Anchor down

EVERY year, whenever the great whale migration occurs off the Australian east coast, my wife and I have talked about the day when we would be seeing them from the water, instead of perched high up on a land-based lookout.

This year, after almost three years of spending all our time renovating our 52 foot ketch Taroona, we felt the time had come to make this dream a reality.

So, on a benign winter’s day in late July, we slipped our mooring in Hardys Bay and headed out to sea with the intent of spotting some passing whales. Those who are familiar with the waters around Broken Bay will know that the entrance to Brisbane Waters is closely guarded by a relatively narrow channel that snakes around a headland and reef known as Half Tide Rocks, an area that has seen its fair share of groundings.

Some 20 minutes after