We finally arrived into Australia, safe and sound after alot of motoring some nice sailing and kind seas. We entered the Gold Coast Seaway at night and headed north trying to negotiate their version of an intracoastal waterway. Wheeew, was that difficult at night. Soft landings in mud almost 10 times backing off and retrying!!! We made it about 5 miles in 4 hours and found a place to drop the hook. A long day and now we have to make it North to Moreton Bay to check in. We were very lucky getting in before 25-30 out of the NW! Now its just motoring in the trench with that as a headwind. We definitely cleaned the bottom of our Keel!.
Thanks for following us along we should be in Australia for a long while so keep in touch.
IN AUSTRALIA 27 46S 153 22 E
It's 6 bells into the night watch and we were thinking of you all again. The winds this trip have been really fluky. Today it died down again and we flew the chute for a few hours till it wouldn't stay full and the surface of the sea turned oily calm. The Iron genoa was fired up yet again and we have been motoring since just after the beginning of the Noon watch. Slowly putting along we are closing with the Australian coast with 130 NM to go.
This is the most motoring we have done since leaving Florida and to think we were recently hiding from a cyclone and 40+ kts...feast or famine. We have run through half our fuel leaving about 60 gallons in our tanks, hopefully sufficient for the full trip. It's clear skies and light winds reported for the area over the next few days, just hoping to sail again soon.
Barometer is steady at 1016 Temp low 70's, 10% cloud cover, making 5.5 kts at 2000 RPM (Our normal cruising RPM is 2500) with only moderate vibration, on a course of 250 Magnetic.
27 36S 155 54 E
It's 6 bells into the night watch and alls well. We turned our clocks 2 hours back so now we are on Brisbane time! It's funny because sunrise is before 0500. We had a wonderful sail today with 15-25 SEover the port quarter doing 7-8 kts in a moderate 2 meter sea. Unfortunately, the storm clouds filled in all after noon and the squalls started just after sunset. The last brought a persistent windshift to the east and now we a DDW Wing on Wing with only 5-10 apparent....more rocking rollin and slapping sails. We have about 250 NM to go and are now undecided weather to enter at the Gold coast or directly into Moreton bay.
Gem left the Gold Coast about 23 years ago, but strictly speaking we should and may enter Moreton direct. There is a intracoastal waterway between the two that we would take without disembarking so might be nice to return truly home after so long!
With the variable crazy winds 0-30 during this trip we have no good idea yet when we will actually arrive so we will keep you posted.
Jeff and Sheryl thanks for the MRE's since we have no fish and little in the way of fresh stuff, we tried and enjoyed the country chicken...one less for the abandon ship bag..pretty neat stuff inside! Amazing in doesn't have an expire date...no we feel better preserved!
27 05 S 158 04 E
6 bells and a beautiful sail. 12-18 kts off the port quarter with a 1/2 kt current push. Only 1-2 meter seas and steaming along 6-8 kts over the ground. The sky looks a bit dark and ominous with 100% cloud cover hiding the retreating moon and looking like squalls so we took in 1/3 the jib and main still moving nicely. Baro is up at 1016 and the wind has continued its counterclockwise shift from W to S to SE.
420 NM to the Australian coast with current ETA late on the 12th, but again, with these variable winds who knows.
Doc once asked about the temps....well even though its an el Nino and the water is supposedly warmer is was 73 degrees in New Cal and the air temp during the days has been a balmy 80s out of the wind but at night in the chilly 70's and when the wind blows 20kts its cold....foulies and watch caps! You all must think we are wimps with the cold and I think your right!!!
25 32 S 160 48 E
Bells in the night watch and the wind has returned. We actually motoredfor almost 24 hours, close to a record for us, but this evening the wind finally filled in from the SSW. We were able to beat into it with a Velocity made good over 2 kts! Yeah! It has now built to about 10 kts and backed more to the south, hopefully on its way to the normal trades in the SE. We are now steering 240 Mag with the wind 60 degrees off the port bow making 6 kts through the water but have a persistent .5-1.0 kt of current against us. It's been dogging us for the last two days. We have averaged about only 100 NM a day , but the seas and motion of the boat have been very kind.
The sky is clear and full of stars with shooting stars streaking across quite frequently. We had two lines out today which proceeded to catch only each other and again we remain fishless(new word)! It's an absolutely lovely sail tonight and with the relaxed motion of the boat its a great time to stare at the stars and reflect on how lucky we are.
560NM to go to civilization, looking forward to seeing all of Gem's family. Currently we estimate 4 1/2 days with an early morning arrival on the 13th...but with these crazy winds you can give or take at least 24 hours!
24 17 S 163 00 E
It's 4 bells into the dog watch and the wind is getting quite light. We left New Caledonia at 1500 with a lovely 15 kts out of the NE. The wind actually seemed lighter since it was from directly astern so we set the spinnaker and it made a lovely WOMP and we were doing 8.5 + kts. With the slight roll the big sail was pulled side to side as we surfed down the little seas. We decided once again that our home just isn't a racing machine, so we struck the chute and set out our conservative rig 90% poled to Starboard and a 3/4 main to port and we were off again at 6.5 + kts on a heading of 240 almost Dead down wind.
When we had the main fully out with the apparent wind 170 degrees off the starboard quarter our wind vane would almost jibe with any moderate following sea so we put in one reef and we balanced beautifully, but went from 7.5 to 6.5 kts. A small sacrifice to the silent steering system which requires no power. we make this adjustment instinctually and suspect that may people who feel the wind steering doesn't work very well especially downwind, aren't willing to make the "sacrifice". It's a lovely night with 50% stratus clouds and a bright moon 3 days past full and if we are in a rush we certainly picked the wrong means of travel.
The Wind is currently about 8 kts out of the NE, the Baro is 1015 and the forecast is for 15 kts ESE. We have 724NM to go to the Australian coast on a heading of 234 Magnetic and hope for a landfall on Sunday the 12th.
No fish since our big day sailing within Tonga so we will have to switch around the lures to up the ante. Our fresh supplies are really running low as they take alot of it when you arrive in Aus. We could do with some fresh protein, but are finally using up alot of the supplies we bought back in Panama.
24 09 S 165 42 E
We arrived at the most southern island of New Caledonia at 4 bells in the afternoon watch. The sun was bright and the sea incredible shades of blue as we picked our way into this reef encrusted anchorage. We had planned on going another 15 NM, but the wind had died and we developed a significant vibration in our shaft while motoring at higher RPM, so we chose the closest safe haven and now have another project to do, realigning the shaft/engine. It may have gotten thrown a bit out of whack back in Fiji when we wrapped the prop in a rope.
While motoring in, although we caught no fish, we were again graced by the presence of those wonderful leviathans of the sea the humpback whales, swimming, splashing and breaching nearby. It was a incredibly warm welcome. We will hopefully be underway again in a few days and make the final Jump to Aus.
22 42 S 167 27 E
It's hard to say why this Tonga update has been so difficult to write.Maybe, it has something to do with "getting across." The end of our yearlong journey across the pacific is in sight, and the ever-present thought of the imminent arrival in Australia is playing on our minds. Or it could be we are spoilt brats who are disappointed that the air and water temp isn't over 80..
We wrote of our dramatic landfall in Tonga replete with breaching whales and soaring volcanic peaks. After 8 days in Niuatoputapu, "new potatoes", we spent 26 days exploring the Vava'U group of Islands. This place is a cruiser haven in the middle of the big ocean. It seems to draw boats from all over the Pacific and funnel them through on their way to New Zealand and Australia. The group has dozens of small islands, beaches, diving, fishing, resorts, restaurants and ready supplies. All within a day sail of one another, with the anchorages well described by the Mooring's charter company. An amazing and easy place to sail and navigate, though we should be honest and say it was too many boats, and not enough wildlife for us. And though the water was always clear, it was chilly (75F) and unfortunately we think over fished.netting is common. Having said that once on the outside of Vava'U the deep-sea fishing as we sailed south was fantastic.
In Vava'U we caught up with friends we have made along the way, celebrated our 11th anniversary at a romantic beach restaurant and restocked for the remainder of our journey. We did some nice dives with an abundance of live coral and a superb wreck right in the main harbor, but found diving in the Tuamotus more dramatic with the abundance of sharks and large pelagic fish. While swimming for exercise one day we were lucky to see two large octopi out in the open tentacles spread and perfectly still. Their camouflage was so good we almost mistook them for coral. What was amazing was one tentacle from the smaller of the pair was draped over the mantle of the other, like they were holding "hands." A little Internet research confirmed our suspicions, we had caught them mating, certainly a rare sighting!
You may remember the ITCZ (intertropical convergence zone) from the beginning of our journey, this zone is responsible for the doldrums and squalls in the eastern pacific near the equator. Well, during our stay in Tonga, we learned first hand about a troublesome phenomenon in the SW Pacific, the SPTCZ. This little bugger is quite variable and with a little push from El Nino gave us many rainy windy days. The weather limited our maneuverability and extended our stay in Vava'u by over a week and one night with 40 kt gusts we ended up dragging anchor and resetting amongst a group of tightly anchored boats. No fun in a squall with driving rain with no moon.
While in Neiafu, the main town in Vava'U we found an outstanding fishing supply. We outfitted ourselves with a heavy hand line and high tech build 'em yourself lures. When we finally had a little break in the weather, we sailed south for the more Isolated Ha'Apai group, Tonga. On the way to Ha'Ano in the Ha'Apai, we had a lovely sail down, and caught more fish than should be allowed by law, a little tuna, a huge wahoo and three big Mahi Mahi. We released all but the wahoo and one Mahi, and shared our bounty with the locals and another cruiser. But the SPTCZ wasn't done with us.
We had a beautiful first day and night, with great snorkeling thru coral chasms, and many more variety of fish than in the Vava'U .. an isolated beach with literally hundreds of huge bats called flying foxes. These little devils eat fruit, but have large furry bodies and faces like foxes and huge cloaks for wings just like Count Dracula. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay longer as the weather was looking hazardous again, so we sought protection at Luangahi. This island reportedly had a well-protected reef fringed lagoon great for all conditions. We found that the books aren't always right and things change quickly in geologic terms here. Although we believe the reef used to protect this lagoon, it seems to have "sunk" enough for the swell to just roll over the top. After a few bouncy days of waiting for it to calm down, we moved west to Ha'A'Feeva and got solid nights sleep.
Here we met a Geothermal scientist who explained to us that the Tongan and Pacific plates moving at about 25cm/year are so active that its quite likely that the reef which used to be protective a few years ago may indeed have sunk after a recent earthquake. The activity in this region is amazing, with the recent tsunami, eruptions and the ever-present pumice floating everywhere.
After Tonga, we sailed west on what was supposed to be the final leg of our journey this year. While underway, the weather deteriorated to 40 kt winds and 15-20 foot seas so we sought shelter on the western tip of Kendavu Island, Cape Washington Fiji. It was an easy entry and a welcome rest. After a nice dive and dinner out at a surfer resort, we planned to head on west toward New Caledonia, only to be shocked with news of a developing cyclone 750NM North West of us, 6 weeks before the "normal" cyclone season officially starts. Always preferring to brag about the storm we miss instead of the one we survived, we motor sailed 35 miles against wind and chop to a safe harbor. With our bruce buried deep in mud and almost surrounded by mangroves, in case full strike preparations were needed we felt in a good spot to watch Xavier. Xavier headed directly for us but turned and fizzled 350 miles away. This time delay gave us a glimpse of Fiji, with lush dramatic green volcanic islands, covered in virgin rainforest, amazingly clear waters and live coral spires, phenomenal fans, gorgonians and caves, truly an underwater photographers dream setting. The people seem truly open and friendly with huge smiles and warm greetings. There is very little fresh produce sold on the local islands, so one young man took us to his family's farm to get bele, a local spinach, cabbage, cassava, papaya and banana so we would have supplies for our journey. We then did a short 30min hike into a gorgeous thundering waterfall, guided by the shrieking calls of the stunningly beautiful Kandavu parrots ..large parrots(close to macaw size)with brilliant green and red plumage set off with a bright turquoise blue chest.absolutely gorgeous. On our way back from the falls we met a young local named Toui, who had 2 babies we were able to hold and chat with..very affectionate little birds!! We look forward to return to explore Fiji more fully one day.
After filling with diesel, we don't want to be short with this crazy weather, and replenishing some fresh fruit and veggies we continue west with a planned rest in New Caledonia. We left Fiji 3 days ago and are enjoying true trade wind sailing. 15-25kts abaft the beam with a gentle following sea and over 160 NM per day.
We have less than 1000NM to go to bring Gem home after 20+ years abroad. Although excited to arrive there is so much to see along the way we are sad to be ending this crossing. Luckily the western Pacific is easily reached from Aus and we can return to explore more thoroughly in the not too distant future.
22 20S 169 33 E
7 bells in the night watch and not much has changed. We are really loving these trade wind conditions which is what the pacific is supposed to be like. 10-20 out of ESE to SE varying just a bit day and night requiring minor sail and course adjustments. We are averaging around 160 NM/day in 1- 2 meter following seas, scattered cumulus during the days and starry nights. We have 200 NM to go to the bottom of New Cal at 240 Deg Magnetic and will pick a rest Island within the southern reef as we get close and determine our time of arrival. We'll need good light to pick our way through the reef.
It seems like Xavier really shook up the weather patterns which were out of wack and the SPTCZ, South Pacific Tropical Convergence Zone, was pushed back north of us where it belongs. It was responsible for the clouds, heavy winds and unstable weather over the region the last few weeks.
Had our fishing rig out all day with no luck but Gem baked some wonderful homemade breads and cakes...and no fish guts on the decks...We'll try again tomorrow. Still planning Wednesday landfall if this lovely weather continues.
21 35 S 170 57 E
It's 6 bells into the night watch and the seas are amazingly calm. We have a lovely 10-15 kts out of the SE and less than 1 meter seas. We are gliding along at 6-8kts on a course of 240 headed for southern New Caledonia. Our 90% jib is poled out to port with a single reef in the main to starboard and the wind is 120 degrees off our port quarter. We reefed down more for the night and are enjoying good sail/sleeping weather. The lows way north of us so far are not developing and the forecasts seem stable. We made approx 160NM the first 24 hours and are maintaining a similar pace.
Over the last several weeks, we have been seeing tons of pumice fields floating in harbors and at sea. These stones spewed out by the volcanoes float along and reek havoc on our pumps, especially our fridge pump and we suspect our main engine impeller. The volcanic activity in this region is really amazing and a pain for maintenance. Luckily we haven't encountered a really thick field as it reportedly takes off your topside and bottom paint!
Each time we set out on a longer passage it takes a few days to regain the rhythm. This trip it seems 36 hours was enough and we have regained our patterns of 6 hours on and off without any difficulty. Likely these beautiful trade wind conditions make it easy. A welcome change from our last few passages. About 360NM to go which would put us in early Wednesday morning the 1st.
