Land ahoy

My Way
Mike Kopman
Wed 19 Nov 2008 09:08
11:55.5'S 153:33.0'E

We're back in sight of land... earlier today we spotted one of the islands of the Louisiades Archipelago, off the coast of Papue New Guinea. We still have a little over 700 miles to go to Thursday Island, but from now on we will now be within sight of land most of the way.

More news: we sailed within sight of a couple of very large fishing boats today, ttwo of which were recovering their enormous nets by means of huge cranes hanging over the water. They looked like gigantic black curtains pulled up into the air. Commercial fishermen these days make use of every available techological advantage, and within minutes we were buzzed by a spotter helicopter from one of the ships. On seeing gorgeous Sarah sunning herself at the helm they did another, even closer, circuit around My Way, no doubt trying to figure out how to get her into their net!

Still not enough wind to sail: it's been 7-8 knots all day, though there's a storm just off Brisbane, and the first tropical storm of the season, Anika, is lurking a couple of thousand miles northwest of Australia. That's close enough for us, thanks.

Mike & Sarah