a volleyball), tossing it behind (like in rugby) or bouncing it (like a basketball) as they run. Points are awarded for getting the ball through the posts: six points through the middle two posts and one point through the outer posts. The score adds up quickly as the game moves almost non-stop through four, twenty minute quarters. It is a riveting game!

Ann and Behan under the Lion's paw!

Along with our friends from s/v Totem (Behan and Jamie Gifford), we witnessed the Brisbane Lions defeat the Adelaide Crows at the Gabba arena near Brisbane on Saturday night with a score of 95-85. The competition was intense and the outcome wasn't determined until the final minutes of the game. Complete with a hug from the team mascot and greasy food from the arena vendors, we thoroughly enjoyed this Aussie national sport and would become Footy fans if given the chance! Go Lions!

Grand Finale, the evidence

This is either the evidence of a great few days, or possibly the ceremonial alter of the SMYC.     Perhaps Main Street in Park City would be an appropriate location for the Cantina.  

 

 

 

E

Grand Finale

After our passage south from Cairns to Brisbane, we spent 6 fabulous nights anchored out in the islands near Brisbane with the Giffords on Totem.    We found peaceful anchorages, the kids all played and had sleep-overs, and the adults partied!    We originally met the Gifford family in Monterey, California and have shared many wonderful times together as we frequently crossed wakes in Mexico, crossed the Pacific at the same time, and explored many South Pacific islands together.   

 

It was a fitting finale to our Pacific cruising and a send off to Totem as they resume their cruising adventures and head for Papua New Guinea.     In addition to our many Chicago Rummy games, awesome dinners, and many bottles of wine, we also celebrated what will probably be the last Trans-Pacific, sub equatorial Grand Conclave of the Strawberry Monkey Yacht Club.    Consistent with all previous meetings, no one accepted any position of responsibility, no names were put into nomination, and nothing other than meaningful fun transpired.    As the sun sets on the Strawberry Money Yacht Club activities in the South Pacific, we are confident the traditions and spirit of the Monkey will be kept alive at the SMYC annex in the Abacos, with all of the members across the oceans of the world, and eventually at the Strawberry Monkey Cantina.   

 

We are now settled at the Rivergate Marina in Brisbane, awaiting an update on our shipping process to return Oso Blanco to Seattle.   

 

E

Final Overnight

Sitting in the darkened pilot house on our last overnight passage aboard Oso Blanco, moving south along the coast of Australia. We left the Great Barrier Reef a few days ago and have had perfect weather: winds at 5-10 knots, not a cloud in the sky, unbelievably calm seas. Dozens of humpbacks whales have poked their heads up to say good-bye and entertain us during the day. Newborns splashing and playing around lumbering moms and spunky males throwing themselves out of the water and crashing back into the sea. It never gets old. We even had a dolphin escort for a while; as they rode the bow wave, I swear they made eye contact. Are they just as curious about us as we are about them? Tonight the Milky Way is so vivid in the dark sky it looks as if the stars are trailing smoke. The rising moon startled me as it suddenly appeared over the horizon where a minute ago it was complete darkness. The orange glow looked like a threatening fireball but quickly emerged into a beautiful, yellow, almost full moon. Somehow you don’t feel quite as alone out here with it watching over you. The hum of the engine combines with the gentle sound of the ebb and flow of the water to offer a soothing atmosphere, making music all its own.  I know Bear and Eric are safe and sound, asleep together in the big bed of our stateroom. Bear pulled me outside to see the Southern Cross before bed and I hugged him as we were in awe of the night sky. “Look Mom! A shooting star! Make a wish!”

My wish is that we never forget nights like this….

Sunset

We often laugh about taking photos of sunsets at sea.   The reasoning is that you only need one in your collection, because they all look the same.   That may be true visually, but each day and each night at sea is unique in it's own way.

