Strong winds and big waves here in the South Pacific.
Luckily we have a good boat and a good crew. Some other boats in our radio network are struggling with the conditions. We should arrive at Niue between 8am and noon tomorrow.
As of 12:40 local, 2340 UTC
S 18 35
W 167 47
Speed 6.5 knots
Course 250* magnetic
wind 20-25 knots
waves to 3m+
We have reduced the mainsail to the second reef point, and are rolling the jib in and out as conditions fluctuate. We have to have enough sail area to stabilize the boat from rolling, but not so much as to become overpowered. When the sails are well balanced the windvane steering works perfectly. We hand steer less than 5% of the time.
A 45 foot boat has caught, passed, and dropped us over the last few days. Alas.
We never saw them but heard their position reports on the HF radio.
Martin
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment