17.41S 159.06W 13th September 2011
Mojo 2
Andrew Partington
Wed 14 Sep 2011 01:08
|
Finally some wind!! Since lunchtime we have had a
very healthy 12 knots from the north-east at 100 degrees from our starboard bow.
We have the full mainsail up [for the first time in weeks] and the genneker. We
are scooting along at around 6-7 knots. The weather and seas are still fantastic
so we are enjoying a great sail.
The past 24 hours delivered us a mixed bag of
weather but very little wind strength until now. We have sailed, motor-sailed
and just motored at various stages. We have in fact changed our set-up so many
times it has just become a bit of a blur, especially given the broken sleep we
are both experiencing.
Despite lots of strikes on our lures yesterday we
have nothing to show for it. About 20 minutes after I sent the blog we had
another strike. This time it was a sailfish that launched itself high into
the air and was able to shake the lure out of its mouth before we even made it
to the reel. No lures out this afternoon given the full sails we have
set.
Even though the passage to Palmerston from Tahiti
is around 770 nautical miles you do not feel anywhere near as isolated as
crossing either the Atlantic or Pacific Oceans. Just 80NM to the south of us
right now is the Aitutaki Island. Like Palmerston it is part of the 15 small
islands that make up the Cook Islands. The first European to ever visit the
island was Captain Blight, just two weeks before the mutiny of his ship the
Bounty in the waters off Samoa. It could have been worse of course, the first
Missionary on this island, John Williams was stewed in a pot by the Big Nambas
of Vanuatu in the mid 1800's!!!
Our destination, Palmerston Atoll, also has a very
interesting past. Everyone living on the island [about 50 people] is a direct
descendent of a Lancashire sea captain, William Marsters, who settled there in
1862 with his 3 wives from Penrhyn Island. He fathered 26 children and then
proceeded to divide the island into 3 sections and establish strict rules
governing intermarriage. He is still referred to as "Father" by the islanders.
He built the original home, which still stands, with timbers from shipwrecks.
The island has no airstrip so in cyclones the islanders literally tie themselves
to palm trees to prevent being washed away!! The only way you will ever visit
this island is on a yacht because the islanders have refused offers of both an
airstrip and visits by cruise ships. They clearly value their
isolation and privacy. They do however [I am told] enjoy yachts visiting them.
The families take turn to "adopt" visiting yachts and act as host for your stay.
They do this simply because they enjoy doing so. The accepted way for
yachts to return the hospitality is with leaving some gifts of fresh food from
the passage. The supply ship to the island arrives just 4 times a year. I bought
a big bag of oranges in Tahiti and will see what else we can leave that will be
of use. Looking forward to getting there now, it should be a very
interesting place to visit.
Just over 100NM sailed again yesterday and we are
228NM from Palmerston Atoll.
Andrew.
|