 

Bear and I just watched the sun set behind Fraser Island in Australia.    We sat together on the fly-bridge, he with his Bundaberg Ginger Beer and me with a glass of wine, and toasted the beautiful setting sun.   We are cruising along in smooth seas and clear sky with only 130 miles to go to Brisbane.  Our last sunset at sea in our grand adventure.    To be honest, I don't remember my first sunset 'at sea', it was probably on Lake Superior.    I will never forget this day's sunset.   Yes, it looked like many that came before, but as we think about having dinner and settling in to our last overnight passage aboard Oso Blanco, it is very different.   For the first time, there is doubt about there being another.   There was no way to capture that in a photo.

 

E

Southbound

We are approximately 350 nm north of Brisbane wandering south.   After 6 weeks of windy rough weather in the Cairns area, we have had near perfect conditions for the last week.     Most days we have traveled 50 –70 miles and anchored overnight at some of the places we visited on the way north.   Today there is hardly a breath of wind or ripple on the sea.    We occasionally come upon whales playing on the surface.    This is the season the humpbacks come north to have their babies and we frequently see mothers and babies frolicking.     We keep our distance and slow down and the whales seem to ignore us and just enjoy themselves.    They seem like kids in a pool as they slap their fins, splash about, and play with each other.

 

With conditions this good, we may continue day and night for the next 2 days and run nonstop to Brisbane.    In weather this beautiful the overnight anchorages are spectacular, but it is very rare to have smooth seas for traveling at this time of year.   Happy hour on the fly bridge while underway is hard to beat!

 

E

Making tracks

It's Monday morning (9am) and we are rolling south back toward the Whitsunday Islands.   We'll stop there for a few days and then push on.

 

By late this afternoon, we'll have covered 300 of the 850 nm between Cairns and Brisbane.   A couple days ago, we had a perfect cruising day with light wind, smooth seas, and whales.    Yesterday was pretty much a bash, covering the boat with salt as the spray blew over us and the sun baked the salt on.  Oso is humming along but will need a bath after this leg!

 

Today has started out good (since 5 am!) and the forecast is OK for the rest of the day.   The wind and seas tend to be a bit lighter in the early morning, so we try to get underway after the first cup of coffee.

 

We still don't have any update on our shipping schedule, but we'll keep pressing for Brisbane and take what comes.

 

E

Escape

This morning we finally "escaped" from Cairns in northern Queensland.   We arrived here 6 weeks ago hoping for extended time exploring and diving the outer reefs of the Great Barrier Reef.  Unfortunately, for most of our time here we have had 'enhanced trade winds' which means it has blown 20 - 25 kts and often 25 - 30+.  There is very little protection from wind and waves out on the reef and there are few islands or bays to hide behind.

 

The last two weeks we have been waiting for the winds to diminish since we have approx. 800 miles to go into the wind and seas back to Brisbane.    It looks like we have a good weather window for the next few days, so we will make some tracks south and sneak out to the reef for some diving when possible.  We hope to be in Brisbane around Aug 15.

 

Once we reach Brisbane, our plan is to ship Oso Blanco back to the Seattle area in late August.   We have a shipping contract, but the ocean shipping agents are notoriously late and undependable, so we do not have a firm shipping date.   Rather than just sit and wait, we have made reservations to return to the states and be at the cabin for Labor Day weekend!   If the boat has shipped, we will all come home.   If the boat is going ship soon after Sept 1, I will likely remain in OZ.    If shipment is delayed or uncertain, I will come home with Ann and Bear and return to OZ when necessary.    Either way, some of us will at Eagle Lake for the end of summer festivities.

 

We have obviously been disappointed that the weather limited our adventure on the GBR.   However, Cairns is a vibrant active town and we had a lot of fun in the area.  The marina is excellent and right in the center of the action, there are excellent hiking and biking trials, and we also did a number of great road trips inland.

 

The final leg of our South Pacific adventure is underway.   Oso is running perfectly and we are traveling with our good friends on Mystery Ship, just the way we started out from Mexico in April of 2010.

