06.54S 120.14W 1st August 2011
Mojo 2
Andrew Partington
Tue 2 Aug 2011 02:46
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We are still out here and inching closer on our
chart to Tahiti. Each day it hardly looks as though we have moved but the
progress is relentless and we are continuing to sail some big
miles.
Yesterday we set a new benchmark for this crossing
of 178NM and if the sea conditions were a little better we would have
gone well past 180NM and given 200NM a bit of a shake as
well.
In the afternoon the wind and seas started to grow
teeth again. By nightfall we had 20 knots gusting to 23 and lumpy seas. Hardly
surprising to see the ocean come to life given that it had been
blowing strongly now for several days. These stronger winds held in all night
giving us another night of limited sleep. We are fortunate that both the wind
and seas were following us which made things far more tolerable than if we had
been beating into them
By morning the wind had pulled back but the
swell was cranking. As we were hitting the bottom of a swell the next swell was
following close behind and often peaked well above the height of our cabin. With
each swell we just rose up and over it. We were sailing across the swell lines
which meant that we were not getting any excessive speed surfing down the face
of the swell. I had experienced this crossing the Atlantic and it is a most
disconcerting feeling and a very good reason to slow the boat down. It was
completely different to the swell of a week ago that was spaced at about 100
metres apart. The swell eased as the day progressed and is causing us no bother
at all now.
All day we have had 16-17 knot winds from the
south-east. There is a liitle too much east in the wind for us to be sailing
quickly today. The mainsail takes the wind from the headsail beyond about 120
degress and we did not have the angle to goosewing these two sails. I think we
may see an easier night though, given that the wind has backed right in behind
us.
Still no sign of other human life out here. We are
scanning the horizon and checking the radar several times a day but nothing to
see.
We are seeing thousands of flying fish in large
schools. As we approach them they take to the air and can fly for 20-30 metres
before hitting the water again. Clearly some of them need landing lessons
because they take some awful crashes as they hit the water... a little like Dewy
landing a flip on the wakeboard!!
There are also tiny little flying fish about the
size of a large [fish shaped!!] blowfly. We are seeing them in large numbers and
one poor fish got itself stuck to a cabin window, and is still
there!
It is now around 5.00pm and as I look out the
cabin's sliding door I can see whitewater and the sound of a waterfall. I think
Jane has Mojo 2 cranking along again. Maybe we will give 180NM as shake after
all.
1585NM to our waypoint and then another 240NM, or
so, to Tahiti.
Andrew Partington.
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