It's June 9. Haven't been doing much typing, because it's a bit tricky with
mittens on. Spelling goes out the window. Caps Lock finds it's way on. And
the mouse pad does not respond well to fleeced thumbs.
Besides the temperature, there are other clues that we're getting closer to
home. Today we're at the 50 degrees of latitude. That's where we live. I'm
sure it can't possibly be 10'C in Campbell River, but it feels good to be
alongside of home. Other clues...we had to pick kelp of the monitor wind
vane paddle. And (drum roll please)...I caught a salmon! Ok, ok, it was a
Pink, and not a big one, but it made a delicious dinner.
We're living in a drip zone. Another memory of sailing in the north that
we'd conveniently forgotten about. Every window and hatch is a constant
source of condensation, and drips incessantly, leaving little moist trails
on the floor, the stove, the cabinets, the bedding...
The sailing is good. We've had enough wind to keep moving. Not always
directly towards our destination, but we are making progress. We're starting
to think about Sitka...should we splurge on a hotel? A massage? Or a trip to
the local rec centre and a new cabin heater?? 650 miles to go.
-----
June 9 noon report:
Position: 50-15N, 150-13W
669 miles to Sitka, Alaska
3642 miles travelled so far
24 hr DMG: 80 nm (our 3rd worst day)
24 hr DOG: 107 nm
24 hr speed SOG: 4.5 knots
Course: 060T
Wind: North 13 knots
Seas: Confused 1.5 meters
Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Day 30 - 3/4 of the way!!
June 6. Day 30. 1000 miles to go!!!! Finally. This third quarter of the
passage seemed to pass much faster than the second. Thankfully. Hopefully
the final 1000 miles will follow that trend!
It was a good day. We continued to have decent wind, around 15 knots,
sending us in the right direction. Seas are about 2 meters, so the ride is
quite comfortable. Our 1000 mile celebration was lovely. I let John sleep a
little longer this morning and whipped up a few cupcakes at the end of my
watch. When he woke up, he used up our last two eggs*, added a dehydrated
pack of egg skillet delight, and a few potatoes, and we had a wonderful
scrambler for breaky. We opened our 1000 mile treat bag (new magazines,
dried mangos, glico pokey sticks, oreos and chocolates). We watched a bit of
tv this afternoon (we're now into the new PanAm tv show). For dinner we ate
the last of our mahi mahi. Looks like we have to start fishing again.
We are getting further away from the majority of the cruising fleet. It is
harder to hear other boats on the radio. We've been able to report our
position each day, but it is possible that we won't be able to report in on
a day with poor propagation. But, if voice fails us, we'll be able to report
in via email.
The good news about being further along is that John reckons we're now
within range of US Coast Guard helicopters. That's reassuring.
Well...we're on the home stretch. And it feels good. Alaska here we come...
*On a side note...I still find it amazing that eggs will last so long
without refrigeration - 30 days! And no sign of going bad. That said - these
last couple weeks, the cabin may as well have been a refrigerator.
-----
June 6 noon report:
Position: 46-59N, 154-52W
938 nm to Sitka, Alaska
3333 nm travelled so far
Ave spd 4.8 knots
24 hr DOG: 130 nm
24 hr DMG: 122 nm
Course: 038T
Speed: 5.2 knots
Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN
passage seemed to pass much faster than the second. Thankfully. Hopefully
the final 1000 miles will follow that trend!
It was a good day. We continued to have decent wind, around 15 knots,
sending us in the right direction. Seas are about 2 meters, so the ride is
quite comfortable. Our 1000 mile celebration was lovely. I let John sleep a
little longer this morning and whipped up a few cupcakes at the end of my
watch. When he woke up, he used up our last two eggs*, added a dehydrated
pack of egg skillet delight, and a few potatoes, and we had a wonderful
scrambler for breaky. We opened our 1000 mile treat bag (new magazines,
dried mangos, glico pokey sticks, oreos and chocolates). We watched a bit of
tv this afternoon (we're now into the new PanAm tv show). For dinner we ate
the last of our mahi mahi. Looks like we have to start fishing again.
We are getting further away from the majority of the cruising fleet. It is
harder to hear other boats on the radio. We've been able to report our
position each day, but it is possible that we won't be able to report in on
a day with poor propagation. But, if voice fails us, we'll be able to report
in via email.
The good news about being further along is that John reckons we're now
within range of US Coast Guard helicopters. That's reassuring.
Well...we're on the home stretch. And it feels good. Alaska here we come...
*On a side note...I still find it amazing that eggs will last so long
without refrigeration - 30 days! And no sign of going bad. That said - these
last couple weeks, the cabin may as well have been a refrigerator.
-----
June 6 noon report:
Position: 46-59N, 154-52W
938 nm to Sitka, Alaska
3333 nm travelled so far
Ave spd 4.8 knots
24 hr DOG: 130 nm
24 hr DMG: 122 nm
Course: 038T
Speed: 5.2 knots
Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Day 29 - 4 weeks
Well, yesterday was day 28. Four weeks at sea. Our longest passage to date
and still 10 days to go. Bleh.
