18 December 2016 0212 Local Time
06 28.612 N 141 56.065 E
6.1 K to 075 True
Wind is NE 12-18 k

We hope this finds you all happy and well.

I am on watch again through the wee hours of the night. I just emailed the authorities in Palau that we would likely arrive 3-5 days from now depending on the winds and currents we encounter between now and then. We had very light winds and slow sailing today, but have enjoyed 12-18 knots on the starboard quarter through the night. That pesky foul current is back costing us about a knot of speed over the ground.

The forecast predicts good winds, 15-20 knots, for the rest of our passage. The swell is expected to climb to 2.5-3 meters due to sustained wind against current. I have gotten spoiled cooking in the calmer conditions we have experienced so far on this passage. Thank you Larry for using your bandwidth to help us keep an eye on a low forming up north of Palau.

I keep glancing at the Southern Cross which is low in the sky to the SSE. After living in the Southern Hemisphere for eight years, we'll sure miss seeing the Southern Cross in the night sky. My buddy Orion is in his usual place overhead. I love watching the instruments at the top of the mast swing through Orion as we roll along in the swell. The puffy white clouds are lit by a three quarter moon.