 

E

 

 

Weather Hampers Time on the Reef

The Great Barrier Reef (GBR, not to be confused with PBR in Wisconsin) runs along the NE coast of Australia for over 1600 miles. It varies from over 60 miles off shore to only 15 – 20 miles as it nears the northern coast. Most areas of the reef are hard to reach for private boats since it is well offshore, there are few islands to break up the force of the winds and seas, and the typical winds during the cruising season are at least 15 – 20 kts causing 4’ – 6’ seas. Anchoring or hanging out near the reef for diving must be planned carefully and coordinated with the occasional weather breaks. Most visitors and divers access the reef on day trips aboard large high speed commercial catamarans which zoom out and back in all but the worst weather. Many towns along the coast claim to be the best access point to the reef but Cairns is one of the best with the reef only an hour away on the fast boats.

 

We arrived in Cairns in mid June to spend our last month of our cruising life exploring and diving the GBR. Cairns is a very active tourist town and has a great marina to base out of. There is only one island in the region that has reasonably protected anchorage, so you are pretty much restricted to being ‘in town’ or out on the reef in settled weather. Unfortunately, since we got to Cairns, it has blown 25 – 30 kts around the clock for over 3 weeks. The reef and surrounding area has had large seas and we have been holed up in the marina for most of the time. Two weeks ago, our friends, the Taylors, came over from NZ for a family vacation and week of diving and the winds continued to howl. We took a chance and went out to an island approx 2 hrs away to try to find some shelter. After a couple nights being rocked around and not being able to get out to the reef, we gave up and returned to the marina. Taylors ended up taking one of the commercial boats out for a day of diving and reported that most of the passengers and some of the crew were sick on the way out.

 

Our cruising partners Glen and Cindy on “Mystery Ship” caught up to us in Cairns with the same goal of diving on the GBR. We made a plan to watch the weather forecast and do whatever it took to get out on the reef. Last weekend we saw a 3 day break in the 20 – 30 kt winds and headed out 60 miles to the NE to reach one of the more remote areas of the reef (the Agincourt reefs). We were lucky that the winds obeyed the forecast and we had 10 – 20 kts and were able to find reasonable protection from the waves anchored behind the reef. It is a weird sensation to be anchored with nothing in sight in what seems like the middle of the ocean. The reef remains completely under water, but still breaks to force of the seas.

 

We had two days of 2 –3 dives each and finally got to see what the GBR has to offer. It is estimated that the reef has lost over 50% of it’s coral since 1960, but we still had good dives and saw beautiful coral and many fish. A couple of Minke whales visited us in the anchorage and got so close we could almost touch them. We were carefully monitoring the weather and saw that winds and seas were expected to rebuild late on Sunday afternoon. We pulled anchor early that morning and headed back to Cairns. Apparently the wind gods were not paying attention to the forecast and by mid morning we had steady 25 – 30 kts, gusting to 35+, right on the nose. It was a 7 hour bash and crash all the way home with the boat falling off steep sharp waves and shaking us like we have not experienced in nearly two years. Luckily we knew it was going to be a short trip and hung on for the ride.

 

It is time for us to start watching the weather in order to head back towards Brisbane, where we will ship Oso back to the USA. It is nearly 800 miles back south – mostly into the winds and waves. We have 4 –5 weeks to travel and hope to sit out the strongest weather and make tracks when it lets up. Our goal is to revisit some of our favorite places on the Australian coast and minimize the bashing and crashing in our ‘final voyage’.

Happy Birthday Eric!

Looking good Eric!

SCUBA diving on the outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef on your birthday!  PRICELESS!!

Our Outback Adventure by Bear

Ayers Rock, Uluru

In June, we went to Uluru (also known as Ayers Rock) which is near the town of Alice Springs. It is in the center of Australia. We went in my birthday week, so technically, it was a birthday present. Now I will tell you more about our trip.

          My family and I went for four nights. Two nights we spent under the stars, and two nights in a hotel. While under the stars, we slept in swags (big canvas sacks that you put your sleeping bag into). IT WAS BLOODY COLD!

          We got to Uluru by taking a long, cold bus ride in an old, beat-up bus that did not have heat or AC. But it was fun all the same, because the guide (Cooper) was really good at his job.

