Second Star to the Right
S/V Agua Dulce sails around the world in search of Neverland
| Vessel Name: | Agua Dulce |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Hylas 54 |
| Hailing Port: | Park City, UT |
| Crew: | Charles & Gretchen Cunningham |
| About: | Charles is a retired lawyer from Dallas who started sailing Sunfish in Corpus Christi, TX when he was a boy. I'm Gretchen, and I was a stay-at-home mom who doesn't stay at home much anymore. I fell in love with sailing on our first bare boat adventure in the Caribbean 30 years ago. |
| Extra: | Special thanks to Peter Pan for inspiring generations to stay young and keep searching for their own Neverland. |
15 December 2019 | 14 04'N:60 57'W,
12 December 2019 | 14 18'N:59 07'W,
11 December 2019 | 14 39'N:56 13'W,
10 December 2019 | 14 56'N:53 33'W,
09 December 2019 | 15 15'N:50 25'W,
08 December 2019 | 15 31'N:47 45'W,
06 December 2019 | 16 15'N:42 29'W,
05 December 2019 | 16 41'N:39 38'W,
04 December 2019 | 16 54'N:37 13'W,
03 December 2019 | 17 31'N:34 13'W,
02 December 2019 | 17 51'N:30 58'W,
01 December 2019 | 18 12'N:28 13'W,
30 November 2019 | 18 38'N:26 01'W,
28 November 2019 | 22 18'N:20 41'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | 23 36'N:19 48'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | 24 49'N:18 12'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | 26 12'N:16 25'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
27 November 2019 | 23 28'N:19 54'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
08 May 2019
Recent Blog Posts
12 December 2019 | 14 18'N:59 07'W,
Log Day 19 Ð Last Full Day at Sea
All of us are extremely excited to get to the marina in St. Lucia. We've been talking about what will be the first thing we are going to do after we arrive and get the boat tied up. It's hard to say right now. Agua Dulce has been our cocoon for the last three weeks, and she has seen us safely 3000 miles [...]
09 December 2019 | 15 15'N:50 25'W,
Log Day 16 Ð Counting down the miles!
We have broken the 700NM to go mark, and at 750NM to go, we were three-quarters of the way to St. Lucia. During my 11pm-1am watch tonight, we should break the 600NM mark as well. We're all getting excited to be in the Caribbean! I wish I had downloaded some steel drum Christmas music to get us in the [...]
08 December 2019 | 15 31'N:47 45'W,
Log Day 15 Ð Squalls + Swells Lack of Sleep
It was a wet and squally night. We had lots of rain and gusts in the 30's, but it was all manageable. The worst part about squalls is that when they pass they suck the energy out of the air, and we have practically no wind for a time. In addition, the seas were extremely rolly last night and they have [...]
Log Day 18 Ð Two more night watches to goÉ
11 December 2019 | 14 39'N:56 13'W,
12pm
The Sargasso weed is increasing greatly. (Who knew that there would be more weed in the middle of the Atlantic than in all of Jamaica?) Instead of all small pieces less than 12 inches in diameter, we are seeing long stringers that are up to 20 feet in length and a few feet wide. We are concerned that it might be getting wrapped around the hydrogenerator propeller. The hydrogenerator is a fin with a propeller blade on it that we lower into the water and attach to the stern of the boat. As we move through the water, the blade turns and powers the battery bank, so it is another means of charging even during the night when the solar panels aren't receiving any power from the sun. If, however, the propeller is tangled with seaweed, it won't turn and provide any power. It will cause drag on the boat and slow us down. Our speed is still consistently over 7 knots, so if it has seaweed on it, it doesn't seem to be slowing us down much.
Currently, we expect to arrive in St. Lucia on Friday before dark. Sunset is at 5:30pm, and it is always easier to come into a marina in daylight. We are currently at 331NM to go, which is approximately 48 hours. If we continue at this pace, we could arrive by noon. The weather forecasts, however, call for lighter winds beginning tomorrow, so we probably won't be able to keep up this pace.
Speaking of pace, we surfed down a BIG swell this morning and the boat speed actually hit 12.8 knots Ð probably a record for Agua Dulce! Obviously, it didn't last, but what a ride!
On the SSB Net today, all the boats are talking about their predicted arrival time. You can tell people are all getting excited about landfall in St. Lucia. We hear from the ARC organizers that 26 boats have already arrived, and they are expecting 30 boats a day for the next couple of days.
7pm
The Sargasso weed has diminished again with just little bits floating by occasionally. I wish I had a tracker to see where it has come from and where it is going.
We're seeing more boats on AIS, and we've even seen a cruise ship headed for Barbados. Right now, we're watching out for a weather buoy that is very near our path. It is in an area where the depth is over 16000 feet, and we understand that they swing a fair amount. I hope we see it because I am curious, but I also hope we see it well in advance and from a fair distance!
280NM to go now! We are fairly confident now that we will be able to arrive in St. Lucia before dark on Friday.
Things are getting real!!!
The Sargasso weed is increasing greatly. (Who knew that there would be more weed in the middle of the Atlantic than in all of Jamaica?) Instead of all small pieces less than 12 inches in diameter, we are seeing long stringers that are up to 20 feet in length and a few feet wide. We are concerned that it might be getting wrapped around the hydrogenerator propeller. The hydrogenerator is a fin with a propeller blade on it that we lower into the water and attach to the stern of the boat. As we move through the water, the blade turns and powers the battery bank, so it is another means of charging even during the night when the solar panels aren't receiving any power from the sun. If, however, the propeller is tangled with seaweed, it won't turn and provide any power. It will cause drag on the boat and slow us down. Our speed is still consistently over 7 knots, so if it has seaweed on it, it doesn't seem to be slowing us down much.
Currently, we expect to arrive in St. Lucia on Friday before dark. Sunset is at 5:30pm, and it is always easier to come into a marina in daylight. We are currently at 331NM to go, which is approximately 48 hours. If we continue at this pace, we could arrive by noon. The weather forecasts, however, call for lighter winds beginning tomorrow, so we probably won't be able to keep up this pace.
Speaking of pace, we surfed down a BIG swell this morning and the boat speed actually hit 12.8 knots Ð probably a record for Agua Dulce! Obviously, it didn't last, but what a ride!
On the SSB Net today, all the boats are talking about their predicted arrival time. You can tell people are all getting excited about landfall in St. Lucia. We hear from the ARC organizers that 26 boats have already arrived, and they are expecting 30 boats a day for the next couple of days.
7pm
The Sargasso weed has diminished again with just little bits floating by occasionally. I wish I had a tracker to see where it has come from and where it is going.
We're seeing more boats on AIS, and we've even seen a cruise ship headed for Barbados. Right now, we're watching out for a weather buoy that is very near our path. It is in an area where the depth is over 16000 feet, and we understand that they swing a fair amount. I hope we see it because I am curious, but I also hope we see it well in advance and from a fair distance!
280NM to go now! We are fairly confident now that we will be able to arrive in St. Lucia before dark on Friday.
Things are getting real!!!
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