Around the Horn

Well...it sure it hard to work full-time, and do anything else. We both come home zapped at the end of the day. It appears we're a little soft. I guess we need some time to build up our endurance.

While you're waiting for me to get enough energy to write a blog post, you might want to check this out. Our friend John, who we met in Majuro and visited in Alaska, has decided to sail a small, engineless boat around the Horn. You can read about it here: http://ajohnbankstrip.com/ 

Fair winds JOHN!!

Molly II - going around the Horn

Day 39 - Arrival in Sitka

June 15 - I awoke to my night watch to see jagged mountains glowing in the
dawn light over the horizon. I could feel the biting cold of the breeze
sting my cheeks. Oh yes...welcome to Alaska!!

Over the next 8 hours we motor-sailed into the wind towards Sitka. The
weather forecast had not down-graded it's gale warning for today, so we were
anxious to get into harbour as soon as possible. As we sailed in, I was
thrilled to see numerous fishing boats and hear chatter on the radio. At 10
miles out, I radioed harbour control, and they assigned us a slip in the
harbour, and arranged for customs to clear us into the country.

At 11am Alaska time, we came secured our lines, met our new neighbours, and
wobbled on unsteady legs up to the harbour master's office.

We made it.

DAY 38 - 100 miles to go

We're crossing the North Pacific, our passage almost complete.
Jacob says we're 'savage'; we say, were merely freaks.

The accomplishment is huge, for both me and John,
4000 miles is epic, 6 weeks at sea is LONG.

Soon we'll be in Sitka, 100 miles to go,
Familiar shores await us, we just have to get through this low.

Now we scan the horizon, anxious that there will be
Gorgeous, snow-capped mountains, rising from this massive sea.

We're keen to stretch our legs, walk up and down the street,
Feast on a great meal, enjoy an undisturbed sleep.

Friends and family have sent emails, sustaining us through it all,
Now we're homeward bound, we'll see you in the fall!


----

June 14 Noon Report
Position: 56-01N, 137-35W
98 miles to Sitka, Alaska
4226 miles travelled so far
24 hr DMG: 127 nautical miles
24 hr DOG: 129 nautical miles
24 hr speed SOG: 5.4 knots (motoring)
Heading: 050
Wind: South-west 5 knots
Seas: South-west 0.5 meters

Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 21 - Marine Debris

[I just found this blog post in my drafts folder...I wrote it on May 28, our
21st day at sea which seems like ages ago. It's now out of order, but here
it is anyway.]

All across the South Pacific, we've been pleasantly surprised that we
haven't noticed any floating garbage at sea. Of course, the beaches are full
of flip flops, plastic bottles, and lost fishing gear, but we rarely see
anything while on a passage.

This passage has been very different. We've been seeing marine debris
constantly, or at least, whenever we hang out for a few minutes outside.
With the cooler temperatures, we're not spending as much time in the
cockpit, but whenever we're out there for even a few minutes, we are
guaranteed to see some type of debris. Is this because we're at the
confluence of weather systems? Are we getting closer to the famed Pacific
Gyre? Or just that the seas are calm, and thus we CAN see what is in the
water?

Whatever the reason, we're recording our sightings for a study by the Seven
Seas Cruising Association, and for submissions to NOAA's Marine Debris
Program. That suits me just fine. It fills my often-obsessive need to file,
record, organize and list. I have a beautiful spreadsheet where I record the
date, time, position, type of debris, sea conditions, and so on. I'm even
providing photographic evidence. It makes me happy.

We've received so many emails from friends and family warning us to be on
the lookout for Tsunami debris. Houses? Ships? Concrete docks? Really? While
all this is interesting, it does make me wonder. If we (and presumably
others) are recording sightings and sending them to NOAA, what are they
doing with this information? Surely, the significant debris could be
tracked, or at least, with an estimated course and speed, a rough position
could be determined. Wouldn't it be useful if that information was then
communicated back to vessels in the name of safety at sea?? I should think
so. And I wish we had internet so I could look it up. If there are houses,
ships, containers adrift out here, shouldn't there be a good system of
letting me know?? Weird.

If you find out, let me know.

[June 13 follow up: We have not noticed floating debris since the beginning
of June...even on the calm days.]

DAY 36 - Seven ships!

It's June 12 and as we move closer to land it is warming up. 15'c in the
cabin (unassisted by the kerosene heater) is downright balmy these days.
Heck, I'm only wearing three pairs of pants today! Lovely. I've got my
fingers crossed that the mercury keeps rising! I wouldn't mind removing one
of my toques.

