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Colin and Sandy, carried by their trusty vessel Papillon. Papillon is a 43ft Montecarlo Sloop. We started our journey in Portimao in Portugal and our sailing route will take us through the Caribbean and the South Pacific.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Fakaravai to Papeete; Taihiti
Today we are off to Papeete. The weather is not the best as it is rainy with strong winds. Over the weekend the wind dies off so we cannot leave later unless we wish to motor most of the way. We will leave today about midday and looks like a bumpy sail as the sea is running at 3m. Tomorrow the winds improve and the rain is supposed to go(but not the swell) and the next day it all becomes very light as we get down to Papeete. We should arrive sometime in the morning. This will be a repeat of the trip from Marquesas to here sea and weather wise. There are a few boats leaving today and others tomorrow so there will be plenty boats arriving in Papeete over the weekend. We will do a usual position report tomorrow otherwise when we get to Papeete. Trip: 240nm
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Fakaravai; Taumotus
We have been a few days in Fakarava and at the moment the weather is foul. It is raining with strong winds. We are well protected as far as the wind goes as we are behind the island. What is interesting is the swell that we are getting from the SW. This is due to a storm to the south west of here and most probably something that is lurking around New Zealand or just past there. As these seas are very large they come over the reef into the atoll and affect us on the inside. This atoll is massive. Maybe I could just add in here how they form and what causes them to be as they are. Once there was a volcano here with a reef growing around it. Over the ions the volcano slowly subsides due to the ocean floor subsiding. This happens so slowly that the coral can keep pace and keeps growing for the surface. Eventually the volcano disappears under the surface and only the coral is left, leaving a very flat atoll. As the seas really hammer the atoll from the south west most of the atolls have little to no land to form islands on that side. Most of the land is on the north and east sides and this is where you normally find the town/villages. So with nothing to stop the big seas crashing in over the southern sides, the swells although small, still make it all the way up here 21-25 miles to the NW corner. The passes are also of interest. When the volcano was still above the surface it would have had rivers that would have flowed off it into the ocean. At these points the coral would not have grown and so the passes were formed. Also with the seas coming in over the reef on the SW corner putting tons of extra water into the atoll a very strong current develops through the pass making it difficult to get into the atoll. So with high seas/swells from the SW and rain and strong winds 25-30kn from the SE we are staying put. The wind should die down by Thursday and we will head on down to Papeete on Tahiti. We have spent a lot of time just walking around the village and along the seaward side of the atoll. The land area from lagoon to the sea is between 300m and 500m wide and it only rises a few meters above sea level. The ground is loose coral with some hard rocky areas and not much sand. The island has a good covering of palm trees and the locals process the coconuts for the copra. The copra is apparently subsidised to give the people a form of income, but even this does not seem to cover the costs of all the toil to get to copra to the point where it is dry. The gardens are sparse and many people seem to grow their plants in pots. We did come across one person with a small market garden. There are two problems with growing anything here. The poor soil and the lack of water. We were lucky to find some low coconut palms again as we walked around and got these opened up to drink. The green ones are sweet but the yellow ones have a lovely fizz to them. They really are lovely cooled, but then the trees don't grow on ice. Something that has surprised us on most of our travels so far is the lack of beaches. One always sees tropical islands advertised as white sandy beaches and palms where you can sit and relax and drink your coconut and read a book and laze around.... sadly not, there are very few beaches and that goes for the Caribbean as well. The atolls are rough coral reefs on the outside with very little in a way of a beach on the inside. Even in the Marquesas the beaches are stony heads of a bay and anything outside the bay is cliff and rock territory with usually large swells and waves to go with it. The shops here are so expensive that we have avoided them since our first shopping expedition. US$8 for a 2ltr coke and the cheese... Oh well we can get some more in Tahiti. Part of the problem is that the islanders do not pay any personal tax. Very nice... However they have a consumer's tax like GST/VAT. Now that's a great idea, but it does make things expensive for us. But the good side is that everyone pays there share according to what they spend. The people again are very friendly and they all great you and smile as they go by. There is not much else here so I guess I will end off here for now. Till next time...
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Saturday, July 2, 2011
Kaueh to Fakaravai; Taumotus
Yesterday we went snorkelling on one of the many reefs. There were plenty of fish with stunning colours and shapes that came in all sizes. The corals were beautiful with not as much colour, but with the fish sitting between the fingers of coral you had the contrasts that would have been great to photograph should we have had a camera for the task. The one coral had a school of very light blue fish between the fingers that were a cream colour and the whole coral was no bigger than a football, but wow did it look lovely. The other striking colours that we saw were the clams. They all sit on the reef with their zigzag shells open and their mantels form a colourful lip along the inside of the shell. Over one area of coral there were five of the clams next to each other and not one had the same colouring. Some had specks or stripes of metallic blue, silver, gold or green with bright orange and other colours. Again that would have made a spectacular photo.
