Frontier - 12. FR Chapter 12

When we were just 200 metres off shore. I turned into the wind to spill out all the wind from the sails and to slow us right down. Once we were slow enough, Simon lowered the dinghy into the water, and headed for the beach to pick up the lads. Just as he was reaching the beach, I spotted two vehicles heading towards them at high speed, but suddenly they stopped when another vehicle with flashing lights approached them.

That is when I saw a smiling Jasper walking over to the main deck from the pontoon. He lifted up his mobile, to indicate that he had called in a favour from the local police, and moments later he was beside me on the fly deck.

“You should have called me. I knew something was up, when I felt how fast we were travelling,” Jasper said to me. I retrieved the envelope from my pocket and handed it to him.

“Can you put that in the safe, and print out a receipt for the whole journey please, and include the 3 nights at the Thevenard Island Resort, 1^st class airfare from Geraldton to Perth, and 3 night’s 5-star accommodation in Perth, as included in the price, please,” I said to him.

Jasper raised an eyebrow at me, and I smiled and nodded, before he headed downstairs.

Once Simon and the lads were back on board, I turned the yacht to fill the sails, and we headed north-west for 5 kilometres, then north out into the Indian Ocean for ten kilometres. Once we were far enough out, I changed course to north-east, with our next destination being Thevenard Island, just over 100 kilometres away. When Jasper returned, I asked him to check the charts for the two islands located about half way, and suggested we use them as an overnight sheltered stop.

Kirk and Leon arrived soon after Jasper had headed downstairs, with a tray of afternoon tea for me and them, with mum’s homemade biscuits, which they informed me that Simon had made yesterday under my mother’s supervision. I laughed at the thought of that, as I was handed my cup of tea, which I enjoyed having when I was at the helm.

A buzz from the intercom, caught my attention, and I picked up the receiver. Jasper said that it should be fine for us to go around the top of the Peak Island. There was a small beach on the north-east side. So I headed in that direction, hoping to get there before sunset, which we did manage to do, giving our guests time to explore the small island nature reserve that is part of the Muiron Islands.

Since it was a nice evening, we served dinner for the guests at the casual dining table on the aft deck, and once they had eaten, the crew had our dinner in the crew mess below. The next morning at 0630 hours, the lads raised the sails, as Jasper took the helm, and we set off for Thevenard Island, which was just over two hours away. Simon was busy in the galley organising breakfast for guests and crew, and once I had eaten, I headed to my cabin to get some sleep.

When I woke up next, it was just after 1000 hours, and we were not moving. I could hear a pontoon rubbing against something, which I presumed to be the jetty on Thevenard Island. Once showered and dressed, I headed to the main deck, which was easy, as the pontoons had been brought in, to take up less room. I found both Jasper and Simon sunbathing on the fly deck, and there was no sign of the lads or the guests. When I reached the fly deck, I looked around, to find a stunning view of the very flat island, with a small airfield, and beautiful crystal-clear ocean waters.

“It looks amazing, eh,” Simon said to me, when he saw me looking out to the sea.

“Sure does. Do you want to go snorkelling?” I asked my mate.

“Yep, I was just waiting for you to get up from your snooze,” Simon replied with a cheeky grin.

“The guests have settled into their resort accommodation, and the resort managers want to chat to us when we have some free time,” Jasper said to me from under his Australian felt hat.

For the next three days, Jasper, Simon, the lads and I just relaxed, with the lads bringing us a large fish they caught for dinner each night, which we wrapped in alfoil, with dried herbs and lemon juice, and cooked on the BBQ.

We saw our guests on a rare occasion, and it looked like they were having a grand time. On departure day, the guests arrived on the yacht at 0800 hours as was arranged, to find the whole yacht spotlessly clean, as we had all spent the past day cleaning every inch of the yacht, including fresh sheets for the guests and crew, and all the bathrooms were cleaned thoroughly.

“Anton, that was the best resort that I have ever stayed at. Although a little basic, it had all the comforts required, with amazing views, and hardly any other guests on the island. Thank you so much for bringing us here,” Mimi said to me.

With everyone on board, we set off again, heading west around Cape Range, and down the west coast towards Coral Bay. The 285-kilometre journey would take us about 14 hours, but I had done some research, and made a phone call while at Thevenard, and we would stop overnight, about three hours north of Coral Bay, on the beach near Ningaloo Station Homestead. I estimated we would arrive there about an hour after sunset.

We made some good time, with some strong winds helping us a lot, and we beached at Ningaloo, right on sunset. As had been arranged, the station staff had prepared a Beach BBQ for us, with some of their own meat. The guests enjoyed getting to know the station owners and their staff, and learning about life on a large Australian Cattle station. During the evening, I passed an envelope of cash to the station owners, as payment for providing the evening meal, and thanked them for an enjoyable evening.

