We finally left Cairns, Australia, on October 8, after spending 3 weeks providing Suzanne 2 with some well deserved repairs, new equipment and TLC.

We stopped at several interesting anchorages along the way to Cape York including Lizard Island where we hiked to the top of Cooks Lookout (358 meters) for an amazing view of the Great Barrier Reef. Captain Cook climbed to this same peak in 1770 to find a way through the reef. We also stopped at Hope Island, historical Cooktown, and the Escape River. We rounded Cape York, which is the northern tip of the Australian Continent, and then headed west to Darwin.

The trip from Cairns to Darwin took over three weeks. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territories.

We are staying in a cute marina that is locked in (no tide, no swells) and surrounded by colorful townhouses. There is a restaurant, grocery store and laundry at the head of the dock. Downtown Darwin is a 15-minute walk. Pretty tough!

On Friday the 2nd of November we rented (hired) a car and explored a little bit of the outback. We went on a river cruise and saw crocodiles jumping out of the water and eagles and kites swooping through the air. Then we went to the Florence Waterfall and swam in the rock holes. It was wonderful.

Our next passage will be about 1000 miles west by northwest across the Arafura Sea to Bali.

Suzanne 2 with fresh paint in Cairns






If you look just behind Ben you can see our
new dodger. We love it, shade all day and
protection from the wind and rain.






Cook's lookout on Lizard Island



The bay at Lizard Island





These birds are called Kites. We saw them
on our river trip.









These are White Breasted Eagles. Very beautiful.





Termite mounds in Litchfield Park.





These mounds are made by Magnetic Termites.
The mounds are always oriented to face certain
compass points.






Gosh, was this fun. It was hard to believe the
size and power of the crocs. About a week
before we went on this tour we took our inflatable
up the Escape River hoping to see a crocodile. Now
we are glad we didn't find one.

This big male lost a foot in a territorial dispute

with a bigger male. Our guide assured us it

would be just fine and that crocs can

survive without three of their feet. If they lose their tail they are in danger of survival.

The Florence Waterfall in Litchfield Park.