Today we changed anchorages as well as atolls. We were planning to go to Papeete but the winds are very light and Papeete lies 280nm away. Rather than stay at Kauehi for a few more days we decided to head off to Fakarava. The lagoon was like a mirror today and we motored across to the pass and left with the tide. For most of the pass the water was still with a 3kn current. On the seaward side there were big swirls that pushed us around a little, but the sea was calm as there was no wind and therefore no waves. From pass to pass it was 32nm and we motored all the way. The pass into Fakarava is really wide and with some dolphins to escort us in it was very easy. The water was calm and we had a 2-3kn current with us. This atoll is so big that you cannot see the other side. It does pose a problem for coming in if there are strong winds from the SE to SW as you can be faced with considerably large waves on the inside. It is around 21miles wide on the inside and very deep with coral bombies that make it to the surface. This makes navigation around it interesting and best done with Polaroid glasses on and the sun behind you in the middle of the day. We are not that adventurous so we will stick to the main channels. The anchorage is good and we popped ashore to the shop, but everything is so expensive. We got some milk as our supply had finally run out and some brie to have with our sun downers/dinner. We only had a snack for dinner as it was so calm out at sea that Sandy was able to cook up a feast for lunch.... Curry stew. Colin the lazy ol' bugger sat with his foot on the helm steering, but gave up on that and put on the auto helm and he did not even catch a fish... needs to be fired!! Well before we do too much firing we will say bye for now and will chat again later.
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Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Kauehi; Taumotus
What a lovely bay. The sea is flat and the water turns all the shades of blue as it heads to the beach, punctuated by black and as it gets shallower brown to green patches of coral. We headed ashore and tied up at the pier in front of the church. There are some beautiful fish around the pier. We then walked through the little village that lines the bay. It's very small but very neat and tidy. There is one little shop and we manage to get some cheese and a juice there before continuing along the road until we got to a lovely beach. We must have walked a kilometer or more along in the water and the sand felt like velvet on the feet. We stopped where a coconut palm was low enough to pick the yellow coconuts (the nice fizzy yellow ones) and had one each to drink. We continued along the beach and then finally worked our way back through the coconuts palms to the village. We headed back to the boat for lunch and spent the afternoon doing some work on the steering, as the cables needed tightening and checking as there was a noise coming out of the pedestal while the Aries was steering. It would have been an easy job but there is always one ... just one screw that will not come out and ... Okay, so that is all sorted and back together again and the bed is back together as that all needed to come out to get to the Quadrant above the rudder. Tomorrow we want to explore the weather side of the island and maybe do some snorkelling. Then the solar panel wiring must be checked as there is no current coming through. At least there is a good breeze and our wind generator is doing its bit by keeping the batteries topped up. So a full day tomorrow, but then if we go sit on the beach all day that's also OK because that's cruising. Till next time...
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The Pass Kauehi; Taumotus
Approaching the pass of Kauehi the rainsquall's keep coming. In a way this is good as the trip to here has been rough and the boat is covered in salt from the waves breaking against the side and spray going halfway up the mast. As this dries it leaves crystals behind that then stick to everything and gets transferred below. Now the rain is welcome and once through the pass it will be calmer. As we approach the pass all is still and we can see some overfalls on the inside. It is early, at least two hours earlier than we should have been, but the pass looked good. We edged our way closer and the water remains good so we decided to go through. Halfway we had a few waves but all was good and we were though... trembling knees and all. It was real easy at the end of the day so what was all the fuss for... it can get really bad in the passes and you just cannot get through them then. We radioed our friends behind us and they followed us through. The lagoon had some waves as the fetch to the weather side was must be around 6-8miles. The route across the lagoon was easy even though it was early and we had poor light to see the coral. We followed the ship channel that remains between 18-39m deep to the village on the other side of the atoll. The anchorage is lovely and for the first time in weeks we have anchored in a bay where the water is clear and there is no rolling around. Did a few odds and sods... made some fresh rolls and had lunch. As Colin had been up since 11pm the previous evening reefing in for the squalls and the letting sail out again as the wind dropped ( We needed to keep up our speed to above 5kn but not over 6kn to get to the pass at a reasonable time), it was now time to catch up on some sleep. So bellies full we hit the pillows. So till later ZZZZZZZZ
All our love
Colin and Sandy
All our love
Colin and Sandy
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Saturday, June 25, 2011
Almost there... Kauehi; Taumotus
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 01 July
Course: 200°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 143 nm
Distance to Taumotus: 123nm
Position 14°32' S 144°04' W
All's well on board.
21h00 UTC 01 July
Course: 200°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 143 nm
Distance to Taumotus: 123nm
Position 14°32' S 144°04' W
All's well on board.
So far so good. The weather has settled a little and we have 15-20knots ESE winds and the sea is 1-2m. It is still a little choppy but far better than what we have had so far. We should arrive off Kauehi some time tonight and at the moment it looks as if we will get through the pass around 10-11am local time (19h00 UTC). With the atolls all the water has to get in and out through the pass which causes strong currents in the pass with overfalls and whirlpools etc. These can run up to 7kn so we need to go in at slack water. Sometimes with larger swells filling the lagoon over the top of the reef even more water has to leave through the pass which makes it more difficult to calculate the slack water. Conditions are good at the moment so it should not be too troublesome. There are three of us all headed to the same pass so we can make a joint decision when to go in. While we are waiting we can motor around with some lures out... now that could prove interesting. The reef around the atoll drops off quickly and you do not have to be very far off it to be in a 1000m of water. At the pass on the chart it goes from 1000m to 200m in about 100m and then to 20-30m in the next 100m. Maybe we should just troll through the pass. Inside the lagoon is deep with coral heads reaching the surface in some areas but in the passage across to the far side of the atoll where we will anchor off the little village they are deep at 24m. One does not want to stray as there are some on the edges of the passage that show as 0.4m.