20 48 S 173 49 E
It's 7 bells on the night watch and we are sailing along beautifully. After hiding from Cyclone Xavier in a snug Harbor on Kendavu Island in Fiji, we are underway again. The wind has been a steady 20-25 out of the SE with 1-2 meter seas and we are headed 240 magnetic to southern New Caledonia. We have been averaging over 7 knots with 2 reefs in the main and our small jib.
After seeing a tropical cyclone way out of season we are carefully watching some tropical depressions developing north of us, but hope the current weather we are enjoying will last for at least this 600NM leg we are on. We have alittle over 500 NM to go and hope for a landfall on the 1st or 2nd of November. Orinoco must be sailing like a champ because tonight we passed a 150 foot schooner less than one mile north of us like it was standing still. One of the few ships we have seen underway on this big ocean and we were overtaking them for a change!
Alls well aboard as we make our way west, thanks to those who answered our last email, it reassured us that the system is working and you all are well.
19 58 S 176 19 E
We expected 2 days in Fiji, but Tropical Cyclone xavier popped up out of no where in the wrong season, so we are staying put till it dissipates. We seem to be having trouble receiving emails the last two days so let us know if you receive this!!
19 07 S 177 57
Wow, 3 1/2 days 450NM and the sea threw everything at us but a tropical depression! We started with sunny skies 15-20kts out of the East less than 1 meter seas forecast the same for several days. Next we had 18 hours of unpredicted less than 5 kts from around the compass and did everything from motor to fly the chute. The proverbial "weather started getting rough" and "the tiny ship was tossed." The wind rapidly rose to a steady 25 to 30 out of the south with steep confused seas to 4-6 meters. It gusted up to 39 and a few waves actually broke into the cockpit from this beam sea for the first time ever. Our cockpit floor boards were floating for a few minutes 8 inches above the deck. We would love bigger scuppers...Thankfully the wind shifted a bit to the southeast so we could take a quartering sea and then ultimately wing on wing again. One big sea caught our stern caused an accidental jibe on a heavily reefed main and one of our 2 preventers gave...good to have back ups...the boom didn't fly. Another rogue slapped our port quarter so hard it shattered one of our solar panels...I guess we are lucky we lashed it down otherwise it may have bent our stern rail....I guess we learned they are in a vulnerable position...should stow them below when it was like this or better yet mount them higher out of harms way.
Anyway thought we would share a bit of the Drama, now we are snug in a harbor on the west end of Kendavu Island in Fiji. Cape Washington is protected by outlying Denham Island and a large drying reef. It feels great to be at anchor after a challenging few days, now we will lick our wounds and try to predict another window of opportunity to head west. We wish the weathermen would be correct at least once.
Leona did great not sick at all this trip, she is quite the mariner. We on the other hand took a bit of a beating and are looking forward to a good nights sleep then some repairs.
19 07.6 S 177 57.1 E
It's 6 bells in the night watch and alls well but pretty wet. Boy did the weather do a dramatic change today. We went from a steady 5 to 15 to 30 kts within a few hours complete overcast and 12 foot seas. The wind and waves came almost directly out of the south, but with the abrupt change, the seas became tall steep and confused. We had to slow down due to boarding seas and a bit of slamming so with heavily reefed sails we decided to change our destination to the western tip of Kendavu Island just to the south and west of the Great Astrolab reef. This should be easier and safer to approach in these conditions.
We have been following the weather religiously and they didn't predict this for at least another 24 hours and then not 30kts with gusts over 35. Mother nature is certainly unpredictable. Currently the wind is shifting a bit more to the east bringing the wind off our port quarter and making it a bit faster and more comfortable. Hopefully we will make a short landfall tomorrow afternoon, its been difficult to rest on this roller coaster ride.
19 42 S 179 45 E
It's 4 bells in the dog watch and alls well. We had to motor all day from 0800 through to about 1800 with no wind, until about 5-8 kts came up out of the South. We set sail and are SLOWLY moving along on a course of 260 at 3-5 kts. We are 8 miles north of Vatoa where we can report that the flashing white light is visible from at least 15NM and is 1NM north and 2 NM west of its charted position as determined by overlay with the radar. No wonder there are wrecks noted on these islands on our charts. Also we met a scientist measuring the movement of the tectonic Tongan and Pacific plates which are shifting 25CM per year an absolutely amazing pace. Some Island in Tonga apparently shift above and below the surface and reefs can change depths...scary for navigation.
We have 190 NM to go and the weather report suggest 15 SE increasing to 20-25. The Baro is 1015 and steady and the stars are bright with scattered clouds. The seas are a 1-2 foot gentle swell. Great sleeping weather.
We look forward to a little more breeze but these calm seas and clear nights are certainly worth the slow ride. We always say if we are in a rush we picked the wrong sport.
We hope for a rest stop and a dive at AstroLab reef in south Fiji on the 20th and if the weather looks good to then continue rapidly west.
Nice to hear from you and sorry our Tonga Update is only still in our minds.
19 40 S 178 16 W
We set sail at 0930 on the 16th from the Ha'Apai group in Tonga to the Astrolab Reef in South Fiji. About a 400NM trip on the 1800NM to Australia. The weather window opened after over a week of overcast heavy weather days. We sailed all day into the early hours of this morning wing on wing DDWmn with 10-15 out of the east on a course of 266. Finally the wind went less than 5 kts and even the chute wouldn't fly so the old iron genoa is chugging away. We intend to send out an update soon, but need to get motivated to write. Until then just letting you know we are underway, all is well and we are essentially on the last leg of our journey to Australia, with hopefully some fun rest stops along the way.
There are 1-2 foot seas with a gentle ESE swell. blue sky's with a few Cumulus, the Bar is 1017 and we have 260NM to go. For those looking at a chart we hope to pass 10NM North of Vatoa, or Turtle Island (19 49S 178 13W) in the Southern Lau group of Fiji. This is the widest open passage in the area to enter Fiji which is notoriously tricky with approximate positions of Islands and shoals. As we head west out Longitude will change from West to East as we cross the International Date Line. It's funny because Tonga had long ago decided it would defect to the other side to keep the same day as New Zealand, so our onboard dates have already changed before we actually cross the line!
More to come. Hope everyone is doing well.
20 00 S 177 02 W
After a 4 day trip to Niuatoputapu from Suwarrow, our landfall into Tonga was quite dramatic. With a 600 meter volcano (inactive) off of our starboard bow seen from 20 miles out and a lower lying main island lush with dense green hillsides on our port, we had just made out the dogged leg marked channel thru the reef when vrrrrrroooooooo the fishing line was flying out, a hit, and man was he running. A beautiful 3 1/2 foot mahi-mahi, it seemed he wanted to take all of Gems line but she hauled him in slowly but surely as Rob made sure we wouldn't end up on the reef. And then Rob saw her. A magnificent humpback...surfacing just behind Orinoco.WOW!!! Well the Mahi was landed and as Orinoco passes the first channel marker Gem yells "my god half her body came out of the water, I saw her whole throat area" a fully breaching whale!! What incredibly magnificent creatures, massive, graceful and gentle. She continued to make huge splashes as we navigated the entrance.
We dropped the hook in 45 feet, but good holding in deep sand and gave customs a call on the radio. We eventually made contact via a local resort, her on the radio with us and the telephone with them. They arrived at the dock an hour later and Rob went and taxied them out to Orinoco. A lovely group of three, customs, immigration and quarantine. They did their paperwork then sat and had coffee and biscuits, much more interested in relaxing and enjoying the boat than anything else..of course they fell in love with HMQ.
The people in Niuatoputapu (often called new potatoes by palangie (us)) were extremely warm and friendly. Our first day ashore a young woman, Seletute, living on the main road, obviously wanted to practice her Englishand then invited us to her home for dinner the next day. We weren't sure if she was just being polite or really wanted to chat more. We were a bit overwhelmed by both the warmth of her invitation and their obvious profound poverty. The standard of living in Tonga is a marked contrast to what we experienced in French Polynesia. The homes are ramshackle, put together with bits and pieces, some dirt floor and palm roofs mixed in with cinderblock, tarpaulins and corrugated tin.
We did go to dinner where we were served a true LOCAL meal. All the food was laid out on a (unfortunately) plastic woven mat that was obviously covering their normal hand woven one (it was quite worn looking though). Breadfruit, sweet potato, fried fish, boiled chicken and fresh banana and coconut waterwere carefully presented and Seletute, her mum, neo, her sister, Anita, were sitting there waving fans to chase flies and the little grubby hands of the children. The women and children of the family watched us eat without joining in, though we encouraged them to do so, they said that they usually eat later. We brought Gem's brownies, which were quickly devoured by all, from Grandma Neo to the four year old Tina, all of their faces smudged with chocolate. These people have so little, but in an effort to welcome us to their country, they were amazingly generous. They gave us fruit, coconut and homemade shell necklaces and anything we admired they offered to us. Their primary income comes from weaving, which is taken to the city and exported overseas. Before we left, a week later, they had made us beautiful place mats with their names on. We invited Selatute in turn to Orinoco another evening where she and her sister saw how life is lived on a boat. We gave small presents for the children, pencils and pens hooks, sinkers and line and a couple of tops to Seletute and really enjoyed meeting these Tongans and gaining a little insight into their lives. We also met a lovely middle aged Englishwoman who leases 1/4 of an Island and is trying to run a small resort. We went to try to help her fix her Inverter, but found her particularly interesting because she told us she had recently been to Thailand to have the surgery to become a woman. She then asked us to look at her new parts to advise her on the wounds! Unique experiences around the world!
The most dramatic experience for us on this stop was the whales. They were incredibly active morning and evenings outside the reef. Each day we saw numerous whales swimming spouting and breaching. We took off in the dinghy to do a dive as well with the slim hope of swimming with them, well how close should you get to active whales. 25 yards seemed to be the number as all of sudden there she was suspended in the air doing a magnificent pirouette then almost gently submerging again as her tail, bigger than our dinghy, crashed down, probably telling her boisterous calf to keep his distance! To hear the whale calls on disc is one thing but to hear them surrounding every nth of your body is almost indescribable. Both snorkeling and diving it was like sitting 'hovering' in nature's greatest auditorium, Gem came up with tears welling multiple times it is such an all encompassing symphony. We hoped that they would be curious and swim near, but these shy giants never ventured close. Now we are underway to the Vava'U group of islands in central Tonga. It's a beautiful night with stars and 1/2 of a waning moon. The wind is 15-20 out of the east, gentle seas, on a close reach south. All is well aboard and we are looking forward to the fresh produce market this week. This will be our first major restock of veggies since Nuka Hiva, in the Marquesas.
We reached Vava'U before we had a chance to send this note. The sail down was a very calm trip with winds dying out by morning leaving us 20 miles short of our destination. We cranked up the iron genoa and motored into Vava'u. As we were entering this maze of islands we saw a FAD (Fish Attracting Device) off to port. We passed close by and whirrrr went the line and Gem landed another big Mahi. This fella was so wild jumping and carrying on; he almost knocked Rob off the back of the boat. He wrestled himself off the gaff, despite being pierced straight through the gills and several bonks on the head. He succeeded in knocking the gaff overboard but lost the ultimate fight. We now have plenty of fresh fish for our stay in Vava'U.
This group of close packed islands appears to be an amazing cruising ground, easy to get around in short hops, with deep channels and easily seen reefs. It's the equivalent to the BVI for the pacific.. hear that Corby.. We found a lovely protected anchorage with a white sandy beach and a nearby cave to explore.too bad there are 4 other boats nearby. We'll let you know what we see soon.
We are no longer on watch so It's 1730 and all is well. We just made a spectacular landfall in the Northern Island group in Tonga called Niuatoputapu, commonly known to cruisers as New Potatoes since it is impossible to pronounce. We sited land from 20 miles out with a dramatic 600 meter volcano rising up from the horizon, it's peak covered in clouds. Upon entering the wide passage between the two Islands, we caught a 4 foot Mahi Mahi and a whale, we think a humpback, broached twice close to the boat. Amazing! The entrance was straightforward and the anchorage secure. We are looking forward to a rest after a challenging passage.
It's 1 bell in the night watch and all is thankfully well. We had a very exciting morning and you know that can't be good. We have censored this email from Rob's family in order not to worry his mom more than she already is, but knew the rest would definitely be interested. Last night was again full of rain and squalls winds around the compass and gusts up to 40 kts. We motored slowly through the early morning timing our arrival to Rose Atoll for 1 and 1/2 hours after low tide with plenty of light.
As you may know this little isolated atoll is uninhabited and a nature preserve very infrequently visited. A French Yacht from 5 years ago passed along through the grapevine that the pass was easy and deep. After a few rough days at sea we were eager for a bit of a break and despite 30 kt winds and big seas figured we would give it a look. We approached the North side of the Atoll cautiously, being certain that we never had the dreaded lee shore. After we got some protection from the Southerly wind and swell the seas settled considerably and the pass was indeed easy to see. Not only that you could see into the relatively tranquil lagoon and the entire pass.
There obviously was some current seen from a distance but we ASSUMED that with the low tide already past, the incoming current would at least slow the out flowing drain from the previous days big seas crashing over the reef which is always awash. We had been warned that the lagoons are like a pot being filled when the big seas are running and they always flow out. WELL, we entered and immediately hit 25 kt headwinds and a few knots of contrary current....no problem, the pass was deep so we proceeded now committed to enter. At its neck, the pass narrowed to about 40 feet, less than our boat length, and on the port side was a clearly seen rock that looked like it was caught in RAPIDS. to stb was a reef submerged an indeterminate depth. Poor Orinoco was struggling now at full throttle 30 kts on the nose and at least 6 kts of contrary current....@##$%....Needless to say this was too much, she began to overheat and we were doing ZERO knots with no room to turn and run, with the buzzer for temp ringing in our ears. For any of you that have been in a similar situation you will know this is a disaster a real disaster waiting to happen.
Because I am writing this you will also realize it is sooooo much better to be lucky than good!
While deciding what to do we rapidly prepared the anchor for deployment, which may have helped if we lost the engine completely....With no real alternative we prepared to bail out, a big no no in a narrow pass..... We throttled back to preserve what engine we had, cut to Stb...submerged has to be better than visible rock, hit the reef with a minor thud, heeled off with the wind and current and bounced back into the pass. Using our reverse, ever present pull to port we were able to spin in about our boat length and head back out.
We likely lost a bit of paint and fiberglass from the keel, and gained a ton of humility. We were really lucky to get out of that one and will be much more respectful of full lagoons in the future.....HOLY @#$@#%#@$
Anyway we are currently underway now to the Niuatoputapu Group (sounds like new potatoes)in the Northern Tonga Islands. We have 270 NM to go and are still having nasty weather. We wish the weathermen could actually predict something right, because these conditions were not reported anywhere!! Remember, we like to brag about the storm we miss.
