Archive | March, 2016

How do you provision your boat?
A buying spree at the box store or sourcing local food products? Our new French friends have a great ability to save money and eat healthy. They collect their own papaya, mangos, bananas, shrimp, crabs, fish, lobster and hot peppers. (I think some of this is a moral grey area driven by land ownership).
Others pick their own fruits and vegetables, but what impressed me with our friends was their purchase of a hen for fresh eggs. The previous time they tried this, while cruising Senegal, the plan failed because they bought a male. However this bird is also not producing eggs due to stress. The bulk of her life has been passage making over 3,000 miles of rolly seas. Tonight while at their boat for drinks we noticed that live crabs were trying to break out of the cage and attack the hen. I doubt the hen will ever become relaxed. I was tense aboard their boat when I was shown his collection of 8 spear guns. I was told such a large collection is necessary.
I really enjoy their company despite the fact that I understand about 30% of what they say in French. I did learn his previous job was driving the Metro for the line which stopped close to our autumn rental apartment. Small world.

Planing ahead for a problem?
Friends on a Maverick brand catamaran were describing their back up method for operating their windlass. They had a special handle created to operate the windlass manually. Our windlass has no manual operating mode, so if the motor dies then I must haul it up by hand. This got me thinking and I might have a solution. With the chain locker open I could use the self tacking jib sheet to raise the chain. The sheet has a shackle and I would attach a chain hook to the sheet. Then I would attach the hook to the chain where it exits the hausepipe and use the cockpit winch to pull up 3 feet of chain. Then apply the chain brake and move the hook 3 feet forward. A slow deliberate process but I think it would work. Better mousetrap?

Pilot Grounded
Today I took the drone for a spin. I took off from the bow and was practicing my hovering skills. A puff came. The copter slipped aft. I did not give it enough power. In slow motion I saw the blade catch the shroud and fall towards the deck. It came straight to me as if on the war path with the blades still spinning. I kept giving it the off signal but it took a while to respond. The good news is the copter survived but I will now try the spare blades. Gail was worried it might damage the shrouds that hold up the mast. No worries they did not even notice the impact. Steel beats plastic.

Yesterday, there was a boat approaching our anchorage in distress on the VHF radio. It was a 35 foot Catalina, a boat designed for coastal day sailing and often maligned as a blue water boat. They had left Panama 38 days ago with a Captain and two crew. Fifteen days into the journey, the starboard inner shroud (holds up the mast) parted. There are additional shrouds that secure the mast so the rig did not fall down, but this is a perilous situation for a boat 1,000 miles from land and 2,000 miles from their destination. The crew used lines to secure the broken shroud and kept sailing towards the Marquesas with only a jib. The trip became a blur. The boat traveled at 4 knots and sometimes slower. The crew started forgetting the date and long ago ran out of their favorite provisions. Spirits stayed strong among the three men that had only met a week before setting sail. Then with only two days left to arrive in Hiva Oa, Marquesas, the port shroud failed. Again, a repair was fashioned before the mast came crashing down. The crew contacted the French Polynesian Coast Guard to inform the rescue services of their predicament and plan. However, this is not the Long Island Sound. While there was onshore coast guard presence, one of the monitors was a man in a building 1,000 miles away in Tahiti. When they got close to Hiva Oa, I launched One Fish to greet them and show them their way into the harbor. I did not help but it was a simple act of sailing fellowship. They were effusive with their thank you’s. I was the first new face in over a month. They asked a few questions and I responded on the radio. The emergency services guy 1,000 miles away then radio’d to tell me I was in violation of international law and faced possible fines for speaking on the emergency channel. I stopped speaking on the radio and shouted over to the boat. I was inspired to help by the actions of another catamaran from the same harbor.

The previous night a UK flagged catamaran was on the radio having a fit. Here are the facts that I pieced together leading to their radio outburst. At dusk a rally boat came into the crowded inner harbor, which is full of bow anchors, stern anchors and marker buoys for both anchors. It is a complex crowded mess of boats and lines. The new boat had a tough time anchoring and in the process wrapped a line around their rudder and prop. They lost control of their boat and slowly drifted into the UK cat. It was cocktail hour and the Brits were enjoying plenty of libations. They were rightfully shocked and annoyed by this contact. It is very disturbing and distressing to have a large object bump into one’s home. However, the UK cat’s next steps caused them to fall out of my favor. They got on the radio and yelled at rally control. Telling rally control that the offending skipper was incompetent. Basically they just vented with no purpose. Rally control asked several times what assistance was required and the only response from the UK cat was more complaining. Plenty of rally boats had launched their dinghy’s and were helping solve the problem. The UK cat was just creating a bunch of useless noise on the radio. They then stated that ALL rally boats were not good enough sailors to be allowed to anchor in this harbor. Rally boats were in his mind incompetent. Every captain has a bad day and needs a hand but this UK cat powered by booze had determined that he was better than all of us. Instead of yelling at him on the radio I decided to make a deposit in the Karma bank the next time I had a chance.