The atolls themselves are very low and you normally see the trees on them first (in the dark...?). The atoll surrounds a lagoon and many parts of it are submerged reef that you can only see because of the waves breaking on them. We are presently passing two atolls that have large lagoons that are totally enclosed with no pass so no way in and you cannot anchor on the outside. We cannot see them as we are too far off... the better place to be as the charts are not always that accurate. There is one small atoll between us and Kauehi that we have to sail around that is the same. The inside of some of the atolls are over 20miles across. At Kauehi we have seven miles to get to the opposite side to the pass. Well this all leads to an interesting night to night and morning tomorrow. So for now we shall rest and next we will write form inside the atoll comfortably anchored. Hopefully!!!!
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Friday, June 24, 2011
Niku Hiva; Marquesas to Kauehi; Taumotus
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 30 June
Course: 195°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 176 nm
Distance to Taumotus: 255nm
Position 12°28' S 143°14' W
All's well on board.
21h00 UTC 30 June
Course: 195°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 176 nm
Distance to Taumotus: 255nm
Position 12°28' S 143°14' W
All's well on board.
Wednesday and we finally get out of Niku Hiva. The weather says that the winds will be 20 knots ESE. The rain we have been having will clear. Well after rolling around in this anchorage for a week we take the gap with four other boats. Upped anchor at 11 and out the bay by 12 and was it rough out there. The wind was 20 - 25 Knots and the sea 3-4 meters and choppy. This leg to the Taumotus is a reach and a fairly tight one for us at that too. At least the rain has stayed away. Well its Friday now too rough to sit and type yesterday... even today the keys are jumping all over the place. The winds have stayed over 20 knots and have visited 30. With the seas being so rough they break against the side of the boat and wet everything. Fortunately everything is well secured so there is no need to go crawling around outside the cockpit. Of course the next problem is to get some sleep. Once you are tired enough I guess that you don't lie awake for too much of your three hours. Cooking food is again difficult and so we turn down on to a run to settle the boat. I find it hard that people will sail in the opposite direction to us and beat into this for days on end. Our next trick is to get our timing right to get into the pass at Kauehi, as if we do not make it, we will not hang around as the next chance will be in the dark or the next day... so we will escape from between the Motus and head /bounce down to Papeete on Tahiti. Then we will need a break. Hopefully we will get through on Sunday morning and will be able to stop for a few days.
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Monday, June 13, 2011
Niku Hiva
Ua Pou was just fantastic and we had a great time there. On the Tuesday the ship arrived and some yachts got five hoots to get them to move out of the way. The ship only just fits. We booked the day before at a restaurant that is only open when the ship arrives. They have a buffet of Polynesian food laid out for you to feast on. Before the meal they had traditional music and then dances. It cost a fair bit but it was really worth it. Unfortunately all our cruiser friends that went up there to book just after us did not get in. They did come and watch all the dancing.
We chatted to another boat in the anchorage and they said that the anchorages on the western side of the island were not that good as there was a large swell rolling in. We could feel the effects of that where we were. So instead of heading there we came over to Niku Hiva. We are now anchored in Daniels Bay where the mountains fold in around you. It is absolutely stunning!!!! We took a walk up the valley through some ruins and stone work from early settlements in the area. The rock walls and house platforms that they built are amazing. With only a few people living here now and the forest having reclaimed most of the valley one can only just imagine what was here once before. As you go up the valley you enter a vertical chasm that has been eroded over time by the water. At the head of this valley/chasm you have the world's third highest waterfall. As one stands at the bottom you look up 390m/950ft to the head of the fall. You actually have to swim to reach the base of the fall as the narrow gorge that has been cut by the water folds around. The whole valley is surrounded by these massive cliffs and many form massive pinnacles as the water has worn the rock away around them. The rest form these deep vertical chasms and overhangs and then... halfway up you will see some white specs moving... Goats! They are everywhere and when you got to the fall you get a hard hat to put on as the goats dislodge ... hopefully ... small rocks. When it rains it is too dangerous to go up the valley as the water will also send rocks down from the top. Overall we are very pleased to be here and be able to experience these beautiful islands.
We have had some stormy weather so have not moved from Daniels Bay as it is quiet and very well sheltered. Last night all the cruisers went ashore and had sundowners on the beach with a massive fire and food to share. What a great time we had and even getting off the beach again was exciting as the waves were up a little. We all made it out some wetter than others. From here we will go along the coast six miles to the town to get some fresh supplies before heading off to the Tuamota's maybe on Tuesday or Wednesday or whenever we get going. Till then...