I'm expecting to be struck by that rich, deep, dank smell of dirt anytime
now. I suppose the ground could still be frozen, it is Alaska after all, but
I'm still hoping to be overwhelmed by scent on one of these moments when I
step out in the cockpit to look around. Who would have thought that I'd look
forward to the smell of dirt?

The birds are changing. We haven't seen a Laysan's Albatross in a couple
days. And we have now spotted some puffins!! And several other petrels that
we don't have a hope in identifying.

John saw (well, really the AIS saw and John confirmed) SEVEN ships in his 6
hour watch last night. We've only seen 7 ships in the entire previous 35
days, so this was pretty significant. And none in the 12 hours since his
watch ended. Maybe we passed through a party in the shipping lanes or
perhaps there was a big fishery opening. I suspect we'll never know.

Life is good. We're eating up the rest of the goodies on board - we no
longer worry about whether the Pringle supply will last to the end of the
passage. Normally we lose a bit of weight on a passage, but not this time.
Our bodies have had plenty of time to adjust to the motion, and re-establish
our usual sweet and salty high calorie cravings.

-----
June 12 noon report:
Position: 53-47N, 143-36W
344 miles to Sitka, Alaska
3976 miles travelled so far
24 hr DMG: 128 nautical miles
24 hr DOG: 131 nautical miles
24 hr speed SOG: 5.5 knots
Course: 057
Wind: West 11 knots
Seas: West 1.0 meters

Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 34 - Grinding to a Halt

June 10. It figures. As soon as we start counting down the miles remaining
and estimating landfall dates, we find ourselves in a low-wind zone. We're
bobbing along at 2 knots. The GRIB forecasts indicate we'll have a couple
days of this low-wind, then a couple days of no-wind. Then a gale. We
calculate fuel. Not enough to finish the trip on engine alone. So we bob.

This isn't anything we are not used to. We've done a lot of bobbing on this
trip. But when we're so close to the finish line, it can be a bit
frustrating.

On the plus side, we've had a gorgeous sunny day today. Our first in over a
week. We spent some time lounging in the cockpit, which is a rare treat
these days. In addition, lots of bobbing leaves plenty of time for other
pursuits... I feel a hankering for cheesecake coming on...

DAY 33 - Typing with Mittens

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

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

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

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

Day 24 - 1569 to go

Well, we're not going to win any speed records out here. We continue to
cruise along with light winds, comfortable for the most part, just a little
chilly.

I baked scones for breakfast as an excuse to run the oven for a while.

As I write, we have the cabin heater burning merrily. It's the first time it
has been run in three years. It's not as warm as I remember. I also have the
CO detector turned on - that thing freaks me out.

At least I have a cozy pair of slippers. John just has two pairs of white
cotton socks. Yuck. Yesterday, I offered to make him fleece slippers from
some fleece scraps we have aboard. It was my domestic goddess emerging. I
wrapped the fleece around his legs, and then used my trusty stapler to close
up the seams. Trimmed the excess with my scissors, and presto magic!! They
are the ugliest looking things I've ever seen, but he did claim that they
were warm enough to make his feet sweaty, which he decided was a good thing.
(Addendum...he later noted that the staples didn't hold, and I spent three
hours hand-stitching them - not my original intention, but I could hardly
deny the guy, right)??

Obviously, not much going on or I would not be describing our clothing
choices and breakfast menu. We saw the sun today, for the first time in 5
days. We've spent 4 days shrouded in a blanket of fog, that made watch
keeping feel absolutely futile. We've seen a couple more ships. And we
caught and lost an albacore tuna (not winning any awards there either),
which we are grieving.

We also did a mid-ocean service of our port genoa winch.

At least we're getting lots of sleep...

-----
Today's noon report:
Position: 39-52N, 166-22W
1589 nm to Sitka, Alaska
2627 travelled so far
Ave spd 4.8 knots
24 hr DOG: 112 nm
24 hr DMG: 108 nm
Course: 040T
Speed: 4.5 knots

Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 20 - 1/2 Way to Sitka

Today is May 27, our 20th day at sea, and we're 1/2 way to Sitka Alaska!!
Aboard the good ship Renova, we'll take that as an excuse for a party. A
chocolate party, that is!! Before leaving Majuro, we bought each other
little gift packages that we could open for our 1/2 way point. Majuro isn't
exactly a shopping meca, and it wasn't surprising that when we each opened
our gifts, we were treated to chocolates! Needless to say, it was a good
day, and the snack cupboard has been refilled!

