MV TENACITY, probably the biggest floating gin palace this side of Sydney, has been moored off "Riverbend" several times over the years, enjoying the beautiful sunrises and the tranquillity and shelter in this bend of the river.
As Commodore, Secretary, Treasurer, and only Member of the Nelligen Yacht Club, I rowed out and introduced myself to Ross Britt who turned out to have at one time been interested in buying "Riverbend" himself. He longer has to: he practically lives here!
It's a beautiful Finn motorboat, powered by a 20hp Yanmar diesel inboard. The Finns are known the world over for being not only a great sea boat and passage maker but for being one of the prettiest production boats to come out of a mould.
Here is some more information:
My good friend Andrew Holt on the good ship SV SETTLEMENT (as in 'divorce') and Sue-the-crew are at this moment sailing through the Indonesian archipelago. 17,508 islands to choose from!
They're having a great time. As Andrew emailed, "All is going well, they certainly are a friendly race out in the islands".
Their last stop was at Pulau Tomea south-east of Sulawesi. That's Joseph Conrad country and I've emailed them some required reading: LORD JIM and AN OUTCAST OF THE ISLANDS.
Where are they now? www.findmespot.com shows all their positions - except their nocturnal ones! ☺ Click the 'Zoom In' button below the little yellow man to see what they're having for breakfast right now!
An American friend who owns an island in the Kingdom of Tonga, is looking for someone to island-sit the place for the next six months. It's a breathtakingly beautiful place with a breathtakingly beautiful residence.
As my friend says, "We can't offer any pay but consider all the benefits of staying on the island at no cost and access to all houses and boats."
Here are some more enchanting images.
Interested? Email the Nelligen Yacht Club at
They thought the Clubhouse doesn't look 'knotical' (or should that be 'nautical'?) enough. We listen to our members and have rectified the situation - see photo above.
SY SHERBRO anchored off the Nelligen Yacht Club. However, before I could row out and introduce myself as commodore and only member and inquire into their possible link with Sierra Leone, they had already weighed anchor again and motored back to the sea.
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Hi Peter,
I really need your advice on a serious problem. I have suspected for some time now that my wife has been cheating on me. There are all the usual signs: if the phone rings and I answer, the caller hangs up; she goes out with the girls a lot. I try to stay awake to look out for her when she comes home but I usually fall asleep. Anyway, last night about midnight I hid in the shed behind the boat. When she came home she got out of someone's car buttoning her blouse, then she took her panties out of her purse and slipped them on. It was at that moment, crouched behind the boat, that I noticed a hairline crack in the outboard engine mounting bracket. Is that something I can weld or do I need to replace the whole bracket?
Regards, |
The NELLIGEN YACHT CLUB has new honorary members: Brian and Belinda Laughlin, just back from a cruise to Papua New Guinea and the Solomons, have dropped anchor off "Riverbend" to go back to their hometown Ulladulla, just fifty clicks up the highway. Their 17-metre yacht PANDORA IV, domiciled at Bluewater Marina north of Cairns, adds a nice nautical flavour to the place and makes me want to sail off into the sunset again.
Past Cottage guests and honorary members of the Nelligen Yacht Club, Simon and Miwako and son and brother and mother, dropped in aboard SY Scruffie enroute to Batemans Bay.
'Sayonara' until we meet again!
I am an occasional reader of MARE Zeitschrift der Meere which is all about oceans and seas. I suggested to its chief editor Karl Sturzem a few stories for publication:
And, of course, my favourite, the story of Tom Neale on Suwarrov:
He wrote back: "Many thanks for your interesting suggestions. I will take some time to study them before presenting them to our next editorial meeting at the end of January. Please be patient until then."
