True to forecast the winds turned northerly today and bought with them rain and a rough ocean. We had decided to rest up today and carry out some repairs and maintenance on the kayaks. We also managed some fishing and exploring by foot of the coast line. We are camped where rainforest meets crystal clear ocean, whip vine tangles the tree canopies, Chain fruit (Prickly alexia), Birds nest ferns and Grass trees make the understory just beautiful. I satisfied my inner greenie by hand weeding some lantana and red natal grass which should not be in such a pristine place.
We have company in the camp with a resident bush turkey rustling around looking for unguarded food. We have an unknown marsupial the size of a rat forraging around the camp at night – he is very cute. We were largely unsuccessful in our fishing attempts today only managing to hook a small Potato cod which we returned to the water. The same could not be said for the resident Osprey who flew past several times, each time with a dinner plate sized fish in its talons, I am sure he was laughing at us as he flew by. 200 plus Black shags and 20 Pelicans raced by our fishing spot harassing a large school of fish, I watched as the motor cycle gang of Shags chased the school of fish into a small bay and drove them onto the sand. It was all over in a few short minutes, felt sorry for the fish.
A Dugong popped his head up 10 metres away from the rock I was standing on this afternoon – unlike the Shags and Pelicans he was in no hurry.
Tonight I counted 14 large ships on the horizon waiting to enter the port of Gladstone, over the next few days we will be cutting a path through the shipping lanes to the eastern coast of Curtis island, the weather forecast for the coming week is changeable with many wind direction changes. The tides are now above 3 metres with tide currents running up to two knots. It is going to make the paddling challenging and the planning for this coming week needs to be carefully thought out. We have entered a new stage of the trip – it is going to be hard work at times but fun. Sorry no photos – poor reception.
DT
redwinekayaks 
Hi Mr Stone, we miss you at school. From Alessandra
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Hi Alessandra, thank you for your message, I am missing you guys too. But I am getting to see a very beautiful part of the world. We have had a couple of days rest and are about to head to a very remote part of our trip, so you won’t hear from us for about a week. Say hi to Suzie for me too.
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Hi. Mr stone. How. Is. Your. Trip. Going. We. All. Miss. You. Charli
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Hi Charli, thank you so much for your message. I am really missing all you guys too. I often look at the time and think about what you are doing in class. Over the next week we are going to be in very isolated and have some tough waters to paddle so we would really appreciate your prayers. You are a great kid Charli and I know you will be looking after Mrs Leskiw. Say hi to everyone else in the class too. Mr Stone
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Hi,Dean,Have been following your travels with great interest.Love the photos.Happy Birthday for tomorrow.wishing you a safe journey. Love from Mum.
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