We've arrived! We are anchored in Radio Bay (we did hear your advice Scott and Donna, just the lure of showers was WAY too strong :).
We are in a rush to get to customs to get cleared in, they are staying late for us, so I wanted to post that we are here, but details will be forthcoming.
Thanks to you all for following along and all your cheers, we heard them over the ocean thanks to my Mom!
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Monday, April 25, 2016
Day 23 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/25/16: 19 43.8457 N 153 08.9943 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 138 nm
Total distance travelled: 2802 nm
Distance to Hilo: 110 nm
Okay, it feels safe finally say it, looks like we will make landfall tomorrow! Hopefully before noon. Woot!
We missed the fact that we moved into the Hawaii time zone yesterday, oops. So, the noon to noon distance above actually reflects 26 hours. When I changed to Hawaii time (or UTC-10) on all our devices it changed the time by 2 hours. I'm guessing it is because Hawaii doesn't do daylight savings time? Anyway, that's what we are going with, we will be corrected tomorrow if need be, when we are back on land, in Hawaii! Can you tell I'm excited?
In other news Lars lost his other top front tooth last night while in bed trying to fall asleep. Funny thing is that it wasn't even all that loose when he went to bed, nothing that would indicate it was coming out imminently. Kind of a surprise to all of us. He may have decided he doesn't want money and wants to keep the tooth. If I hadn't been trying to go to sleep myself, it would have been really cute hearing him process his feelings about it. I finally told him that if he wasn't sure, he could leave it out on the counter and not under his pillow and the tooth fairy wouldn't come, she gets the signal only when it's under your pillow. So far today he seems to like the idea of writing a note, taping the tooth to it and holding onto it himself. I told him the tooth fairy offer is good for three days. Should be interesting to see what happens. I loved hearing him trying to hash out the arguments around money, things, desires, etc. The kid is a deep thinker! I just wish I'd be
en able to enjoy it more but I was falling asleep!
Tonight is the last night watch and tomorrow I can go to bed knowing that I don't have to wake up for the day at 2:00am!
Noon to noon distance travelled: 138 nm
Total distance travelled: 2802 nm
Distance to Hilo: 110 nm
Okay, it feels safe finally say it, looks like we will make landfall tomorrow! Hopefully before noon. Woot!
We missed the fact that we moved into the Hawaii time zone yesterday, oops. So, the noon to noon distance above actually reflects 26 hours. When I changed to Hawaii time (or UTC-10) on all our devices it changed the time by 2 hours. I'm guessing it is because Hawaii doesn't do daylight savings time? Anyway, that's what we are going with, we will be corrected tomorrow if need be, when we are back on land, in Hawaii! Can you tell I'm excited?
In other news Lars lost his other top front tooth last night while in bed trying to fall asleep. Funny thing is that it wasn't even all that loose when he went to bed, nothing that would indicate it was coming out imminently. Kind of a surprise to all of us. He may have decided he doesn't want money and wants to keep the tooth. If I hadn't been trying to go to sleep myself, it would have been really cute hearing him process his feelings about it. I finally told him that if he wasn't sure, he could leave it out on the counter and not under his pillow and the tooth fairy wouldn't come, she gets the signal only when it's under your pillow. So far today he seems to like the idea of writing a note, taping the tooth to it and holding onto it himself. I told him the tooth fairy offer is good for three days. Should be interesting to see what happens. I loved hearing him trying to hash out the arguments around money, things, desires, etc. The kid is a deep thinker! I just wish I'd be
en able to enjoy it more but I was falling asleep!
Tonight is the last night watch and tomorrow I can go to bed knowing that I don't have to wake up for the day at 2:00am!
Sunday, April 24, 2016
Day 22 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/24/16: 20 00.1856 N 150 53.6349 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 141 nm
Total distance travelled: 2664 nm
Distance to Hilo: 238 nm
Wow, that's one for the record books, 141 miles made good to Hilo! Only 238 to go.
We are just hearing our first transmission on VHF radio, we aren't the only ones out here!
Conditions are still good for fast sailing and we are making good time. We will be there soon!
Noon to noon distance travelled: 141 nm
Total distance travelled: 2664 nm
Distance to Hilo: 238 nm
Wow, that's one for the record books, 141 miles made good to Hilo! Only 238 to go.
We are just hearing our first transmission on VHF radio, we aren't the only ones out here!
Conditions are still good for fast sailing and we are making good time. We will be there soon!
Saturday, April 23, 2016
Day 21 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 136 nm
Total distance travelled: 2523 nm
Distance to Hilo: 377 nm
Today marks three weeks at sea. Another great mileage day is a great way to celebrate!
Sailing is good, but waves are big so we get some big rolls side to side. Not comfortable, but not terrible either. I'm just glad we are making good time. Hilo here we come!
Not a whole lot to report. Boys and I were working on a sewing project and now they are coloring. Tor is reading in the cockpit. Soon we will have lunch. That's about it. Our excitement is coming from a good mileage day.
