I left Bermagui at noon with a favourable wind and current. The forecast suggested several days of northerlies followed by a westerly, which seemed a good window for Tasmania. C-Star left shortly afterwards. By the next evening, however, a southerly front arrived with winds over 40 knots.
The staysail goes overboard
I put a third reef in the main and sailed Malua into the wind. In the dark, a large wave broke over the starboard bow. White water filled the staysail, the stay parted and the sail and furler went over the side. I dropped the main, recovered the sail with a line led through a block to a winch, stopped the wind generator and secured the bent furler. The wind was still around 45 knots.
With a little genoa out and the wheel secured, Malua settled comfortably enough for me to sleep in short intervals. By daylight the worst had passed, though the wind remained strong. I later headed towards Triabunna.
The fuel problem
When the wind died, I changed from the forward to the aft diesel tank. The vacuum gauge went red and the engine began to falter. Black sludge had blocked the fuel. I switched back, cleaned and changed the filter, then tried to recover usable fuel from the aft tank through a coffee filter. It was slow work, but it gave me enough to continue.
I motored past Maria Island and into the bay near Orford after dark, anchored, and slept. The following day I followed another yacht into Triabunna with very little usable fuel left. The crossing had demanded much more from Malua than the forecast suggested.