Opua Outbound Day 6

Hi everyone,

At noon today we were at 32 56S 162 10E steering 300M, sailing under no main and storm staysail at 5 knots.  The wind was 22G35 from the E.  Our noon to noon distances were 107nm by the log and 120nm over the ground.   Overall we'd logged 692nm and 719nm respectively.  Our distance to go was 544nm.

Gybed to head NW

Yesterday afternoon winds stayed E 20G30.  Seas were up to 4m and we were still being side-swiped occasionally.  At 1730 we gybed onto starboard.  We had hopes of passing close to Lord Howe Island and initially were heading straight for it when it was 250nm away.

Early morning sun

At 1930 we changed up from the storm staysail to triple-furled yankee as the wind eased to 20G25.  That lasted all night and we enjoyed the full moon with only a few clouds in the sky.  We did cop one rain squall which gave us a gust of 38 knots but passed rapidly.

This morning the wind built to 22G30 and we changed down to the storm staysail again.  The low/aft position of the staysail produces a much smoother ride and only slightly slower speed.  Well worth it to keep us rested.  We took one side-swipe which dumped enough water on deck to let some through the dorades.  Not supposed to happen!

Rainbow!

This morning we've been lifted so it looks like we'll leave Lord Howe Island well to port.  We'll see.  The mostly sunny skies are keeping our house battery bank well charged.  We've been seeing albatross and a couple of other sea bird types occasionally.  No more whales since Three Kings thankfully!

Trust all's well where you are.

Opua Outbound Day 5

Hi everyone,

At noon today we were at 33 40S 164 15E steering 240M, sailing under no main and storm staysail at 5 knots.  The wind was 22G30 from the E.  Our noon to noon distances were 127nm by the log and 128nm over the ground.   Overall we'd logged 585nm and 599nm respectively.  Our distance to go was 659nm.  Almost half way and only a Sydney-Hobart to go!

Big seas at dawn

Yesterday afternoon the wind was ESE 20G25.  Zen Again was loving it.  Overnight winds gradually increased and waves reached about 3.5m.  At 0400 a rain squall came through with 30G35.  Zen Again and Kazi the WindPilot managed well but it was becoming a white knuckle ride.  The boat was surfing at over 8 knots frequently.

The squall only lasted 30 minutes but it reminded me of the trap of 'pressonitis' - pushing onward too hard for too long.  So at 0900 we doused the mainsail.  That reduced the stress level and improved the ride, at the cost of only 0.5knots speed.  Dousing the main was easy with our Tides Marine SailTrack.

Skies cleared this morning after a cloudy night.  All's well aboard!

Trust all's well where you are.

Opua Outbound Day 4

Hi everyone,

At noon today we were at 33 12S 166 40E steering 250M, sailing under double-reefed main and storm staysail at 5.5 knots.  The wind was 20G25 from the ESE.  Our noon to noon distances were 130nm by the log and 135nm over the ground.   Overall we'd logged 458nm and 470nm respectively.  Our distance to go was 753nm.

Sailing West

Yesterday afternoon continued with 20G30 E winds and an unpleasant sea state.  Southerly swell persisted, battling the large E seas.  It reminded us of the Indian Ocean.  Frequent side-swiping with water cascading into the cockpit.  We stayed below with occasional quick looks around for traffic.

Speaking of traffic we've seen only three other vessels.  All were large cargo ships and all passed while we were still close to New Zealand.  It's pretty lonely out here!  Zen Again is loving the conditions.  She has been surging at up to 10 knots on some waves.  Kazi the WindPilot vane gear is doing a fantastic job.

Dawn Today

The boisterous conditions continued overnight.  We were again semi-pooped by a breaking wave.  This time Nicki was doing a quick look around and she 'took a dousing' to keep water out of the cabin.  The kettle stayed put this time since we'd unlocked the cooker gimbals after yesterday's incident.

Conditions are starting to moderate this morning.  We'll see if that continues.  We're going to extend further W before gybing to stay out of 30G35 winds forecast to the NW.

Trust all's well where you are!