Learning to Use Mooring Balls Sailing the Whitsundays to Airlie Beach & The Reef Festival Ep 143

You can become part of our crew over at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/sailingastridthewombat/posts Hi and welcome aboard @SailingAstridTheWombat We are Gav and Shezz and two and a half years ago we bought our Beneteau Oceanis 430 sailboat with absolutely no sailing experience and jumped straight into the deep end of liveaboard sailing. Our very first passage was just over 700 nautical miles, launching us headfirst into the world of bluewater cruising, learning to sail, and real life at sea. Since that moment, we’ve been fully immersed in boat life, documenting the journey of turning a production cruising sailboat into a capable, self-sufficient home for full-time liveaboard life. From major sailboat upgrades and off-grid power systems to everyday maintenance and skills building, we have been learning what it truly takes to own, sail, and live on a boat while preparing to sail around the world. We have now left the dock and our adventure has begun so hit subscribe to come along on the journey of a lifetime. If you’re into sailing adventures, beginner sailing, sailboat ownership, cruising lifestyle, and traveling the world by sailboat, our journey is all about real-time learning, ocean freedom, and realising our dream of world cruising under sail...Let's go! We’re leaving Butterfly Bay in the Whitsunday Islands and continuing our liveaboard sailing adventure aboard our sailboat, Astrid the Wombat! After spending time enjoying this incredible anchorage, it’s time to release our mooring ball and sail on to our next destination — Stonehaven. There’s just one small problem… we’re still learning how to use mooring balls! Butterfly Bay was the first time we had ever picked up a mooring ball, and now we have to do something we’ve never done before — release it and sail away. Then, when we arrive at Stonehaven, we’ll have to pick up another mooring ball for the second time ever. So this is very much a case of learning as we go! For us, this is what liveaboard sailing is all about. You don’t start out knowing everything. You learn by doing, make mistakes, figure things out and slowly become more confident handling your boat. If you’re a beginner sailor or dreaming about buying a sailboat and heading off cruising, you’ll probably relate to this one! After Stonehaven, we continue sailing towards Airlie Beach, Queensland, where we’re heading to the Great Barrier Reef Festival. It’s another exciting stop as we continue our journey through the Whitsunday Islands and along the Queensland coast. Living aboard a sailboat gives us the freedom to explore some of Australia’s most beautiful cruising grounds, and the Whitsundays are certainly delivering. From turquoise water and beautiful anchorages to learning the practical realities of handling a cruising sailboat, this episode captures another day of our journey towards our dream of sailing around the world. If you love sailing adventures, liveaboard sailing, sailboat cruising, boat life, beginner sailing, sailing Australia, the Whitsunday Islands, Airlie Beach, Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef, or travelling the world by sailboat, come along for the adventure! We’re Shezz and Gav, and this is Astrid the Wombat. Subscribe and come sailing with us as we continue our liveaboard journey around the world! If you're interested in sailing, cruising, sailboat life, boat life, liveaboard sailing, sailing around Australia, travelling the world by sailboat, beginner sailing, sailboat ownership, ocean sailing, cruising the Great Barrier Reef or exploring the Whitsundays, you will love Sailing Astrid the Wombat! Boat: Beneteau Oceanis 430 Mission: Sailing Around the World Lifestyle: Full-Time Liveaboard Sailing Route: Butterfly Bay to Stonehaven Hook Island and on to Airlie Beach Whitsundays Queensland Australia You can also become part of our crew over at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/sailingastridthewombat/posts Chapters 00:00 Introduction 01:13 Sail Plan 02:41 Releasing the Mooring Ball 03:50 Leaving Butterfly Bay 05:07 Sail Up 07:56 Arrival Stonehaven 09:07 Sailing to Airlie Beach 11:07 Provisioning 14:03 Coolant Leak Repair 18:15 Coral Sea Marina 19:50 Great Barrier Reef Festival Please leave a comment, like and subscribe to follow our journey. Join us now as we head off up the coast of Queensland to explore the world by sailboat. We promise you we will keep it real through the highs and lows of Liveaboard Cruising life! Welcome aboard Astrid The Wombat Gav and Shezz You can also find us on Instagram and Facebook: Sailing Astrid the Wombat #sailing #liveaboard #sailingaustralia #sailingadventures #sailboat