We chatted to another boat in the anchorage and they said that the anchorages on the western side of the island were not that good as there was a large swell rolling in. We could feel the effects of that where we were. So instead of heading there we came over to Niku Hiva. We are now anchored in Daniels Bay where the mountains fold in around you. It is absolutely stunning!!!! We took a walk up the valley through some ruins and stone work from early settlements in the area. The rock walls and house platforms that they built are amazing. With only a few people living here now and the forest having reclaimed most of the valley one can only just imagine what was here once before. As you go up the valley you enter a vertical chasm that has been eroded over time by the water. At the head of this valley/chasm you have the world's third highest waterfall. As one stands at the bottom you look up 390m/950ft to the head of the fall. You actually have to swim to reach the base of the fall as the narrow gorge that has been cut by the water folds around. The whole valley is surrounded by these massive cliffs and many form massive pinnacles as the water has worn the rock away around them. The rest form these deep vertical chasms and overhangs and then... halfway up you will see some white specs moving... Goats! They are everywhere and when you got to the fall you get a hard hat to put on as the goats dislodge ... hopefully ... small rocks. When it rains it is too dangerous to go up the valley as the water will also send rocks down from the top. Overall we are very pleased to be here and be able to experience these beautiful islands.
We have had some stormy weather so have not moved from Daniels Bay as it is quiet and very well sheltered. Last night all the cruisers went ashore and had sundowners on the beach with a massive fire and food to share. What a great time we had and even getting off the beach again was exciting as the waves were up a little. We all made it out some wetter than others. From here we will go along the coast six miles to the town to get some fresh supplies before heading off to the Tuamota's maybe on Tuesday or Wednesday or whenever we get going. Till then...
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Monday, June 6, 2011
Ua Pou
Sitting here in some of the most beautiful settings in the world is just fantastic. We left Hanamoenoa on Tahuata early to get out of the rain as we still intended to spend another day here. Instead of heading for Ua Pou as we were first going to do, we rather headed back to Hiva Oa, but this time to the north west corner and the bay of Hanamenu. It was a relatively small bay and there were five other yachts there (all of whom we knew). We went ashore through the surf and once on dry land we were in paradise. The valley that forms the bay was stunning. There were two folk resident there and they were most welcoming. They gave us limes, coconuts, bananas and grapefruit... a lovely one you can eat without screwing up your eyes. The valley has been occupied since early times and lots of the stonework is still in place and it was fantastic to be able to walk around here and explore... eating guavas as we went along. Near the beach there is a lovely spring with a pool about waste deep to swim or wash in, but definitely to freeze in... Icy cold water pouring out the side of the mountain. We spent the night all together having a good feed of mahi-mahi that one of the boats caught. We took an apple pie along for pud. The next morning all but one of us left for Ua Pou which was sixty miles away. We had to motor for the first hour to get out of the wind shadow of the island and after that had 20knots of wind all the way to our destination. The island of Ua Pou has the most dramatic geological features on earth. The mountains have massive high spires that disappear into the clouds. We had to wait two days to see them and then only for a short while. Last night we went to a Polynesian dance and feed up at the local town hall. The food was really interesting and some of the seafood I had not seen on a plate before. Great food and music and we all had a good time. Almost all the yachts here attended so it was a great social get together for us,and for the islanders it's their usual weekend get together. The people here are so friendly and all try to talk to you. It is a pity that we do not speak French. The bay is lovely and has emptied out a little as some of the yachts moved on today to Niku Hiva. We may miss that as we are going around to the west side of this island to explore. From there we will head down to the Tuamutus about four days sail away. So for now we will just keep exploring... sorry no photos yet and there won't be any until we reach Papeete so that will still be some time. In the mean time we will keep on taking them and post them then. Till next time...
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Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Tahuata
Tahuata
Another beautiful day in a very beautiful bay. We are only about ten miles from Hiva Oa on the west side of Tahuata in the bay Hanamoenoa. The blue water runs up to the beach slowly getting lighter and ends on a beautiful white sand beach fringed with palm trees. There is no village and the place seems to only be occupied when they harvest the coconuts and process the copra. The water is beautifully clear and there are plenty of fish.. fairly large one at that. I have caught and released some including a good sized white tip reef shark. The reef fish here are not safe to eat as there is ciguatera in the islands. We did get a lovely yellow fin tuna on our way here that has really been lovely. As we move around now we keep on crossing paths with cruisers that we have met before. It is all very sociable and everyone is really great. Tomorrow or the next day we will move down to Au Pou about 64nm away. We will leave very early morning and should make it down there by mid afternoon. It is sad that one does not have more time on this run. We have four months to move through the Pacific but at least a month of that is sailing time so one cannot linger too long at one place. One needs to select ones islands carefully to see and experience as much as possible. Most of them are similar but each has its own interesting history and community etc. Time for a walk on the beach so bye for now.
Another beautiful day in a very beautiful bay. We are only about ten miles from Hiva Oa on the west side of Tahuata in the bay Hanamoenoa. The blue water runs up to the beach slowly getting lighter and ends on a beautiful white sand beach fringed with palm trees. There is no village and the place seems to only be occupied when they harvest the coconuts and process the copra. The water is beautifully clear and there are plenty of fish.. fairly large one at that. I have caught and released some including a good sized white tip reef shark. The reef fish here are not safe to eat as there is ciguatera in the islands. We did get a lovely yellow fin tuna on our way here that has really been lovely. As we move around now we keep on crossing paths with cruisers that we have met before. It is all very sociable and everyone is really great. Tomorrow or the next day we will move down to Au Pou about 64nm away. We will leave very early morning and should make it down there by mid afternoon. It is sad that one does not have more time on this run. We have four months to move through the Pacific but at least a month of that is sailing time so one cannot linger too long at one place. One needs to select ones islands carefully to see and experience as much as possible. Most of them are similar but each has its own interesting history and community etc. Time for a walk on the beach so bye for now.
