Sydney

18 November 2024

Sydney

After two weeks sailing on the Tasman sea we enjoyed our sail into Sydney Harbour a lot! Not only is this one of the most iconic harbours, but also a very busy piece of water. Even the wind played along for our arrival, just in front of the harbour heads we hoisted all the sails and used the light breeze to slowly make our way into port. The light winds meant slow speed and extra time for enjoying the views and taking pictures of the world-famous opera house and Sydney Harbour bridge.

We were welcomed by several ships: the “Duyfken”, a replica of the first European ships reaching Australia in the 1600s, a tug boat spraying with its watercannons, a small speed boat with the Darwin200-Camerateam on board and the pilot vessel. The swell in front of the harbour was a bit too high for the pilot to board safely, so we were initially guided by radio and later by the pilot, who stepped on board inside the harbour heads.

Now the Oosterschelde is moored in the centre of the city in Darling Harbour. This means we are close to the busy main sights of Sydney and especially on the weekends the evenings are long and loud at the restaurants and bars close by. What a difference to the quiet nights at sea, where the only sounds are the wind and the waves.
The next two weeks we will spend in port, but this does not mean that we will not be busy. The first Darwin-Leader week has already started before our arrival and there will be a second Darwin-Leader week as well! There is a lot of interesting projects already underway and in a few days the results will be presented in the Opera House!! This time most of the project work will be land based, so the Oosterschelde and her crew will spend her time with day sails through the harbour, corporate events and of course welcoming the Darwin-Leaders for a few visits on board.