the "Channels"
Rhiann Marie - Round the World
Stewart Graham
Wed 6 Oct 2010 08:49
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Wednesday 6th October 1933 Local 0833
UTC
22:31.62S 161:17.94E
Today has been a very frustrating day sailing with
only 15 knots from the east. We were unable to lay our course
so after most of the day on the south tack I decided to gybe onto the
north tack.
I was a full twenty minutes into the gybe (pole,
uphaul, downhaul, guys, new sheet, main, preventer, Genoa away and Jib away)
when hey bloomin presto another 5 knots of wind which veered into the
SE. Very frustrating but rewarded with spedd jumping 2.5 knots and us
laying our course and that's the way it has remained since! Hey Ho!
I got into a bit of trouble for yesterdays
blog............ I think I spent too long on the technical stuff
again! I think I must be suffering a mild case of insanity brought on
by the "channels". The Channels was a well known phenomenon suffered by
round the world sailors of old. When they approached the English channel after
prolonged time at sea they went slightly mad from excitement.
Perhaps it is our run to Australia, the final
passage in this leg, that is causing my excitement, biological and
otherwise!
Who knows but with good fortune, we should be in
Australia by Sunday by which time we will have sailed Rhiann Marie the best part
of twenty thousand miles in one year! Of course Australia is not the end of
our circumnavigation but it is a major milestone and I estimate we will have
sailed about 10,000 miles in the Pacific.
First I have to be super alert tonight as we will
pass through mid ocean reefs that have brought grief to plenty
sailors before us.
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