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Saturday, May 28, 2011
Its wonderful
Atuona; Hiva Oa
Well so far so good. The islanders are ever so friendly and the little village is neat and tidy. There is a beautiful aroma of the tropical flowers as one walks along. The shops in the village are well stocked and have an interesting assortment of goods. The hardware is great with some amazing carving tools etc as that is a popular occupation on the islands. It is a long walk to town and we have done it a few times, but a lot of the time someone will stop and give you a lift. The island is very green with lots of beautiful trees. As it is winter many of the large trees have lost their leaves. It is amazing to think of it being winter with high humidity and around 28deg Celsius. It has been raining a lot and the last two days we have had the boat closed up. You no sooner open a hatch and the rain starts up again. It is very hot and sticky down below. The front is supposed to pass over by tomorrow (Sunday) and the sun should be out again. Tomorrow we are going on to the next island and as the peaks are lower there should be some sun. We desperately need to do some washing etc. Speaking to one of the locals, she said that the village gets lots of rain now, but the eastern side of the island is sunny. Later in the season when the winds change this end becomes sunny and it rains on the other half. There is a massive peak and mountain around the town but we have not seen the top of it yet. We have seen some of the lower peaks and ridges in the mist and they are totally awesome.
Well so far so good. The islanders are ever so friendly and the little village is neat and tidy. There is a beautiful aroma of the tropical flowers as one walks along. The shops in the village are well stocked and have an interesting assortment of goods. The hardware is great with some amazing carving tools etc as that is a popular occupation on the islands. It is a long walk to town and we have done it a few times, but a lot of the time someone will stop and give you a lift. The island is very green with lots of beautiful trees. As it is winter many of the large trees have lost their leaves. It is amazing to think of it being winter with high humidity and around 28deg Celsius. It has been raining a lot and the last two days we have had the boat closed up. You no sooner open a hatch and the rain starts up again. It is very hot and sticky down below. The front is supposed to pass over by tomorrow (Sunday) and the sun should be out again. Tomorrow we are going on to the next island and as the peaks are lower there should be some sun. We desperately need to do some washing etc. Speaking to one of the locals, she said that the village gets lots of rain now, but the eastern side of the island is sunny. Later in the season when the winds change this end becomes sunny and it rains on the other half. There is a massive peak and mountain around the town but we have not seen the top of it yet. We have seen some of the lower peaks and ridges in the mist and they are totally awesome.
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Friday, May 27, 2011
Day 20 and a bit
Atuona; Hiva Oa.
Tues 24 May
Land at last after 20 days and six hours. We pushed like crazy on the last day to make up enough time to arrive before sunset and got in just after five. The anchorage is not very large and the boats are packed in rather tightly. If arriving after dark we would have had to anchor outside the break water where it would have been very rough. The anchorage is rolly but it's good to be in here. Tomorrow we will sign in as the gendarmerie. Later we will go into town and look around. The bay and harbour are surrounded by massive peaks that disappear into the clouds. These clouds that form against them also cause a fair bit of rain here in the anchorage. Coming in the sun was shining over the top of them and it was black below. One was looking over the silver water into the sun and could see nothing in the direction we were going until we got in below the clouds and out of the sun. When we got in, some friends from another yacht came across to assist us in getting out a stern anchor. Many of the people here we know as we have met them in previous anchorages or on our radio net coming over. It was great having land around us again and having people etc to chat to. On the whole of the passage we only saw two other yachts at night... at least their lights and we were able to call and chat to them on the VHF radio. We saw two fishing trawlers during the night over the last week and that was it. Now we look forward to a good rest... a full night's sleep and to do some walking. There is a lot to explore over the next few weeks as we travel through the islands and will keep you posted. HF radio contact out from between the mountains is tricky but we will see how it goes, till then....
Tues 24 May
Land at last after 20 days and six hours. We pushed like crazy on the last day to make up enough time to arrive before sunset and got in just after five. The anchorage is not very large and the boats are packed in rather tightly. If arriving after dark we would have had to anchor outside the break water where it would have been very rough. The anchorage is rolly but it's good to be in here. Tomorrow we will sign in as the gendarmerie. Later we will go into town and look around. The bay and harbour are surrounded by massive peaks that disappear into the clouds. These clouds that form against them also cause a fair bit of rain here in the anchorage. Coming in the sun was shining over the top of them and it was black below. One was looking over the silver water into the sun and could see nothing in the direction we were going until we got in below the clouds and out of the sun. When we got in, some friends from another yacht came across to assist us in getting out a stern anchor. Many of the people here we know as we have met them in previous anchorages or on our radio net coming over. It was great having land around us again and having people etc to chat to. On the whole of the passage we only saw two other yachts at night... at least their lights and we were able to call and chat to them on the VHF radio. We saw two fishing trawlers during the night over the last week and that was it. Now we look forward to a good rest... a full night's sleep and to do some walking. There is a lot to explore over the next few weeks as we travel through the islands and will keep you posted. HF radio contact out from between the mountains is tricky but we will see how it goes, till then....
