Day 7 to the Marquesas
27 March 2012 | Outbound Cabo, Inbound Marquesas, French Polynesia
Day 7 = 102 nautical miles...2,060 left to go. We're traveling with several other sailboats, mostly smaller and lighter than Buena Vista. Southern Cross, for example, is an Erickson 38 and it's a fast boat in these lighter conditions. Mark has two crew members aboard and they are able to keep their speed up all night while Don and I reef down (reduce the size of the sails) to slow the boat down for a more comfortable night with just the two of us. All of us are in radio contact each morning sharing our positions (where we are in latitude and longitude) and having a chat about conditions, strategy, and what we've seen and done each day. This morning, upon hearing Southern Cross's position we realized they were within 20 miles of us. They left the day after us and after 6 days had caught up. They went on the radio and said that we had a photo opp, that we could take each other's pictures when they caught up to us. Well...I began to slow the boat down and get dressed (out of my pajamas anyway) for the picture and then it occured to us....why should we slow down for a picture only to have them leave us in their wake? So - Don took the wheel and we've been flying like a bat out of hell ever since. If they want a picture they're going to have to catch us! It's become clear as these lighter boats slowly move ahead that if we want a faster passage we're going to have to work a little harder for it. We're now talking about how we're going to accomplish this - whether it's better for us to push harder for a faster passage or to settle into are routine and not worry about getting there possibly days and days later than others. In the end, 102 miles a day is OK but 150 would be better.