Enough harbor gossip. We left soon after the excitement and sailed overnight with just Gail and I. Our watch schedule was 4 hours Jason then 2 hours Gail. During the middle of my second watch I shouted out rain and Gail came on deck. I love the fact she is always willing to help. I was trying to install the enclosure and was thankful for the second set of hands. The breeze was freshening with the arrival of the rain squall. Gail also helped me switch the screecher for a single-reefed genoa. This squall was the first one to catch us after 2 hours of dodging squalls on the radar. I jibed, slowed the boat and changed course to avoid half a dozen other rain cells. This cell was too big to avoid. The rain came in buckets and in minutes our 5 gallon rain capture jug was full. The boom was acting like a downspout sending a torrent towards the base of the mast. After 30 minutes we sailed out of the cell. A few hours later and we sailed by Ua Pou island. It has a dramatic profile as if it was drawn by a cartoonist for the home of an evil sorcerer. The pointy spires were made more dramatic by the early morning light obscuring the colors. We sailed on to Nuku Hiva and found a perfect bay.

Daniel’s Bay has pond-like flat waters and many places to anchor. I am ok with the bugs as a cost for calm waters. The ARC has certain rendezvous harbors. They are chosen to optimize access to resources (laundry, food, wifi, fuel and boat parts). My advice is to minimize your time at these harbors as the romance of these harbors has been overtaken by commerce. Daniel’s Bay also offers a fantastic hike. One day I was paddle-boarding the harbor and a younger French couple waved hello. I paddled closer by to say Bonjour. As I approached, I realized he was in his birthday suit. We continued to chat and I learned they had sailed from Paris. Later in the day he came by Two Fish in his dinghy and caught me in my birthday suit as I was exiting the shower. It was decided, after I put on clothes, that we would hike the waterfall (cascade in French) together the next day. It was a memorable hike with dramatic scenery in a remote area. The waterfall is one of the highest in the world. The bay also has many types of rays which I have enjoyed watching while paddle-boarding. It is rumored to be a shark nursery and has thus curtailed my swimming activities.

Today was a work day on Two Fish. We changed 7 fuel filters (twin racors on port and starboard, 1 secondary on each engine, 1 racor for the genset). We also changed 4 filters for the water marker (25 micron, 5 micron, charcoal and fresh water flush filter). Our water is tasting great, especially since the new membrane. I also fixed the annoying fuel gauge on port only to have starboard act up in the afternoon. Must figure out a better way to secure spade electrical connectors that are shaken by the engine. The house batteries also got topped up with more water. We have ordered new engine starter batteries from a shop in Tahiti. I am a huge fan of preventive maintenance. Duct tape solutions just annoy me since you will only have to fix it again soon.

Our cockpit has a full enclosure which we have sung the praises of many times. Great in cold weather, rainy weather and breezy weather. We also own a replica of the enclosure made of only textaline. It makes our cockpit into a screened porch. After 2.5 years we finally installed the alternate enclosure. It is great for hot buggy days. We have guests for drinks tonight and will keep the enclosure installed for the buggy cocktail hours.

In one week we will leave the Marquesas. I hope we get a chance to buy a tapas, a local type of art. We will sail with friends from the yacht club to the Tuomotos. The rally has no set schedule so we can choose any of the 78 atolls. I will skip that atolls that are glowing with radiation from French nuclear tests. I state this with disdain but America has also ruined its share of South Pacific Islands. We have a Tuomotos plan but you will have to wait to see where we go on the tracker. By the end of April we should reach Tahiti. It will be our first Marina since the Caribbean. The boat will enjoy a thorough wash, the sails a bit of attention from the sailmaker, the batteries a trickle charge and Gail hop on/hop off access. Tahiti is halfway by days and 2/3rds by miles of our trip.

Very happy to be here. Hope your day is just as nice.