The picture attached shows The drawing Odin is working on. See it? It's a full keeled ketch with tanbark colored sails. Tor will be so proud when he sees it!
Friday, April 22, 2016
Day 20 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/22/16: 19 41.0225 N 146 03.1135 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 137 nm
Total distance travelled: 2387 nm
Distance to Hilo: 513 nm
We've got some boisterous sailing conditions, but are making some miles! 137 nm in 24 hours, woot! We are rocking and rolling in some pretty big swell, but it's all worth it because we are getting so close! According to the last look at the weather models, this wind should continue for the next four days which gets us just about to Hilo. We are getting so close we can almost taste it.
When we were reefing sails yesterday evening, Tor looked over and saw a big log floating in the water not 10 feet away from us. It looked exactly like one we would see sailing in PNW waters. It came as a real surprise, and I'm glad we found it visually and not with our boat.
Fresh produce is holding out, but barely. We are still eating well, and cravings for landfall meals have more to do with someone else preparing and cleaning up, rather than any specific food we've been feeling deprived of. Though ice cream always sounds good :).
Noon to noon distance travelled: 137 nm
Total distance travelled: 2387 nm
Distance to Hilo: 513 nm
We've got some boisterous sailing conditions, but are making some miles! 137 nm in 24 hours, woot! We are rocking and rolling in some pretty big swell, but it's all worth it because we are getting so close! According to the last look at the weather models, this wind should continue for the next four days which gets us just about to Hilo. We are getting so close we can almost taste it.
When we were reefing sails yesterday evening, Tor looked over and saw a big log floating in the water not 10 feet away from us. It looked exactly like one we would see sailing in PNW waters. It came as a real surprise, and I'm glad we found it visually and not with our boat.
Fresh produce is holding out, but barely. We are still eating well, and cravings for landfall meals have more to do with someone else preparing and cleaning up, rather than any specific food we've been feeling deprived of. Though ice cream always sounds good :).
Thursday, April 21, 2016
Day 19 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/21/16: 19 32.7462 N 143 38.7371 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 122 nm
Total distance travelled: 2250 nm
Distance to Hilo: 650 nm
The clouds are back, the winds have been gusty, and we are just sailing along. We are making good progress and are all doing well.
The boys have been Lego crazy the last couple of days. They've been building fire trucks and a Lego city. Too bad the occasional gust makes us heel over so that pile of Lego falls off the play mat we use to contain them, all over our bed. Fortunately we have lots of practice picking lego up ;).
I made another batch of bread today and we will make Navy Bean soup for supper. Yum, comfort food.
650 miles to go!
Noon to noon distance travelled: 122 nm
Total distance travelled: 2250 nm
Distance to Hilo: 650 nm
The clouds are back, the winds have been gusty, and we are just sailing along. We are making good progress and are all doing well.
The boys have been Lego crazy the last couple of days. They've been building fire trucks and a Lego city. Too bad the occasional gust makes us heel over so that pile of Lego falls off the play mat we use to contain them, all over our bed. Fortunately we have lots of practice picking lego up ;).
I made another batch of bread today and we will make Navy Bean soup for supper. Yum, comfort food.
650 miles to go!
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
Day 18 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 105 nm
Total distance travelled: 2128 nm
Distance to Hilo: 771 nm
Now that's more like it! The seas have mellowed, we are sailing along at over 5 kts with our beautiful red and yellow light air sails up, and the sun is shining. If yesterday was a put your head down and hold on day, today is the opposite. Glory in the fact that we are doing this, and cook some food ahead so I can have some hope of keeping up with the appetites of my 3 guys!
We ran out of wind last night, and I ended up motoring for my watch beginning around 2:00 am. By morning the seas started to diminish and we had enough wind to put up the mizzen stays'l and drifter. These are exactly the conditions these light air, downwind sails were built for.
Last night after we turned the lights off for sleep, Lars lost one of his front teeth! His front teeth have been slightly loose for a long time now, but something happened early in this passage at dinner time with his spoon and his tooth, and a major root broke. Can't tell you what happened and neither can he, but it's been hanging on all snaggle tooth like for most of the passage. He finally got it out last night, and we immediately put it under his pillow. Amazingly, the tooth fairy found us out in the middle of the Pacific! She must have been paying attention to which direction we are sailing, because she even made sure her gift was in the appropriate currency.
I'm going to try and attach 3 photos to this post. We will see if it's successful...one picture is of Tor trying to take a nap on deck yesterday. We were getting occasional rolls from rail to rail, so he's holding on. But it's tough to fall asleep when you can't relax your body for fear that you will fall over. The next photo shows what a difference a day makes, our beautiful light air sails. The last one is self explanatory, Lars missing a tooth!
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Day 17 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/19/16: 19 42.8178 N 139 48.0944 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 117 nm
Total distance travelled: 2023 nm
Distance to Hilo: 868 nm
We have wind again! We were able to turn off the engine just after midnight and have been sailing ever since.