Tonight, we'll pass another major milestone, 1000 nm to go! Tomorrow, we'll
have another little celebration. I'm sure you've already guessed that it
will likely involve chocolate. Forecast indicates that it's supposed to be
calmer tomorrow, so maybe I'll get ambitious and whip up some cupcakes. I've
got some chocolate frosting that we NEED to find a vehicle for!
Soon, we'll have to change ship's time. Last night the horizon began to
lighten up before 3am. That's a bit ridiculous!! Even if we are approaching
the longest day of the year. Sheesh. We're at the same latitude as Oahu, and
they are -10UTC. Ship's time is currently -11UTC. Switching time zones
creates a timing conflict with the radio net and dinner...but I guess the
3am sunrise just isn't acceptable. We'll see.
-----
June 5 noon report:
Position: 46-06N, 156-57W
1060 nm to Sitka, Alaska
3203 nm travelled so far
Ave spd 4.8 knots
24 hr DOG: 134 nm
24 hr DMG: 130 nm (our best 24 hr distance on this trip yet)!
Course: 035T
Speed: 5.0 knots
Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN
and still 10 days to go. Bleh.
Tonight, we'll pass another major milestone, 1000 nm to go! Tomorrow, we'll
have another little celebration. I'm sure you've already guessed that it
will likely involve chocolate. Forecast indicates that it's supposed to be
calmer tomorrow, so maybe I'll get ambitious and whip up some cupcakes. I've
got some chocolate frosting that we NEED to find a vehicle for!
Soon, we'll have to change ship's time. Last night the horizon began to
lighten up before 3am. That's a bit ridiculous!! Even if we are approaching
the longest day of the year. Sheesh. We're at the same latitude as Oahu, and
they are -10UTC. Ship's time is currently -11UTC. Switching time zones
creates a timing conflict with the radio net and dinner...but I guess the
3am sunrise just isn't acceptable. We'll see.
-----
June 5 noon report:
Position: 46-06N, 156-57W
1060 nm to Sitka, Alaska
3203 nm travelled so far
Ave spd 4.8 knots
24 hr DOG: 134 nm
24 hr DMG: 130 nm (our best 24 hr distance on this trip yet)!
Course: 035T
Speed: 5.0 knots
Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Day 27 - From Calm to Chaos
The winds have picked up. In the last 24 hours, the barometer has dropped 10
points and we've gone from being becalmed to charging along under storm
sails. We had a great over night sail, as the winds picked up but seas were
still relatively calm. It's really fun to be doing our hull speed for a
change. Now, the swells have caught up to us and we've slowed down a bit to
have a more comfortable ride.
The big news on board Renova is our new heating gadget. John has taken a
trick from his McKinley mountain climbing days and has filled our Nalgene
water bottles with boiling water. Then he sticks these into his newly
fashioned fleece slippers (at least they are good for something), and tucks
them under the covers. This is the best body warmer ever! Great for warming
up the cold toes and fingers after making sail changes on deck.
We're dreaming of landfall (even though it is two weeks away). This is the
first passage where we're not dreaming of the food we'll eat. Instead we're
consumed with thoughts of the humongous comforter that we'll buy, the
powerful electric cabin heater, and the miraculous condensation absorber.
Ahhhh....feels like Alaska already!!
-----
June 3 noon report:
Position: 42-58N, 161-03W
1302 nm to Sitka, Alaska
2949 travelled so far
Ave spd 4.8 knots
24 hr DOG: 120 nm
24 hr DMG: 114 nm
Course: 030T
Speed: 5.0 knots
Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN
points and we've gone from being becalmed to charging along under storm
sails. We had a great over night sail, as the winds picked up but seas were
still relatively calm. It's really fun to be doing our hull speed for a
change. Now, the swells have caught up to us and we've slowed down a bit to
have a more comfortable ride.
The big news on board Renova is our new heating gadget. John has taken a
trick from his McKinley mountain climbing days and has filled our Nalgene
water bottles with boiling water. Then he sticks these into his newly
fashioned fleece slippers (at least they are good for something), and tucks
them under the covers. This is the best body warmer ever! Great for warming
up the cold toes and fingers after making sail changes on deck.
We're dreaming of landfall (even though it is two weeks away). This is the
first passage where we're not dreaming of the food we'll eat. Instead we're
consumed with thoughts of the humongous comforter that we'll buy, the
powerful electric cabin heater, and the miraculous condensation absorber.
Ahhhh....feels like Alaska already!!
-----
June 3 noon report:
Position: 42-58N, 161-03W
1302 nm to Sitka, Alaska
2949 travelled so far
Ave spd 4.8 knots
24 hr DOG: 120 nm
24 hr DMG: 114 nm
Course: 030T
Speed: 5.0 knots
Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN
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