14 40 S 169 12W
7 bells in the evening watch and alls well. After the fun of yesterday afternoon with 25kts out of the "blue" and a near knockdown with the chute, we decided not to press on with all possible canvas and will make this a 3 instead of two day trip. We purposely only covered 100 NM last 24 hours and have now 50 NM to go with a planned 0900 arrival in Rose Island. We have about 8-10kts out of the NNW with a bearing of 260 to Rose. So we are close reaching under heavily reefed sails trying to stay at 3-4 kts. As long as we don't have to beat we are able to roller reef down to just a wiff of canvas.
We motored last night at 4-5 kts due to the fact that we had zero wind, were surrounded most of the night by rain and squalls and if we had sails up would have been "boxing" the compass.
We invited an english couple to join on us on this little deserted atoll and they are 70 NM behind us so we should arrive the same day. They are moving at 6-7 kts and using the engine liberally. We aren't sure who has custody of this atoll, US or NZ or Samoa, but it is reportedly little visited and pristine. It's getting more difficult to find those spots even out here.
Still eating the lovely Mahi we caught when we left, our current favorite is grilled with Rosemary, tomorrow it will be fritters. Put the lines out again to hope to catch fresh fish for our arrival feast.
14 33 S 167 19 W
Its 6 bells in the evening watch and we are resting quietly at anchor in Suvarov (Suwarrow) We had a boisterous ride these last 7 days with winds from every direction and strengths from 5- 40 kts. We just made it in 1 hour before sunset into another beautiful atoll. The entrance was straightforward, and the anchorage although a bit crowded is very protected from South Easterly swell. Amazingly 14 boats are "holed" up here in the anchorage due to the strong winds and heavy seas we experienced outside. Soon many will move on as the "normal" trades return. We do believe that the weather patterns are so strange that normal may be a thing of the past. Two days ago when the wind shifted into the west and the swell rose to 4-5 meters the anchorage here became quite wild. Three boats broke loose and we believe at least one broke his chain when wrapped around a coral head. Now it seems quite tame but glad we were at sea when that rolled through here.
We know many of the international boats here, when we "delayed in Toau they went to the society Islands for provisions and sightseeing with the tourists, while we decided to give Papeete and Bora Bora a miss. We both have been there before and much prefer the more secluded sites. This was supposed to be a secluded spot with just a park ranger and his family, but obviously this year it is quite popular.
This nature reserve administered by New Zealand is a bird sanctuary and supposed to have amazing shark diving. We will likely just spend a few days cleaning up, diving and recovering before continuing west in the next nice weather window.
13 14 S 163 06 W
It's 6 bells in the evening watch and the last 20 hours have been a "romp." After our last underway, just before change of watch we went through a front. We were sailing along minding our own business when the wind abruptly shifted from NW to south and we inadvertently tacked and went into irons. Pitch black disoriented, the wind quickly went from a gentle 8 kts to 30 kts with gusts to 40. During the "tack" we furled the jib and waited to see what happened and glad we did. We got back on track with about 1/4 our jib and a wiff of main out. The seas were more confused than we were with this turn of events and quickly built to 4-6 meters. Now downwind heavily reefed instead of full sails a few minutes before on a close reach, with constant rain and 40kt gusts we were rockin and rollin gunnal to gunnal on a downwind ride. Why always on a pitch black night at 0200.....
Orinoco strong as ever did great and rode the seas like a champ. We held on and had a good ride but only made 140 NM in 24 hours. Today we continue heavily reefed in 25-30 out of the south on a heading of 266 doing 6-8 kts. It's getting dark now and we have 150 NM to go to suvarov.... our normal 24 hour run. If we do better than average in these heavy conditions we will reach the pass at Suvarov in daylight and enter, if not its off to Rose Island another 300 NM.
Being at anchor during this front was no picnic either. Three boats in Suvarov went adrift last night in what was described as a wild night in the anchorage. Two in fact wrapped their chains around coral heads and snapped the chains. The first I have heard about that happening. Very scary, one went on the reef, but no serious damage.
Hopefully, the weather will moderate, we will make the entrance in daylight and the anchorage will be calm...otherwise its just a few more miles to the next bit of paradise. We may actually prefer Rose because it is much less visited by that annoying species --humans!
Hope you all slept well last night, we have some catching up to do!
13 49 S 160 40 W
5 Bells in the evening watch and alls well. The wind has lightened to 5-10 out of the NNW, unfortunately the direction we want to go. We are unable to fetch our mark of Suvarov and are sailing about 36 NM south of our rhumb line and heading about 260 instead of the bearing of now 277 M with 260 NM to go. We are seriously considering passing up Suvarov and trying to make Rose Island another 300 NM to the West. Despite the close reach about 50 degrees to the wind in light air, the gentle seas make for a really smooth ride. We are not trying to beat at 35 degrees to the wind because it would be alot slower and less comfortable. Hopefully the wind will switch back to the more normal SE and we can come easily up to our target within the next 24 hours.
Again we fished all day this time with no hits, but we are switching lures and tactics and haven't given up. We did pick up a hitchhiker last night of what seemed to be a juvenile booby with yellow feet. He rested the night on our davits and left this morning after a nights sleep. Very cute. Gem's baking is going well with her whole grain breads getting better and better. Curried potatoes for dinner, really a welcome change after all the seafood protein of Toau.
We are settled back in to our 6 hours on 6 hours off watches and seem both to be well rested. I think that's why we like a little longer passages. It takes at least 3 days to adapt to the routine. Amazing when 1000 NM seems
like a routine trip. We'll keep you up to date, hope you all are doing well, love to hear from you.
14 37 S 158 36 W
After 43 days in the Tuamotus, we now understand both the hardships but more importantly the rewards of living primarily off of the land, the true sense of peace at the end of an incredibly busy productive day as you sit laughing, playing rumikub and eating coconut cream pie. Who ever has a picture in their mind of sleeping in a hammock under the coconut trees should maybe modify it to if you are lucky..only on a rest day and only if the wind isn't blowing strongly or you're likely to wake up to the sounds of crashing coconuts. Ahhh but on those rare perfect temperate days..life truly is perfect! But we are so exhausted after working so hard we are escaping back out to sea, and finally have time for an update!! Currently we are bound for Suvarov (Suwarrow) in the Cook Islands and it is refreshing to be at sea again.
You are probably wondering what could the crew of Orinoco do for so long on a speck or two of coral in the middle of the pacific. Well we were actually busier than we can ever remember while cruising.
We arrived at Anse Amyot on Toau on June 30th after a four day passage from Nuka Hiva. This false pass into the lagoon makes an excellent anchorage in all conditions except a rare westerly wind. We were greeted by an Austrian family who had been there over a month and had been adopted by the lovely people ofToau. Robert, Nikki, Sebastian and Benjamin of S/V Lawur planned on staying one week and tore themselves away after six! Valentine and Gaston are part of an extended family of 10 people living in three areas on a tiny Motu on the Northern side of this protected Bay. Valo was born here, but went to school in Papeete, then lived in another atoll, Fakarava, then returned to Toau, her birth place 11 yrs ago. She has only had the restaurant going for 5 yrs. Gaston is from Papeete, born of a French father and Tahitian mum.it was lovely for us to see, the satisfaction and pleasure Gaston feels for this life, place and the wonderful laughing relationship he has with Valo.
All yachts are warmly welcomed with true Polynesian hospitality into the lives and home of this couple. Gaston has placed eight secure moorings in the anchorage so boats can safely tie up without damaging the deep coral heads. Valo has been organizing Island feasts for years and has it down to a hectic fine art. Outside supplies are scarce; especially fruit and vegetables, but seafood and coconuts are abundant so she has developed a mouthwatering array of dishes to die for. Poisson cru, Cocunut grouper, Lobster- boiled,BBQ'd or Au gratin, Sashimi, Grilled fish, clams, curried octopus are some of the unexpected gourmet delights here in the middle of nowhere. All are fresh from the sea to the table. Each meal is topped off with freshly baked coconut bread and coconut cream pie sometimes with bananas when available. We have added many of her recipes to our own collection, though we are certain they will never taste as good as they do coming from Valo's kitchen. We even learned that you use two different ages of coconuts depending on whether you make coconut crusted grouper or coconut cream pie.
After paying for one or two meals at a modest (Polynesian standards) $25 / person, money seems to disappear from the scene. You all of a sudden find yourself helping with the dinners, fishing, clamming, hunting octopus and Varo ( a very funny looking lobsterlike creature), cooking, serving other cruisers, cleaning up, bringing in dishes for pot lucks and playing Rummikub late into the night. These hard working people love the help, the company and quickly accepted us as part of the family.
In their spare time they harvest Copra (coconut meat) for export, run a small pearl farm, tend the chickens, pigs, dogs and cats and in their off months are busy catching fish for the supply ships to Papeete.
We went to the Otugi pass on Toau to do an incoming dive but unfortunately missed the tide. The trip was not wasted as Gaston pulled up to some shallower reefs and we are all given screwdrivers and the clamming began. 1/2 hr later back in the boat, there were 2 huge grouper,2 parrot fish a jack and the clam buckets were full. We were constantly shaking our heads in amazement at the ease and grace with which Gaston procures food from the sea and always with a huge smile on his face.
The snorkeling, diving, and spear fishing on Toau are all excellent. Colorful tropical fish, infinite visibility and dramatic dropoffs make this an underwater paradise. We lost count of our dives but we barely scratched the surface. We did finally time an ingoing pass dive into our little anchorage and it was spectacular, ranging from a huge canyon drop-off, then swimming along the edge to find the pass and running into huge schools of varying species of fish simply hovering in the pass entrance. We swam over them and then descended into a white sand world with coral skyscrapers for fish mushrooming from the bottom.WOW!!
After nine busy, fun packed days we tore ourselves away to head south 40 miles to Fakarava. Rob had twisted his ankle while climbing a tree on Toau with Leona to gather a leachy type fruit called Kava. It was a bad sprain, so with splint on we hobbled around the main town on Fakarava for 9 days enjoying the many events in July celebrated around Bastille Day. Amazingly, the Polynesians celebrate this French holiday for a month, while the French do so for a day. It is a great excuse for evenings out watching the many events. Spear throwing competitions, where home made spears pierce a coconut suspended 30 feet in the air from 50 paces. Amazing accuracy. Dancing competitions with traditional dress, music and speaking with hand movements (hopefully our videos caught this more than our words can ever express). Music competitions where traditional string instruments, drums and ukuleles ring out their tunes. It was a great time to visit one of the main towns, about 1000 people in the Tuamotus. The big north pass of Fakarava has great diving with fast currents and loads of sharks, but with a bum ankle we chose to dive the smaller but perhaps more beautiful south pass. We sailed a perfect beam reach thirty miles SW within the lagoon through turquoise water avoiding easily seen beautiful coral heads and pearl farms. Part of the trip even had a well-marked channel.
There is a charter boat mooring right in the south pass, which made for a very snug little spot just outside the strong current. We did four dives, empty dinghy in tow on both the incoming and outgoing tides. We had excellent visibility a multitude of fish including big parrots, groupers, and giant Napoleon wrasse. Unfortunately, Fakarava has a huge ciguatera problem so it's ok to look but not eat. It's probably for the best, because not only are the fish more plentiful, but there are so many Black Tip, White Tip and Grey reef sharks that spear fishing would stir up a frenzy. While drifting in the pass at 60-90 feet, you literally pass through a wall of hundreds of sharks. It is no exaggeration to say that a curtain of sharks parted before you as you rode the ingoing tide. Gem snorkeled for hours under and around the boat in crystal clear viz and though the sharks were curious a few times, a sudden movement or a wave of her dive knife sent them scurrying (Rob's ankle was saved for the dives). We also ate at the Tetamanu Pension run by Valentines' cousin Annabelle..it was nice but Toau had it beat by a mile. After 4 days of great diving we returned to N Fakarava to meet the supply ship.
We were in need of the ever scarce fresh fruits and vegetables as well as some diesel and gasoline. The twice monthly Cobia supply ship arrived two days late and we successfully scored Diesel (Gasoil in French) and Petrol (essence). Unfortunately no veggies, but great NZ apples and orange. This setback led to a few days scouring the island for produce, and after much investigation we found a tiny local farm which supplied us with loads of chinese cabbage, eggplant, green peppers, and few tomatoes... An amazing find.
Next stop was to be Makatea 120 miles NW, but Toau was on the way, and although we never seem to return once we have left, we also never felt quite so welcome, well fed, and happily busy as we did in Anse Amyot. Anyway it will be a quick stop, we can bring our friends some supplies and off we go right! WRONG! We did arrive ladened with fresh bread, pastries (Valo's favorites), eggs, flour, coffee, rice, limes BUT..
16 DAYS LATER, We have been very BUSY. We had to amputate one of Gaston's small toes in a grass hut at night with a headlight and a little local (well ok it had walls and ceilings but the restaurant had coconut fronds over the windows to stop the wind). Gaston while gathering firewood dropped a large branch on his foot and chopped off the tip of his small toe exposing the bones. The proverbial hunter/gatherer was wounded and those that had done the repair job of the foot had to help pick up the slack. We helped catch and prepare the food for numerous restaurant nights, which meant trying our hands at some serious spearfishing. Though we used Gaston's spears... we were not nearly as proficient as the master so we had to cheat and shoot some of the fish in the fish trap to get enough for 17 people on one restaurant night. Then we filleted them, caught cleaned and beat a beautiful huge octopus into a tender pulp, grilled the clams, set the table, help cook the rest of the meal and do the dishes.afterward we wondered how they could keep this pace for the six month cruising season. On other days, we shoveled coral gravel from an idyllic motu for the yard, built homemade crutches out of tree branches, went on wild goose chases in search of lost oyster beds, and sutured up a rich Frenchman's son's index finger after a fish bite...Valo and Gaston's house had become Toau General and the restaurant a daytime clinic.. Gem also found time to make huge hunk of coral into a bowl with an underwater scene and also painted the restaurants firstsign MOTU KAI, Maeteva i Toau which means Island Feast, Welcome to Toau in the Motu Dialect.
One of our most favorite memories was when after 4 days of strict rest Rob said to Gaston ok we need more fish, lets put you in your boat at the helm with your leg elevated and we'll go fishing, but "You Gaston are only allowed to drive!" What a morning, Rob caught and landed a 30kg yellow fin tuna, what joy on Gaston's face. As we sped home a massive dolphin leaped completely out of the water at least 6 times.Gaston stopped to watch him, not for us but for himself.It's obvious he is truly living in his chosen heaven!
Motu Kai onToau certainly is a home away from home for us and we could easily stay for months, but Australia beckons and its time to move on. While on these two Motus we spent several days setting up conference calls, between Global Medical and Gladstone hospital in Australia. After numerous attempts foiled by wrong time zones, cloudy days making the Solar powered phone booths go dead, borrowed Iridium Phones, and a multitude of emails, the conference was successful. The Locum Administrator offered Rob the job in an 80 bed coastal hospital in Queensland at the southern extent of the Great Barrier Reef on the spot. We accepted only to find that the phone promise lacked authority and we are still awaiting a final answer. Keep your fingers crossed.
