Tuesday, May 8th 9pm
Today was a busy day aboard Evergreen. We're on day 18, if you count the day we left as day 1 and we have about 500 miles to go.  We were commenting today that really the days all blend into one really long day! Six hours off doesn't feel like enough time to separate one day from the next. It's more like a continuous cycle of eat, fish, do chores, nap, eat, talk on the radio, read, cook, shower, clean, eat and then sleep a little!
We made a decision today to head to Hiva Oa first to check in instead of Fatu Hiva because it seems boats are getting in trouble for stopping there. Just a year and a half ago our friends on Slip Away stopped there, no problem. We feel like cruising is changing so much and everywhere we go, we're in the midst of big procedural changes when everything has stayed the same for years prior. Anyway, it's a little further and not as dramatic a landfall but maybe we'll trek over to Fatu Hiva once we've explored Hiva Oa. Slick will get there a little ahead of us, they emailed today saying they needed a hardware store fast- I think they've had issues with chafe on this passage. We just noticed that we chafed through the webbing on one of the headsail cars. We'll need to restitch that once we get where we're going.
One thing we've heard is that the bottom of the hull & waterline is going to be shockingly covered in growth including barnacles & a green grass-like algae. It attaches & grows while you're underway! Even though we'll start exploring and having fun, we'll need to attend to this promptly since it can get even more out of hand if you neglect it. We will have sailed off a lot of our bottom paint too which just makes matters worse.
This morning Jon put the lures out first thing, then went down to make foccacia and I started a larger than usual batch of bucket laundry. And then...zzziinngggg.... goes the reel. He let out a bunch of line since it seemed to be a big one! Sure enough, 30 minutes later he pulled a beautiful blue marlin alongside the boat. He had used an odd lure that he got somewhere in Florida that had 3 hooks lined up on top of each other. So one hook was in his mouth and then another had caught the fish in the gill and injured it so there was no throwing it back. It was about 5 feet long and very beautiful. I always feel sad whenever we bring a fish in since they're so beautiful to see swimming. Anyway, many pounds of fish fillets later, I got them all in the fridge and now we're flush with fish! And in the midst of all that, I baked the bread & finished the laundry.
It was the usual pan fried fresh fish for dinner since it's so good the first day. We had it with risotto & dilled carrots- hey, we've still got plenty of carrots & cabbage! I can see it's fish tacos tomorrow for lunch! I guess marlin is a big game fish but they are so depleted in most areas that if you get one you're supposed to throw it back so as not to deplete any more. For us, we don't know what we've got until it's practically alongside the boat and it has therefore been dragged through the water to near death since we can't really stop the boat very well. So we definitely fish to eat and we eat what we get.
Wednesday, May 9th
Now we have occasional boobies circling the boat. We're less than 400 miles away although since the destination changed, the mileage increased so now it'll be pushing it to get there by sunset Saturday unless we get more wind and can do better than 6kts. We motored a lot of the last 24 hours since the wind died- again! Last night at change of watch, we went up on deck to move the spinnaker pole to the other side & this involves removing & then replacing the 3 lines that keep it in place. I was only seeing out of one eye since my contact lens was messed up so of course the halyard went flinging out of my hand as I was trying to reattach it. A half hour later, we'd retrieved it and accomplished what we went up there to do but brother, what a hassle. We have a very large swell right now and standing up there at the bow looking back at them in the moonlight was a little unnerving. I had to forfeit 50 precious minutes of sleep time and then the wind died anyway! The squalls are less, but they're still around.
As boats are continually arriving in the Marquesas, including the lady on Whiskers who was net control, there was a need for someone to take over so that someone is now Jon, until we arrive and then  another boat can take up the task. We had never had a good signal on our SSB radio for the previous 2 cruises and Jon has been fiddling with it for years trying to make it better. Finally, he stumbled upon the KISS SSB which replaces all of that copper strapping that we had run all over the inside of the hull and easily installs in the stern making a nice, simple counterpoise that FINALLY allows us to have a honking radio. Everyone keeps asking Jon why we have such a good signal and he is pleased to report on what he'd done to make it that way. Throughout this passage, he's been relaying for other boats who don't have as strong a transmission which is a really nice thing to be able to do since we all want to check in and have our position and conditions logged for safety reasons. Chatting on the radio helps us all feel closer even though we're often hundreds of miles apart- each boat making their way the best they can with the conditions they have. The net controller directs the conversation, facilitates communication & records the info.
So I felt like Jon's mom today with two cookbooks out making recipes for another fish dinner & a mocha cake w/ hard sauce. The cake looks real good until you cut into it and it disintegrates into a big pile of crumbs. Don't ask me what happened because I don't know. I made a ginger/soy marinade for the fish, vegetable quinoa and pumpkin. Marlin is a meaty fish with a nice texture and we 're really enjoying it. I vacuum sealed a lot of the fish today to help preserve it longer. Plus, my little fisherman can't wait to put out the lures again so I guess we'll have to keep eating fish twice a day to keep up!
Our friends Axel & Liz arrived today & Slick should arrive on Friday. It'll be nice when we get there too so can be among friends again. Jon says he feels like he's in the movie Groundhog Day and then thought occurred to me- what if this is all there was to life- just this, day in & day out? I've come to realize it's not a bad existence.