We are done! The boat's tied up safe and sound in the marina, the crew has packed their bags and headed off, and I'm here doing the final clean-up before I leave at 6 am tomorrow morning.
I have to admit, I was pretty anxious for the last 24 hours. I was on the edge of my seat, hoping those saildrives would hold out for the final stretch. I even changed the oil in both of them around 3 am, because we were going to make landfall around 5 am and its quite a way up the river, and the tide was going to be dropping as we went up, meaning they'd have a bit more work to do.
And the final approach was definitely… engaging. There was a fair bit of tide coming out of the river, which dropped our boat speed down to around 4 knots. We also had the added obstacle of river traffic to contend with, and the channel margins were tight – about half a meter on either side. It was one of those situations where you're constantly running through scenarios in your head. I was thinking things like, "If the port engine stops now, we can turn here and stay on this side of the channel, avoiding that ship and then anchor over there," or "If the starboard one stops, we'll be pushed hard by the current and have to avoid that obstacle." It keeps you sharp, that's for sure.
Rivergate Marina also had a decent current flowing through it, so we had to "crab" the boat in, driving through at an angle. I wasn't entirely convinced that the diagonal length of the boat was much less than the distance between the boats on either side. It was a bit of a squeeze!
Thankfully, clearing in was pretty straightforward. The Australian Border Force were friendly, polite, and got the job done swiftly, which was a welcome change after some of our earlier experiences in the islands.
So, today it's all about the final clean-up, saying goodbye to my trusty steed, who looked after us well during the trip despite a few… challenges. And then it's off to the airport first thing tomorrow morning for the flight home. It's been a long journey, but a rewarding one. Time for a well-deserved rest!
