Well we still aren't breaking any speed records -- in fact today will probably be our worst day ever -- but the seas are smooth with sunny skies and light winds, so even though we aren't getting a lot closer to our goal, we are slowly and comfortably moving along and enjoying what I call a "Little House on the Prairie day".
With the easy conditions I can finally get to some of the chores on board and this morning I washed some laundry (they're out drying on the line right now), got caught up on my dishes (I let a few things pile up when the seas were sloppy) and even baked some cookies. The cookies were an easy deal as I made up a batch of dough and put it in the freezer so we could always have some fresh cookies for our night watches.
I first noticed the similarity between our life on the ocean and that of Laura Ingalls Wilder when we were first crossing the ocean with a six year old Carly. One of our pastimes when traveling was to read aloud during the day and the books we'd chosen were the Little House series. It was so interesting to read about Laura sitting in the wagon crossing the prairie looking out at the never ending fields of grass under a big blue sky -- we were doing the same thing only we had water as far as the eye could see. That, and the more labor intensive "chores" that you have out on a boat made us feel akin with the pioneers.
We made 80 miles good yesterday, though we traveled farther than that with going around atolls and altering course to avoid bashing into weather. The nasty weather of the day faded with the sun and we enjoyed a peaceful night and ran the engine at a low speed to help our progress, charge batteries and make water. Today we are very slowly sailing, but since the light winds are out of the NW -- the way we need to go -- we aren't cutting off a lot of miles. But it's pleasant and we hope to make up for the slow day when the typical SE trade winds finally return in a day or so.
644 miles to go! S 21 46 W 139 25
| All |
|
Comments [0]
We've had a less than perfect day today -- the winds seem to change to the direction we try to head -- throw in a couple big squalls that disrupt whatever you get going and it makes for a lot of work with changing course and changing sails and still not making much progress. We started out expecting light winds and smooth seas and we've gotten the light winds intermixed with 20 to 30 knot winds and sloppy, washing machine seas.
As I've said, the first 3 days of a passage are hard no matter how good the wind and seas, so throw in some yucky weather and it's really a challenge. But, we're safe -- there's no dangers, just not the nice comfortable downwind cruise one hopes for crossing the Pacific.
Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day......
| All |
|
When we set out from the Gambiers yesterday morning armed with the latest Grib files and Bouy Weather reports we were prepared for a passage of light winds and some from contrary directions -- we don't know what's happened to the typical E or SE trade winds.
So we got extra fuel and planned on a slow cruise to Moorea (900 miles away as the crow flies) but we're delighted when the light NE winds yesterday were a little stronger than forecast and we had a nice sail under blue skies all afternoon and into the evening.
Then in the early morning hours the winds began changing more northerly and increasing to 20 to 30 knots, so we had to adjust our course so we would be passing south of the atolls that sit between us and our goal instead of north of them as we'd planned. Not only would it be hard beating into the increasing wind and seas, but we didn't want to be in the position of being blown off course into a low lying coral atoll. So now the wind and seas are following once again and we don't have to worry about trying to cut through an island on our way.
Years ago a fellow cruiser made the statement that "weather is a crap shoot" and it certainly is, for no matter how many sources you check and what they have to say, it doesn't really matter what you think will happen, cuz in the end you just get what you get and there's nothing you can do about it except adjust your sails and your course.
We are happy to have good wind and not have to rely on the engine and we're also happy with the 109 miles we made good yesterday. When life gives you lemons, just make lemonade.
| All |
|
We left the Gambiers this morning for the 900 or so mile voyage to Moorea where we will meet back up with Vicky on Inspiration at Sea. Moorea is a mere 20 miles away from Tahiti and ithey are both part of the Society Islands of French Polynesia.
Forecasts are for light winds so we expect the trip to take 9 or 10 days. We've gotten off to a comfortable start and are moving along about 4 -5 knots under sail over smooth seas. It's a beautiful day out here as we watch the Gambiers fade into the horizon.
| All |
|
07/04/2012, the Nukuhao comes to the Gambiers
We stepped outside to enjoy the beautiful sunrise this morning and we're delighted to see the supply ship winding its way through the well marked pass to the village.
Despite mixed messages about whether we would be able to purchase the fuel we wanted (some said you could only buy it in the 55 gallon drums) we, along with a few of the other cruising boats were able to get our jerry jugs filled at the dock. There was a flurry of activity at the pier as the stores and villages all came to the ship to pick up and buy supplies.