We rounded out the celebrations by having hot, fresh water sink baths,
changing the sheets on the bunk, and eating the last of our frozen chicken.
I know, I can see it now. You're shaking your head at our crazy party animal
antics. Ok ok. We'll calm down.

Let's hope we do the next 1000 miles in less than 11 days. Anyone care to
venture a guess on our Sitka arrival date?

---
Winds have rotated around in the last few days, coming from the South.
Sometimes even South west. Crazy, but good. We're now heading directly
east. This helps us make some good miles before moving north to colder
latitudes. But, more importantly, it keeps us below the nasty looking low
pressure systems that are roving around to the north of us. We'd much prefer
to stay on the edge of the high, if possible.

Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 18 - SLOW and steady

May 25th today...and not much to report. Days are all melding together, not
much to differentiate one day from the next. Caught our third mahi mahi.
Still no tuna, although we think this is prime tuna fishing grounds. We saw
our second ship.

We haven't had to turn on the motor in a couple days, but we haven't been
making good time. The wind has been circling from all directions, and we are
often fiddling with sails to keep moving in the right direction. Yesterday,
we made 100 miles, but only 70 towards Sitka. Our worst yet. We completed
our first 1000 miles in 9 days. This second thousand is looking like it will
take 12 days.

One reason is we aren't able to point very high into the wind these last
couple of days. We dropped our genoa to investigate what we thought was a
few loose stitches. Unfortunately, the damage was more extensive, with many
critical seams at the leech and clew completely failing. What a drag. We
even had it reinforced in Majuro in preparation for the trip. Oh well. Just
too much rotten thread after all this time in the sun. So we've hoisted our
old genoa that has been sitting in the laz for three years. We laughed when
we dragged it out. It is filthy. And paper thin. We ripped it almost top to
tail when we first had the boat and I did an insane patch job, with all the
sail tape that I could buy on the island! It looks like a jigsaw puzzle. So
we're handling it with care, gently nudging it along, and hoping it will
last a few more weeks.

If need be, we could repair the newer genoa, but I'd much rather have it
stitched with a proper machine (mine doesn't have a zig zag stitch). So
we'll wait and see. I could repair it by hand, but the sail is huge, not
sure how we'd manage it inside, or in the cockpit, and it would take several
days with both of us working at it!

Noon Report:
Position: 34-30N, 178-17W
2191 nm to Sitka, Alaska
1908 travelled so far
Ave spd 4.7 knots
23 hr DOG: 99nm
23 hr DMG: 67 nm

(23 hrs, because we just moved the clocks forward, ship's time is now
-11UTC).

Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 16 - Brrr

In two days, the temps have dropped ten degrees. On Tuesday, I was wearing a
bikini. Today, I'm bundled in fleece and trying to remember where we stashed
the mittens. 18 degrees may not sound cold to you, but, it feels arctic to
us. We had expected cold, but I hadn't thought it would hit so soon...we're
only at 31 degrees north - same latitude as San Diego.

The last two days have also brought us wind! Mostly from the NW (hence the
cool air), giving us a push in the right direction. It is a bit squally and
we're forever making sail adjustments, but we're pleased with our progress.

The boat has been great. We snapped one Monitor (self-steering) line, but it
was fixed instantly. We found a pile of my clothes had been soaked from a
port hole not closed. Meh. We've just noticed our headsail leech is looking
ragged, so we'll be looking for n opportunity to bring it down to the deck
for inspection and possibly repair.

Today, we'll cross the dateline again...we look forward to our return to the
western hemisphere.



Daily position reports:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 15 - Ship Ahoy

Saw our first ship out here! First, the AIS let us know it was 10 miles
away. I was able to see it when it was6 miles off, and it finally passed
about 1.5 miles to out stern. It was a huge fuel carrier. Nice to have some
company out here, and a reminder that we're likely getting closer to common
shipping routes.

Day 12 - Pacific Indeed

May 20 - Today the Pacific is true to its name. The ocean is as flat as a
pancake. Smooth as a baby's bottom. And not a breath of wind.

Oddly, it didn't make us restless, as it has in the past. We used the flat
seas to work on a couple projects that we wouldn't otherwise do while
underway. John fixed the bow nav light, whose connections had corroded. I
cleaned the head. Fun stuff like that. We also enjoyed lounging in the
cockpit without any danger of being doused with spray. It was a good day.