Photos are Gail in front of waterfall and Two Fish in an empty Daniel’s bay

jason
www.twofishcat.com

Our 3,000 mile trip ended with a whimper. The breeze died out 40 miles from Fatu Hiva and we sparked up our engines. The passage was over and I had an odd feeling. Like a guest had left. Yes, it is nice to have peace and quiet, but I already missed our guest, the long passage.

Fatu Hiva’s harbor is dramatic. First named penis bay by the locals but renamed under pressure from the missionaries Bay of Virgins. The locals got it right as the bay is surrounded by phallic shaped rocks. The cone-shaped bay is carved out of a steep rock gorge resulting in frequent strong gusts. We were greeted by a few boats already in the harbor offering advice “don’t anchor near me”. One Speedo clad Frenchman had lots to say and proposed we anchor in a tiny space near the rocks with pounding surf. “C’est trop petite pour mois” (it is too small for me) was my reply. We slowly toured the harbor until we found a spot we liked. 25.5 meters deep. It takes forever for the anchor to touch the bottom. I called for 5 to 1 scope which is 125 meters of rode. Gail pressed the down button on the windlass for what seemed like an hour. We typically anchor in 5 meters so this was a big change. By the time we had let out all the required rode it seemed like our anchor was on another island. Gail did a great job tying a rolling hitch to the nylon rode from our anchor bridle. With the strong puffs the bridle makes the boat much more stable. After a few libations to celebrate the passage (lemonade) we then finished up our anchoring process by backing down on the anchor with the engines. Finally we tossed the diver (me) into the water. Because of the extreme depth I was in SCUBA mode. I followed the nylon rode down into the clean blue water. I felt like I was falling through the atmosphere of Neptune. Two yellowfin tuna swam by and gave me an incredulous look. I reached the bottom at 33 meters. 42 meters is the maximum suggested depth for a recreational diver. I continued to follow the anchor rode, which now had switched from nylon to 5/16 chain. The chain was lying on the upwardly sloping bottom. I was literally swimming uphill. Salmon may relate to that sentence more than humans. At the end of the long swim, I was greeted by an anchor securely stuck into a dark grey muddy sand mixture.

The next day we headed to shore for our first time on land in 19 days. Unlike astronauts, our legs worked just fine. Also, we did not feel the land moving like some folks experience after an afternoon sail. We went in search of a 100 foot waterfall but got lost in the two road town and instead went for a multi-hour uphill march. From the top we could see Two Fish and took the requisite boat owner photos. We noticed two things right away about Fatu Hiva. First, it is very clean. No trash in the culverts, all the lawns and roadsides are mowed and all the houses kept organized – even the coconut drying platforms. Secondly, the residents are friendly. We got a language lesson from one resident, an offer to come by another person’s house and were offered a ride during our arduous hike. I declined the ride before anyone in our party had second thoughts.

I have attached some photos to this post. It is hit or miss if the satellite will accept the data load. However, they do not do justice to the color green. Two-thirds of the island is green. But so many different greens. Many look like an amateur photographer’s Photoshop experiment. The greens are so vibrant that it can not be nature’s palette. Rothko should come here before painting a study of green.

We will stay here another day unless the authorities kick us out as we need to go to Hiva Oa to check into French Polynesia. I dread Hiva Oa because the swarm of rally boats together with a tiny harbor and required stern anchoring will surely give me some angst. I continue to moan about it, but the ARC oversold this rally. That is one of the reasons we did not follow the other 31 boats directly to Hiva Oa and blazed our own path to Fatu Hiva.

Our total transit time was about 18 days and 2 hours which is just shy of an Antares’ record. However I need to see if the record holder left from a closer island than our start. Actually, who cares. Great sail with a great crew. And Fatu Hiva is a special place because of the people, the green and the lack of an airport.

A Pae,
jason

www.twofishcat.com

Ups and Downs of a Long Passage

If you get annoyed waiting for an elevator or find the money machine too slow then a 3,000 mile passage is the right medicine. It will cure you of the “rush rush” anxiety. Miles come slowly on a sailboat and other times they come very slowly. On watches I tend to watch the bursting blue of the cresting waves, look at the complex clouds releasing energy and observe the feeding sea birds. This can occupy an entire 2 hour watch. The sea birds look carefree as they skim the surface of the ocean. However, I suspect a bird is terrified because one lost meal and they will perish in the remote ocean. The bird plays a dangerous game of hunting at sea where harbors and help are too far away to offer any hope. Two Fish and her crew know this fact as well but it is not discussed. Instead we carry spares, stay in contact with other boats and sail the boat conservatively. We do not want to be another sea bird statistic.