After successfully obtaining our diesel, we went to the Gendarme and checked out of Rikitea anticipating an early morning departure from this lovely little spot. Time to move on to the big city! We actually plan to go to Moorea to meet back up with Vicky on Inspiration at Sea before we hit the city lights of Papeete (on Tahiti), but the two islands are very close. We're really looking forward to seeing Moorea -- we never made it there in all the time we were in Tahiti 12 years ago and have heard from everyone that its a wonderful stop.
The Cetus Crew is going to Moorea!
| All |
|
exploring the ruins of an old convent -- one of the many coral stone buildings that the natives were forced to build under the tyranny of a Jesuit priest, Honore Laval, who came to the islands in 1834.
| All |
|
A few days ago we enjoyed a walk along the road up a hill near town and visited the meteorlogique center and looked at the ruins of an old convent with some spectacular views along the way.
| All |
|
I haven't been able to upload pics into our photo gallery with this internet connection, so I'm just going to post a few of my favorites over the next few days while we busy preparing and provisioning for our next passage.
Right now the plan is to leave Thursday, July 5th and sail the 900 or so miles to Moorea/Tahiti.
| All |
|
The Gambiers are a small group of islands surrounded by an outer protective barrier reef located at the southeastern end of the Tuamotu archipelago and the town of Rikitea on the island of Mangarava is a port of entry for French Polynesia. We are about 900 miles from Tahiti.
It is a bit off the beaten track and just a handful of cruising boats pass through here each year, most favoring the more traditional route of entering French Polynesia through the Marquesas to the north.
The land is lush, the village is nice, the lagoon is crystal clear and the anchorage protected and secure -- it's a lovely stop and we're enjoying our stay.
| All |
|
We had a beautiful, calm, sunny day yesterday so we got in the dinghy to check out our new back yard. We drove by the pearl farms with their buoys stung across the water and we were amazed at how crystal clear the water was as we'd pass over coral reefs.
We'd hoped to get all the way to the outer protective reef, but only made it as far as the end of this island, Mangarava before we decided we had to get in the water for a little snorkeling. It was a wonderland of so many kinds of coral and fish -- I think it was the clearest water we've ever snorkeled in.
| All |
|
I was lucky the fabric was still intact
| All |
|
06/29/2012
On the long passage from the Galapagos to the Gambiers we saw the outer edge of the protective material on our roller furled Genoa was frayed and had come unstitched. Luckily the sail wasn't torn and the Sunbrella fabric was still intact so it was just a mater of re stitching where the thread had come out.
So yesterday when the weather cleared and the winds died down we lowered the Genoa and I got out one of my favorite little tools in my sewing kit: the Speedy Stitcher Sewing Awl. It's a handy and simple device that allows me to make machine type locked stitches without dragging out the big sewing machine. It's perfect for sewing through the heavy Sunbrella material and I've used it to repair the dodger and now it worked perfectly for this job as well.
I had about 6 feet I had to re stitch and it took me a couple hours, but it was pleasant sitting outside in the sun for the first time since our arrival and finally getting it taken care of.
I would highly recommend that any boat keep one of these Speedy Stitcher Sewing Awls on board for easy repairs -- especially in the hot tropics since the threads on sail covers, dodgers and even sails deteriorate much quicker than the material and a quick repair can prevent a complete loss.
| All |
|
When the sun finally burned through the grey clouds this morning -- after nearly a week of hiding -- we were treated to this beautiful rainbow arching across the anchorage.
| All |
|
That's from a song by one of our favorite musicians, Gary Seiler, and we've been listening to it today as we're pretty boat bound due to incredibly nasty weather.
The system that was forecast that we raced to outrun on our way here hit Saturday afternoon and we've had 20 - 30 knot winds since then and today the rains came and added to the mix. Luckily, we had sunny skies when we came in Friday so we had a great first impression of Rikitea and had a nice stroll through town on Saturday before the winds got too bad. And we're glad to be here in this nice protected anchorage and not battling the elements out on the open sea.
We did go back in for a short visit yesterday and got some more baguettes and some fresh veggies and took our garbage in. But, today with the pounding rain we're enjoying a "boat day" and getting little projects done and saving the exploring for a nicer day.
We do have some internet access here, but it's a bit slow and its not free, so I've been able to post a few pics on the blog but haven't done too much and will still post my blogs remotely through the radio, then add pics online later on.
It may be raining now, but this too shall pass and then we'll get out and explore this beautiful island.
| All |
|
One of our favorite things about French Polynesia are the 3 foot long crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, inexpensive French baguettes -- they've been the staple of our diet every time we've been here. We weren't sure if they'd have them on this remote island, but when we made our first walk through town this morning we found them in a freezer in one of the little stores we peeked into. Hurray!