The flat water that came with no wind was very pleasant and we all enjoyed it. We were all disappointed that the swell is back, and that we are back to holding on whenever moving around the boat. Lars and Odin are back to hanging out in the most comfortable place, Mama and Papa's bed. I put on the audiobook version of Laura Ingalls Wilder's The Long Winter, and they are very happy.
If the weather continues as predicted, we have nice winds all the way to Hilo. We are ready for landfall, and to no longer be moving for awhile. Less than 900 miles to go!
Noon to noon distance travelled: 117 nm
Total distance travelled: 2023 nm
Distance to Hilo: 868 nm
We have wind again! We were able to turn off the engine just after midnight and have been sailing ever since.
The flat water that came with no wind was very pleasant and we all enjoyed it. We were all disappointed that the swell is back, and that we are back to holding on whenever moving around the boat. Lars and Odin are back to hanging out in the most comfortable place, Mama and Papa's bed. I put on the audiobook version of Laura Ingalls Wilder's The Long Winter, and they are very happy.
If the weather continues as predicted, we have nice winds all the way to Hilo. We are ready for landfall, and to no longer be moving for awhile. Less than 900 miles to go!
Monday, April 18, 2016
Day 16 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 98 nm
Total distance travelled: 1906 nm
Distance to Hilo: 981 nm
Less than 1000 miles to Hilo! Yippee! More sun and no wind. So we just motor along. We started the engine up at sunset last night and haven't turned it off. We are motoring at low RPMs to conserve fuel, but that comes at a cost for speed. We sailed slowly all yesterday afternoon in light winds with our big light air sails up, but no such luck today, not a ripple on the water. Even as I get tired of hearing it drone on, I'm glad we have the engine, at least we are making progress!
Odin and I shared the dawn watch this morning, and it was just as lovely as it had been with Lars. My favorite part was discussing what the cloud shapes looked like on the eastern horizon as the sun came up. It looks like a house on the beach, no a truck pulling a trailer, no, a train!
Good day, trying to get motivated to wash some clothes now that I woke up from a long, delicious nap. After lunch!
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Day 15 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 114 nm
Total distance travelled: 1808 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1078 nm
We are now in a new time zone, another milestone reached. Whew! The noon to noon distance travelled above is 25 hours due to the new time zone.
As I came on watch at 2:00 this morning, the wind had died, so we pulled the sails down and cranked on the motor. I know the batteries were happy, and I was too to be making some miles. The wind just came up again, and we are sailing slowly again. Looks like we might be able to just skirt the edge of the no wind patch instead of being snack dab in the middle of it, we are glad to have been able to make miles when we did.
There is a children's book called The Dawn Watch that our family loves. It tells the story of a little girl sailing across Lake Superior overnight with her family. When it is time for the dawn watch, she joins her father. She's responsible for looking out for ships or other obstructions. While her father goes below and leaves her on deck with the autopilot driving the boat, her imagination goes a little wild and she sees sea monsters and pirate ships. Soon her father comes back on deck with hot cocoa and they watch the sunrise. Lars and Odin have been very intrigued to replicate her experiences on our boat, so this morning I woke Lars for the dawn watch. He woke up immediately, and as I was helping him into his warm clothes, he said "my legs are just wobbling because I'm so excited." His grin was from ear to ear and we had a lovely time, hot cocoa included. Odin's turn tomorrow. Precious memories indeed.
I took advantage of the calm conditions this morning to make some bread dough with Lars. Yum, fresh baked bread! We even made 2 batches so one can go in the fridge to be baked later, a new strategy, hope it works. I hope we will get showers later if the sun shower heats up. And we are just enjoying comfortable motion in the boat, even if we aren't moving very quickly.
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Day 14 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/16/16: 19 49.8974 N 134 07.0033 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 124 nm
Total distance travelled: 1694 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1191 nm
Two full weeks at sea! We actually changed sail configuration last night for the first time in days. Then we are doing it again this morning since the wind has lessened, shaking out reefs and putting up the job. Still making good progress towards Hilo.
The current weather models show the windless area ahead to be smaller than we feared, let's hope it holds! We should know more tomorrow. However Tor just said when he came below that there is an epidemic of blue sky out there (yay!), and less wind. Hopefully it hasn't hit us early, but we will see.
Excitement coming later today? We move into another timezone. Hello Alaska, we will be in the same timezone as you!
Noon to noon distance travelled: 124 nm
Total distance travelled: 1694 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1191 nm
Two full weeks at sea! We actually changed sail configuration last night for the first time in days. Then we are doing it again this morning since the wind has lessened, shaking out reefs and putting up the job. Still making good progress towards Hilo.
The current weather models show the windless area ahead to be smaller than we feared, let's hope it holds! We should know more tomorrow. However Tor just said when he came below that there is an epidemic of blue sky out there (yay!), and less wind. Hopefully it hasn't hit us early, but we will see.
Excitement coming later today? We move into another timezone. Hello Alaska, we will be in the same timezone as you!