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Monday, May 23, 2011
Day 21/21 the last day today
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
19h00 UTC 23 May
Course: 253°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 163 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 51nm
Position 09°45' S 138°10' W
Well this is it... hopefully our last day on this leg. We are pushing like crazy to get in before dark tonight. It is 10h00 local time and sunset will be at 18h20. So the race is on. Our friends in front of us saw the islands from 35nm away this morning when the sun came up so we should see them starting to rise out the ocean in about ten miles.
Yesterday was frustrating trying to keep up the speed as the wind was variable and light (8-10kn) and at times the breeze was not enough to keep the spinnaker full as the boat rolled on the swells. As a result we had the spinnaker wrap around the forestay a few times. This is always a worry as it pulls tight and can be very difficult to get free. Lucky for us most times it came free easily. Once we had a real battle with it.
The entry into the bay tonight is a good one as there are navigation marks/lights and there is open water all the way in. We will have to anchor out of the harbour area as we do not have a second anchor to deploy off the stern to keep us facing into the swell that rolls into the bay. As the other boats will have theirs out, we cannot swing around in circles on a single anchor. If we get in early enough we will be able to sort a stern anchor out...so it depends on time of arrival.
Yesterday our autohelm gave up the ghost and Colin needs to remove the wheel to fix it. We think that the gearbox has failed... the same thing that happened to us as we approached St Lucia after the Atlantic crossing. So that will have to be done at anchor. We have a spare gearbox as well as spare cogs to rebuild this one if necessary/possible. The wind is too light for the Aries to give us an accurate course as it wonders around all over.
So here we are a full day to steer and watch the peaks of the Marquesas rise out the ocean.
Till next time...
19h00 UTC 23 May
Course: 253°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 163 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 51nm
Position 09°45' S 138°10' W
Well this is it... hopefully our last day on this leg. We are pushing like crazy to get in before dark tonight. It is 10h00 local time and sunset will be at 18h20. So the race is on. Our friends in front of us saw the islands from 35nm away this morning when the sun came up so we should see them starting to rise out the ocean in about ten miles.
Yesterday was frustrating trying to keep up the speed as the wind was variable and light (8-10kn) and at times the breeze was not enough to keep the spinnaker full as the boat rolled on the swells. As a result we had the spinnaker wrap around the forestay a few times. This is always a worry as it pulls tight and can be very difficult to get free. Lucky for us most times it came free easily. Once we had a real battle with it.
The entry into the bay tonight is a good one as there are navigation marks/lights and there is open water all the way in. We will have to anchor out of the harbour area as we do not have a second anchor to deploy off the stern to keep us facing into the swell that rolls into the bay. As the other boats will have theirs out, we cannot swing around in circles on a single anchor. If we get in early enough we will be able to sort a stern anchor out...so it depends on time of arrival.
Yesterday our autohelm gave up the ghost and Colin needs to remove the wheel to fix it. We think that the gearbox has failed... the same thing that happened to us as we approached St Lucia after the Atlantic crossing. So that will have to be done at anchor. We have a spare gearbox as well as spare cogs to rebuild this one if necessary/possible. The wind is too light for the Aries to give us an accurate course as it wonders around all over.
So here we are a full day to steer and watch the peaks of the Marquesas rise out the ocean.
Till next time...
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Friday, May 20, 2011
Knocking off the miles
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 20 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 161 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 460nm
Position 09°29' S 131°11' W
We are still rolling along merrily as we knock the miles off the clock. We had a good day yesterday with tha spinnaker up all day. The evening run went well until we ran into a rainsquall that caused the usual problems. About an hour later the wind returned to normal and we got back on course. Since then we have had to make no changes. If the wind stays as it is, we should make Hiva Oa on Monday afternoon or with less wind Tuesday morning. We had a yacht pass us the other evening doing 2 or so knots more than us. They had taken 10 days for what we had done in 16. They were a large cat and the weather was really suited for them, a close reach. The tin food is going well and trying to keep a variety of things on the plate is not the easiest. With the tins being mostly the same size you have lots of one thing and nothing of the other. We find that the tin stuff does not keep that well once opened so you eat what you open. Colin has not been fishing as it is not the easiest to process the fish up on deck with the boat rolling from side to side. One lands up getting fish and blood all over the place.
Otherwise life on board goes on... hanging on. We were going to bake bread rolls today but put that on hold till the sea settles a little. Fuel wise we are also doing well as we have only motored for four hours so far and the other times we have run the engine have been to charge the batteries and to make water. Just heard this morning that Hiva Oa is out of fuel again till the supply ship arrives. We won't need to worry and will top up our tank later on at one of the other islands.
21h00 UTC 20 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 161 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 460nm
Position 09°29' S 131°11' W
We are still rolling along merrily as we knock the miles off the clock. We had a good day yesterday with tha spinnaker up all day. The evening run went well until we ran into a rainsquall that caused the usual problems. About an hour later the wind returned to normal and we got back on course. Since then we have had to make no changes. If the wind stays as it is, we should make Hiva Oa on Monday afternoon or with less wind Tuesday morning. We had a yacht pass us the other evening doing 2 or so knots more than us. They had taken 10 days for what we had done in 16. They were a large cat and the weather was really suited for them, a close reach. The tin food is going well and trying to keep a variety of things on the plate is not the easiest. With the tins being mostly the same size you have lots of one thing and nothing of the other. We find that the tin stuff does not keep that well once opened so you eat what you open. Colin has not been fishing as it is not the easiest to process the fish up on deck with the boat rolling from side to side. One lands up getting fish and blood all over the place.
