The bare essentials for island-hopping odyssey

JACK LAWRIE Cairns in preparation to begin an island-hopping journey through the southeast AsiaPacific region.

American sailor Amy Alton took the chance to pick up $580 worth of food at Cairns Woolworths, packing enough food to last two months at sea.

“We bought a variety of meats, cereal, rice, and pasta. Everything we need to eat well for the next few months,” she said.

Mrs Alton came to Australia with her husband David on a voyage around the world spanning 3½ years.

“We came to Australia in December, basically hiding out from the cyclone season,” she said.

“We knew that Indonesia was our next destination and we knew there would be some bureaucratic challenges, so that’s why we joined the rally.”

Cairns Cruising Yacht Squadron vice-commodore Steve Shedden said it was common for sailing rallies to link up at Cairns this time of year.

“Some of these people have been travelling around the world and hop on here,” he said.