Friday, April 15, 2016
Day 13 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 135 nm
Total distance travelled: 1570 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1313 nm
We passed the half way mark to Hilo yesterday evening at 5:30! It was a turning point in morale for me...I was struggling but am feeling better now. We had a little celebration thanks to our friend Kristine from Asunto. She gave us a wrapped gift to open on one of "those" days. I figured marking the halfway point was as good an occasion as any. We drank some ginger ale for good cheer, and enjoyed our celebration. The kinder surprise eggs in the package were a huge hit for the boys.
Winds are still good, though the swell is still big and uncomfortable. Now we are just trying to get as many miles under our keel while we have the wind. A big patch with little wind appears to be setting up between us and Hawaii starting on Sunday. May delay landfall a bit, but we will see. At least we made 135 miles yesterday, nothing to sneeze at for a 26' waterline!
We are a still doing well, but getting ready to be there, also getting really tired of the clouds. Hopefully we get sunshine soon.
Thursday, April 14, 2016
Day 12 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/14/16: 20 02.4578N 129 37.5422W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 123 nm
Total distance travelled: 1436 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1445 nm
We are nearing the half way point of our trip! 32 more miles until halfway by mileage between Puerto Vallarta and Hilo. We expect to be there later this afternoon.
We still have big swell, but it is all generally coming from the same direction, so it feels less washing machine like. Thank goodness. We are currently rocketing along downwind at 6 or so kts under double reefed main and reefed mizzen alone. In fact we've had this same sail configuration for a couple of days now. The wind hasn't always been this fresh, but we are having a pretty comfortable ride now.
Lentil soup for supper last night tasted great and it still feels like soup weather. Good thing we have leftovers.
Lars and Odin are still working through activity books, and really enjoying themselves. I'm looking forward to getting to Hilo and having an uninterrupted night's sleep. Actually lots of them. The boys don't seem to have cabin fever, but I do.
From this morning's weather download it looks like there is a big no wind patch between us and Hilo starting in a few days. We weren't excited to see that, but like everything we are doing out here, we will take it one step at a time and make better plans as we get closer to it. Right now we are making good progress directly to Hilo, and that's nothing to sneeze at.
Noon to noon distance travelled: 123 nm
Total distance travelled: 1436 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1445 nm
We are nearing the half way point of our trip! 32 more miles until halfway by mileage between Puerto Vallarta and Hilo. We expect to be there later this afternoon.
We still have big swell, but it is all generally coming from the same direction, so it feels less washing machine like. Thank goodness. We are currently rocketing along downwind at 6 or so kts under double reefed main and reefed mizzen alone. In fact we've had this same sail configuration for a couple of days now. The wind hasn't always been this fresh, but we are having a pretty comfortable ride now.
Lentil soup for supper last night tasted great and it still feels like soup weather. Good thing we have leftovers.
Lars and Odin are still working through activity books, and really enjoying themselves. I'm looking forward to getting to Hilo and having an uninterrupted night's sleep. Actually lots of them. The boys don't seem to have cabin fever, but I do.
From this morning's weather download it looks like there is a big no wind patch between us and Hilo starting in a few days. We weren't excited to see that, but like everything we are doing out here, we will take it one step at a time and make better plans as we get closer to it. Right now we are making good progress directly to Hilo, and that's nothing to sneeze at.
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
Day 11 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 127 nm
Total distance travelled: 1313 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1566 nm
Washing machine. We are living in a washing machine. It's challenging for sure, but we are working really hard to keep morale up. For didn't get much sleep, but I'm feeling fine. We will make sure he gets chances for naps today.
I broke out one of those sticker activity books for the boys today, it's a big hit. I'm continually amazed how the boys just take the uncomfortable conditions in stride. They don't complain and are really good about finding things to do. I'm trying really hard to be present so I can enjoy it too.
I plan to make a pot of thick soup or chili today so it will stay in a bowl without sloshing around. Besides that, it's cold! Soup would taste really good. I thought sailing in the trade winds was supposed to be warm and comfortable...not turning out that way so far. The farther we've gotten from Mexico, the colder we've been. I started off night watches just wearing a light windblocking fleece and my foul weather pants just in case I got wet, my feet were bare. Now I'm bundled up in all my foul weather gear plus wool socks (and sandals, so fashionable!), hat, gloves and neck gaiter. I really hope I don't have to pull my boots and long johns out by the time we get to Hawaii!
We are rapidly approaching the halfway mark to Hilo. It looks like we will hit it tomorrow, wonder what we can do to celebrate?
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Day 10 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/12/16: 20 14.8518 N 125 15.2470 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 129 nm
Total distance travelled: 1186 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1692 nm
Yesterday continued to be rocky and rolly and it was difficult to do anything but hold on. Morale among the adult members of the crew suffers in conditions like that, but we were able to temper it a bit. This morning we changed headings and are now running downwind. The swell is still with us, and we are rolling around a bit, but the motion is much better.
