Blog 3.27 Wed.
STATUS REPORT
Latitude: 6.9 deg south; Longitude 109.5 deg West (south of SLC)
8 days at sea
1,203 mi from Galapagos; 2,084 mi from Panama Canal start; 1,745 mi to Fatu Hiva (new arrival destination in Marquesas)
Cloudy, squally, 20-25kt winds, 8.6 - 9kn speed, rocking & rolling in 8' seas.
"Ideal Sailing Passage to Paradise in French Polynesia"
Not exactly...
When we were offered the opportunity to participate in one of the "best ocean passages in the world" in the soft SE trade winds from the Galapagos to Tahiti, we couldn't say no. 15-18 kt southeasterly winds heading west toward paradise on gently rolling seas. Ahhh, what an opportunity! We were not necessarily sold a bill of goods, because we did our homework and that is the description of the typical sailing passage along this classic cruising route.
But things are different than advertised. Jan just finished reading a friend's book, in which he states "weathermen are both liars and scoundrels".
Yes, we agree. We are experiencing variable winds: read, several and constant sail changes; rain: read RAIN; sloppy seas: read 8 to 10 foot waves from a very confused sea. All this is to say, it has not been the milk run we had hoped for. I'm sitting in the "living room' of the boat watching the seas out of one of the ports (windows on the side) go under water as the boat heels, then it's the ports on the other side of the boat. If Colorado just had one of these storms, we'd have the drought thing licked. This has been an unusually warm year in this area south of the equator. The troughs with their humidity and tropical rains extend farther south than normal - down to 10 south latitude or more. All the other boats in this Oyster Around the World Rally are farther south than us, in the area recommended by the professional weather forecasters for this passage, and they're experiencing the same uncomfortable weather as us.
NOT ALL BAD
To be honest, we have had some good parts since the doldrums. We were so happy when the steady winds of the SE trades kicked in just after I finished the last blog. We had clear skies and beautiful sailing for most of two days. We are able to pop the chute when the winds drop below 15kt and those times are fantastic because we go fast and the boat is rock steady. But then the weather trough kicked in and we've had many days in these less than ideal conditions. BUT, we are moving well and it is only raining about half of the time. The last three days we've averaged about 170 mi /day. If this keeps up we'll be in the Marquesas around April 6 +/-, about a week and a half from now. Another good thing is that the clouds shield us from the incredibly intense heat of the sun which is still pretty much overhead at noon, but going further north each day as we go further south each day.
It's so warm and humid you feel OK in your swim suit, and it doesn't bother you when you get rained on. It's all the same temperature. Even at midnight on watch in the cockpit, exposed to the wind and rain, I'm perfectly comfortable in my swimsuit and poly shirt. Taking showers with 'cold' water feels refreshing because the water is the same temperature as everything else (warm).
ALL IS WELL
In spite of the fact that this is not an ideal passage we are all doing well and getting along well and any grousing about the trip is not intended in any way to cast dispersion on our fabulous hosts and fellow crew. The human factor and our wonderful home on the Oyster 56 are the best. Food is plentiful. Sleep is difficult sometimes but taking several naps during the day helps. There have been a few 'mechanical opportunities' which have been fixed. For instance there was air coming through the water taps this morning, and we went under all the floorboards tracing the fresh water lines trying to find an air leak. After about an hour of consulting with each other and trying different theories it turned out to be a very loose brass nut on a pipe fitting hidden below the water pump filter. Easy fix once discovered.
Joe, the other crew member holds the record for number of fish caught. Most have been thrown back because they were too small, but just now he caught one of keeping size, about two feet. Fresh mahi-mahi tonight!
In two days we'll be half way to our revised destination in the southern Marquesas, Fatu Hiva, which is supposed to be one of the most spectacular islands in Polynesia (which is saying alot). That's fun to look forward to and gives us hope for the future!
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