Two days ago we discovered an issue with the engine. It was a simple fix but consumed most of my day. Thankfully, Tim was on board coaching me through the problem. Tim does not get stressed. The engine room work was hot and by dinner time I was exhausted physically and emotionally. Robin had steered the boat wing on wing for most of the day, which is not easy. Gail made the most wonderful dinner along with some brownies to lift spirits during the day. Black bean burgers with homemade hummus and guacamole on homemade flat bread. Just writing about the meal makes me hungry. Each couple is in charge of the galley for 3 day periods. When we are not on galley duty, I refer to it as going out to dinner. Tim and Robin have prepared some great dishes (chicken curry with homemade naan, beer battered wahoo from the ocean and a pizza with homemade dough).

During watch my mind dwells on the massive size of the ocean. A wave passes by and lifts the hull of Two Fish. This wave came unfettered from the southern ocean 3,000 miles away. The height of the wave has dropped during the long trip north, the water temperature has risen and even the salinity has changed by a tiny amount. Like mammals owning the land the ocean is owned by the waves. Unstoppable and endless.

The ocean is rich in nutrients that feed an ecosystem. Early in the voyage we had freeloading red footed boobies as stowaways on the bow. For the past two weeks our stowaways are farther down the food chain. We had grass grow on the back steps. I went down the steps to remove the grass with a scrub brush and misjudged the grass’s slipperiness. I almost fell into the ocean. I held firmly to the arch while vigorously scrubbing. Darwin would observe that this grass has evolved to fight cruisers scrub brushes. The Galapagos was concerned about Two Fish importing non native species, but Gail has been more concerned with the Galapagos giving us species. A few moths and many waterline plants are the current tally of “gifts” from the Galapagos. Should I mail them back?

Last night we had a large electrical storm 15 miles away. It was due north so I was confident that it would move away from the path of Two Fish. Gail protected our back-up navigation equipment in the oven but changed to the microwave after concerns of the oven being still warm from dinner. A large series of rain clouds ruined the evening of sailing. We lost our wind, forcing us to motor. The waves were from an uncomfortable angle which caused me to swear a few times. The morning brought us clear skies and a wind determined to push us to Fatu Hiva.

I noticed some rust forming at the bow pulpit. Stainless steel rusts when far from the unlimited marina water. But this seemed to be rusting faster than usual since I had just polished the stainless in the Galapagos. During my nap I figured out that the power cable from the hyrdo-generator was creating enough amps to create a circuit with the lifelines. I removed the rust, re-polished the stainless and added foam insulation to keep the stray amps away from the handrails. I will monitor this modification.

We just changed the clocks, making this our third time zone change for this voyage. We will hold off on the last half hour change until we anchor. We have been sailing for 16 days. What milestones have passed in your world during the past fortnight? A new crisis at work, a friend’s birthday or the US election cycle. The good and the bad of our land lives does not make it across the waves to Two Fish. Instead we think of time in 3 day increments (galley rotation) and 6 hour increments (time to next watch). Our past weeks have been dominated by the wind. We talk of the wind all day as it drives our motion, ruins our sleep and is our livelihood. We are harvesting the wind. We busy our selves with checking for chafing lines, rigging issues and the fitness of our craft. She has sailed many miles and seems happiest at sea.

Other boats have had issues on the passage. The most serious is broken steering hydraulics. The factory back in France is trying to help the crew of the cat fix the problem. Luckily the autopilot is still working just fine, fingers crossed for them. We are still annoyed by having a broken wind instrument but all will be fixed soon.

We have chosen to go to Fatu Hiva but are hoping for a kinder island than the one Thor Heyerdahl experienced. He saw elphantitis and cannibals. Well actually just a single cannibal.

jason
www.twofishcat.com

Being a long passage (i.e. over 2 weeks) rookie, I am learning the tricks of the trade.

1 Provision with fun food
I am now into baking, a phenomenon that is unlikely to continue at altitudes of more than zero feet. I am looking forward to making pretzels and enjoyed baking the Irish soda bread. Also have easy to eat food for when the passage gets ugly.

