Who We Are
In April 2006, Bill and Susan Grun purchased a J/160, a 52-foot high performance sailing vessel built for speed and designed to cruise the oceans in comfort and style. W [...]
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2013 Overview – Australia and the Louisiade Archipelago
We began 2013 onboard Avante in Sydney Harbour on New Year’s Eve, and our sailing plans for the year were simple. We would soon take Avante north to Brisbane where our f [...]
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Queensland Coast – November 2013
Friday, November 1st – We are about to start our final trip of the year, going south along the Queensland coast from Mackay to Brisbane, but the weather is not cooperati [...]
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Two Overnight Stops Make an Easy Passage to OZ
Monday, October 21st – It is now time leave the Louisiades and return to Australia. We are bound for Brisbane and would like to get as far south along the Queensland coa [...]
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Rossel Island
Sunday, October 13th – The last big rally event is finished and several boats left for Australia in the morning. The rest of the rally headed off to a final rally party [...]
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A Tale of Two Visits
Sunday, October 6th – After our adventures in Misima, we have a few free days before the final rally event at the end of the week. Our first stop is a return to Bagaman [...]
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Shootout at the O.K. Corral
Neither The First Mate nor The Captain are excited about a visit to Misima, the one and only town in the Louisiades. They have seen enough island towns across the Pacific to [...]
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The Internationally Famous Kamatal Yacht Club
The internationally famous Kamatal Yacht Club? What is The First Mate talking about? Well, actually, if one were to consider the number of yachts from nations ‘rou [...]
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Drama in Blue Lagoon
Saturday, September 28th – A large hand-painted sign greets us the next morning as we walk up the beach to the village on Bagaman Island. It serves as another remi [...]
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Three Free Days
Wednesday, September 25th – Three days with no Rally activities scheduled! Feeling like children let loose on a school holiday, we listen to the morning radio brie [...]