Life on Board and Reaching the Doldrums

3/19/15: N 19d 34' 54", w 130d 50' 32", about one third of the way to French Polynesia from San Diego.  Life on board is developing a pattern.  I enjoy my solo sunrise, waiting for Jerry to wake.  His shift should start at 8 am, but he’s rarely able to get to bed right at 2 am when he wakes me for my shift.  He often stays with me for an hour or so, visiting, adjusting the sails, talking strategies if there is a wind shift during my watch.  There is still so much for me to learn.  When he gets up, we talk about the night, the sail set, our heading, the ever present weather, and current lat and long, celebrating each incremental change.  The winds gradually picked up yesterday and ran between 18 and 22 knots.  We were traveling in the high 7 kts. and more.  In a few days, we will get to the ITCZ (pronounced "itch" Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone) where the South Pacific and North Pacific currents meet, causing doldrums in some areas, and squalls in others.  Everything will slow way down except for the brief frenzies of the squalls.

3/21/15: N14d 24' 35", W 130d 46' 08", now about half way there.  We traveled 168 nautical miles (204 miles) yesterday, our personal record.  Trouble tonight.  Just before dark, we discovered a hairline crack in the boom, about half way out.  It could be serious trouble if it hadn't been found, a snapped boom can tear a boat up badly, but checking for things like that are a part of the daily routine.  We look for loose shackles, chafe, cracks, or other wear as a matter of course every day.  We immediately took down the sail and and lashed the boom to prevent any further strain on it.  We radioed our contact in the Marquesas and they will find a welder if we still need one by then.  Winds continue in the 18 to 22 kts. (OK, you Meridian Kids, what's that in mph? 1 knot = 1.2 miles) which is strong and we continue to speed along at 6 - 7 kts. with only the jib, which is partially furled.  We are still rocking hard with 8 - 10 foot swells coming at us from the port side.  It's just fine for sitting around, we can get plenty of core exercise without leaving our seats, but it's a bear for trying to get anything done like laundry, cooking, or boom repair!

We have been sleeping on the settee in the saloon which doesn't rock as much. Think about the difference between the end of a teeter totter and its fulcrum.  The settee is set up with a lee cloth and straps that keep you from falling out of bed in rough seas.  It's very much appreciated!  Every day brings warmer weather.  At night, I still wear my four weather bibs as the cockpit can get a heavy dousing in these waves, but gloves, hat and long johns are packed away!  Hooray!  During the day, it's t-shirts and shorts and 85 degrees in the cabin.  Unfortunately, with these waves, we can't open any of the ports or hatches as we would get doused.  We do point the dorades towards the wind to help.  They are small wind scoops that have a water catch system to help bring a breeze into the cabin without the rain.  They look like fat periscopes sticking above the deck.

3/24/15:  (Happy belated b-day, Lorraine!)  N 6d 18' 34", W 129d 56' 34", now just a third to go, seas are calm with swells still coming to port, but only 3 - 4 feet high.  Last night the squalls began.  They come every few hours.  Sometimes you can see them coming on radar, sometimes a weather cell just materializes.  Winds hit 35 kts. for about three minutes with pouring down rain, then returned to a quiet night dotted with random stars.  The big one tonight again brought high winds, but made "pouring down rain" look like a sprinkle.  The sky emptied for twenty minutes and we spent several hours stuck on the front edge of a weather system, one squall after another.

We saw another sailboat today, the first in over two weeks.  Four French citizens were also on their way to the Marquesas.  It was apparent how fast our boat is compared to others.  I think it has a Porsche for one parent and a Winnebago for the other.  We visited with them briefly, then sailed on ahead.  The doldrums await.

3/26/15: N 4d 48' 22", W 130d 22'25", the doldrums are here!  Most of the stars are obscured, but Saturn is half down the western sky and is so bright, it makes a kind of "moon river" of reflection on the black mirrored night sea.

(PS - 3/27/15 Note for those tending to worry:  the boom has been repaired and they are sailing again with both sails, getting 6 kts. of speed in only 10 kts. of wind.)