For the first time since we left Banderas Bay, our weather routing software (predict wind), which forecasts as far as 14 days out showed us getting to Hilo within that window. Conditions will likely change, and it looks like the model may have our boat speed a bit high, so the prediction likely won't come to be, but it still feels like a milestone.
Noon to noon distance travelled: 129 nm
Total distance travelled: 1186 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1692 nm
Yesterday continued to be rocky and rolly and it was difficult to do anything but hold on. Morale among the adult members of the crew suffers in conditions like that, but we were able to temper it a bit. This morning we changed headings and are now running downwind. The swell is still with us, and we are rolling around a bit, but the motion is much better.
For the first time since we left Banderas Bay, our weather routing software (predict wind), which forecasts as far as 14 days out showed us getting to Hilo within that window. Conditions will likely change, and it looks like the model may have our boat speed a bit high, so the prediction likely won't come to be, but it still feels like a milestone.
Monday, April 11, 2016
Day 9 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/11/16: 19 54.8224 N 123 00.3721 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 126 nm
Total distance travelled: 1057 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1821 nm
What a big mileage day! Also, we broke through the 1000 mile mark, fantastic! It was a glorious day yesterday, just scooting along on a beam reach, all day, no adjustments to sails, wind vane or tiller needed. It was sunny but the breeze kept it cool. Perfect.
By the time it got dark last night the swell had increased and we had a pretty bumpy night. Bummer. The swell is still up, but we are at a better angle to it and are more comfortable. The boat being bumped around really impacts moods for both Tor and me. Morale was a bit low when we all woke up this morning, but I got a nap, Tor got some alone time on deck and we are all feeling more centered. I should say, the adults are feeling more centered, boys weren't really impacted in the first place. Happy as clams those two.
Making tracks to Hilo and so happy!
Noon to noon distance travelled: 126 nm
Total distance travelled: 1057 nm
Distance to Hilo: 1821 nm
What a big mileage day! Also, we broke through the 1000 mile mark, fantastic! It was a glorious day yesterday, just scooting along on a beam reach, all day, no adjustments to sails, wind vane or tiller needed. It was sunny but the breeze kept it cool. Perfect.
By the time it got dark last night the swell had increased and we had a pretty bumpy night. Bummer. The swell is still up, but we are at a better angle to it and are more comfortable. The boat being bumped around really impacts moods for both Tor and me. Morale was a bit low when we all woke up this morning, but I got a nap, Tor got some alone time on deck and we are all feeling more centered. I should say, the adults are feeling more centered, boys weren't really impacted in the first place. Happy as clams those two.
Making tracks to Hilo and so happy!
Sunday, April 10, 2016
Day 8 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 117 nm
Total distance travelled: 931 nm
We've crossed over into the Pacific time zone! Yet another marker of progress towards Hawaii, only 2 more time zones to go! Our noon to noon distance is artificially inflated because we are going by local time on this little ship of ours, so by crossing over into a new time zone we gained an hour. Even though the number is slightly inflated, we are still making great progress. The wind is steadily on our beam at about 10 kts and we are having a nice, comfortable ride day in and day out.
I'm starting to realize that I under provisioned on some fresh stuff like eggs and carrots, but our supplies of jicama and cabbage are holding out just fine.
I need to get motivated to make some bread and wash some clothes, but there is always tomorrow. I know where I'll be!
The weather models we look at daily are all looking nice and stable, and the weather routing software is suggesting we make our way west and north. The boat wants to sail there, so away we go.
The attached photo shows our junior crew helping us changing from the smaller stays'l we fly at night, to our larger jib we fly during the day. Good crew!
Saturday, April 9, 2016
Day 7 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 125 nm
Total distance travelled: 814 nm
We've been at sea for a week already! First of many milestones. We had a special celebration breakfast, apple cake/ bread. New recipe, not sure I'm enamored, but it was a treat for all of us.
Conditions are pretty light, but we are doing our first real downwind sailing of the trip so far. Nice not to be heeling, but we aren't going super fast. It'll keep Tor busy steering for awhile, the wind vane needs help in light conditions. I will go take a nap :). Lars and Odin are playing Lego for the first time on this voyage, they've been finding so many other things to keep themselves occupied that they haven't even wanted to play Lego up to this point.
So, things are good here. We are just trucking along. The conditions may be light for the next few days, so we will just have to be patient, but we are happy with the progress so far. Less than 2000 miles to go!
Friday, April 8, 2016
Day 6 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/8/16: 18 32.3697 N 116 47.1293W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 97 nm
Total distance travelled: 689 nm
What a difference a day makes. Conditions are good, we are comfortable, and we all got good sleep. Things were feeling pretty bad here yesterday with little sleep and getting bounced all over with the chaotic swell. We are glad to be past it for now.
To ensure we could get as much rest yesterday as possible without having to deal with actually sailing the boat we just double reefed the main, reefed the mizzen and flew the stays'l. It was a hands off sailing day, but it can be seen in our mileage. Less than 100 miles, but morale is good, so it's totally worth it.
