The Social Club charted the Freedom Bay cruises, catamaran for 3 hours, giving us two , one and a half hour cruises to accommodate all our eager sailors. The lovely summer, sunny autumn days had to come to an end  sometime but did it have to be the day of our cruise around Corio Bay. The forecast was for strong winds, rain, hail and extreme cold. Unfortunately the weather man got it right for once! Our Social Club members are made of strong stuff and dressed warmly, ready for anything.

At 9.00am our first coach set off, shortly followed by Coach 2. Both coaches were buffeted by strong gusts of wind and rain on our way to Geelong and some travelers were wondering if they had made the right choice to come. Coach 1 were on board the catamaran when Coach 2 arrived. Passengers on Coach 2 were given morning tea as we huddled under a shelter in the wind and rain to wave goodbye as the others sailed  away toward the white capped waves and very grey skies. The catamaran did return to find the gangplank had fallen into the water. So having survived their trip they now had to abandon ship by jumping from the boat to the wharf. This did not stop Coach 2 passengers from wanting to sail and they boarded the boat by jumping on. Once aboard it was warm, dry and amazingly not rough. We even had a hot drink served to us. Some members decided to go for a long lunch rather than take their chances on the boat. Everyone who braved the boat trip saw Geelong from a different angle, were surprised at the stability of the boat and were happy they had taken the trip.

With two hours to spare everyone dispersed to find lunch, a dry warm spot to hang out or explore. Four o’clock saw us on our way home before the football crowds—GEELONG was playing at home.