Holed up in Patagonia
UHURU
Steve Powell
Thu 10 Mar 2011 15:08
73:47.95W
Caleta Uriarte, Isla Desolacion, Straits of Magellan.
We arrived here two days ago and it looks as if we will be here for at least
another day. We are anchored with four lines ashore plus our main anchor,
yet we still ran an anchor watch last night. The weather has been appalling,
with almost constant rain, vast quantities of hail stones the size of
marbles, and Williwaws with 60-70 knot winds hitting us around the clock.
All we can do is sit and wait, and watch our lines, in the hope they don't
part.
We had to reset two lines yesterday at the height of the storm, one had
toppled a massive boulder off it's perch several feet down the beach. Beans
and Willie were absolute troupers hauling on lines and helping us reset in
the most appalling conditions. All with a smile, well maybe afterwards.
We now have all day to plan tonight's dinner as there is nothing else to do
except play cards, and watch movies, and watch the weather.
Some of the more observant of you might have noticed that we have gone back
to the Straits of Magellan. The wrong way? Well for various reasons, mainly
family,(I have been away for a long time), I have decided that I am going to
take UHURU back up to Grenada and leave her there for the summer. This will
get me home a couple of months earlier. We have done everything we set out
to do down here, Antarctica, The Southern Ocean, The Horn, The Beagle
Channel, Magellan Straits, and the Chilean Glaciers. So we are going to take
Beans and Willie back to Ushuaia, exploring on the way, and then I'll head
back north.
All's well on UHURU, not a lot to report really, other than bad weather. I
will report more when we get under way.
Luv from all
Steve & Crew
10th March 2011