We have finally left our Motu paradise, new friends Valo & Gaston and their extended family behind. Gaston's traumatic amputation is healing well as is Benoit's trigger fish bite. We have done one night in gentle 5-10 kt easterly winds Jibing just off DDW with full sails slapping on the swells. It's refreshing to be at sea again, if Makatea looks inviting we will spend a night or two to dive, if not its on to Suvarov..
We passed Makatea a steep to coral Island due to no anchorage or mooring and the second night was more boisterous with squalls packing winds of near 40 kts. We are about 550 NM SE of Suvarov.. More underways to follow.
Sorry so long for the update, but a cruisers life can be amazingly busy.
7 bells in the Evening watch and alls well. It's been a long time since our last group emails and we have been holding out for a good update from the Tuamotus, its in the works but needs some finishing touches so we thought we would let you know we are alive and moving. We left Toau Tuamotus on Sunday at approx 1600 on a beautiful sunny day with an easterly breeze of about 10 kts and a gently confused swell. The weather window was as good as it gets with a report of sustained tradewinds of 15 to 25 kts out of the east south east. This was a welcome change after a few weeks of quite strange wet squally and westerly winds. So far the trip has been wonderful with winds a bit lighter than expected but steadily out of the east.
First Day we had mostly used a poled out job to port and a full main to starboard, making 5-6 kts. We sailed right up the west coast of Makatea, withing 100 yds of this steep to coral Island which has an abandoned phosphate mine. The guides dismiss the place, but we heard the diving was excellent and there used to be moorings on this otherwise unapproachable Island. Well, it was a great sail, but no moorings and no anchorage. Ruins of the mining operation we clearly seen and no doubt the remains of heavy moorings would be under the sea but a bit too difficult to find....We passed by with a wave and sailed off for Suvorov. It was fun sailing to within a hundred yard of steep to cliffs and still having ---- on the depth gauge with the deep deep blue leading right up to the coast.
Today our second day out the wind lightened to under 10 kts and the seas were under a meter. We flew our big red chute all day DDW to the just south of easterly breeze. It was a lovely ride, eliminating much of the roll with the poled jib and main which we use at night. The spinnaker at night would be too much to deal with in a squall. Currently the wind has built to 15 to 20 ESE, seas 1-2 meters and a bit confused. We are doing a comfortable but rollie 6-7 kts on a course of 270 running south of the great circle route from Makatea in the Tuamotus to Suvarov in the Cooks. The sky is full of bright stars, the southern cross lets us know we are still headed west and the squalls are keeping their distance.
A detailed update is not far behind, and thanks for the emails wondering if our anchor was permanently stuck in the Corals of Toau.
15 28 S 151 35 W
Brief Update. We made the passage 550 NM from Nuka Hiva in the Marquesas to Toau in the Tuamotus. This particular Atoll is home to a whopping 10 people who live on fishing, pearl farming and currently welcoming yachts offering hospitality ashore. The contrast between the atolls of the Tuamotus and the Volcanic Islands of the Marquesas is dramatic. The steep soaring peaks of the Marquesas have been replaced by circular underwater reefs enclosing a lagoon with fringing scattered sandy Islets. Landfall in the Marquesas was easy, easy radar targets, few underwater hazards as the deep water runs right up to the cliffs. Here the radar is bouncing off Islands literally a few feet above sea level and much of the reef is submerged with no visible landmass for warning. The Islands have been given the name the Dangerous Isles due to the number of ships lost here over the centuries. With modern charting and radar, common sense and daylight navigation it is now very safe. Our passage here was boisterous with 25 kt winds and beam seas, but it was a quick trip and uneventful. We are planning a lot of diving here as it is supposed to be some of the best in the world and look forward to drift diving through the passes into the inner lagoons where the currents promise tons of fish and coral life. More when we move on.
15 48.21 S 146 09.14 W
7 Bells in the Evening watch and alls well. We slowed down alot today to time our arrival. Orinoco feels stalled with just a wiff of jib poled out to windward and 1/2 the main reefed, but it makes for quite a relaxing ride. If we average 5 kts we will arrive at sunrise in Toau. We had a bigggg hit on our line today which ran almost all of it off the reel....then when I stopped her down, the rod bent hard and the line went slack. Actually bent the hook and the fish spit it...oh well too big for us anyway. Breadfruit fritters for lunch and Gazpacho with fresh veggies for dinner. No other exciting news.
Currently course 224, speed 4.5-5.5, wind 15-22 SE, Baro 1015, 20% cloud no squalls yet. 58 NM to go to Toau, a chilly 78 F out tonight.
2 Bells in the morning watch and alls well. I forgot to send an update last night so I will catch you up this morning. We had a lovely sail through the night with a few scattered squalls and winds in the 15-25 kt range on a beam reach on average. We reefed down heavily to slow the boat to time our first passage into the Tuamotu Archipelago for first light. We left the Isles du Roi Georges 19 NM to the North and Isle Tikei 15 NM to the south. Charting can be very inaccurate in these regions so we didn't want to enter this first pass at night even though its huge. We now have another 107 NM to go for Land fall at Toau. We will want daylight again about 20 miles out to pass between Apataki and Aratika. We are therefore running at 4-5 kts under double reefed main alone. The boat is very stalled but stable and we would rather spend another night at sea than try to enter at night. Timing is of course everything. Normally when entering these atolls you need to time the tide so you can pass into the inner Lagoon at slack tide. If your off currents of 8 kts and large seas can reek havoc on you. We chose Anse Amyot on the NW coast of Toau because you can anchor outside the Lagoon and not have to time the tides on arrival, plus its reported to have some of the best diving in the Tuamotus, which is some of the best in the world.
Tangled fishing lines thwarted dinner last night will try again today!!
Currently 14 43 S 144 42 W 15 kts SE seas 1 meter 20 % cloud cover with distant cloud banks lying over atolls which are too low to be seen, Baro 1015 a balmy 83 F.
3 bells in the night watch and conditions have definitely moderated. Since leaving Nuka Hiva yesterday at noon, we have had variable winds 15-25 kts from 30 to 120 degrees off our port bow. The land effect around the Marquesas swung the wind in a more southerly direction than predicted on the weather charts, causing us to beat for the first half day against 25 kts. Gradually the predicted trades out of the ESE have prevailed and we are now reaching at 6-7 kts on a course of 208 Magnetic in 15 kts ESE with a 20% cloud cover. The seas are 1-2 meters currently just aft of the beam, but we have had our share of beam waves slapping poor Orinoco on her side soaking the cockpit and forcing us to stay battened down.
We caught a skipjack tuna yesterday for dinner, but today we were dragging a bitten off line most of the day without knowing it. Must have had some pretty sharp teeth! Forgot to mention it seems Ciguatera is rampant among reef fish here in French Polynesia, and it is often difficult to predict the affected fish. On the way into Ua Pou in the Marquesas we had caught two small tuna and a huge Mahi. I had eaten some of the Tuna raw and suffered severe cramps 4 hours later. No other symptoms of Ciguatera but put the fear of fish poisoning firmly in our brains. Supposedly a local tuna with large doglike teeth is the variety with the toxin, the rest including the skipjack are OK. It's always recommended to ask a local before eating the fish...kind of difficult underway, but the farther from land by far the safer the fish. They pick up the toxin via algea on the reefs.
We have 330 NM to go to our Destination in the southern Tuomotus, Toau. An isolated atoll with a very small population and supposedly excellent diving.
11 48 S 142 17 W
Amazing its been over three weeks since our last update and a month in the Marquesas. We made landfall at Fatu Hiva with its dramatic landscape and then sailed North to Tahuata.(FYI- All these exotic Marquesan names are spoken exactly as spelled....if time was no issue one could learn the language relatively quickly). Hanamoeanoa Bay on Tahuata with its enveloping warm crystal clear waters, nice snorkeling and your choice of the secluded or social anchorages is another famous bay where Capt Cook dropped his hook(sorry couldn't resist that one). Ashore on the coconut lined white sandy beach we befriended a trio of pigs who literally showed us the path up a riverbed and then followed us to have a "paddle" on the beach. They even made a special trip to check out our kayak when we weren't looking evidenced by little pig trotter prints in the sand circling it. Rob told them they would look terrific with an apple in their mouth rotating over a fire, but they didn't seem nervous while they rolled on their backs to have their tummies scratched.
Gem had passed through this area 20 years ago and although the islands retain their majestic beauty rising steeply from the sea, the towns have grown and the 4x4 Toyotas have proliferated. The medicinal fruit crop Noni is reportedly responsible for the influx of wealth into the Islands and it can be seen growing everywhere. This fruit has many uses, making sunscreen, the base of mixed fruit juices, medicine/salves for burns just to name a few. It is such a good money maker that the towns have even given up their beachside parks to cultivate it!! The benefit to the economy is obvious, but some of the simplicity of life has been lost.
After a few days in Tahuata, we sailed past one of the largest towns, Atuana, as we hadn't checked into the country yet, and headed to the NW corner of Hiva Oa to Hanamenu Bay. This bay was fed by two separate rivers, as different as night and day. The east river was a murky brown which clouded most of the anchorage dependant on the tide. The western creek however was utilized to irrigate a small farm which would have appeared abandoned except for evidence of recent pruning of the plants and the fat animals. The crystal clear water of the creek tumbled into a small waterfall cascading gently into a picture perfect clear pool. The farm and wildly growing fruit trees in the surrounding forest made for an abundant supply of food. Pomplamouse, (grapefruit), breadfruit, soursop, limes, mangoes, papaya, oranges, coconuts literally fell from the trees. Though thankful for the food supply, the cloudy water of the anchorage and abundant no-see-ums ashore made us cut this place short and off we sailed to civilization. Hakahau on Ua Pou was our first official port of entry. We chose this town for its well deserved reputation as the friendliest place in the Marquesas. The third largest town with a relatively sheltered bay and a population accustomed to but not spoiled by tourism. We were able to take care of some stainless welding on a mast fitting, make and receive calls in reference to potential jobs in Australia and finally straighten out our internet banking. Believe it or not with the remote locations and limited phone and internet access our personal bankers have been paying our bills for 3 months..great service!! We were also fortunate to be in port when the monthly supply/cruise ship arrived with her stock of fresh veggies. Although the locals had fruit which they love to share, no vegetables grow wild or are sold locally. All is shipped via the M/V Aranuii from Papeete, which also carries tourists.
An experience to remember was the reverberating sound of the Marquesans singing in church on Sunday. Imagine a building with a high vaulted ceiling and beautiful hardwood beams and sculptures, while the last three feet between wall and roof are without glass, so you have an unobstructed panoramic vista of the five 'merlin' peaks that surround this beautiful town. Add to this the finest accapella singing in the Marquesan language and the hairs should stand up on your arms! For exersize, we bushwacked our way to the top of the highest peak surrounding the bay. This was an exhilarating 3 1/2 hour hike, the last 200 feet clinging to boulders to reach the summit, making the boats in the bay appear tiny. Great stress test after months onboard.
The Gendarme, who serves as both customs and immigration was friendly, welcoming, and even spoke English, while other colourful folk were Patrice in the town hall, who was not only an amazingly helpful but also extremely thoughtful chap who seemed to go way beyond the call of duty for everyone and always with a wide grin and warm words. He even tracked down the only available French/English dictionary for us so we could communicate better. The local boulangerie housed a rugged looking baker who made hundreds of crusty baguettes daily and all before 6am when hungry yachties came staggering up the beach. They would all be gone by 0800.
We then decided to have a break from civilization for the weekend and moved Orinoco west a few miles to Aneo Bay at the foot of Ua Pou's airstrip. There we dove around a rock in the entrance to the bay. The dive on Tauna Rock was spectacular, we circumnavigated the entire rock, probably about 100 yds around. Despite modest visibility we saw literally thousands of Moray eels, three to a single den, hundreds of the beautiful but poisonous lionfish, stonefish, flat skates, a white-tip reef shark, scallops, large clams and a bright array of tropical fish. A great surprise. That afternoon our new French ami's Florent & Sabine, dinghied around from the next western bay and we all spent the afternoon in the futile,but ever hopeful, hunt for lobsters. Alas we had to feed them leftover soup and coffee instead..c'est la vie.
We returned to Ua Pou to try to conclude a dispute on our credit card, only to find out we missed our deadline to argue the charge because MBNA, hasn't learned to inform its clients of these deadlines till after they expire. Surprise Surprise like we told them months ago we don't see our snail mail and our phone is disconnected..too bad the merchant wins, guess its easier to communicate from an office even though we have email onboard. MBNA hasn't joined the 21st century...Time for a new credit card company (bitter huh!) To try cheer Rob up the town held a rare event, where 'famous' French Polynesian entertainers come and put on a show supported by those lovely Polynesian dancers. Finally we were able to enjoy those rhythmic hips. Dinner was poisson cru,salted pork, breadfruit, feifei, local plantains (sweeter than those of Latin America ),baguettes and spongecake for dessert. It was interesting entertainment as it was obviously all done to a Karaoke program, but the dancers were fun and it was the first night out past 0130 in a while! The next morning the fellow who had sat next to Rob during the show brought just about a dinghy load of bananas & grapefruit,which we shared with the other cruisers.
On to Taiohea Bay, Nuka Hiva, the administrative center of the Marquesas. A tremendous well protected anchorage, which could hold hundreds of boats. The 2 year old over 300 foot three masted schooner Athena was in port. Her 20 crew were preparing for the owners (of Netscape fame) arrival by half filling her diesel tanks with 50000 liters, a full day at the pump, after which they were cut off to leave some for the rest of us. Our check in here didn't go as planned. Most non EU residents are required to pay a bond of around 800 USD to guarantee that they will ultimately leave. We were welcomed in Ua Pou with the Repatriation Rider on our insurance in lieu of a bond, but the swarthy French short shorted Gendarme in Nuka Hiva obviously didn't care for Americans so he wouldn't accept it. Our time in Official French Polynesia was coming to an end so we simply said OK we'll leave.He was a bit surprised at our response to his demand but had to grant us "leave." So we checked out, filled with butane ( no propane) and diesel, then hid our ships name with hanging lines and waited for the weekend 0430 veggie market. This was a big coup, where you wake up 2 hours before dawn and watch the only farmers market in all the Marquesas unfold. One huge table full of beautiful veggies, a second with fresh fruit and squash, a third with bread and pastries and a final one with delicious quiche and Tarts. Its all over by 0530! We sailed off at sunrise, the dark Gendarme none the wiser and moved 6 miles to Controller bay.