Otherwise life on board goes on... hanging on. We were going to bake bread rolls today but put that on hold till the sea settles a little. Fuel wise we are also doing well as we have only motored for four hours so far and the other times we have run the engine have been to charge the batteries and to make water. Just heard this morning that Hiva Oa is out of fuel again till the supply ship arrives. We won't need to worry and will top up our tank later on at one of the other islands.
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Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Just sailing along
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 18 May
Course: 257°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 142 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 740nm
Position 09°13' S 126°24' W
We have had a pleasant night and days sail today. The rain has moved off and the seas are slowly settling. Running downwind in 12-16kn and doing around 5-6kn. All's well on board.
21h00 UTC 18 May
Course: 257°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 142 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 740nm
Position 09°13' S 126°24' W
We have had a pleasant night and days sail today. The rain has moved off and the seas are slowly settling. Running downwind in 12-16kn and doing around 5-6kn. All's well on board.
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Hanging on
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 17 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 155 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 899nm
Position 08°56' S 123°53' W
Well the winds up and so are the seas. We have been having some fun and games. In one of the rain squalls we had a massive wind change and gybed. The boom took down our tent over the cockpit that we use for shade. When the boom gybed back the shackle that holds the main sheet on flew off. (These shackles are fastened with pliers and then get a zip tie through then to prevent them coming off). Trying to retrieve the boom when running in a rainsquall is not the easiest of party tricks.
Later while we were running with the jib poled out we needed to gybe. We furled most the jib away in the process. Unfortunately what was still free formed a wrap around the forestay and slowly wound its way to the top of the forestay as the flogging bit of sail unwound the furled sail and rewound it on at the bottom. Of course these things always happen in the dark. At least it was full moon last night. It took forever to get it all free.
Today it was really rough and hanging on was the order of the day. Sleep tonight will be short as you get bounce clean out of any dream every few minutes. We are putting in a second reef and having a conservative night tonight, everything is set and the Aries is steering, so hopefully it will keep up with the wind changes and we will not have to make any changes. Tomorrow we will correct the course. We are still heading to far south and may need to gybe and head a little more north as we are level with the islands now. If there is more southerly direction in the wind we will be able to head up on a broad reach, but the grib files have the wind from the east. OK so we only have to pole the jib ....
Oh well we will see what tomorrow will bring, till then...
21h00 UTC 17 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 155 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 899nm
Position 08°56' S 123°53' W
Well the winds up and so are the seas. We have been having some fun and games. In one of the rain squalls we had a massive wind change and gybed. The boom took down our tent over the cockpit that we use for shade. When the boom gybed back the shackle that holds the main sheet on flew off. (These shackles are fastened with pliers and then get a zip tie through then to prevent them coming off). Trying to retrieve the boom when running in a rainsquall is not the easiest of party tricks.
Later while we were running with the jib poled out we needed to gybe. We furled most the jib away in the process. Unfortunately what was still free formed a wrap around the forestay and slowly wound its way to the top of the forestay as the flogging bit of sail unwound the furled sail and rewound it on at the bottom. Of course these things always happen in the dark. At least it was full moon last night. It took forever to get it all free.
Today it was really rough and hanging on was the order of the day. Sleep tonight will be short as you get bounce clean out of any dream every few minutes. We are putting in a second reef and having a conservative night tonight, everything is set and the Aries is steering, so hopefully it will keep up with the wind changes and we will not have to make any changes. Tomorrow we will correct the course. We are still heading to far south and may need to gybe and head a little more north as we are level with the islands now. If there is more southerly direction in the wind we will be able to head up on a broad reach, but the grib files have the wind from the east. OK so we only have to pole the jib ....
Oh well we will see what tomorrow will bring, till then...
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Sunday, May 15, 2011
Having an up and down day
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 15 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 112 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 1177nm
Position 08°13' S 119°13' W
Having an up and down day today. Some large 3-4m swells rolling through the neighbourhood today. So it's up a few meters then down again. Apparently they will be with us for the next few days. They come from a storm way down south somewhere. Meanwhile we are still trying to make the best of our 8-12 knots of wind. When it is from behind it is difficult to get going. It swings to the SE for a while and the change of angle really helps. Tomorrow we are supposed to get wind from the SE at around 15kn that should help us get going. It lasted for the whole of the grib file which is 72 hours. The yachts ahead of us this morning all reported very light winds and some have cranked up the old motor. We are lucky that we have managed to keep moving so far without resorting to polluting the atmosphere. We are slowly getting through some of the many tins of food on board. Some are nice and we should have bought more others..... Hey! Time to go make supper!!
No... too early, but some tea will do. Then we can sit up in the cockpit and watch the big swells make us go up and then down, up then..... .... ... .. .
21h00 UTC 15 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 112 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 1177nm
Position 08°13' S 119°13' W
Having an up and down day today. Some large 3-4m swells rolling through the neighbourhood today. So it's up a few meters then down again. Apparently they will be with us for the next few days. They come from a storm way down south somewhere. Meanwhile we are still trying to make the best of our 8-12 knots of wind. When it is from behind it is difficult to get going. It swings to the SE for a while and the change of angle really helps. Tomorrow we are supposed to get wind from the SE at around 15kn that should help us get going. It lasted for the whole of the grib file which is 72 hours. The yachts ahead of us this morning all reported very light winds and some have cranked up the old motor. We are lucky that we have managed to keep moving so far without resorting to polluting the atmosphere. We are slowly getting through some of the many tins of food on board. Some are nice and we should have bought more others..... Hey! Time to go make supper!!
