Geraldton Arrival

Hi everyone,
We arrived in Geraldton at first light (0630) this morning, lying alongside the service jetty in the marina.  We motored down the channel into the harbour in the dark in a very light SE wind.  The engine was just idling to give the sun time to shed some light.  We had been in "slow mode" for several hours as we approached the harbour.

We logged 244nm during the 38 hour passage giving an average speed of over 6 knots.  That's pretty good for us.  During the first 24 hours we logged 165nm for an average of over 6.8 knots.  That's not far off hull speed and without any current assistance - not our best run ever but quite close.  Here are our track and speed profiles...

Zen Again track

Zen Again speed

On Saturday we experimented with various main and headsail combinations.  The conditions (broad reaching in 18-25 knots with a cross-swell) were somewhat similar to those we expect while crossing the Indian Ocean so it was a good opportunity to try sail combinations.  Most of the yankee headsail with the trisail-sized double-reefed main worked well and allowed us to sail a lower course.  The messing around slowed us down but was good sail handling practice.

Along the way we saw whales on several occasions.  Happily they are heading north too so little risk of "head on" encounters.  At dawn on Saturday we saw many cray pots off Cervantes.  Goodness knows how many we just missed in the dark but actually seeing them scooting past in the half-light was a worry.

Zen Again in Geraldton

We expect to stay here for a while since the weather outlook features a very large low approaching the west coast.  We expect to move into a pen tomorrow.  Geraldton is a nice place to spend a few days.