This three fingered bay made a nice preparation for our next transit to the Tuamotus. We went in search of the Melon headed dolphins, a species new to us and common here, but the conditions were too rough for our 9 foot dinghy. So we had to settle for a spectacular dive. We set Sam's anchor on a vertical wall in the lee of Martin's Point the SE tip of Nuka Hiva. As soon as we dropped over the side we were greeted by two huge scalloped hammerhead sharks watching us sink with our backs to the wall. There were sooo many better things to eat that they very quickly lost interest. We saw tons of lazy grouper with beautiful fluorescent purple coloration obviously the result of French nuclear testing (Just Serious) actually we identified them later as s.pacific black grouper, loads of Moray eels, and again lovely lionfish displaying their poisonous frills and stone fish so well camouflaged you could barely see them when you knew they are there. Finally, on the way back we snorkeled with a school of a dozen manta rays 100 yards from Orinoco. These graceful giants float effortlessly along with two white proboscis pointing ahead and a long pointy tail behind. W!! After splicing our leech line for the main, changing the zincs on the prop and stowing the boat for sea again, we are off to the Tuamotus, where the water is reportedly clearer and the dives more dramatic. We'll keep you posted as the coconut run continues.
9 38 S 140 33 W3 bells in the night watch....Course 208 M, Speed 6.5 kts, wind Variable 15-25 SE, 30% cloud occasional squalls and alls well....
Ia Orana...Hello to all,
We left the Galapagos on the 10th of June to do the longest passage of our journey to Australia. 3000 NM of wide blue Pacific Ocean. About 10 other boats from around the world all left within 10 days of our departure and an impromptu 'yachtie net' was established to share information, weather and form a "safety net." At the beginning of each net time the designated netcontroller asks for any emergency,medical or priority traffic and we all hold our breathe hoping that nothing bad has happened. We were about a week into our trip and even before the net started Orinoco was being hailed.unfortunately one of the other cruisers had received severe nerve damaging lacerations to both his hands,when his plastic fishing reel exploded in his hands while trying to land "the big one!" Rob was able to play radio medic and with touching base with his brother the plastic/hand surgeon via email,all angles were covered and it was decided it was best for them to press on as the fwd route was easier than the backward one..luckily the chaps wife was extremely competent and both had positive outlooks,so with daily scheduled radio appts with Dr Rob all went well.
We had 19 days almost to the minute on passage and amazingly neither of as felt a burning desire for land. The first 15 days passed uneventfully, with light winds and small seas and enough fish to keep us fed, almost all Mahi.We were regularly entertained by the spinner dolphins, given this name due to their spectacular out of water acrobatics,Gem managed to catch one on video doing three somersaults in a row,quite the show-off and we loved every secound of it! After only a few hours of motoring, we were always able to sail. Many many days we flew the spinnaker in less than 10 kts and were able to maintain an average speed over 6-7 kts. The last few days were more challenging, 25-45 kts with rain and squalls. We "blew out" our old mainsheet traveler which is now repaired stronger than it was before,and chafed a spinnaker halyard almost straight through. However, all in all it was a truly wonderfully peaceful passage. Some boats behind us had more days of squalls, so it is always good to plan carefully and then be exceptionally lucky.
We arrived safely at our first landfall in French Polynesia and it was truly dramatic. Fatu Hiva was sighted near dawn seemingly appearing and then disapppearing amidst hovering early mists. Finally,rugged cloud ensconced mountains appeared suddenly towering out of the bottomless ocean. We sailed slowly down on the Island in 4 kts of breeze with our bright red and white chute billowing against a brilliant blue sky. As we approached, the land showed its lush greenery with rainforest literally dripping off the cliffs into the ocean. The anchorage in Hanavave Bay is spectacular. The most dramatic Rob has ever seen. Sheer green cliffs with phallic stone towers projecting hundreds of feet in the air. Most of the anchorage is 80 feet deep, and you can see down at least 50 of those feet through the pristine royal blue water. Gem promises there are better places yet to come.
Funnily enough we all have visions of people long at sea kissing the land when they arrive. When we arrived we cleaned up and relaxed aboard for two days before heading ashore. The village unfortunately was made up of prefab homes with tin roofs, and vinyl siding. Each house has a satellite TV dish. A far cry from the palm frond covered huts of the early days. The people are very friendly, but speak only Marquesan and French, Gem is trying to remember phrases from high school and she did well enough to barter for fresh fruit, which is amazingly abundant on the Island and we saw some very nice rosewood carving and traditional Tapa cloth made from the bark of breadfruit and banyan trees.
We also did a 1 1/2 hour hike up to a 200 foot waterfall. This was after asking permission of the one resident horse who was tethered by the trail.. The forest trail was rocky, steep and quite slippery. We glimpsed the cascading falls through the trees only moments before rounding a corner and there was your picture perfect waterfall with swimming pool..no disney world or hilton hotel could ever match natures balanced beauty. When we arrived the mist from the falls with the sun filtering through the trees made a beautiful shimmering little rainbow,and though chilly the water was rejuvenating for the hike back. The next day we did a dive of discovery (never know if you'll see anything) and we found, caves, tons of brown and yellow-spotted moray eels, a poisonous but beautiful little lion fish, octopus a good variety of tropical fish and Gem saw a shark off in the deep blue. We have moved on from Fatu Hiva and are now traveling throughout the Marquesan Island group. We sailed 48 miles today and anchored on Tahuata in a spot where Captain James Cook in the Endeavour,dropped his anchor sometime in May ?1769 and also, for our sailing friends, where Eric Hiscock deemed one of the three most beautiful bays in French Polynesia --Hanamoenoa Bay. It is graced by a white sandy beach and coconut trees, but give us the dramatic landscape of Hanavave Bay, Fatu Hiva any day. But the water is wonderfully warm,the air temp matches it,the waves are gentle on the beach and the wind blows through the coconut fronds..we, once again, feel very lucky.
Haere maru...Go easy 09º54 S. 139º06 W.
It's 4 bells into the evening watch and we are no longer underway. We sighted land at 0700. High mountains covered in clouds appearing and disappearing in the mist, with a broad rainbow marching from Southwest to Northeast along the Island. As the sun rose high the beautiful lush green mountains and valleys of Fatu Hiva were contrasted with the rich deep blue of the bottomless ocean. These Islands are very "steep to" and we only had soundings within 1/2 of a mile. We had to motor much of the last 16 hours due to dropping winds but were able to sail under the spinnaker in 8 kts of breeze to soak in the rich views. We are anchored in the Bay of Hanavave or Bay of Virgins which is at the mouth of a valley intermittently shrouded in a soaking mist and brilliant sunshine. The cliffs rising steeply on both sides.
After 19 Days at sea its time to regroup, clean up and make some minor repairs. All in all this passage was still the most tranquil of our lives with just a few days of little wind and those pesky squalls. We'll take three weeks in the Pacific to any one in the Caribbean or Atlantic any Day. Keep in touch. We'll let you know when we are underway again and will send out an Update soon.
10 23.84 S 138 40.139 W
PS Our Raster charts show the Island 1/2 mile east of its true position by GPS ...not supprising when you see the Survey by the French was done in 1875. Bet we are not that good with a sextant. The CMAP vector charts were spot on! New technology.
1 bell into the night watch and alls well, except we are motoring YUCH! We had another cloudy grey rainy squally day, but the winds are very light and the last front that passed moved the wind into the NE at about 5 kts. With a small sea running wing on wing, we can't keep the sails full. We are very hesitant to fly the chute with huge clouds and squall lines around us so with less than 100 NM to go we turned on the iron Genoa. It isn't a race after all and we plan landfall tomorrow. If we still had 1000NM to go we would still be rockin and slappin. Currently under power at 6 kts course 260, 80 NM to go Baro up a bit at 1012, and 80 % cloud cover.
Last night was also a squally one and neither of us slept alot. So eagle eye went to sleep early so she can be sharp to watch for land in the morning mist. I would likely just fall asleep on watch!! Gem caught a little Tuna tonight that we plan to eat tomorrow to celebrate landfall. Both of us have mixed feelings about ending this passage. It is the big one for this trip and other than a few unpleasant days so far it really has been wonderful. Still the best long passage either of us has ever had and we don't want it to end.
This email may be delayed because too much RFI (radio frequency interference) with the autopilot and the engine running, and it may be the last Underway until we leave the Marquesas in a month or so. We will send out updates to let you know what exciting things we see.
10 10 S 137 10 W
8 bells in the evening watch and alls well. 151 NM noon to noon and a much much nicer day today. Trades blowing 20kts easterly across our port quarter, Wing on wing wallowing a bit in big pacific swells doing 6-7 kts in the right direction 250 and anticipating landfall Monday afternoon.
Anyway hope you all are having a lovely weekend, Both of us have mixed feelings about landfall. We are excited to visit a new land with new natural wonders and native peoples yet we are sad to see this long tranquil passage end. We still even have fresh fruits and veggies!!
9 41 S 134 33 W
4 bells in the night watch and all is well NOW. We thought you all were getting a bit bored so we decided to have a few challenges today. As always it started early in the dog watch(4 AM to 8 AM) We were surrounded continuously by ominous clouds threatening and delivering rain and strong winds. The winds topped 40 kts in squalls and the clouds and rain continued all day. The wind varied from 3-45kts always out of the East, and we were able to keep moving dead down wind, wing on wing all day. The seas built to over 12 foot swells with a confused chop in all directions leading to some impressive three point gunwale to gunwale rolls. We only made 134 NM last noon to noon our worst performance yet, but we were happy to be moving in the right direction 250.
Next our new little dinghy size block that we were using for a boom vang decided it didn't like the strain so we had to use our lazy running back blocks to beef up our vang/preventer. Luckily it didn't blow up, just the jam cleats gave way.
Too ugly out to fish so fried rice for dinner, no fun cooking in the three point roll. As Gem was getting ready to go off watch.....BANG.... Our trusty OLD mainsheet car decided its old welds were tired and the mainsheet gave in 25 knots dead down wind and the boom/sail was pressed against the shrouds.
This got our attention. We used the preventer on the end of the boom, we always have two, to bring the boom in, furled the main with some difficulty and then set to work to get our main back in commission. The small U bolt that is welded to the car and its surrounding spring flew the coop, sheared off at the welds. Luckily we carry a small chandlery and machine shop...drilled it out put two 1/4" eye nuts through the two holes and used two shackles to put it back together. Now we are back in business!
We have replaced sooooo many things on this lovely hole in the water....but not everything. We just didn't want all of you to think we sleep and sun bake all day!
Currently speed 6.5 course 250 Baro 1012 down 2 today, clouds clearing now only 30%, seas still 12 feet with a confused chop. A little more than 380 NM to go.
9 30 S 132 11 W May 27th 0625 UTC We are currently -8 from UTC Sunday as we pass 135 W we will be -9
It's 6 bells into the evening watch and alls well. I'm sitting under a cloudless sky full of a million stars while the afterglow of a brilliant orange sunset, with a green flash, burns off around 180 degrees of the horizon. We are sailing under spinnaker and mainsail with 8 kts apparent wind over our port quarter and Orinoco is powering along on this broad reach at 7-8 kts The roll of the bow wake is rumbling in my ear, while Leona snuggles under my shirt burrowing into my shoulder. Life is wonderful.
152 NM noon to noon. The squalls last night threatened us non stop but always missed. We played it safe and doused the chute for the night. No fish caught today, but the drunken (Appleton rum) mahi marinade that Gem invented, was ready to eat and made a lovely light supper. Rob's baking experiments have been near total failure, assassinating another lot of yeast and resorting to beer bread. Baking is best left to the Admiral. About 860 NM to go with Easterly trade winds building up to 20 kts ahead. Perfect Sailing weather for about another 6 days on passage if all goes well.
Currently speed 8.0, course 260, Wind 15 SE, Baro 1013 steady, 0% cloud cover, we'll see if the squalls look for us again!
8 00 S 124 20 W
4 bells in the night watch and alls well. We only made 134 NM noon to noon but we must remember that is still better than 5 kts on avg and in light air that's fantastic. In 13 days we have put less than 10 hours on the engine and have absolutely no complaints. Wish we could say the same about the generator. Boy are we power hungry...electronics, fridge freezer, inverter for the computer, watermaker, washing machine (even though we don't wear much in the way of cloths, there are at least sheets and towels to do!)...and you all thought this was back to basics!
We have had the spinnaker flying since early on the 21st and we are making great progress. 6-7kts, course 250, but our favorable current has left us for the moment. Seas remain less than 1 meter and are following on the port quarter. We just now broke the 1000NM to go mark, which is very exciting. We also rolled our clocks back another hour today due to crossing 120 Deg W longitude. We are now minus 8 GMT.
Three swings and misses on the fishing today, one made it to within 25 feet of the boat and spit out the hook, so it was pasta for dinner and Rob's trial of baking today went sour when he assassinated the yeast, better luck next time. A pretty starry night to the south with low clouds and occasional squalls to the North...better keep a look out.
7 47 S 121 58 W
3 bells into the night watch and alls well. Only 140 NM noon to noon. Compared to previous days it doesn't seem like much but consider this is still an avg of around 6 knots. Hull speed is the square root of waterline length and we don't have the 80 feet mentioned in the song, only around 37.5. So it really isn't bad. We have been flying the spinnaker again all day around 170 degrees off the 6-8 kt easterly breeze still on a course of 250. The seas have been kind with a 1-2 foot easterly swell and so we are moving along nicely with a half knot of current on our favor.
Last night we had a little excitement. 5 bells into the dog watch, Gem was on deck when she sighted a "flare" on the southern horizon below the "southern cross" constellation of stars. Her description of a rising white light followed by a falling yellow orange glow sounded very convincing for a distress flare. We searched the horizon, shone our deck lights, called out on the VHF and tried to contact the coast guard on SSB with no responses. In the morning on our cruisers net at least 4 other boats in a several hundred mile radius reported variations on the same theme. Same time but several were convinced it was meteors. During the day through a Maritime Mobile Ham Net we contacted the coasties and checked for meteor and south pacific launch activity with no action reported, except an earthquake near Quito Ecuador, completely unrelated. Also no EPIRBS had been activated...We believe it was just aliens returning to their base beneath the sea planning the next experiment on us unsuspecting humans.
We were extremely impressed by the response of the Maritime Mobile net on 14300 Mhz, a great group of radio operators with important resources at their fingertips. We are very grateful these voluntary Hams are there 365 days a year!! 1150 NM to go and tomorrow we get to turn our clocks back again...another 15 degrees of Longitude, must mean we are getting closer. Right now it's a beautiful night 30 % cloud cover a steady 1013hpa on the Barometer, Wind E 6-8 kts speed 6.5kt on the perpetual 250 magnetic. Gotta go watch for aliens.......