We are planning on bathing today, the whole lot of us. Looking forward to it, and I'm sure it will smell better around here!
Noon to noon distance travelled: 97 nm
Total distance travelled: 689 nm
What a difference a day makes. Conditions are good, we are comfortable, and we all got good sleep. Things were feeling pretty bad here yesterday with little sleep and getting bounced all over with the chaotic swell. We are glad to be past it for now.
To ensure we could get as much rest yesterday as possible without having to deal with actually sailing the boat we just double reefed the main, reefed the mizzen and flew the stays'l. It was a hands off sailing day, but it can be seen in our mileage. Less than 100 miles, but morale is good, so it's totally worth it.
We are planning on bathing today, the whole lot of us. Looking forward to it, and I'm sure it will smell better around here!
Thursday, April 7, 2016
Day 5 to Hawaii
Noon to noon distance travelled: 108 nm
Total distance travelled: 592 nm
Tired is the word of the day. After the rough night I mentioned yesterday, we were going to use yesterday to recover. Unfortunately, conditions just kept changing, and as soon as Tor had been trying to nap for 45 minutes, I would need to get him up for a sail change. It happened numerous times, and if we weren't quite so tired, it would have been almost comical.
Tor was able to get some sleep last night, and conditions have improved, so we are trying for a recovery day today. So far it's working I think.
In news from the boat today, I read The BFG to the boys and make it about a chapter before needing to close my eyes, so far the boys have been pretty accepting. We are running the engine to charge up batteries. I think we will be using the power of screen time to get some more rest for the adults, we have lots of movies on our laptop which is charging right now while the engine is on. I'm trying something new, attaching a photo to this post, I hope it works, if it does, this is what our berth looks like right now :).
Nothing much else exciting around here. We are looking forward to different sailing conditions so we can get more rest and have the boys start enjoying time out of our berth where the have sequestered themselves.
Believe it or not, things are actually good here. We are making miles, everyone is happy and we've got lots of good food to eat. Just a bit tired, and when we get caught up, I suspect that everything will seem a bit rosier.
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Day 4 to Hawaii
Noon position 4/6/16: 19 09.9380 N 113 20.2755 W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 129 nm
Total distance travelled: 484 nm
We spent most of yesterday afternoon reaching, which this boat loves. The swell was low, and the wind was brisk which led to a very comfortable, very fast afternoon. 50 of the miles covered were in the first 8 hours of 24. Speedy!
Around dark we decided to reduce sail, the wind picked up and it was feeling just on the edge of comfort. With a 6 foot long bowsprit with our jib hanked on to the end of it, we've learned it's not much fun to try and take down in any sort of a sea state, or when the wind is really piping. So we got the jib down and were running under reefed main and mizzen alone. It was getting dark and boys were ready for bed, so we decided not to hank on the stays'l. We were sailing along just fine, Tor on deck and the boys and I down below reading the BFG by Roald Dahl (great book!). About a chapter in, the seastate picked up and was confused and really uncomfortable. We were bouncing around a lot. It felt pretty chaotic on deck, so Tor decided to let me keep sleeping below with the boys, and he stayed up on deck all night. He caught sleep here and there by laying down in the hard steel deck, whatta guy!
This though is where our decision to not hank on the stays'l proved to be unfortunate. With just the main and the mizzen flying, the rig was a bit unbalanced. Twice in the night the seastate tossed us about so much that the windvane was overpowered and we found ourselves pointed directly into the wind, in irons. We were stuck so well that we had to turn the engine on to give us enough maneuverability to fall off and keep sailing. With a headsail, we probably wouldn't have run into that problem, but hey, we are always learning!
This morning we are still sailing along (yes, with a headsail) and playing catch up. Things are still pretty bouncy so the boys are choosing to stay in our berth looking at Where's Waldo books and Tor is sleeping. The wind has moderated, so hopefully the seastate will follow suit and we will all feel a bit better soon.
Noon to noon distance travelled: 129 nm
Total distance travelled: 484 nm
We spent most of yesterday afternoon reaching, which this boat loves. The swell was low, and the wind was brisk which led to a very comfortable, very fast afternoon. 50 of the miles covered were in the first 8 hours of 24. Speedy!
Around dark we decided to reduce sail, the wind picked up and it was feeling just on the edge of comfort. With a 6 foot long bowsprit with our jib hanked on to the end of it, we've learned it's not much fun to try and take down in any sort of a sea state, or when the wind is really piping. So we got the jib down and were running under reefed main and mizzen alone. It was getting dark and boys were ready for bed, so we decided not to hank on the stays'l. We were sailing along just fine, Tor on deck and the boys and I down below reading the BFG by Roald Dahl (great book!). About a chapter in, the seastate picked up and was confused and really uncomfortable. We were bouncing around a lot. It felt pretty chaotic on deck, so Tor decided to let me keep sleeping below with the boys, and he stayed up on deck all night. He caught sleep here and there by laying down in the hard steel deck, whatta guy!
