Gryphon, Part II

Vessel Name: Gryphon
Vessel Make/Model: J/40
Hailing Port: Boston
04 July 2010 | Northeast of the Marquesas
01 July 2010 | Northeast of the Marquesas
29 June 2010 | Northeast of the Marquesas
27 June 2010 | Northeast of the Marquesas
25 June 2010 | Southwest of the Galapagos
24 June 2010 | Southwest of the Galapagos
22 June 2010 | Southwest of the Galapagos
21 June 2010 | Southwest of the Galapagos
19 June 2010 | Southwest of the Galapagos
18 June 2010 | Middle of the Galapagos
15 June 2010 | San Cristobal
30 May 2010 | Wreck Bay, San Cristobal, Galapagos
29 May 2010 | Near the Equator
27 May 2010 | Um... Pacific Ocean... still
26 May 2010 | Um... Pacific Ocean?
25 May 2010 | Gulf of Panama
23 May 2010 | Gulf of Panama
21 May 2010 | Las Perlas
16 May 2010 | Las Perlas
15 May 2010 | Taboga
Recent Blog Posts
20 November 2010 | Opua Marina

New Zealand

And so here we are. New Zealand. We started talking about this trip a long time ago and actually formed the intent to come here back in September 2009. It's still a bit surreal that we're finally here and it's even more unreal that we arrived after such a beautiful 7-day passage. No dramas, as they say [...]

16 November 2010 | New Zealand

AM Arrival

On 4 knots of wind we ghosted into the Bay Of Islands in the early morning. Bad fuel in the diesel tank has us nursing the engine along. But at sunrise, We're only 6 miles from the dock in Opua and we're motoring in slowly.

14 November 2010 | NE of NZ

Day 6 - Tonga to NZ

Yesterday was another day of tradewinds sailing. Easterlies around 15 knots for most of the day. The seas set down from the day before and it was great sailing. During the night the wind faded away and so now we're motor sailing. Seems the wind has veered to the SSW - precisely on our nose. Wind speed [...]

12 November 2010 | SW of Tonga

Day 4 Tonga to NZ

And again, more of the same. Emphasis on more - more wind, more waves. Yesterday was a repeat of Day 2. Last night the wind came up to about 20-22 and seems to be staying there. It has gone more east than southeast, so at least they're beam seas or slightly aft. Still, they're up around 8 ft now. When [...]

10 November 2010 | SW of Tonga

Day 2 Tonga to NZ

More of the same and no complaints! SE winds 12-18 knots and we're making 6-7 towards NZ. Our original thought to stop at the Minerva Reefs and been replaced by the excitement of heading straight to NZ. Importantly, the weather for arrival next week is looking okay right now. It can all change, but the longer we linger, the more likely it is to deteriorate. So we'll keep moving.

09 November 2010 | SW of Tonga

Tonga to NZ Day 1

After a very brief stay in Nuku'alofa, we're underway again. This leg is Tonga to NZ and it's the last leg of our current adventure as we expect to stay in NZ for a while.

New Zealand

20 November 2010 | Opua Marina
Jeff
And so here we are. New Zealand. We started talking about this trip a long time ago and actually formed the intent to come here back in September 2009. It's still a bit surreal that we're finally here and it's even more unreal that we arrived after such a beautiful 7-day passage. No dramas, as they say here.

We left the BVI in early February - the 4th I think - of this year, sailing down to Trinidad & Tobago before crossing the Caribbean to Panama. We did the Canal transit in early May, then a couple weeks later started the long journey across the Pacific. Our arrival in Tonga back in October marked the close of our tropical cruising: even though the trip to NZ did take us a bit further west, it really took us much further south and out of the tropics.