7 19 S 119 32 W
Its 2 bells into the night watch (2100/9PM) and alls well. Approx 150 NM noon to noon...Last night after 4 bells in the Dog watch when the wind went so light we were doing two to three kts and the poled out jib was slapping I convinced a skeptical Gem to set the Spinnaker. The wind was from ESE and about 4 kts perfect for drifting under the chute. Welllllll...after taking down the Starboard pole and furling in the 135% jib and setting the port pole and spinnaker all was going well. But....looking at the black clouds on the horizon Gem smartly says you stay up here! Needless to say I spent the remainder of the dog watch wet, dodging squalls and pulling the "ATN sock" down over the chute, (this wonderful device allows one person to douse a huge sail). Although these squalls didn't pack much wind 15kts, they have the potential and another yacht got hit with 30 kts last night. We always have to respect the power of mother nature and the intuition of our wives. So tonight we are moving along nicely under poled out jib and 2/3 main doing about 6 kts with a 10 kt ESE breeze on a course of the perpetual 250. We are just 2 miles north of our great circle route Rhumb line, with a little more than 1400 NM to go For you land lubers, the great circle route takes into account the curvature of the earth and cuts off several miles when making long passages. I'd love to say I calculate it myself, but computers are a wonderful invention.
The natural wonder for the day was Gem capturing a pod of Dolphins passing the boat on video. This is a frequent occurrence but today one decided to do three consecutive back flips a hundred yards off our port quarter, with huge splashes while Gem was videoing....AMAZING. I don't know why, but despite seeing thousands of dolphins around the boat for over 20 years, on the waves and in our bow wake we NEVER EVER tire of them. They have to be our favorite creatures of the deep and always captivate our full attention. While at the Rosario Islands North of Cartegena, Columbia in 2000, we swam with a small pod in the wild. These dolphins were accustomed to humans and we were able to swim with these powerful creatures for hours. They would swim within inches of you but never let you touch them. They were so quick and powerful when you reached out to try to stroke their side they would woosh away and you would be pushed aside in their wake. Gem was so excited free diving rapidly up and down with them, she actually perforated her eardrum.
6 43 S 117 17 W
7 bells in the night watch and alls well. 150NM noon to noon. Winds still 5-10 out of the SE shifting more to the East and Lightening. Have had the spinnaker up now over 36 hours straight and adjusted the steering vane for the first time in about 12 hours just a few minutes ago. It is amazing to be in this vast ocean and have 1-2 foot seas like sailing on a large lake. We are sitting right on the great circle route between Isabella and Fatu Hiva and we will see the halfway point tomorrow. Shipboard routine has really settled in and we take our 6 hour shifts without much thought. No Fish today so pasta for dinner, we will change our rigs tomorrow and try again. Nothing much different to report although some of the other boats have seen whales and we are keeping our eyes peeled.
Course 250, speed 6 kts, seas 1-2 feet, scattered clouds out on the horizon and another lovely night.
5 51 S 112 38 W May 19 0600 UTC
4 bells in the night watch and alls well. Rolling along all day beneath the chute alone to light 5-10 kt SE breezes and flattening seas. Course 250 speed 5-6 kts. A starry night with cumulus clouds on the horizon and a waning moon yet to show its face. 162NM noon to noon, didn't discount the extra hour from rolling the clocks back though. Lighter air slower days, but we are moving very nicely in the right direction and so far it has been an extraordinarily peaceful passage.
Relearned about time last night. Each 15 deg longitude is one hour change from GMT/UTC(360/24). West is neg, East pos. We were at 105 W hence -7.0 GMT. Gained an hour of daylight and an hour noon to noon.
Met and passed a American Hans Christian 40 something ketch today, carrying a family of five to a Nueva Vida( the name of their boat). We knew we were close from our contact on the net so no surprise, and we are watching an Aussie Foxtrot slowly catch us up. The three of us started about a day apart.
Nice grilled tarragon mahi for lunch, which means we get to fish againtomorrow, and we are planning a midway party for Friday.
A lovely 165 miles in 24 hours, but it seems disappointing after the day before. Our friend Pete had to tell us about his day with 192 miles, so now I am shooting for 200, but Gem won't let me spread more canvas. Wise girl! Equipment failure out here is always a pain so much smarter to take and extra day and shorten sail if you even are thinking about it.
Time changes at sea are a strange thing...no civilization to tell you to change your clocks, but there is a 3.5 hour difference between Galapagos and Marquesas, so we decided that each 1000NM we would change 1 hour so its not such a shock when we arrive. Today was the first change 1 hour extra in our day...A small milestone.
Also today we had the opportunity to put our professional skills to work. A man aboard a yacht about 200 miles away and two weeks out of the Marquesas, severely cut his hands when a fishing hand line plastic reel shattered while reeling in a big one. He lacerated both hands badly and needed some advice, which we gave on the SSB net we paricipate in each morning. 8155Mhz at 1600 UTC if anyone can listen in.
We have always maintained, in a Nuclear disaster we would always want 100 cruisers to be in our shelter... with all the talents available you can usually take care of any problem. From scientists to mechanics they seem to have it all covered. A Beautiful night with a waning moon, 10-15 SE, Course 251, Speed 6.5, seas 3-6 feet and off our port quarter, 1885 NM to Go.
4 48 S 107 21 W 0341 UTC May 17th 2006
3 bells in the night watch and alls well. WOW 185 NM NOON TO NOON. OK you all say 3 hours in the car, well for us that was amazing. Now we have to shoot for 200 which will be almost impossible. The winds last night were a steady 15 on the beam driving us as high as 10 kts over the ground with a favorable current and down the front of a wave. Today the wind lightened a bit and is predicted to get even lighter in the coming days. No big news, didn't even fish today as 3 days with mahi was enough. Still finding ways to eat banana's though with a big smoothy today, not counting the one I stepped on and smooshed between my toes.
Wind 10 SSE,course 251, speed 7 kts, seas 3-6 ft, 135 % flying nicely.
4 30 S 104 47 W
7 bells in the evening watch and alls well. 175 NM noon to noon. We are bounding along on a beam reach in 15 kts of southerly breeze with a 1 kt current pushing us along. Our speed over the ground has been a consistant 8 kts (up to 9 and 10 at times) heading approx 150. Flew the chute all day but when the wind picked up and moved forward we shifted to the big jib for the night. Our Banana abundance continues. So far we have had banana smoothies, banana breads x 2, banana chutney on Mahi Mahi, peanut butter and Banana and loads of just fresh sweet bananas. Any suggestions for the remainder would be appreciated. Can you overdose on Bananas? The coolant leak seems sealed for the time being and Gem is catching a lovely small fish a day to keep us fed.
The wind continues to build day by day as we head west, seas are still kind and we are making great progress. We have seen only one ship our second day out and a plane the same day, but we are in contact every morning with about 10 other yachts making this same crossing. Tomorrow we are running the net for everyone to check in. 8155 Mhz at 1600 UTC. Can you hear us TR or any other Hams?
3 52 S 102 04 W
2 bells on the night watch and alls well. 145 miles again noon to noon. Wind 13 out of the SW weather man wrong again... what's new. Lovely close reach 60 Deg off the wind on the great circle route. Course 245 speed 6.5-7.5 kts. Windy at the helm, but she had trouble today in light air with the Chute up. It's all about balance. We flew the Spinnaker on beam reach all day but wind shifted ahead of the beam changed to 135% for the night. Seas only about 1-2 feet and Very kind. There was a fireball of a sunset with an obvious green flash and not 10 minutes later the full moon rose orange between the cumulus on the horizon, tried to capture on Video. Another baby Mahi for dinner covered in a banana chutney this time. We are getting very creative with bananas as they are literally falling to the cabin sole from various hanging positions around the boat. A very plentiful fruit in the Galapagos, too bad they all ripen at once!! Small coolant leak on exhaust/cooling manifold of the Generator. Repaired with JB weld, overall Orinoco is doing terrific.
2 50 S 98 52 W 2400 NM to go
Its 7 bells in the evening watch and alls well. Winds have been variable 3-15kts from the SSE to the SSW. We have been as close as a 45 degree reach and as far as 120 degrees of the wind on a heading of approx 255. Speed anywhere from 3-8kts averaging around 6. 145 miles noon to noon 11th to12th. Currently a beautiful evening 7 kts out of the SSE, SOG 6.2kts, Baro 1012 and steady steering 250 with windy at the helm, about 7 miles south of the great circle route to Fatu Hiva. Three bites but no fish landed today. Also great fiery sunset but no green flash. Believe it or not we went over our credit card bills at sunset...pretty mundane except for the location.
Currently en Route Marquesas 2 28 S 96 42 W
Its 11:30 am on May 10th 2006.While penguins dive under her hull, Orinocos 65lb Bruce anchor is raised from the white sands of Villamil Bay, stowed on the aft deck. The hawse pipes are sealed. All gear is triple checked for tie-down and we are OFF.Following that amazing constellation the 'Southern Cross' bound for Fatu Hiva in the Marquesan Islands!! A mere 3000 nm away!
Now after 21 days in the Galapagos Islands we have time to reflect. We do believe we spent more time here than Darwin, but failed to improve on his theories ,though are impressed with the growth of his convictions that were based on such a short visit. The islands are dedicated to their flora and fauna- terrestrial, aquatic and air. This is evidenced in the abundance of wildlife we encountered. Despite not having a cruising permit (bad info in our guidebooks) we were able to sail to three islands . We made Landfall in Wreck Bay (there is reef that crosses a large portion of the bays entrance, but it is really only visible at low tide) San Cristobal. Check in was easy, but the laws governing the freedom of yachts to navigate amongst the Island had either changed or previously not been enforced. All of our guides including the one "Doc" brought us from the states, three days prior to its official release (he has connections) states a cruising permit is unnecessary for the three main ports we visited. The port captain actually listened to our complaints read and copied our books and ultimately actually allowed us to go to Santa Cruz to return Doc to his plane. We would now recommend a permit for anyone cruising the Galapagos, if they want to move around legally.
Now for the life. The sea lions of San Cristobal were the most inquisitive creatures and a source of constant entertainment. They would swim over for a scratch, follow our kayak around the harbor, do pirouettes around us while diving and climb aboard any open transom yacht. One Aussie friend tried to keep them off with huge inflatable fenders. We all had a great laugh watching them use his desperate blockade as trampoline ...this is where the seals climbed up on top of the fenders and bounced up and down, having great fun!!. Later while running his engine one decided to take a flying leap into his cockpit and very cleverly pushed the throttle wide open,this happened not once but twice.obviously they must have loved the uproar it created the first time. We had kindly put our kayak down for their enjoyment and sun basking pleasure, but alas, a narrow tippy yellow thing was just a bit too unstable for those that dared attempted to climb onboard! But we did find out that they loved to play with old bananas we'd thrown overboard. They would dive and scoop them up play with them awhile and then throw them against the hull until they were opened and then they'd eat the fruit!
While waiting for our visitor we arranged two dives through "cuckaracha" (really). Two dives at Leon Dormida a spectacular rock rising from the sea 5 miles NE of Wreck Bay. This towering rock 184 meters, appears to have been thrown up from the sea floor with sheer walls which have calved a baby tower making a deep pass through 18 meters wide. Orinoco had sailed by but not through this fabulous site. Blue footed boobies, mating frigates and sooty urns cover the walls with guano and circle the peaks.
First dive- the Wall was carpeted in multicolored sponges anemones and urchins. Nice fish but no wow. After lunch we dove through the gap in the rock.WOW tons of Galapagos sharks, at least 50, big turtle, moray eel, loads of fish and an incredibly graceful seal. Our only wish was for better viz.
We had a wonderful but very brief visit from the furious third Doc. He traveled thousands of miles to visit us in the Galapagos, unfortunately for only three days! We toured the tortoise farm which had their first offspring last year named Genesis. These gentle giants certainly reminded us of a prehistoric age. We also walked around a crater shrouded in clouds and filled with fresh water 650 feet above sea level. Beautiful Frigate birds, the males with magnificent red pouches displayed in front of their chests, circled high above fishing the trout from the crater lake. To make Docs visit complete we then had a serious run in with Galapagos Bureaucracy..Details will need to be shared in person.Thankfully all ended well and Doc's visit was more "genuine" for the experience. The wonderful Port Captain, who patiently listened to our complaints and read our books turned out to be our Knight in dress whites. He not only facilitated our rapid exit from San Cristobal, but granted us permission to sail to Santa Cruz, and spent a lovely evening aboard Orinoco with his family. Doc can attest it truly was magic.
Early next day we set sail as the sun rose and flew a spinnaker for 40 miles to Santa Cruz, Academy Bay. Although Wreck Bay was the administrative center of the Galapagos, Academy Bay is the tourist Mecca. We shopped and dined out and sadly sent Doc on his way. His visit was very short, but it was great having him aboard, and he had better return for longer next time.
We wanted to cover our tracks so we checked out of the country right away, yet left for our last Island in the Galapagos, PuertoVillamil, Isabella. This is where we truly found the flavor of the islands.
Although the largest Island by land mass, it has one of the smallest settlements. A sleepy town, with in our opinion the right type of tourism. Rustic eco lodges, well trained guides, tours to areas preserved but as yet unspoiled by tourism. We kayaked into the Tintoreras which was a hike on lava islands near our anchorage. The enchanted moonscape walk led to an estuary containing 50+ basking white tip sharks, then a beach full of marine iguanas and sea lions snoring in the mangroves. We also saw the graceful diving blue footed boobies, and our first time up close encounter with the cutest of all the birds.a family of penguins. We were so excited later on to have these tiny little birds chasing fish underneath our boat while we cleaned her bottom. Next day we took a tour up the Cerro Negra Volcano one of at least 5 active calderas on Isabella. A two hour horseback ride on feisty little beasts, ( our friends big white quarter horse Traveler would have loved the trip, we missed him), revealed magnificent views of the second largest crater in the world. The largest is in Africa. We then hiked through a lava flow just twenty years old, showing Lava falls, waves, small tubes and huge tunnels. The lava rocks were amazingly light with iridescent mineral deposits and filaments as thin and more fragile than a hair. We had an excellent guide and learned a ton. Finally, the next day, we took a twin engine launch up the coast to Cabo Rosa. Enroute we were surrounded literally by hundreds of leatherback and green turtles, migrating together, we have never seen sooo many! 40 mins later we arrive at our destination..The surf was crashing onto what appeared to us 'tourists' a steady line of reef, none of us (all sailors) could see a break . After passing out life jackets and pausing to open a new pack of cigarettes and then light a fresh one,our guide squinted through the smoke.obviously timing the waves...backed us up 30 feet, then ciggie in mouth gunned those twin 75s and away we went, our only view ... white water. Magically we found ourselves through the surf and into a clear lava pool, where we yipped and yahooed, calmed ourselves, then slipped over the sides to snorkel through the lava garden with its amazing bridges and pass thrus. We ate lunch and then had another exciting exit out through the reef from where we then went to another bay. Here we snorkeled in turbid water, where at least twenty of these leviathan turtles passed close by in 5 feet of water. Too bad about the visibility, but we had never seen so many turtles in a day. On our trip back we were graced by a view of a tremendous manta ray 4 meters across. The wildlife and lava scenery are dramatic.
