Day 24 Mozambique Channel/Indian Ocean
Misterx
Wed 4 Dec 2024 06:04
04/12/24
8:30 am
Day 24
Mozambique Channel/Indian Ocean
DTD to Richard's Bay SA 144nm
The suspense is barely bearable! Will we be making it into port before the
predicted big blow on Thursday evening???
Well, i can tell you that we are all trying our hardest on this vessel...
not keen on getting battered around and wet so close to our destination and
after so many days at sea!
So near and yet so far...And the challenges are accumulating, a stiff breeze
should be pushing us towards our destination late Wednesday night, it will
be welcomed if not so stiff, no way to tell as yet. We have decided to see
this as an advantage, it will help us get into Richards bay earlier. And
then there are loads of ships lurking off the coast, up and down, i counted
10 on my screen at some point last night. This is going to be fun to try to
cross them all, like playing hopscotch on the motorway! And then we saw some
lighting in the distance!!! That's all we need, fire and brimstones!!
Yesterday was pretty much a rerun of the previous day. Cloudless skies, sun
all day, wind up and down. We moved swiftly in the morning for a bit then we
had to motor the rest of the day, until night when the wind came back up.
Had to drop the main sharpish, it was getting a bit sporty for us! So back
to our favourite sail combo... the genoa alone! big or small it is our
favourite and doesn't make the mast creak... a much better night sleep
without the creaking!
Had to put the main back up this morning, and then the engine had to be
brought into life too... we were going too slow, it would be a shame to see
all this hard work go to waste. We have to make it in time!
Our weather gurus have got enormous faith in us... they all have been
chivving us up all the way and providing little snippets of more or less
useful comments, and I quote:
230NM AND 48HRS TOPS WALK IN THE PARK UNLESS YOU LOSE THE RIG
when it blows at least it’s blowing from the right direction
300 nm @ 6kts - easy!
Thursday at RBay
move as fast as possible and hopefully we can limit your exposure to adverse
winds and seas
So no major rush but keep the whip and spurs handy - can always slow down
for timing but tough to speed up with nothing to work with
We are dealing with nuisance value mickey mouse systems
The gribs show you are substantially clear to R bay BUT does not imply you
can lift your foot off the gas.
great to see you’re making good time. Richards Bay is just ahead. Won’t be
long now.
Have a great day
And my favourite:
No immediate threat
So the question remains, will we make it in time??
M