We traveled 10350 nautical miles since leaving the BVI in February. The bulk of those miles occurred on voyages of 24 hours or more: we spent 65 days (and nights) underway this season. Our average cruising speed was about 6.5 kts for around 160 nm/day. Counting the BVI and NZ, we visited 13 different countries along the way. We put about 550 hours on our 24 year old Volvo diesel engine, half of which was probably just making electricity. Assuming a burn rate of .65 gallons per hour however, we find that our sailboat only gets about 29 miles to the gallon - much worse than the old Camry, by the way. So much for going green.

This is the last blog entry, though a few more photos may show up soon. But, otherwise, this blog will just quietly fade away in February 2011 when our subscription with sailblogs.com expires.

Thanks for following along; we've enjoyed your comments along the way

Fair winds, everyone.

Jeff & Raine
Opua, Bay of Islands
New Zealand

AM Arrival

16 November 2010 | New Zealand
Jeff
On 4 knots of wind we ghosted into the Bay Of Islands in the early morning. Bad fuel in the diesel tank has us nursing the engine along. But at sunrise, We're only 6 miles from the dock in Opua and we're motoring in slowly.

It's stunningly beautiful here. What a thrill to be back!

Day 6 - Tonga to NZ

14 November 2010 | NE of NZ
Jeff
Yesterday was another day of tradewinds sailing. Easterlies around 15 knots for most of the day. The seas set down from the day before and it was great sailing. During the night the wind faded away and so now we're motor sailing. Seems the wind has veered to the SSW - precisely on our nose. Wind speed is 8-14, up and down, so it's lumpy at times but generally pretty nice.

The autopilot is up to its old tricks, drinking hydraulic oil like beer on a Friday night. We are really happy that Leslie is with us this trip. If she wasn't, then Raine and I would be doing watch and watch, handsteering the whole way. This way, we all get decent periods of rest in between our tricks at the wheel.

Oh, since it's also part of the long saga, I should mention the mainsail too: it has some new patches and repairs on it. We've given up trying to keep it looking pretty: the latest repairs were done with duct tape. I think this sail will win the "most loved" award when we land in NZ.

Friends that waited in Tonga an extra day or two are now getting the stuffing knocked out of them about 300-400 miles north of here. They said in an email 25-35 knots, gusting higher with 3-4 meter seas right on the beam. Can't be pleasant, even for the big boats.

231 miles to go. Figure, Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.

Day 4 Tonga to NZ

12 November 2010 | SW of Tonga
Jeff
And again, more of the same. Emphasis on more - more wind, more waves. Yesterday was a repeat of Day 2. Last night the wind came up to about 20-22 and seems to be staying there. It has gone more east than southeast, so at least they're beam seas or slightly aft. Still, they're up around 8 ft now. When you also consider that the water temperature is down around 65F, you know it's a little chilly each time we get splashed at the helm. So it goes. Forecast is another 24 hours like this.

514 miles to go.

Day 2 Tonga to NZ

10 November 2010 | SW of Tonga
Jeff
More of the same and no complaints! SE winds 12-18 knots and we're making 6-7 towards NZ. Our original thought to stop at the Minerva Reefs and been replaced by the excitement of heading straight to NZ. Importantly, the weather for arrival next week is looking okay right now. It can all change, but the longer we linger, the more likely it is to deteriorate. So we'll keep moving.

Tonga to NZ Day 1

09 November 2010 | SW of Tonga
Jeff
After a very brief stay in Nuku'alofa, we're underway again. This leg is Tonga to NZ and it's the last leg of our current adventure as we expect to stay in NZ for a while.

Today we left with SSE winds around 12 knots and we've had pretty consistent conditions - sometime S'ly sometimes SE, generally 11-15 knots. We're close reaching under a reefed main and a #3 90% jib. Conditions are nice and it's a sunny day with scattered clouds. Forecast is for lighter winds Thursday and then stronger winds, more easterly on Friday-Saturday. It's 997 miles to Opua, NZ!

Did I introduce Leslie? Leslie is onboard as third crew. She's been sailing longer than us and has tons of offshore experience. The boat she was on from San Diego to Tonga was sold in Tonga so she was looking for a ride south. We're very happy to have her along.

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