Its Wednesday here in Mauritius. The sun shines, the bustle is non-stop in Port Louis but all is quiet in the Marina... I wait and study the winds.

In today's internet-linked world there are only a few original, usually governmental, sources of weather. NOAA in the United States is one such source. From their hourly weather predictions, descriptions, etc., the information flows... with great speed the internet swoops in, grabs it, disperses it worldwide and, for sailors such as myself, it ends up on a few websites, colored, animated, simplified and, I must say, amusing to watch.

One such site is www.passageweather.com

If it interests you in the least, have a look, for its from a site like this that many of our decisions are being made.

Let me give you an example of such a decision-making process now underway on the tiny island of Mauritius, in the middle of the Indian Ocean:

Today, Wednesday October 26: Im seeing light weather here for a couple more days(too light to sail).

Thursday: too light and wrong direction, cant leave

Friday: too light, wrong direction, cant leave.

Then, an interesting, possible developing window starts on Saturday.

Saturday: winds come out of the South at 15 -I can sail in that, not ideal but they are not SouthWest. (I cant sail in SW winds as that puts the wind coming from directly in front me as I proceed Southwest to Madagascar)

Sunday: SE 10, a little light but nice direction from behind the boat, on its left side.

Monday: NNE 10-15, fine, as I sail SW toward the tip of Madagascar. Wind is from behind but on the boat's right side. No storms in sight.

Tuesday: NNW, not as good as Monday but still ok. Wind is now directly on my right side. Im now closing in on Madagascar and very concerned- I must NOT have strong winds from the SW as I circumnavigate the tip. (no place to hide)

But all looks clear as to that feared 'Souwester'.

Wednesday: light South winds....thats ok especially as I turn from Southwest to West and head for Africa. I can also use the engines if necessary to get out of that dangerous area. Hopefully, I have not used my limited fuel on the way to Madagascar.

So, this 7 day forecast got me there safely.

But, keep in mind that as one looks at a forecasting tool such as www.passageweather.com, one can only count on the first 3-4 days-the rest is slightly more than a possibility. And so tomorrow I will check again and see whats changed.