19.33S 178.07W 30th September 2011
Mojo 2
Andrew Partington
Fri 30 Sep 2011 01:43
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Very slow going for us late yesterday and today. We
have had a westerly wind all day so have been quietly motoring toward Vatoa
Island. Currently it is 18 miles ahead of us, to port, but we have not seen it.
As we pass it we will come as close as 12NM but I am not sure if it is volcanic
or a low coral atoll. Also not sure if it is inhabited but it does have a
light marking its northern most point. From Vatoa we will set a new waypoint for
south of Ile Hunter which lies fairly close to New Caledonia.
Last night we kept trying to sail but eventually
gave up as the wind was blowing at too slight an angle to keep the sails full.
There was a thunderstorm well to the south-east of us and we were happy to be
well clear of it.
This morning it was all much of the same. We did
see a strong squall at around 8am but it slid behind us...just! It
did give us a hurry up with 26 knots of wind which lifted our boat speed to 8
knots for 15 minutes but then it was all over and we were back to a westerly at
8 knots.
Around 30 minutes ago we started to see a slow
shift in the wind towards the south but it is still not possible for us to sail.
Presently we have a south-westerly at 12 knots with grey overcast skies. Still
hoping for a southerly change to give us a boost as we have just about stood
still today.
Yesterday we sailed exactly 100NM and we will be
very lucky if we can get that far over the next 24 hour period.
we are now around 1650NM from
Brisbane.
We are both back into the routine of the crossing
but would appreciate some settled weather and a return of the trade
winds.
Had a fish strike at 10am today but it had made an
escape before we made it to the reel.
Andrew.
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