This though is where our decision to not hank on the stays'l proved to be unfortunate. With just the main and the mizzen flying, the rig was a bit unbalanced. Twice in the night the seastate tossed us about so much that the windvane was overpowered and we found ourselves pointed directly into the wind, in irons. We were stuck so well that we had to turn the engine on to give us enough maneuverability to fall off and keep sailing. With a headsail, we probably wouldn't have run into that problem, but hey, we are always learning!
This morning we are still sailing along (yes, with a headsail) and playing catch up. Things are still pretty bouncy so the boys are choosing to stay in our berth looking at Where's Waldo books and Tor is sleeping. The wind has moderated, so hopefully the seastate will follow suit and we will all feel a bit better soon.
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
day 3 to Hawaii
4/5/16 noon position: 19 deg 42' 20.663" N 111 deg 10' 33.228" W
Noon to noon distance travelled: 108 nm
The wind has been steady for us, and we are ticking down the miles. Merlin our windvane has been doing all the hard work steering, so we just get to live our lives as usual, but our house is moving. It got a little boisterous this morning, and sea sickness briefly returned for Odin, but he went right back to playing, and more accurately pestering Lars, so I think he was feeling just fine.
I got a solid 5.5 hours of sleep last night, and a short nap this morning, but unlike yesterday my energy levels are pretty low. Unfortunately that means my patience reserves are low too, and I've been getting pretty irritated with the well rested boys. Makes me, and them feel bad, so I will try to get a nap in this afternoon and hopefully have more energy and be less crabby!
Tor is making lunch and I'm taking advantage of some quiet time in the cockpit. Phew! Get it when you can on a 32' boat!
All is well for our little crew and we are excited about our progress so far.
Noon to noon distance travelled: 108 nm
The wind has been steady for us, and we are ticking down the miles. Merlin our windvane has been doing all the hard work steering, so we just get to live our lives as usual, but our house is moving. It got a little boisterous this morning, and sea sickness briefly returned for Odin, but he went right back to playing, and more accurately pestering Lars, so I think he was feeling just fine.
I got a solid 5.5 hours of sleep last night, and a short nap this morning, but unlike yesterday my energy levels are pretty low. Unfortunately that means my patience reserves are low too, and I've been getting pretty irritated with the well rested boys. Makes me, and them feel bad, so I will try to get a nap in this afternoon and hopefully have more energy and be less crabby!
Tor is making lunch and I'm taking advantage of some quiet time in the cockpit. Phew! Get it when you can on a 32' boat!
All is well for our little crew and we are excited about our progress so far.
Monday, April 4, 2016
Day 2 to Hawaii
Noon position: 19 39.3371 N 109 18.2130 W
Miles travelled in last (slightly more than) 24 hr period: 104
Sea legs seem to be well on their way to our little ship in the big blue ocean. Conditions calmed down considerably and Lars and Odin have been able to keep food and drink down, whew. When tummies are happier, spirits are higher.
Of course the moderating conditions came at the expense of wind to sail. We brought out the light air sails to keep things moving even though the downwind sails meant we made more south than we really wanted to, but it was pretty slow, so not too much!
Overnight we motored slowly and this morning turned the motor off for more good sailing. Currently conditions are looking like we might be getting into the light air sail category again.
All is well on our little ship!
Miles travelled in last (slightly more than) 24 hr period: 104
Sea legs seem to be well on their way to our little ship in the big blue ocean. Conditions calmed down considerably and Lars and Odin have been able to keep food and drink down, whew. When tummies are happier, spirits are higher.
Of course the moderating conditions came at the expense of wind to sail. We brought out the light air sails to keep things moving even though the downwind sails meant we made more south than we really wanted to, but it was pretty slow, so not too much!
Overnight we motored slowly and this morning turned the motor off for more good sailing. Currently conditions are looking like we might be getting into the light air sail category again.
All is well on our little ship!
Sunday, April 3, 2016
Day 1 Position Report
At noon today we are at a position of 19 48.7494 N 107 33.071 W. Since leaving Puerto Vallarta yesterday around 10:30 am, we've made it 143 miles! Not a bad first day.
The sailing yesterday and last night was fairly boisterous. We were close reaching so had a fair bit of heel, and the seas were pretty rocky and rolly. We definitely had to hold on, but we were flying, staying above 6 kts all night. It felt great to be ticking miles off even if the ride wasn't very comfortable. Conditions have moderated this morning and we are only doing about 4 kts, but the ride is much more comfortable and we are still making progress to Hawaii.
We are very much in the adjustment to life at sea phase. Both Odin and Lars have stayed in our berth down below since about an hour after we left. Odin has been pretty seasick, but now that conditions have mellowed, he seems to be keeping liquids down. Thank goodness for ginger ale. Lars seems to be feeling better, but about an hour ago he vomited spectacularly, however his spirits are great and they will both be getting their sea legs soon. I feel great, if a little sleepy and Tor is doing okay as long as he is on deck.