It was quite late when the adult guests finally made their way to their cabins on the yacht, and as my watch shift ended, I headed to bed, while Jasper and the lads prepared to set sail, setting off just before 0630 hours. When I woke up at 1000 hours, having remembered to set my watch alarm, I showered and dressed, and made my way over to the main deck. The yacht was anchored about 150 metres from shore, and about the same distance north of the town’s jetty, which I noticed was a fair way out of town.

We were in for another wonderful day in paradise, as I headed downstairs to the crew mess for some brunch, where I found Simon complaining about something in the dry store.

“What’s wrong?” I asked Simon, as I stood outside the dry store room.

“Oh hi, Boss. I just can’t seem to find anything. I am going to have to totally rearrange everything again,” Simon said in an annoyed manner, and I just chuckled, and left him to it.

The Felton family managed to get a full day at Coral Bay without being harassed by the media, and when they returned to the town jetty at 1800 hours, the lads took the dinghy to go and collect them, while final preparations were being made for dinner.

While they were away for the day, Jasper had brought the yacht up to the jetty, so we could remove all sewage and galley waste, and top up our water supply, which was getting quite low, before taking the yacht away from the jetty and dropping anchor again. With the guest’s back on board, and Jasper now on watch, I headed to my cabin for a quick shower and change, before joining Jasper on the bridge, as he set off out of Coral Bay.

When the guests had finished eating dinner, George and Mimi came up onto the fly bridge.

“Good evening gentlemen. How long will it take us to get to Monkey Mia?” Mimi asked us, and I turned to Jasper and nodded to indicate that he should answer.

“Well, Ma’am, I estimate it will be about 15 hours, so we will get there at around 0900 hours tomorrow morning,” Jasper replied with a smile.

“Wonderful. I think we should just stay a short time there - just enough time to see the dolphins and have a quick look around,” George suggested.

“Very well, Sir,” I replied and they headed back downstairs.

“So, if we return to Jurien Bay, what will you do during the week, while Simon and I are at school,” I asked Jasper, wondering about what he will do to pass the time.

“Well, I’m not sure yet, but I think I will spend some time doing a bit on maintenance on the yacht, then maybe take a week off for a holiday, maybe down to Perth.

“I might spend a bit of time with Uncle Isaac at Leeman. I am sure he will have plenty of maintenance things for me to do at his place,” Jasper said to me with a smile.

“So you won’t go back to the police force?” I asked Jasper, and he shook his head.

The journey down the coast was very uneventful during the night, and we arrived at Monkey Mia on time, and with the pontoons closed we moored at the only jetty in the area.

For the next three hours, the Felton family looked around the small community, and had a chance to see the wild dolphins up close. When they returned to the yacht, soon after noon, I took the helm, while the lads untied the mooring ropes, and we were soon heading out of Shark Bay, for the Indian Ocean, before heading south for our next destination, that being Kalbarri, about twenty hours away.

When we arrived at Kalbarri at 8am the following day, the weather had cooled a lot, and it was a little overcast, as we motored into Kalbarri, up the Murchison River. We stopped at the small marina, located about 2 kilometres upstream from the mouth of the river. Once we had arrived, the guests headed off to explore the town, after letting them know that there was no set time to return, as Geraldton was only 202 kilometres away, with a diversion to the Abrolhos Islands, that would take 9 hours.

The guests returned to the yacht shortly after 12 noon, and we set off again, heading down the coast to see the amazing cliffs, before changing course to head towards the Abrolhos Islands. We arrived there shortly after 1700 hours, in time to watch the sunset, and have a final BBQ beach dinner, on one of the islands. I had asked Simon and Jasper to look after the guests, while I talked to the lads.

“What’s up, Boss?” Kirk said cheerfully as they sat down in the formal lounge, where I was already seated. I had two large envelopes and two travel folders next to me, slightly out of their sight.

“Guys, I need to talk to you. We are returning to Jurien Bay, so Simon and I can complete our high school education, which means we will no longer be doing full time charters. I am very sorry for this. I have enjoyed you being part of the crew.

“You will be getting an extra month of pay, plus I have arranged for you both, airfares from Geraldton to Perth, plus a week of accommodation, including a day trip to Rottnest Island, flights to Sydney, and a few days’ accommodation plus a day trip to the Blue Mountains, and a trip to Taronga Zoo, then flights to Canada, via Tokyo,” I said to the lads, as I handed them each an envelope containing their pay, and the travel and accommodation information. I noted that they looked very glum, and visibly upset.

“We are staying here overnight, and we will be arriving in Geraldton at about 10am tomorrow. You guys can have the rest of the time off, till you leave tomorrow. Your plane leaves Geraldton at 5.50pm, and I will get transport organised to get you there,” I added before standing up and heading upstairs, to give them some space.

