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| Glassy |
We are definitely in the Doldrums. Light, shifty winds and increasingly oppressive heat and humidity. We are averaging about 110 miles a day with our motoring time included - about six hours a day.
Last night we went through some heavy rains and this morning dawned clearer and dryer, so we thought we were out of the Doldrums. We had some great sailing today. In the afternoon, the sky turned dark to our northeast through southwest-- straight ahead-- and there are large cumulus formations that are producing some lightning.
Last night we went through some heavy rains and this morning dawned clearer and dryer, so we thought we were out of the Doldrums. We had some great sailing today. In the afternoon, the sky turned dark to our northeast through southwest-- straight ahead-- and there are large cumulus formations that are producing some lightning.
Feb 28:
The storms converged on us last night and it rained very heavily again from 6pm till 6am. The night watches huddled under the dodger to stay somewhat dry but everywhere outside was drenched. Torrential downpours, but we were able to avoid the lightening all night with the help of the radar. The wind picked up a lot and was running opposite the 1.5kt current, creating very uncomfortable choppy waves.
BUT, the good thing was that the rain brought with it some good steady winds ranging 12-18kts which are continuing today. The bad news is that the "noserlies" (winds coming from our the direction of our destination) which loved us so much of the time aboard Mystique have found us here approaching the Galapagos!! So we began the slow process of tacking upwind on major wind shifts, requiring 110+ degrees through the tack. This is typical for a cruising boat but not the more efficient 90 degrees or less we were used to racing our C-15 for 30 years.
BUT, the good thing was that the rain brought with it some good steady winds ranging 12-18kts which are continuing today. The bad news is that the "noserlies" (winds coming from our the direction of our destination) which loved us so much of the time aboard Mystique have found us here approaching the Galapagos!! So we began the slow process of tacking upwind on major wind shifts, requiring 110+ degrees through the tack. This is typical for a cruising boat but not the more efficient 90 degrees or less we were used to racing our C-15 for 30 years.
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