Day 3 29deg 21 min S ;153deg 28min E

Full sails as we head past Yamba. Over cast morning but consistent 8-10knt NW. Targeting Mooloolabah.
More whale sightings but I think James was pulling our leg. A lone dolphin appeared earlier to wish us a good day.
Trouble with our AIS transponder.....hoping it will fix itself.

Whales n dolphins n birds...oh my!

OK, it's not "Lions & tigers & bears" but it's a good as the Land of Aus gives.
As I posted yesterday we were met with a whale just outside Sydney Heads. She stayed with us and then came along a large pod of dolphins.....and the birds? More of those around this morning.





Here's a shot of Greer, Alan & I. The shot was taken by James.












Dolphins having some fun with us and Al watching on.



















Our first Sunset from the sea.

Tired but happy Belly

Day 2 32deg 18min S; 152deg 41min E

Greer and I are back on deck after a 4hr on 4hr off shifts. Just watching the sun rise. Wind now around to the NW so sail can come out again...yeah!

Just past Forster

Life's Good!

33deg,4min S ; 152deg, 0min E The Count on the high seas!

The Count is currently at the above co-ordinates (just opposite Swansea near Newcastle). It is our first true "blue water" voyage as Day 1 of our trip to Hamilton Island.
We left our berth at Sydney Wharf Pyrmont at 0800hrs with little wind. On leaving the heads we came across our first whale. Not to be out done, a pod of about 20 dolphins joined us off Dee Why. Since then only one dolphin, a few birds and ships awaiting Newcastle harbour. First night watches have begun.

Photos (hopefully) later tonight.

Oh,....yes champagne to celebrate sunset of the first day.

Henri Lloyd "Make's it Count!"

Make it Count has recently been made an ambassador for Henri Lloyd marine apparel. This brings many advantages to guests of The Count including admission to their VIP list that updates you on all sales and special offers for Henri Lloyd's fashion ranges.



Make it Count can help you with your choices of crew and yachting gear.

At this year's Audi Hamilton Island Race Week the crew aboard The Count are wearing white long sleeve fast dri polo's, black fast dri shorts and the new cipher jackets.

Keep an eye on our blog for updates photos of the crew.

Make it Count is proud to include Henri Lloyd as a partner.

Just shoot me!

Following from our weekend with Virgin's in-flight magazine, Voyeur, a photo shoot was arranged aboard The Count with Sydney Harbour as it's backdrop. Now I can't say I've ever sat through a photo shoot but this team was quite amazing. We left our berth with a bare minimum....2 models, a hairstylist, make-up artist, fashion consultant, assistant, photographer, photographer's assistant, art director, magazine director...oh and Greer & I.



Along with this was enough changes of shoes to have kept Imelda Marcos happy!

....and did I tell you about the clothes?











All in all, a very busy day. You might not see it but this gig is VERY difficult and the models are worth more money! When you see the final product see if you can guess the actual temperature on the day. Email us your guesses and we'll publish them in a following blog.

















Fashion shoot will accompany the earlier travel article in September.

Virgin playground

Virgin Australia - Day 3
On returning from our adventurous time yesterday we moored in tranquil Chowder Bay. For those that follow our blog you'll know that this is our favourite anchorage in Sydney Harbour. We relaxed in the afternoon with guests and even some crew taking time for a nap before dinner...get this....slow roasted lamb! Even Tom Cruise would have enjoyed this!

The next day was met with 30knot westerly winds but The Count was nestled very nicely at the foot of Clifton Gardens.

After a short cruise down Mosman Bay we headed for home looking back at an amazing experience that showed what really is on our door step.
















For those of you that are travellers, this weekend will feature in the September edition of Virgin Australia's Voyeur in-flight magazine.

"....when your heart beats...next to mine..."

Virgin Australia - Day 2. Awakening at beautiful Bantry Bay awaiting the morning newspapers all aboard enjoyed a nice winter breaky of pancakes.....my father's recipe (yes, I can cook something!)























On leaving our quiet mooring for the night we head out to sea for the chance of whale watching......we couldn't be that lucky AGAIN!

OK...now we're getting a little silly. When we knew we had Voyeur aboard, we worked hard at booking a couple of whales for the day but a bonus of a large pod of dolphins was thrown in that did their best at upstaging the whales!.....not to be out done, a fairy penguin tried to muscle in on the action on our way back through the Heads.












It's not all sailing, cruising and sightseeing.....we do get time to eat too.

"...for the very first time, ooh, like a....."

The Count welcomed Virgin Australia in-flight Voyeur magazine journalist Natasha and her husband for the weekend. Looking for Sydney from a different perspective we headed for Bantry Bay......but not before we came across Sydney Harbour's first seal for the winter season (sorry we missed the photo) just off Goat Island.



Whilst heading out on our own adventure, Australia's Antarctic supply ship Aurora Australis enters the Harbour.












Timing is everything when heading for the upper reaches of Middle Harbour grabbing the early afternoon Spit Bridge opening and continuing to Sydney Harbour's greatest cruising secret.












This beautiful home on Sugarloaf Bay is absolute magic!












When all done for the night it's nice to recount the fun of the day.

No....you go first!....

Australian wildlife has never been known to shy away from a challenge.
Australia's best known kingfisher may have bitten off more than he can chew!




































OK....we'll come clean, the kookaburra's joined us in Bantry Bay before we ventured offshore to catch up with some old friends.