2 You will get your Sea Legs
As the days pass you do get more comfortable with the motion. I better anticipate the waves shepherding me into the sides of the boat. I have gotten comfortable with sleeping in spurts. I constantly feel a bit tired like I am on the third leg of a long series of connecting flights. Ignoring the discomfort, I focus on the positives. The ocean views, the fresh air, the warm equatorial sun and a nice book are all perks of the passage.

3 Pace yourself
Early in a passage it is easy to burn out. Captains try to stay on top of every detail. Relax a bit. Outsource some. Stay on top of the key issues. I like to have the maximum amount of sail area flying. However, this means I sleep with an eye open looking at the remote display on my iPhone. Not great for resting and enjoying life. Maybe I should take it down a notch?

4 Have fun doing some boat repair
Today we fixed a problem with the vang. One of the vang blocks had lost its ability to rotate. WD40 fixed that problem but I also added a pennant to the vang to shift it to a better location to avoid contact with the extrusion. I hog-ringed a new bit of bungee on the toe rail block. The last piece had been tied on and a strong gust untied the bungee. Gail and I patched some pinholes in the spinnaker. We used sail tape but when I see a sail maker I will have a proper patch sewn on.

5 Savor Night passages
Great time to sit on the back bench and observe the parade of stars. The nights are warm enough that even my thin blood does not require an extra layer. I situate myself away from the bright chartplotter screens and imagine that I am crossing the Pacific in a different era. A Polynesian, an early English explorer or a WWII ship.

6 Use water
We take fresh water showers on the back steps as the seas have been lumpy. There is a large storm far south of us creating abnormally large waves from the east. In the southern ocean the waves were mountains but during their many thousand mile trip to our location that have eroded to hills. We ran the washing machine, which is a must on long passages.

Random thoughts from Gail
Things that have made this passage enjoyable: Audiobooks. I get a headache if I read at sea so I downloaded a few audiobooks before we left. Books and music are great ways to pass the time. Now that we have a hydrogenerator, we can keep the inverter on more. This means coffee and iPhone charging are easy. I started using the Yellow Brick app to send text messages. It is great way to stay in touch with my Mom. I am learning how to better brace myself against the counters in the galley, although I sometimes still need an extra hand to hold the sautee pan on the stovetop.

Notes from the fleet
A few boats have caught very large Marlins. Some were released and some were kept for eating. The largest was reported to be 2 meters long, but I will need a photo to confirm that fishing story. No major dramas on the boats but a few main sails have been torn, a genset stopped working and a handful of autopilots are struggling with the beam seas. Yesterday I found 8 dead flying fish but was not as clever as one rally boat who ate the free bounty. A kid boat used squid that came aboard as a science project. Dissection for biology class and squid ink for art class.

Great Friends solve Two Fish problem from afar

Sailboats have little black cups spinning at the top of the mast which calculate the wind speed. Our unit started to die the day before we left on this 3,000 mile passage. Gail tried a few times to fix it but Furuno advised us that the only solution is to mail it in for service or buy a new one (see previous posts).

So we set sail with the thought that many an ocean have been crossed without a wind speed indicator and we should be fine. I had anticipated this contingency back in Florida and had bought a hand-held wind speed detector. This is not ideal but can at least give us a rough idea of when the breeze peaks and when to reef. Here are the shortfalls:

1) The unit only displays apparent wind, not true wind. In other words, the unit is not smart enough to know the boat is moving. It is like a dog putting his head out of the car window on a highway and thinking “It is really windy on this highway”
2) The existing broken unit shows apparent wind direction but not true wind direction. Again the dog thinks “Wow every time I drive this road the wind is always coming from the hood of the car.”
3) The unit measures wind at deck level. We are used to looking at wind numbers from the top of the mast. The difference in these two numbers can be large due to wind shear. We had observed this wind shear effect while the main unit was still working.

So in short, I needed a formula to convert the data from the handheld into the data that I used to receive from the unit. I sent a note to my friends and was blown away with their kindness. They jumped into action and solved my problem in no time. Thanks guys. You are the best. Here is the solution.

How to convert from deck wind to mast wind:
There is no fixed formula for the wind shear; it depends on wind speed and the contour of the surface. v/v_r = (z/z_r)^alpha.
Where v_r is the speed at reference height z_r.
Alpha varies.
unstable air or stormy alpha is very low 0.06.
Neutral air = 0.1
Stable air = 0.27. (this is for open water.. )
But the effect is strongest in light wind and when it is really blowing, there is not much of an effect.

Next up was some trigonometry. I must have been eating paste that day but Gail seems to remember much more of the class.

