We woke at around 9am after an uncomfortable and interrupted sleep. After a quick breakfast, we walked to the top of nearby Mount Latrobe. At the top we could just make out the outline of Hogan Island, nearly 50 km away to the east on the horizon. Suddenly I was hit with an overwhelming sense of dread. What were we doing? Bass Strait has a reputation for being one of the most dangerous stretches of ocean in the world and we were about to attempt to paddle across it in a kayak!
After lunch we decided to paddle back to where we had camped the previous night. Another four fish were caught in quick succession and after returning to the beach we were particularly careful to conceal our dinner as we enjoyed a swim in the afternoon sun in the shelter of our cove.
The rest of the afternoon was spent preparing the kayak in the hope that tomorrow would provide us with the window of opportunity we needed for the big crossing to Hogan Island. The scratchy reception on the am/fm radio gave us regular updates on the cricket and the tsunami disaster in South East Asia. After a phone call to the weather bureau from the satellite phone, we were relieved to hear the forecast looked positive. Relief was soon replaced with a feeling of nervous anticipation for what the following day would bring.
A further phone call to Emily to pass on the news of our planned departure in the morning was cut short when the battery died in the satellite phone. We checked the spare battery and were horrified to learn that this too was flat, rendering the phone useless. This was a problem. Both batteries were charged in full, checked and re-checked before we left, meaning they had to be faulty. This compromised the safety of the trip. After a lengthy discussion we decided to continue tomorrow as planned. Annoyed and frustrated we retired to bed early. Tomorrow would be a big day.