All in all things are going quite well, but I look forward to everyone having their sea legs and being able to go on with normal life albeit at sea on a small boat.
I had a new experience on night watch last night, two squid somehow landed on deck. Unfortunately I discovered one of them by stepping on it and squishing it all over the deck. Ick.
The sailing yesterday and last night was fairly boisterous. We were close reaching so had a fair bit of heel, and the seas were pretty rocky and rolly. We definitely had to hold on, but we were flying, staying above 6 kts all night. It felt great to be ticking miles off even if the ride wasn't very comfortable. Conditions have moderated this morning and we are only doing about 4 kts, but the ride is much more comfortable and we are still making progress to Hawaii.
We are very much in the adjustment to life at sea phase. Both Odin and Lars have stayed in our berth down below since about an hour after we left. Odin has been pretty seasick, but now that conditions have mellowed, he seems to be keeping liquids down. Thank goodness for ginger ale. Lars seems to be feeling better, but about an hour ago he vomited spectacularly, however his spirits are great and they will both be getting their sea legs soon. I feel great, if a little sleepy and Tor is doing okay as long as he is on deck.
All in all things are going quite well, but I look forward to everyone having their sea legs and being able to go on with normal life albeit at sea on a small boat.
I had a new experience on night watch last night, two squid somehow landed on deck. Unfortunately I discovered one of them by stepping on it and squishing it all over the deck. Ick.
Saturday, April 2, 2016
Leaving Mexico
Our time remaining in Mexico is coming to a close, sniff! We sure have loved it, but it's time to head out on new adventures. We have our final checkout inspection with Customs scheduled for 9:00 this morning, then we are off to Hawaii! Winds aren't shaping up for a fast passage, but we will have plenty of food.
The to do list is mostly crossed off, so we are feeling pretty ready, some final stowing so we are ready for sea and then it will be good enough. A week ago, we left La Cruz for the Marina in Puerto Vallarta in order to be closer to provisioning stores, and be away from the distractions of La Cruz, We have been able to get a lot of work done while still having time to do some exploring in Puerto Vallarta. Old town is great, as is the Zona Romantica and we've had some really good, shrimp heavy meals.
Riki Tiki Tavi came down from La Cruz for a last good visit and to see us off. It's been wonderful to be with them, our families have become very, very close. But we are starting to experience that terrible part of cruising, saying goodbye to dear friends. Odin is bereft about saying goodbye to Neli and Liam. He was totally exhausted night before last which certainly compounded things, but he basically cried himself to sleep. I rubbed his back until he fell asleep for the first time since he was a toddler. Tough, tough, tough!
But, we are excited about the passage, and excited about Hawaii. We have two newly minted swimmers that will be ready for snorkeling when we get there! Can't wait for some family snorkel time! They also have been able to try out boogie boarding, so I think that once we get to Hawaii, Yare will be sporting a couple of new boards for lots of beach play.
The passage is about 2800 miles and given that winds aren't shaping up for a fast passage, we are guessing it'll take us close to 4 weeks to get there. We have plenty of food, and I hope reading material! I plan to post to the blog from our satellite phone daily with a short update of our position and progress towards our goal, plus anything else that seems noteworthy :).
I hope to have time to catch up on the blog while we are at sea, we've had a wonderful time in and around Banderas Bay since we last posted. But I haven't even had time to download photos from the camera, let alone blog over the last month.
We're off!
The to do list is mostly crossed off, so we are feeling pretty ready, some final stowing so we are ready for sea and then it will be good enough. A week ago, we left La Cruz for the Marina in Puerto Vallarta in order to be closer to provisioning stores, and be away from the distractions of La Cruz, We have been able to get a lot of work done while still having time to do some exploring in Puerto Vallarta. Old town is great, as is the Zona Romantica and we've had some really good, shrimp heavy meals.
Riki Tiki Tavi came down from La Cruz for a last good visit and to see us off. It's been wonderful to be with them, our families have become very, very close. But we are starting to experience that terrible part of cruising, saying goodbye to dear friends. Odin is bereft about saying goodbye to Neli and Liam. He was totally exhausted night before last which certainly compounded things, but he basically cried himself to sleep. I rubbed his back until he fell asleep for the first time since he was a toddler. Tough, tough, tough!
But, we are excited about the passage, and excited about Hawaii. We have two newly minted swimmers that will be ready for snorkeling when we get there! Can't wait for some family snorkel time! They also have been able to try out boogie boarding, so I think that once we get to Hawaii, Yare will be sporting a couple of new boards for lots of beach play.
The passage is about 2800 miles and given that winds aren't shaping up for a fast passage, we are guessing it'll take us close to 4 weeks to get there. We have plenty of food, and I hope reading material! I plan to post to the blog from our satellite phone daily with a short update of our position and progress towards our goal, plus anything else that seems noteworthy :).
I hope to have time to catch up on the blog while we are at sea, we've had a wonderful time in and around Banderas Bay since we last posted. But I haven't even had time to download photos from the camera, let alone blog over the last month.
We're off!
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