Noon position: 37 41.5 S 149 44.6 E
Course: NE Speed: 6 knots
Wind: NW F4 moderate breeze
Sea: slight Swell: E 1.5 m
Weather: sunny, mild
Day's run: 112 nm sailed, 85 nm made good

One of the biggest challenges of long distance single-handed sailing is managing fatigue. Trying to keep the balance between getting sufficient quality sleep while maintaining a reasonable lookout, navigating safely, monitoring the weather and all the other chores of daily shipboard life can of course be difficult, and coastal sailing is more challenging than ocean crossings because of the more demanding navigational requirements and the risk of encountering small vessels, especially fishing vessels, that don't have active AIS.

Yesterday had been fairly demanding due to the variable weather conditions requiring numerous sail adjustments, as well as keeping clear of the oil platforms that clutter Bass Strait east of Wilsons Promontory. And last night the wind was highly variable, almost calm a while - I started the evening with full main and the code zero up - and then gusting force five and requiring the main to be reefed and the jib furled appropriately. But by 0400 the wind had backed into the NW and steadied to a fresh force five as forecast, the barometer had bottomed out at 996Hpa and was starting to rise slowly, so I thought I could relax for a bit. To that end I allowed myself about fifty minute naps in between looking around and checking the navigation, fifty minutes generally being the maximum amount of sleep I allow myself on coastal passages.

We were some seven miles off the coast and doing around five knots so even if we were to head straight for the coast I would be awake before we hit. It was therefore with some surprise and a little concern when I awoke to the alarm going off at 0600 and glanced at the GPS plotter to see that we were only a mile and a half off the coast and heading straight for the beach. Clearly the wind had shifted more into the WSW and strengthened a little just as I had turned in so, unbeknown to me, we had been heading straight for the coast for close to the full fifty minutes of my nap time. I jumped out of my warm bunk, donned foul weather gear (no need to panic!), and gybed Sylph to get us back on a safe course heading away from the coast. I console myself that the odd near miss is not necessarily a bad thing as it prevents one from becoming complacent when we undertake potentially risky activities.

Since then we have had a few more minor course adjustments and sail changes, including poling out the jib and a couple of gybes as the wind continues to shift unpredictably - no doubt as a result of staying reasonably close to the coast plus the generally squally weather. One problem I noticed come daylight was a tear in the mainsail in between the first and second reef point. Unfortunately a fold of the sail must have gotten caught in the second reef line during the night when I put a second reef in. So this forenoon while conditions were relatively benign I put two reefs in the main, hauled the mainsail close to centre and clambered on top of the dodger (with safety harness attached) to sew up the tear. That has been completed without mishap but I am not confident as to how long it will last. It really needs to be backed up with some fabric but it is too difficult to complete such a repair at sea while balanced somewhat precariously on the dodger. Hopefully it will last until we get to Sydney when I will do a better job of it.

And another problem that has arisen is the number three mainsail batten car is jamming. I have now been up the mast twice to free it (fortunately not very far up the mast); something that also needs to be looked at more closely in the comfort and security of a harbour.

Otherwise all has been going pretty well. Despite the variable condition, we have made reasonable progress overnight and are approaching Gabo Island with a course alteration to the north to head up the NSW coast just as the wind is expected to back into the west, which should make for a fast beam reach up the coast. On the down side a gale warning is out, but the worst of it is offshore so I figure if we stay within three to four miles of the coast (while keeping a close eye on the navigation) then conditions should be manageable. We will see what happens once we round Gabo Island and start to head north. For now the sun is shining, and the sea and sky are blue.

All is well.