As I reached the top of the stairs, I heard the lads sobbing, and I took a deep breath to stay calm, and continued on up to the fly bridge helm, where I remained until I saw the lads heading over to their cabin. Shortly after, Simon and Jasper brought the guests back to the yacht, before heading back to the beach to collect all the BBQ equipment and supplies.

Jasper took over watch duties on the Fly bridge.

“How did it go with the lads?” Jasper asked me. I took a deep breath and sighed loudly.

“They didn’t take it very well. I heard them both sobbing before they went to their cabin. I have given them the rest of the journey off, till they leave at Geraldton,” I replied.

Jasper nodded his head in understanding and I headed to my cabin to get some sleep, setting my alarm, to make sure I was up in time for my shift at 0100 hours.

During the night, the weather roughened a little, but it was nothing that I couldn’t handle. As the sun came up from the east over the mainland, I could see the rugged coastline clearly. I watched the sun as it rose higher. When Jasper appeared just before 0600 hours, he said good morning to me, and handed me a cup of tea. I stepped aside to let him take over at the helm of the yacht.

“I have been thinking about Kirk and Leon. I am wondering if I am taking this action a little too quickly, and that maybe we should keep them on for a few months,” I said to Jasper.

“I think that would be good. They can help me with doing a full clean of the yacht, while you and Simon are attending school. I will leave it up to you. Maybe you can negotiate a slightly lower wage agreement with them, so it won’t put too much strain on the yacht’s finances,” Jasper replied. I smiled and nodded my head in agreement, and I headed downstairs.

“Good morning, Boss. How are you this morning?” Simon said to me cheerfully.

“I am good thanks, Buddy. While at the helm last night I came to a decision to let Kirk and Leon remain with us for a couple of months. They will help Jasper to do a full clean and maintenance of the yacht, while we are at school,” I announced to Simon.

“That is good. I would have missed them terribly if they left today,” Simon said with a smile as he handed me my breakfast. We chatted about our approaching start of schooling, while I ate. When I had finished, Simon asked me to take Jasper some breakfast, which I was happy to do. I remained with Jasper for about half an hour while he ate, and when he had finished I took the plates and headed back to the galley.

When I arrived, I found Kirk and Leon seated in the crew mess eating breakfast. They went silent when they saw me arrive and I sat down opposite them and smiled.

“Relax, Guys. I have come up with an idea that I think you might like. If you are agreeable to a lower wage, we can keep you on board for at least two more months.

“You will help Jasper with a thorough clean of the yacht and with any maintenance, and hopefully we will have charters each weekend,” I announced to the lads.

There was a long period of silence. Kirk and Leon looked at each other, and eventually they both smiled.

“I think that would be good. If we can stay please, and yes we are happy to take a lower wage to stay here,” Leon said to me.

“Good. Go and unpack, and be ready to assist the guests with departure,” I said to them with a big smile, and I stood up and let them get up and head upstairs.

I went up to the office, and started to cancel all of the arrangements that I had made for the lads. Once I had done this, I went out to the formal lounge where the guests were finishing their final breakfast on board.

“Good morning, Anton. It’s a wonderful day for our arrival at Geraldton. I want to thank you once again for such a wonderful 12-day cruise. It has given me a renewed strength and energy, and the family have really enjoyed being together for this journey,” Mimi said to me.

“I am glad that you had an enjoyable stay, and I wish you the best for the future,” I said to the Fenton family. I headed upstairs to the fly bridge, and I could see the port city of Geraldton in the distance.

“Is everything sorted with the lads?” Jasper asked me as I stood next to him.

“Yes they are very happy to be able to stay,” I replied with a smile.

When we arrived at Geraldton, we moored at the marina, and after saying farewell to our guests, we assisted them with their luggage to get it off the yacht and into the waiting taxi bus, as they were booked onto the lunchtime flight to Perth. Once the guests had left, Kirk and Leon got to work to clean the guest’s empty cabins, and Simon and I got to work to remove all of the galley and sewage waste from the yacht.

When Simon and I had returned to the yacht, Kirk and Leon were waiting for us on the aft deck. I looked at them curiously as they both smiled, before Kirk handed me an envelope. I frowned as I accepted the envelope and carefully opened it. Inside I found a letter and a bank cheque.

“Please find enclosed a bonus cheque for you and the crew. Once again thank you for a wonderful holiday. Kind regards, George and Mimi Fenton,” I read out loud. Then I looked at the cheque, which was for $25,000.

I was a little surprised by the amount, which was $5,000 for each of us. I didn’t say anything about the amount of money on the cheque, and I suggested to Simon that we go and do a little bit of shopping to prepare for resuming school in a few days’ time.