Day #1 Easy and Breezy

Easy went our Customs clearance out of New Zealand. At 7:00 AM sharp two officers arrived and came aboard where we filled out the exit forms in the salon, made small talk for an half an hour and were signed out by 7:30. We did a few last minute boat chores and at 10:00 AM, we cast off.

Breezy was our great sail leaving Auckland. Comfortable wind speeds in the upper teens all day and an outgoing tide that gave us almost 2 knots of additional speed for several hours of downwind sailing. It was as if we had the afterburners on. The spinnaker flew as we flew - all day and all night. Almost full moon sailing and a clear night had us remembering why we like ocean sailing.

Day #2 No Fair - No Air!

Most good things don�'t last forever (as they say) and after the morning Radio Net check-in, the wind died. �"Iron Wind�" time for Double Diesel as we cranked on the engines (one at a time to conserve fuel of course), but with nice flat seas for our motoring pleasure. After sunset the wind started to fill in from the SE. Up went the head sail and the main and we found ourselves sailing on a beam reach. Sweet. Mid-teens for winds and two meter seas through the night. Double D likes that kind of sailing and spun out 8 and 9 knot boat speeds most of the night

Day #3 Drunk Cowboys on the Rhumb Line

No we don�'t drink alcohol on passages but this day we feel like drunks in a washing machine. What a difference a day makes! The seas are flat no more. Yes, even on a catamaran it is possible to get totally bounced around. Up a wave, down a wave and around a wave. Splash! Bang! Sea height is now approaching 3 meters.

Winds have hovered in the mid 20s today as is our beam-reach sailing continues, but reeled in a bit. Third reef in the main and jib, 8+ knots average boat speed highlight this day�'s rodeo festivities. Melody made beef stew on the motoring day and it has been very useful to have something to just heat up rather than take the chance of having pots and pans flying around the cabin. Yee-haw!

Weather forecast calls for these conditions to last about 24 to 36 more hours. No problem! We are hunkered down in the cabin, reading books, having snoozes and keeping our eyes on the instruments. We are making good progress towards Savusavu, Fiji.