This is a lovely anchorage -- scenic and calm with beautiful blue water. And the village is very nice so it looks like we'll enjoy our stay here. The weather is a bit cool -- but it is winter, so I guess that should be expected.. I miss my penguins, but at least they have baguettes.
| All |
|
We covered a lot of ocean last night when the winds turned NE and we were able to move along at 5.5 knots on our course line with no more jibing back and forth and we were thrilled at our daily 24 hour report to have only 99 miles to go! That would get us in at a good time on Friday maneuver in through the pass and up to the anchorage at Rikitea.
But shortly after that .squally grey skies moved in and the winds got fluky then changed to the SW, along with the seas, so we've been bashing to weather the rest of the day. So far the winds aren't strong or the seas big so we are still moving at an OK rate. If it doesn't get worse than this we should still make it in on Friday .... but that's a big IF.
Our forecast last night gives us hope this is it and any bigger wind and seas won't be in the area until Sunday, but weather forecasts aren't exact by any means -- you pretty much get what you get no matter what they say. So we'll plug along hoping for the best, but it's going to be a long night ahead always waiting to see what will happen.
Hopefull my next post will be from the lovely anchorage off Rikatea, Mangarava, in the Gambiers and not out on the deep blue sea.
Happy first day of summer to all our friends north of the equator!
| All |
|
So we have a little over 200 miles to go so we could easily be there by Friday, but we have to be there early enough in the day on Friday so that the sun is high in the sky for negotiating the coral pass in to the island group and then up to the anchorage off the village of Rikatea. So it's a tight one, because if we don't get there with enough light we just have to hang out off the islands for another night -- and believe me that makes for a very long night at the end of a long passage. We had to do that 20 some years ago when we sailed to Bora Bora and that was only 18 days from Fanning Island.
Since the wind is still on our tail so we have to jibe back and forth we've only been making a little over 100 miles per day for the last few days and we're trying to improve that number to ensure getting in on Friday so in addition to paying close attention to timing the jibes we've turned on the engine to augment our speed. Just a half a knot difference in our moving average will make or brake us on this one.
Up until last night we weren't too concerned if we got in on Friday or Saturday, but we heard there is a weather system moving into the area with strong south winds and seas. Our forecasts show it hitting that area on Sunday, so we'd really like to be tucked in to a nice anchorage for that, since the south winds would be pretty much right on our nose. So the race is on! Who will reach the Gambiers first, Cetus or the weather system?
| All |
|
We always mark with excitement when the GPS clicks down breaking into a new hundreds bracket -- we look at 299 as if its only 200 which would be only 2 days to go! Anything is cause for celebration at this point in the passage and we have our bets made as to time and date we make landfall -- guesses we made on the day we set sail from the Galapagos.
| All |
|
With our change in wind direction we are sailing but not making as much progress as we'd like. The winds are now from the ENE and we are traveling WSW which puts it right on our stern -- not Cetus's best point of sail. So we need to jibe back and forth across our course line to keep the wind on our stern quarter, so we are sailing more miles than we are making in forward progress.
But at least we have wind and are still moving, And we did make our 100 miles yesterday so we are still on track to get in on Friday or Saturday. The seas are bigger than they have been, but they are on our stern too so not uncomfortable -- and the sun is out so all is well on Cetus.
We've always said the worst days of a long passage are the first 3 (when you're adjusting) and then the last 3 -- when you're so close but it seems like its taking forever to get there -- it's like being a kid and trying to live through Christmas eve with the excitement of Christmas day filling your head.
399 miles to go.
| All |
|
Since our encounter with the big squall Friday night we have had little to no wind, grey skies and lots and lots of rain. Yesterday morning I thought we were in the Pacific Northwest!
Our forecast still promises some good winds from the NE are coming and we've had a few false starts only to have the wind die away once we had the sails and the windvane all set. We ran the engine for the longest stretch yet and finally turned it off after 24 hours of motor sailing As I type this. the sun is just starting to peek out from behind the grey clouds and the wind is slowly building. Luckily we had great sailing for the first two weeks, so we have enough fuel that we could motor the rest of the way there if need be. But we certainly hope that's not the case.
Despite the yucky weather we celebrated Father's Day with a nice pancake breakfast and will end the day with some pepperoni pizza.
Happy Father's Day to all you dads.
499 miles to go!
| All |
|