True Wind speed ^2 = Boat Speed^2 + Apparent Wind Speed ^2 – 2*BS*AWS*cos(Apparent wind angle) and
TWA = sin^-1(sin(AWA)*AWS/TWS)

I am amazed with the cleverness of my friends. So I built a spreadsheet and then I was back in business with all my important sailing numbers. Nothing beats feeling the wind on deck for approximating wind speed, but the computers can keep you honest. Gail then improved the spreadsheet. First, she made it run on Numbers on my iPhone so I could use it at the helm. Second, she made a cool polar card for easy reference. I am better off than before, but still looking for the new part to arrive in the Marquesas.

Thanks so much friends!!

Rally or Race?

Fueled by my own ego and a bit of encouragement from crew and land friends I can become focused on our rally results. So far we were 3rd on the first leg, left Colombia early on leg 2 to explore the San Blas islands and won leg 3. The credit goes to the speed of the boat and the hard working crew. On this three week leg, we avoided the start so we could just cruise across the Pacific. But after 1,000 miles, we are now in a boat to boat race with another Antares. It has been back and forth and exciting. However, I become obsessed and it reduces my fun factor. So I will try to make this more of a rally and less of a race. I do not want to be tweaking the sails for the next 2,000 miles to Hiva Oa. Last night I hand steered with the chute up for 4 hours; that is not a cruiser’s way of life. I think the ARC could play down the race aspect and increase the fun factor. They have excessively formal starts that seem prone to crashes.

SSB Net

Twice a day the rally fleet is on the radio sharing their position. The process is a bit antiquated but I typically enjoy hearing the familiar voices. I was net controller one day and tried to spice up the format. I read a short bit of news and called people by puns of their boat name. A few boats enjoyed the new format but a European boat said he preferred the traditional format.
Because of the wide mileage separation, our SSB radio reception does not reach across the fleet. This forces boats to relay messages. This is tedious but can also provide some amusement for me as I count down the miles until Hiva Oa. When we reach shore I will discuss with other boats how to make these calls more productive.

Landfall in Fatu Hiva or Hiva Oa

Our friends fly out on the 25th of March. At the start it looked like they would have to use their back up reservation on the 27th. The boat has accelerated and there is a chance that we might arrive on the 20th. (18 days for those who placed bets) This opens up the possibility to visit Fatu Hiva. I am enjoying reading Thor Heyerdahl’s book about his time living with his new wife in a hut in Fatu Hiva. I do wish to return to my Captain Cook books, but I took the curse seriously and have suspended further pages until firmly on land.

Diesel update

During the first few days, I was very stressed that we may not have enough diesel. Our thirteen jerry cans seem to be more than enough but who knows what will come over the horizon. Over 1,880 miles a bunch of things could happen. We are forecast to have 15-17 knots for a day and then the breeze will lessen, but might still be good sailing weather. Actually, Gail would prefer it if the boat speed drops to 8 knots. We are currently stuck in a lumpy, boat-slowing current. I was told by my weather router that we should be helped by the ocean current but instead it is slowing us down. Do you bring your umbrella when the weather man says it will be sunny? Weather routers are no less prone to error than their land-based compatriots.

Hydro generator update- Watt & Sea

After a few installation issues this technology has been great. If you are on a passage, this device adds a bunch of amps to your electrical plan. Last night a large portion of the boat’s load was being covered by the hydrogenerator. This means less noise, less smell and more reserve diesel for light air motoring. The device hangs off the stern like a rudder on a dinghy. It has a pin that holds the unit in position. The pin is designed to break, instead of the unit, if the unit hits a submerged object. However, the pin backs out over time until Gail designed a hair tie to keep the pin in place. The unit has been producing 20 amps when the boat speed is 8 knots.

Navionics

I feel very remote when the most popular iPhone navigation app does not have data for the next 1,000 miles. I realize it would be impossible to run aground in 4,000 meters of water but it is insulting for the app to show this entire region as grey.