Besides, our friend John has just made landfall in Kodiak, Alaska, and he
tells us that it is 8'C in the boat with the heater on. Brrr. He's advised
us to take it slow, and wait for Alaska to warm up. Sounds like good advice
to me!! :O)

Good news - we caught another Mahi-mahi last night. And this one we kept.
Our freezer is stuffed full, but it made a wonderful dinner tonight! It is
our favourite fish out here, second only to tuna.

Life is good.


PS...for those of you who are interested in the numbers. Well I don't have
them. Handy. I'm writing from my bunk. But...I can tell you that until
today, we've been doing 120 nm per day, making about 110 of those miles in
the right direction - towards Sitka, Alaska. Not bad for us, considering
that we're beating into the wind. Today will be different. After coasting
along at 2 knots for most of the afternoon, I can only imagine what our
daily total will be. Still, we have around 2700 miles to go...or something
like that.

Check our daily position reports here:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 9 - 3000 nm to go!

Thursday, May 17 - Our 9th day at sea, and the GPS tell us we have 3000
miles to go! That's a quarter of the way completed! Hurray.

So, today was a celebration. I baked bread. Which is not a big deal on many
boats out here. But for me, it's a pretty big deal. I never bake bread on a
passage. In fact, I hardly ever bake bread at anchor. Banana bread - yes.
Bread bread - no.

So for lunch, egg salad sandwiches on fresh foccacia bread. Yum.

For dinner, fried pork chops and onions with potato salad. And Reese's
Peanut Butter Cups for dessert. YUM.

And...just as we finished doing the dishes, a fish hit!! We caught a big
Mahi Mahi!! But once again, it was too big. We still have meat in the
freezer, so we let it go. We were hoping for a little tuna for our
celebratory meal, but this fish would have been wasted. But it did give me
some hope. I haven't seen anything out here - not a single ship, only two
birds, and the occasional flying fish.

I can hardly wait for the 2000 nm celebration!!

Our position: 24-45N, 174-41E
Check our daily position reports here:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

Day 7 - Clean and Happy

It's Tuesday May 15 - one week at sea already. And still over 3200 miles to
go. But who's counting?? We're making great progress. All our days are over
100 miles. Squalls have mellowed out in the last few days. But we still get
the occasional wave that hits us just right, and soaks us in the cockpit.
We're both ploughing through our books. All's well.

Yesterday was wash day. A big event here where we get to pour buckets of
seawater over ourselves, then a rinse with a teeny tiny sprinkle of precious
fresh water. I'm pretty certain our next boat will have a water maker. But
we're clean and happy. For now.

We both felt that the water may have been colder than we're used to. And we
feel the need for a blanket during the night watch. Maybe it is our
imaginations, maybe it is the increasing latitude. Either way, I have a
feeling our saltwater shower days may be limited.

Day 5 - Heading North

It's day five. Sunday May 13. We're finally getting our sea legs, but we're
certainly not produuctive people. We work to make the boat go forward. We
report our daily position via radio. We expend minimal efforts to get food
and water in us (and out). And we lie horizontally - mostly reading or
sleeping. That is it. Oddly, it isn't boring. It just isn't anything.

We're moving along well. Winds are NE, so we're heading straight north. We
hope that winds will veer to the south, so we'll be able to make some
easting. But we're not anxious yet. We want to be far enough north, that we
can go around the top of the North Pacific High. We don't want to be caught
in the windless middle.

Conditions are fine. We've got gusty wind conditions, so lots of changes
with the headsail - furled out, furled in, repeat. Swell is 2-3 meters, with
an occasional one splashing clear over the boat, turning us into a
submarine, and soaking the less-than-amused person in the cockpit. It would
be funny if we were on the outside looking in.

So that's it from us, for now. Thanks for your emails...we really enjoy
reading them. Maybe we'll be feeling more able to write emails in the coming
days.

If you'd like to follow our daily progress, you can check out our position
(which we submit by radio) at this link:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=V73TN

3600nm to go... Maybe. I can't really be bothered to get up and look.

On the move again...

After an incredible 2+ weeks at Suwarrow, we're now on route to Pago Pago in
American Samoa. We've got a beautiful breeze from the stern and we're
sailing along wing-on-wing. We left yesterday with La Familia, and although
we may be slightly ahead of them, they are winning the fishing derby.
They've just caught a nice mahi mahi. John has switched lures and we're
hoping to catch up. After all...there is some good chocolate promised to the
winner!

Dolphins have visited on John's watch, all is well on board. The trip is
about 450 nautical miles, so we expect to arrive Sunday night, or Monday
morning.

Current Position is:
1015 Samoa Time (-11GMT)
13 24.1S
164 39.1W