No... too early, but some tea will do. Then we can sit up in the cockpit and watch the big swells make us go up and then down, up then..... .... ... .. .
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Saturday, May 14, 2011
Getting it the right way around
Moving from one hemisphere to another can really mess with ones internal mapping. OK, so I'm no homing pigeon, but for years now I could not understand certain things from when our family traveled overseas to the northern hemisphere. It all has to do with the sun changing sides. So we headed along a coast in Italy and the sun said that you were heading up the coast to the north. Firstly your brain is confused as the sun is coming up and yet it is where you would expect it to be if the sun was setting. Only years later did I notice that our trip was to the south and a rising sun, it's just that my brain had not changed hemispheres with me.
Now sailing along many years later as the Big Dipper sinks into the sea and can no longer point to Polaris, we cross the equator again into the southern hemisphere. At zero degrees Polaris glides below the horizon never to be seen again should we not venture north. Now it's time for the southern sky to rise up out of the ocean as we slowly head south. The moon is still lazy and is lying on its belly. It still needs to stand up and bend out and reach towards the southern constellations. At least it is now no longer the wrong way around. And if you are coming south from the north... remember, you are now down under so your world will be upside down.
Now sailing along many years later as the Big Dipper sinks into the sea and can no longer point to Polaris, we cross the equator again into the southern hemisphere. At zero degrees Polaris glides below the horizon never to be seen again should we not venture north. Now it's time for the southern sky to rise up out of the ocean as we slowly head south. The moon is still lazy and is lying on its belly. It still needs to stand up and bend out and reach towards the southern constellations. At least it is now no longer the wrong way around. And if you are coming south from the north... remember, you are now down under so your world will be upside down.
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The otherside of halfway
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 14 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 132 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 1307nm
Position 08°16' S 117°02' W
Well we are now on the other side of the middle of the ocean. It is still a hell of a long way to go, but feels very different. You are no longer heading out...rather you are heading back in. Funny how the mind works. Already we have a new mark to pass and that is 1000nm because then there are only hundreds to look at and they go down a little faster than the thousands. Whatever keeps one happy?? Winds still very light only made 3knots at times last night but overall we still managed an average of 5.5kn. Had the spinnaker up yesterday and today but not overnight as we do not want to be bouncing around on the foredeck in a 45kn squall trying to change sails. Nothing like a peaceful night. With the calmer weather we have had better night's sleep but today the heat is sucking off any extra energy you may have got from a better three hours sleep. Otherwise all is going well.
21h00 UTC 14 May
Course: 255°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 132 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 1307nm
Position 08°16' S 117°02' W
Well we are now on the other side of the middle of the ocean. It is still a hell of a long way to go, but feels very different. You are no longer heading out...rather you are heading back in. Funny how the mind works. Already we have a new mark to pass and that is 1000nm because then there are only hundreds to look at and they go down a little faster than the thousands. Whatever keeps one happy?? Winds still very light only made 3knots at times last night but overall we still managed an average of 5.5kn. Had the spinnaker up yesterday and today but not overnight as we do not want to be bouncing around on the foredeck in a 45kn squall trying to change sails. Nothing like a peaceful night. With the calmer weather we have had better night's sleep but today the heat is sucking off any extra energy you may have got from a better three hours sleep. Otherwise all is going well.
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The middle of the ocean
Colin and Sandy Cruising with Papillon
21h00 UTC 13 May
Course: 246°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 139 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 1439nm
Position 07°42' S 115°18' W
The middle of the ocean. I guess that been halfway between Galapagos and the little island of Hiva Oa that we are headed for means that at this point we are furthest from dry land that we will ever be on the yacht. We celebrated this milestone by baking some chocolate brownies... Immm yummy!!! The winds are light and variable so we will not be zooming off from here at high speed. Its hard work chasing the wind and changing sails as the rain squalls come and go but our average speed is doing ok. We are a little further south than we wanted to be at this stage as we have been trying to stay on a broad reach. As the wind has gone to the east it pushes us further south. At the end one turns down and poles out the jib... result... drop a knot or two in speed and role from side to side. Oh well such is live out in the middle of the ocean.
21h00 UTC 13 May
Course: 246°
Distance covered last 24hrs until 18h00 GMT: 139 nm
Distance to Marquesas: 1439nm
Position 07°42' S 115°18' W
The middle of the ocean. I guess that been halfway between Galapagos and the little island of Hiva Oa that we are headed for means that at this point we are furthest from dry land that we will ever be on the yacht. We celebrated this milestone by baking some chocolate brownies... Immm yummy!!! The winds are light and variable so we will not be zooming off from here at high speed. Its hard work chasing the wind and changing sails as the rain squalls come and go but our average speed is doing ok. We are a little further south than we wanted to be at this stage as we have been trying to stay on a broad reach. As the wind has gone to the east it pushes us further south. At the end one turns down and poles out the jib... result... drop a knot or two in speed and role from side to side. Oh well such is live out in the middle of the ocean.
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