Head on Collision

I thought this part of the ocean was empty of boats, but I was wrong. We have seen many Japanese long-line fishing boats. In the past 6 hours we have seen 1 foot floating balls that are missing from Japanese long line fishing equipment. It was not easy communicating with them to confirm the location of their deployed tackle and our intention to cross their bow. Last night, Gail noticed a target on the radar with no AIS beacon. She summoned me on deck and we quickly realized this boat was heading at 15 knost towards our friends on Blue Summit. Blue Summit was in the middle of a watch change which added to the excitement. They had assumed the lights were another rally boat but instead it was a fishing boat at ramming speed. Their radar was in sleep mode to conserve power so we were able to give them advice to turn to starboard. We had a great view of the situation since Gail had engaged the ARPA feature on our radar. ARPA looks at the change in position of a radar target and then places a “boat” on the chart plotter. This boat has an arrow indicating direction and speed. The boat was speedily going to run over our friends. But all was sorted out quickly as both boats adjusted course. I am sure that without our call impact would have been avoided but maybe with more stress.

Screecher

Our friends on Field Trip advised us that their new Screecher was a great addition to the head sail inventory. After recovering from the sticker shock, we bought Black Fish. This sail is hugely versatile. I would recommend all new Antares owners to buy this type of sail rather than the traditional screecher. We have found the sail helpful from 70 degrees AWA to 130 AWA. The sail works in winds from 8 to 24 knots. We tend to put the sail away early as the Genoa’s performance starts to converge with the Screecher in higher winds with less stress.

Car Trip Analogy

1,000 miles completed of our passage at sea. Where is our theoretical road trip from NYC to Miami to LA? We just pulled out of Miami- hopefully after some Cuban food – and are 50 miles north of downtown. We are in bumper to bumper traffic traveling at 8 miles an hour. 2,000 miles until LA!

Cooking

We are not great at preserving fresh food. Our bananas died an early death due to two problems. Excessive sun and blunt force trauma. The hammock full of apples was bashing into the banana hammock. Ouch. Two nights ago, team Kozyboat made an Italian feast with Gail’s home made bread. Big winner. Last night the home team took back the galley and served chili dogs. I would not recommend the canned chili or the hot dogs. But the homemade guacamole and fresh tortilla chips were winners. We try to keep the galley water usage down by using paper plates and individually assigned glasses. Our water budget will fall apart today when I turn on the washing machine. We had some success with water capture during a few rain squalls. Much of that water was used to remove stains left by suicidal squid and flying fish. During the night they board, die and then stain the deck. Robin saved two flying fish last night. Another rally boat ate a the flying fish. I would rather eat the canned chili again.

This trip is an absolute joy. Not always comfortable, but never painful. I want it to go faster but also want it to last longer. I am spared the idiocy of the recent news cycle. I still get a daily email from Reuters and the Economist but can avoid hearing certain candidates speak/lie.

I hope you have a wonderful day.

jason
www.twofiscat.com

In our car trip analogy, (NYC to Miami to LA) we have made it to Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. After driving for 3 continuous days, we are about 400 miles into our 3,000 mile journey. El Nino has slowed our progress as large patches have been windless. And unlike our theoretical car, we can not get out for a BBQ in North Carolina. Instead, we had fresh corn bread with chili last night for dinner. We also baked two loaves of banana bread. This morning we caught a 26 pound (measured with our luggage scale) wahoo. We sent the photo to our fishing guru, who is currently skiing, and he replied a few minutes later with the fish ID. I love technology. Tim opened up the wahoo’s stomach for no particular reason and found the head of a smaller fish. Food chain. Just hope no one opens my stomach or they will discover that I had cookies for breakfast.

How to eat an elephant? One bite at a time. However, this elephant trip is so big I can not see the tail. I am concerned about fuel. Do we have enough to propel us before the trade winds arrive? We have used 20% of our diesel but only traveled 13% of the trip. We are pushing South to find the trade winds and are excited when we get messages from the lead boat that she is in 15-20 knots of breeze. We are trying to go fast because the wind has started to move west. This means the lead boats will get the wind while the trailing boats may have to get mid-ocean passports.

We had the most unusual guests on board for almost 24 hours. Two rare red-footed boobies. They seemed like a couple. One with a much more blue coloring in the beak. They preened, went fishing, slept and allowed close examination. They chose to perch on a perilous rod of metal at the bow. At one point one of the boobies fell but broke its fall by grabbing the rail with a beak. We called(VHF) a nearby rally boat with avid birders for advice. I thought the birds might die, but they are true sea birds and were only grabbing a rest. The next day we turned 10 more degrees south and they flew away. I suppose they thought we might be going to New Zealand.

Marquesan lessons have started on board. We are setting our sights low and just learning hello (kaona). Many of the words are mostly vowels. Kind of the opposite of Eastern Europe.