          There are many Aboriginal stories or sacred sites about Uluru. Some people climb the rock, but you shouldn’t! If you do, you are climbing up and down sacred Aboriginal sites. We did not climb for that reason.

          We were not the only people on the tour, no way. There were 14 other back-packers. There were: 5 Germans, 1 Scot, 1 English, 2 French frogs, 3 Asians, and our guide Cooper (or as he likes it, Boss). So, there were a lot of other people.

          We had a lot of good experiences on the trip like riding camels and learning about Aboriginals. I would HIGHLY recommend going to Uluru. It is an amazing experience for all ages.

Shipping

Well, it's official – kind of.    Our South Pacific adventures may actually come to an end in the next few months.  We have a contract to ship Oso back to the Seattle area from Brisbane, "loading between August 20 – 30".    However, arranging the shipping of yachts appears to be more of an art, than a science.

 

An old lumber buyer once told me that when they rounded up all the horse thieves in the old west, they all went into the lumber business.    From what I can tell, some of them escaped and became yacht shipping agents.    The boating world is full of stories of promised shipping dates, broken promises, boats shipped 6 months late, and worse.    But, our options are few and we are rolling the dice.    Like every gambler on the way to Vegas, we are going to win.

 

Our plan is to continue exploring here on the northern part of Australia's east coast, including the Great Barrier Reef,  until late July.   We will then start back on the 1200 nm return trip to Brisbane.    With any luck, all will go according to plan and we will load Oso for her month long "cruise" to Seattle on the deck of a freighter.    Once she is on her way, we intend to travel for a few weeks and then meet her in Seattle sometime in late September.  Our fall plans include trips back to Minnesota and North Carolina to see family before getting settled in Park City. 

 

If the shipping does not occur as planned, we will park Oso in Brisbane and wait for 'our ship to come in'.    If the delay is likely to be extended, we will return to the US and I will go back to Australia when loading occurs.

 

It ain't over 'til it's over.

 

Eric

Townsville Turtle Hospital by Bear

        Did you know that there is such thing as a turtle hospital? There is one in Townsville, Australia, which is connected to an aquarium. When we visited, there were five sick turtles.

            

        The reason turtles get sick is because they accidentally eat trash, such as plastic bags and fishing equipment. The trash compacts their guts and they can’t poop or let out gas. After that, all the gas gets stuck inside them and they float. When they float, they can’t dive to eat or get cleaned. So then they die of starvation or of pests like barnacles.

            

       Like I said earlier, they had five turtles: two were floating, one used to be starving to death, and two used to be floating and are over it. They are keeping them be sure they are okay. One of the floating turtles was huge, jumbo mumbo!

  

There are many types of turtles but they only had green turtles at the hospital. Some other turtles are: Leather Back, Hawks Bill, and Flat Back. The Leather Back is the biggest, and the Flat Back is the smallest.

           

         I thought it was really amazing that turtles can be saved! If you ever are in Townsville go and see it. I thought it was really worthwhile.

Plane Time by Bear

Have you ever been in a bi-plane? Dad and I went today. It was amazing! It was a bi-plane on floats called The Red Baron, like the Red Baron (the flying legend)!

The plane was a Grumann G-164 Agcat with a Pratt and Whitney 450 HP engine. It was built in America in 1964 then it was imported to Australia in 1970.  In Australia, it was converted into a sea-plane, next to a two passenger aircraft! After that, it was renamed a Grumann Sea-cat and it was even in a movie in 1996!

          When we took off you could feel wind pounding your face soooooo hard it almost hurt! We couldn’t hear a thing up there so we wore head-sets and radios to talk and to hear each other. From up there, you could see for miles and kilometers and miles and kilometers! The pilot did a maneuver called a wing over, just for fun. It is when you go sideways and pivot on your wing. It is a little breath-taking the first time, but you get used to it and have fun with it!

          It was vvvvveeeeerrrrryyyyy fun! I would highly recommend it. The flights are based from Townsville which is where we are now.