Now its time to move on, to the Marquesas. Calm seas and Gentle winds are predicted, We are planning a rhumb line Great circle route, and three to four weeks.
Remember radios can fail so don't expect to hear from us till the middle of June.
Hope you are all well!!!
Cheers, Rob, Gem and Her Majesty the Queen Leona Currently 200 NM west of Isabella Galapagos 2800 NM to Go May 11th 2100UTC 1º40' S 93º 32' W Winds 15 SSE, Course 254 Speed 6-7kts seas 1 meter on the beam, cumulus on the horizon and 1010hPa
We are psyched!!Orinoco has arrived in the indescribable Galapagos Islands!! Over 900 NM in almost exactly 7 days with less than 40 hours of engine running time. We flew our brand new Red & white spinnaker in light following winds and unbelievably calm pacific seas most of the way. It was the first time we had a chance to use it and we are truly pleased with that investment. We were often sailing along at 4 kts when the anemometer read zero apparent. You would never be able to do that in the atlantic, with its short choppy seas. As a matter of fact with nearly 10 years aboard Orinoco and many passages under her belt, we have never had a more relaxed uneventful trip. A fantastic way to start our Pacific adventure.
After the equator crossing yesterday, we sailed almost continuously into the Harbor on Isla San Christobal Wreck Bay Galapagos. A spinnaker run paralleling the island for over 20 miles. We sailed so close to a huge rock Jutting up hundreds of feet from the sea you felt like you could touch it and sea lions and boobies were having a field day. Finally with an abrupt windshift on the nose we motored the last half hour into a open roadstead anchorage holding about 20 yachts. All have just recently made the same crossing. The boats are from around the world, mainly from Europe, Sweden, Italy,England, France, Norway, Finland, Germany, Canada, Bequia, USA,South African, Australian, New Zealand to name a few. A truly remarkable international community. As we anchored, in 30 feet of crisp blue water, in front of a rambling port town, sea lions could be seen sun baking on the transom of neighboring boats, and playing all around. Almost before we cut the engine Gem was diving the anchor and trying to entice the seals to play. Turtles placidly hung out next to our kayak and we are enjoying a relaxing evening snug with our home in another harbor with magnificent things to discover.
0 53 .7 S 89 36.8 W
A truly exciting day at sea. Rob's first equator crossing. A landmark experience for any sailor. Gem has done this a few times for practice but now it is with our home.
The pagan ritual of paying tribute to Neptune with libation, frivolity and blood is still very strong in the sailing community. Gem had the Dog watch as usual, 0200-0800 and utilized her entire shift in preparation. To salute both the Northern hemisphere behind and the Southern ahead, she made home made American brownies and an Aussie shephard's pie. She also wrote a poem in King Neptune's honor to be read at the precise moment of crossing. Rob's surprise was coming from below with a mohawk shaved on his head. Gem promptly sprayed it bright green and Leona was next in line, with the original mohawk, and Gem was decked out in war paint green strands of hair/kelp and glitter. We painted on Tattoos of Dolphins jumping from the sea, stripped down and then read our ode to neptune....
O Great Neptune beneath the sea..With spirit and mirth we honour thee. In awe and wonder we take the time,to ask safe passage in ancient rhyme. A flash of gold as tridents' raised,Orinoco Flow glides into the haze, Where whence upon fine gifts we pass,beneath your waves of yeons past. Leona,Gem And Rob we three, request the honour of calm following seas, and gentle winds to carry us forward, our destination Australia-homeward!....
Neptune imbided a rum and coke and a shot of tequilla. Gem and Rob joined him ..bad manners to drink alone...Then we tossed the tequila bottle into the ocean containing the poem and a trinket of 14 K gold for good luck. Rob blew the conch, not quite a shofar but fair tribute, and we pierced each other, Rob's Ear and Gem's nose....spilling a few drops of each others blood into the sea......... We crossed at 1444 GMT Long 87 22.418 W Lat obviously 00 00 00 N/S
We had a lovely Spinnaker run the rest of the day and are now reaching in 12 knots for Landfall Tomorrow. So far this has been the most peaceful crossing of our sailing together. A great start to the Grand Pacific.
0 18 .64 S 88 28.99 W 80 miles to go
Not much new to report, but we are closing in on the Celebration to Neptune...crossing the equator. We have had boobies and swallow tail gulls fighting for the fishing lures but no other bites. The wind persisted through the night only lightening for two hours of motoring. It is still out of the SSW but varies from 7-25 knots. A bit of reef and unfurl in the last 12 hours. We have had to put on some cloths, unfortunately, because the wind seems to have an Antarctic chill as low as 73 deg F...horrible. Windy has been working now tirelessly but she isn't as sensitive as she used to be in light air.....We will have to council her a bit in the Galapagos. More soon.
00 39 N 085 48 W
Last night we passed through an interesting cloud bank all along the southern horizon. Normally this would herald a front in the atlantic, but there were none on the weather reports and there was no significant convection. The wind did shift dramatically from the N to the SSW and increased to 10 kts. We then had a gorgeous close reach right onto the rhumb line. The wind is surprisingly cool this close to the equator and the water is warmer. We covered another 130 miles over 24 hours and are sailing more than anyone we have heard about in the last month. Lucky we waited.
Windy did decide to work although still sluggish but it gave our trusty autopilot a rest. Gem caught a skipjack tuna, which we flash grilled to perfection. Another yacht south of us also spotted the false killer whales we saw a few days ago.
People ahead of us are now getting a full month in the Galapagos, so we aren't yet sure how long we'll stay. They are such a special place where we may never return.
Currently close reaching under 135% Genoa and Full Main with 10 kts out of the SSW on a course of 260 making 5-6 kts.
1 35 N 83 37 W
Another Gorgeous spinnaker run today with winds N NE 2-10 kts dying at sunset. We were still sailing in 2kts but th relentless collapse and fill of the Spinnaker finally got to us. Now we are motoring in calm seas and no wind about 530 NM to go. We seem to be making 130-140 NM a day and are really taking it easy. If we move and don't slap we sail.
Gem thinks the whales we saw yesterday are False Killer whales as Pilots aren't supposed to be in these waters. She also had a school of dolphins say hello at 8 bells in the dog watch, 0400, and caught and released a baby Wahoo, too small to eat, she's waiting for bigger fish.
Windy our self steering is still unable to help as since we changed the Aux rudder something in the balance is off..likely a few degrees of tilt not exactly the same. We took apart cleaned and reassembled the Servo pendulum part today, but despite no friction she still won't steer in these light winds and she used to be able to...all the time. A bit frustrating but luckily Itzie is working without any rest.
Our mangoes are ripening and we gorged a bit today as this is both of our favorite fruit,and better for you than candy. Someday if we are ever land based we will have to live where we can grow our own. Tomorrow fresh pineapple and papaya. ....all's well at first bell in my 6 hour watch
2 18 N 81 44 W
Currently we are sailing nicely under our brilliant red and white chute alone with a barely detectable breeze out of the NNE and calm seas. One would imagine the S Pacific as just a big pond coasting along at 5 kts at 200 deg magnetic. We had to motor through the night as was anticipated while traversing the Intertropical Convergence Zone. The moon was full, the night was clear and the water was like glass. Too bad no wind but couldn't ask for nicer motoring weather. We are conserving fuel by motoring at 5-6 kts, one of our fellow navigantes has decided to head into the Ecuador mainland to refuel before heading West to the galapogos. We hope we have enough to motor the whole way if needed, but every mile sailed is like insurance,not to mention the absolutely wonderful feeling ghosting along with barely a whisper....We have never figured out our fuel consumption, due to the fact we run a generator off the same tanks but estimate a gallon an hour. We carry about 120 gallons and have an extra 25 on deck for the trip.
Yesterday in the Duldrums we hove to and kissed the Pacific for our friend Pete. The water was crisp clean and a truly profound blue. Somehow it also tasted saltier??
This morning Gem spotted a pod of whales, resembling pilot whales, with a blunt forehead and a long bent over dorsal fin. There were lots of them blowing air and moving toward the NW opposite our southerly coarse. They came as close as 200 yards. Quite a spectacle and only Rob's second time seeing whales out at sea, first in the Turks and Caicos now in the South Pacific. We also have a tired stowaway sparrow on board, unfortunately when they are tired, its not a good sign and in the past we have had to bury them at sea.
For those of you that love tropical fruit, we had a lovely sour sop shake yesterday and our bag of over 100 mangoes ($3) is starting to ripen up. In a few days we will be covered in mango juice. The star fruits are now past their prime and the passion fruit is tart and delicious. Unfortunately, the pineapple look to be ripening all at the same rate, so we will have to be creative.
So far everything is going along wonderfully, except Windy, our steering vane can't adjust in such light air...almost zero apparent down wind so Itzie, our autopilot is having to take up all the slack. Every once in a while we even touch the wheel because it is such a joy under these conditions. We have made 255 miles in 48 hours, not bad considering the wind about 700 miles to go.
Hope all is well with you. S/V Orinoco Flow 05 02.32 N 080 05.30 W
Bet you almost forgot about Orinoco and her travels and travails through the Panama Canal. We have been in and around Panama now for 6 weeks,we still are not tired of this beautiful country..now we are off to the Galapagos in the morning. We entered Colon at about 0100 on March 1st and anchored not far from where we had been six years previously on our last major trip. We learned from last time how inhospitable Colon Harbor is and quickly did our paper work and spent two lovely weeks up the Rio Chagres,a mere 6 miles west of Colon,but it may as well have been a 1000 with the dramatic difference. There we explored the jungle, kayaked up enchanted rivers with magnificent rainforest on the banks, did boat projects and prepared for our transit through the Canal. The list of wildlife that Gem catalogued is tremendous. The short list included Toucans, Harris Hawks, Oropendulas, Parrots, white faced monkeys, brown howler monkeys, agouti, for Gem this is one of her favourite places so far on earth..it imbides balance and tranquility. Our date for transit changed at least 5 times forward and back by several days and this precluded any travel away from the boat. We even tried to plan a weekend trip to Boquete in the highlands but were happily foiled when our date was moved up to the 21st from the 25th. We quickly signed on 4 line handlers Lani and Pete off MARNEL IV, Tim and his young son Ian off Aguila, and Tara an aspiring young story writer. We rented four 7/8 inch 125 foot long lock lines, bought 10 plastic wrapped tires, and prepared for the two day transit of the Canal. The crossing is done in two days recently because they start the yachts in the evening, keep us moored overnight in lake Gatun and push on early the next morning. With all our crew plus a mandatory advisor (young pilot) Orinoco has never had so many people on board.
The three Atlantic locks going up a total of about ninety feet require taking in line under tension while rapidly rising thirty feet and our line handlers did an excellent job. We were lucky that night to have a "small" 500 foot freighter in front of us who started forward slowly and spared us the rapids caused by his props. We transited with an Aussie boat Shine, Ian and Lynne, and were happy to just have a Raft of two boats. We slept a few hours after a meal of hearty home cooked "local" style soup, more like stew with loads of local roots we are still learning the names of. In the Morning we motored off with a new advisor for the Mira Flores Locks and the 90 Feet down to the Pacific.
Orinoco purred along beautifully on the lake where the tops of flooded trees still peek above the water reminding you to stay in the channel or you may hit an underwater HOUSE! The Rio Chagres was damned to make the lake, while the forest and homes are now permanently submerged. We rafted again with Shine and locking down was easier as now you can ease the lines carefully under tension and keep the two yachts in the middle. All went uneventfully, and we were whooping with joy as Orinoco's bow plowed into the cool Pacific. It was white wine with chamborge and gem sitting with her feet in her beloved pacific ocean,as we toasted our first pacific side sunset.
We anchored in La Playita de Amador in Panama city and began working on the boat in earnest. We waited for two packages. One with the help of our friend TR Richards contained our new automatic tuner..making this transmission possible, and the other our replacement Auxilliary rudder. Working on boats in exotic ports is indeed a big part of cruising and one of the greatest challenges. Windpilot sent us the wrong rudder and we had to get a second and ship back the first. Believe it or not Panama with its huge population of Transiting and resident sailing yachts has no sail loft. We therefore repaired our own sails by hand and hope to find a good sailmaker along the way. Our SSB email is working well again and our new aux rudder looks stronger than the old. Also we replaced our 8 year old water maker membrane and are very pleased to report that production and quality are way up.
While in Panama City we met a lovely couple Eduardo and Selida. They took us for a day trip up to El Valle a beautiful area with local artesans, rainforest, waterfalls and cool mountain breezes. We have gotten together several times in our short stay giving them a glimpse of life onboard and learning a ton about life in Panama. Making local friends and the warm feelings felt in such a short time, really make cruising a richer experience.
We stocked the boat to where I do believe she may burst. At least 6 huge dinghy loads of supplies 50 lbs of potatoes, onions, mangoes, 25 lbs carrots, papaya, watermelon, star fruit, dragon fruit, green tomatoes, cabbages...... tons of canned fruits and veggies, 30 lbs of flour 30 pounds of rice, grains for bread, long life milk, 50 liters of wine, 16 bottles of rum(very important to sailors mentality), 3 cases each of beer, coke, and tonic, 30 liters of long life juice, chips, dried fruits , salsa, candy, colored pencils for gifts.............the list is overwhelming. Storage is at an extreme premium and we have 11 extra plastic stackable containers in the V berth and forward Head. Sorry Kay no room for a few months...unless you want to sleep in the main Salon.sorry to our mums too as we have also purchased our 'Equator crossing adornments' a must for all sailors when they cross the equator!But we won't say what they are!!
Finally, we are ready to go. There are reports of no wind all over the airwaves for the last few weeks and unfortunately that hasn't changed. The intratropical convergence zone is north which is good and we will head south and pray for wind before we head west. We expect 10 to 14 days at sea and will sail as long as we are moving in the right direction without the sails flapping. Our fuel tanks are full and we are carrying 25 extra gallons in anticipation of a lot of motoring. Everyone scratch a backstay or whistle a tune hoping to bring on a little wind...out of the right direction!!
Hope that brings everyone up to date. Remember radio email is a fickle thingand we may be out of touch for a time.. more soon
A beautiful sailing day on Orinoco. 20 kts 140 degrees off the port quarter 6-8 foot swells out of the same direction. Making 7- 8 kts wing on wing both main and Jib 1/3 furled. Jib poled out to keep her steady. All was going terrific, Gem and I relaxing in the cockpit then... JIBE??? rogue wave? Checked our Steering vane "windy". The Auxilliary rudder was askew. We hove to and removed the entire mechanism while harnessed to the back and dunked by a few seas. We got it off safely to find the Aux rudder's stainless steel shaft sheared right off. We would have lost the lower half, if not for the snug fit of the lower bearing or if we gave it a little more time. No worries the autopilot "Itzie" has the helm on our main ships rudder and we are off again to Panama. Happy it happened during the day and the seas were relatively calm. Thank goodness for redundancy. We are a bit disappointed though as we thought the Windpilot was indestructible..oh well it must be a boat. Guaranteed for life though so hope to have a replacement sent to Panama. More when we arrive.