A big thank you to s/v Field Trip, another Antares. This trip without the new screecher would be hell. We were doing record breaking speed in light air. 70% of windspeed is now possible. If you are buying a new boat get this screecher instead of the standard. The extra surface area and flatter belly really help in our current conditions. I have been flying it straight to my second outboard jib track.

We have heard of a few boats with issues. Widago is back in the Galapagos waiting for a new clark pump for the water maker. We were there 2 years ago. Another had a gooseneck bolt fail but created a temporary fix. And a third can not run their water maker while the engine is running. The cause of that is still a mystery.

We are at the front of the fleet, but the order will shake out based on who gets the trade winds first.

Jason
www.twofishcat.com

As the first day of our long voyage drifts into the record books, I see in sharp relief life onshore versus passage mode. We had our last ice cream, our last laundry, bought as many carrots as we thought might last, weighed anchor and cut our final tether to land, cell service. We are now in the big blue ocean. The earth’s largest ocean. Our 3,000 mile crossing has begun.

El Nino has reduced the trade winds and the weather files encouraged us to fill up every jar with extra diesel. We can motor at 6 knots for 1,100 miles yet still have enough reserve fuel to run the genset to produce drinking water. Like on all passages, the Captain’s job is never formulaic. Sometimes we are fighting current, sometimes dodging weather. But this leg is about conserving resources. Diesel and food are finite. As I write this, I am eating a freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. Gail, who usually stops all galley work while under way, has announced that tomorrow night will be chicken stir fry assuming the weather stays calm. Dishes with fresh vegetables will only be offered during the first week of the voyage.

We are using WRI as the weather router for this leg. Their emails are very colorful but only time will tell how they rank versus Commander’s Weather, Chris Parker and Jennifer “Gulf Stream” Clark. WRI respond quickly to emails but their detailed PDFs take forever to download via Iridium. The file is only 230 kb but this can take an hour to receive.

The rally fleet has broken into three parts. The “long haul truckers” are staying close to the rhumbline in hopes of saving miles and enjoying a more favorable current. My view is they will run out of diesel, never see wind and eventually be eaten by sea birds. The second group are the “dreamers”. They are heading very far south. South of the Society Islands and south of New Zealand. They are going to the South Pole. I trust they will find breeze in the roaring 40s but they will eventually be eaten by a polar bears. The third group are a reasonable, humble and erudite collection of boats. They have perfectly weighed the pros and cons of the potential route and are heading south to find the breeze, knowing the cost is giving up the favorable current. I refer to this group as the “winners”. We are in this third pack.

In my previous life, I flew Singapore to New York in the longest commercial flight, non-stop for 19 hours. In the same seat without touching ground for almost a day. My body clock would slow down, I would read, watch movies and sleep. So far I am employing the same strategy on this three week trip. Make sure to visit our facebook page and place your prediction on our arrival time.

You may be having trouble reading this over the noise of a huge party on Two Fish. We have now sailed 15,000 miles since she was splashed. In those early days, 15,000 miles seemed impossible. Heck, just making it out of the River Plate seemed a major effort. Over time, skills increase and perceptions change. We now look forward to short four night passages. The vastness of the Pacific can be understood when traveling at 6 knots for 3,000 miles.

We enjoyed the wildlife in the Galapagos and upon our exit from Eden we have seen little. We had a wasp in the cockpit and I swatted it; instead of dying it transformed into a moth. It was amazing. At one moment my eye is tracking the wasp while the rolled up paper came crashing on him and the next moment the moth was dancing about. It turns out that the moth had been hiding in a crevice and woke up at the wasp’s death. Optical illusion or a new species? Our other wildlife highlight were birds that spent the evening circling our steaming light. Their bird droppings are bright green. A color so vibrant I would have thought food coloring was involved.

Where are we now? You can check our tracker, but here is another way to track our progress. Imagine we are doing a road trip from NYC to Miami and across to LA. This works out to the same distance as our sail from the Galapagos to the Marquesas, 3,000 nautical miles. Now, imagine that our car is slow. Very slow. Yesterday we averaged 6.9 nautical miles per hour for a total of 166 miles. However, we are only 112 miles closer to Miami because we headed off course to look for wind. What town did we reach on the US East Coast after 24 hours of driving? Cape May, NJ. We visited Cape May on Two Fish and cursed the strong current. This is going to be a long trip.

We press on to the Marquesas and spirits are high aboard Two Fish.

Jason
www.twofishcat.com