12 14.72 N 78 12.90 W
We left Morant Cays at 8 bells in the morning watch on the 25th and have covered 162 miles in 24 hours. The winds have been very variable between 15 and 30 knots generally easterly, with seas anywhere from 4-10 feet. Most of the waves caress our beam but the occasional rogue boards our cockpit or pushes our stern around. If you look aft it kind of has that surface of the washing machine agitator look. Orinoco of course is doing well with our windpilot at the helm recovering quickly from each little /large change. Squirrelly to say the least. Over 370 NM to go and the weather fax reports the same conditions. We are happy it isn't on our nose and we are reaching in the right direction. Our little queen muck is doing great, sick for about an hour than back to her normal self. We hope to make Panama by the 1st if the weather holds as predicted. Remember radio reception can be very iffy so if you don't hear from us for a week or so do not worry! All's well.
Just wanted to let you know our stop here in the middle of the Caribbean sea will be a bit longer than a day. The winds over panama persist and make the seas unfriendly so we will wait till they moderate a bit. We visited Freddie and his three dogs the lone residents of Morant cays while the weather is "up." He seems to be watching the fishing shacks, was very friendly and in need of a few supplies which we will help him with. Unfortunately all the Conch seem to have been harvested from this bay their beautiful shells in piles around the few trees on the Island. Will write again once we are UNDERWAY AGAIN.
Hey to all, While we had a beautiful beam reach sail most of yesterday the weatherman predicted gales(30-40k) for the next few days directly on our planned route to Panama and since as night approached we found our sails flogging in a bare puff of air(the storms south were sucking it all away) AND the fact that we like to brag about the storm we missed instead of the one we survived, we decided to head for a 'wait-out the storm' pit stop,which turned out to be Morant Cays. We fired up the iron genny and motored slowly through the dog watch into the lee of this trio of islets 50 miles south of Jamaica.So we aren't really underway, although this anchorage is certainly in the middle of nowhere.17.24.858N 75.58.595W. It is quite strange to know that two of Robs closest friends Tom and Marc are both in Jamaica not more than 50 or 75 miles to the NW. One in a house and one on a cruise. Also my sister is a few hundred miles N on another cruise in the Bahamas! A very Small sea. Anyway a shame we didn't have Jamaica on our itinerary to spend some time with friends but WHO KNEW!
It is sunny, the water is a beautiful blue and the Reef which extends from the NE to the SW is crashing with surf, while 300 miles south the winds are building to 40 knots and the seas to 13 feet. Good Idea to rest. There appears to be some fishermen ashore but we haven't ventured out as yet, there are literally 5 shacks which almost outnumber the coconut trees on an Island which covers a total of about 1/2 acre with a 4 foot Elevation above the sea. We'll break out the kayak and check it out once rested.
Are you ready for another amazing luck story. Some of you may know we have rebuilt our galley sink pump three times in the last two weeks...despite a rebuild kit it just isn't right. Well there is a little ball valve in line keeping the sea out of the discharge hose. These are Bronze cylinders with a hole bored through the center and a ball keeps the sea from backing up the tube. Well Gem and I were walking up the beach in Hawksnest Anchorage the other day. She found a little green ball that looked like the ones out of the drain. I know because I had to order them from England last time I fixed one! We kept it out of curiosity. Today since its a "rest" day I took the drain apart to find our ball missing. It's retaining pin corroded away and it must have washed out. Other valves had done this in the past. Well this ball Gem found was the perfect fit, and it floated in salt water and sank in fresh...IMPOSSIBLE...but I couldn't make this up. I rebuilt the valve and it seems at least at first to be working better. If that's not lucky........... Well, we will let you know when we are on the true move again...but we still consider ourselves underway....
Hello again...8 bells in the evening watch and alls well. Quiet day winds disappeared at sunset drifting south at 2-3 knots with slapping sails. No rush heavy weather near panama and will likely sit a couple of days at the Morant Cays South of Jamaica, Until the weather moderates. These little cays are the lst pieces of land until we cross the Carribbean sea and are conveniently located halfway for this journey Direct to Panama. Will keep you posted.
We are underway to Panama having left Great Sand Cay, Sat at 6 bells in the noon watch. The first night we had light winds directly over the stern 5-10 knots from 60 degrees. Luckily the Swell was small and we sailed nicely at 4-6 kts. During the Morning and day today winds have slowly built to 15-20 out of the same direction and the seas have increased to 4-6. Moving faster but still rockin and rollin DDW. Currently we are 12 miles off the Haitian coast midway between that lovely country and Cuba. The Haitian coastline is beautiful mountainous with green cliffs. Thank goodness we are out of range of their Long 18 pounders...oops wrong era...For you military types we are 100 miles east of Guantanamo Bay. It has been a lovely sail giving the iron gene a nice rest. Gem caught a beautiful 3 foot Mahi which we just had for Dinner and I have never had a more delicious fish.....yes Kay she used an army truck and a 3 oz weight bringing it below the surface did the trick, but sorry we had the fish nice and juicy.
We are now turning more southerly to start the trip through the Windward Passage. We plan on leaving Jamaica to the west to take a near direct route to Panama. Unfortunately, that perfect weather window may be closing with Gale warnings in the southern Caribbean Sea despite the Pundits predictions of the best window in Months! We may detour either to Jamaica or the small Morant Cays south of Jamaica to shelter till the seas are a more favorable. Wish we didn't have to stop but no schedules allowed....
We have weathered a frontal system that passed over us and then regressed back, while we were snug in Hawksnest anchorage, Grand Turk,apparently somewhere in history Columbus said it could hold the entire fleet of chrisendom,quite good protection from all wind directions except SE. We had a great time on this island, much smaller and quieter than Provo, but certainly a diver's mecca with a wonderful 7000' dropoff about 200 yards off the western shoreline. We did two lovely dives while there and ate at one of the resorts who had a reggea band and barbecue. The most typical of our lifestyle though was the search for fresh fruit and vegetables. Because of the front we were anchored at the most southern end of the island with a construction site and a dirt road before we could reach pavement and hitchhike into town. We made this trek (only 3 miles) first on Monday when the vegetable boat was supposed to come in...sorry maybe tomorrow...Tuesday we returned tried to make an afternoon of it by eating out, and again we found the shelves bare, Wednesday yeah...the veggies were in, the front passed over and Thursday we left for Great Sand Cay. We had a wonderful reach south with winds about 18 kts on the beam and a gently confused sea. It was still trying to decide which way it wanted to run.
Currently we are anchored in a Beautiful spot with an amazing, deserted sandy beach and turquoise blue water that is really indescribable, try rippling white sand in the cleanest pool you've ever seen and you might have a vague picture. We arrived last evening in this isolated beach with a nonfunctional lighthouse and great Flotsam and Jetsum to fossick through on the windward beach. Unfortunately over the next 24 hours 6 more boats decided to join us, at least they all seem very nice, Germans, Americans, and Canadians. They had been waiting for the weather as well and are headed for Luperon in the Dominican Republic.
Today,we awoke at 5 am, kayaked into the beach rolling with a gentle surf. Made it ashore dry,and didn't spill a drop of our coffee or chai tea, just as the eastern sky started to lighten. We hiked to the top of the hill and watched the sun rise into a cloudy sky changing from pink to orange to yellow. Gorgeous, but the best is yet to come. At 0632,10 mins after sunrise, our breathes were held... Breaching whales.. a pod of them gracing us with spouts splashes and fins...Just when I said I wish one would jump out of the water completely...One leapt up in the air and we saw everything but his tail..unfortunately it was too difficult to catch on Video, but we are trying to etch it in our memories.
I wish someone would buy us a lotto ticket today...do you hear that Toby... because our day grew even luckier. There is a wreck from 1790 AD, the HMS Endymion a 140' wooden Man-o-War which carried 14 cannons. It lies in 10-45 feet of water near some obviously dangerous shoals 5 miles offshore....Too far for the Dinghy, Too dangerous for Orinoco...but after sitting in the cockpit and trying to pick a place for another dive, along comes a dive boat full of a dozen white faces headed for yep..the wreck...We called on the VHf and were chauffeured to the spot right between not one but two wrecks. The Endymion is quite famous because it remains undisturbed and we counted at least 10 of the 14 cannons on the ocean floor. Gem and I played catch with a 20 lb cannon ball. Neither of us has seen such an old intact wreck in such wonderful surroundings. The corals were vibrant, there were loads of fish, shark,turtle and would you believe when we came up thrilled with the dive we were surrounded by another pod of humpback whales not 200 yards away.....the only thing better would be to swim with them...not today.All this before 12 noon!!
Anyway we really feel lucky and Tomorrow if the weather looks good we hope to start our 900 NM trek SW to Panama.
We had planned to head South East to Great Sand Cay from Ambergris Cay, The southern most Island on the Turks Bank. The wind however as always, persisted on the nose and therefore as cruisers so often do, we changed plans and are now in Grand Turk, about 20 miles north of Great Sand on the Turks Bank. We crossed the Columbus passage and the Islanders claim Columbus landed about 1/2 mile north of us in this Harbor! As you may remember we were psyched to search for humpback whales swimming this 7000 foot trench and we took our time crossing the 28 mile deep water stretch, continuously searching for that telltale splash or spout. We had a lovely light air sail sometimes doing only 3 kts in 3 kts of breeze. Unfortunately we never did spot our whale, but we will get some more opportunities when we leave here in a few days.
For a few weeks, we have been sailing from Island to Island over the 10 foot deep, light turquoise blue water of Caicos bank, and the transition to the Deep Deep blue of the seemingly bottomless trench was very striking. We saw large schools of tuna, absolutely gorgeous blue runners which in this deep blue water looked like they literally glowed purple! We saw a white tailed tropicbird (real name), Phaethon Lepturus, whose tail was so long it looked like it had an arrow sticking out its bottom while it was floating on the surface. We almost stopped to help it until we saw some of the same type birds flying and we understood what we had seen and felt really silly.
Gem hooked three barracuda progressively larger in size the last about 4 feet and it looked like it was all teeth. We bent a pair of pliers trying to get the hook out of its mouth and then got out the surgical instruments and dissected it free!(just kidding, but we did bend the first pair of pliers) Thank goodness it was still swimming when it went free.
We anchored off Front Street, Cockburn Town, Grand Turk, our Bruce anchor buried deep in this lovely sand patch not 50 yards from a several hundred foot drop off to the west. We snorkeled to find a beautiful coral head to the east toward shore rising up like a Christmas tree from the bottom, covered in tubular sponges, with hundreds of multicolored fish intertwined in the tubes instead of ornaments. Luckily it is 8 feet below the surface and we only draw 5.
A few more boat projects have been done, the rudder post is essentially leak free, the engine wiring harness has been redone and the good old Iron Genoa fires up first push now, the galley pump was rebuilt but is still giving trouble and we are looking for a good sail maker in Panama. Our brand new mainsail unfortunately has a tear at the luff tape and our very old # 3 genoa needs some patching. Between Gem and I we try to balance the maintenance and the fun...we have wireless internet here for a few days and we hope to send out some pictures for those of you wanting to show the kids.
Currently we are anchored on the western shore of Ambergris Cay, TCI. We motored from Sapodillo Bay yesterday, 43 NM with light winds on the nose. The leak at the rudder post is almost gone. There is no more leak at the packing gland. Interestingly there is only one wrap of 3/8 flax and a fellow cruiser had the fancy sythetic stuff. I needed about 6 inches and it was a very tight fit. The remaining leak was at the top of the flexible coupling beneath the packing flange. Yesterday we tapped the flange down 1 cm and retightened the hose clamps around the flex coupling. Hopefully this solved the problem.
Today, we went out snorkeling and fishing off the Northern tip of Big Ambergris Cay (the smaller of the two...go figure). The coral structures were dramatic with channels, caves and underwater passthroughs, a few nice fish but nothing biting the hook. So we gathered up a nice size Conch and plan on Grilling it tonight. Haven't tried it that way before, but are really enjoying it as ceviche. Tommorrow we hope to make it to the Great Sand Cay across the Columbus passage, watching out for Whales on the way.
Unfortunately we found a tear in our brand new Doyle vertical batten mainsail. We are emailing the company and hoping to address this in Panama. Such a bummer...we thought we got the best and toughest sail we could buy...shakes our confidence a bit in the materials. Haven't had the right conditions yet for our cruising chute...though we are looking forward to some day sailing down wind in 5-15kts....
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We are currently underway, motoring..yuck.. into a 5-10 kt SE wind ahead of the next front. We are headed to Ambergris cay and hope to find some whales in the Columbus passage on our way to Great Sand Cay. Please send our best to everyone at the club.
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Hello again from Orinoco Flow.
Currently we are anchored in Sapodillo Bay South Coast of Providenciales Turks and Caicos. Since last I wrote we have sailed from West Caicos heading east to French Cay, then up North to Sapadillo Bay. We have done two lovely wall dives. The first off the back of the Orinoco anchored 20 feet in front of a several hundred foot drop off. The coral and especially the sponge life on the reef are terrific and there are a fair amount of colorful tropical fish at the shallower depths. We have also seen some moderately sized grouper, a squid, black tip shark and barracuda as well. The next dive in some boisterous weather was about a 1/2 mile from our anchorage on French cay. It was blowing 25 kts and was a bit bouncy. Under the sea however it was tranquil as can be. We dove to 110 feet and were graced by the presence of a large eagle ray floating by in slow motion, obviously checking us out. We feasted on Conch ceviche foraged from the anchorage floor. For those of you who don't know we take it straight from the shell clean it and put it in with fresh lime, onion, garlic, salt, pepper and cilantro. We let it "cook" in the fridge for 1/2 an hour then enjoy, wonderful. After our dive we packed up and headed north to Sapodillo Bay a good place to ride out a front. The weather however decided to pick up early and we sailed in 30 kts on a beam reach in 12-15' depths, heavily reefed and loving it. The Anchorage here is pretty protected but occasionally rolly and too busy for our tastes. 10-20 boats seem to be here most days and funnily enough seem to travel in packs from the Bahamas, obviously following the same weather windows.
We dropped off Gem's mom who was with us the month of January,at the airport today. She is always fun to have aboard. She enjoyed the sailing, sun and snorkeling and even put on a scuba tank. We went to a few restaurants with lovely views and ok food, but had our best meals at home. A 5 lb grilled red snapper was Kay's farewell dinner. (unfortunately we bought it..booooo)
Now we need to catch up on a few projects and then will sail for the SE side of this Island group and hopefully track down some whales...
Will keep you posted
Cheers
Rob(captain) Gem (admiral) and Leona (The Queen)
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