St.Helena on the horizon

Yes,we are 30 miles away from St.Helena and should be there at about
08:00 UTC.Call St.Helena Radio,raise our Q flag and wait for the docter
to board our yacht,zap us with his digital thermometer and declare us
healthy.Then we will do the usual customs,immigration and port control
procedures before we take on Jacob's Ladder.Afterwards we will have a
burger and some refreshments at Ann's Place,also arranging a tour for
Tuesday.Returning to the boat we will do some odds and ends,fill the
water tanks and take it from there.If possible we will post a photo or
two on the blog for your enjoyment.All is well on Yacht Synchronicity
with two first time visitors to St.Helena.Neither my crew has crossed
the equator but that we will come to at a later stage.I can assure you
that both of them are looking forward to the little stop ahead even
though they enjoy the ocean immensily.Yesterday was a working day for
us.Filling out diesel tanks,wrapping fenders with plastic bags for extra
protection,packing away the empty diesel containers,washing the aft deck
where the containers stood etc.All just an excuse really to enjoy some
fun in the sun.The wind has been a bit indecisive and sails in sails
out,port tack starboard tack and motoring for most part of the day.It
always seems tah,unplanned,we "rest" for six days a week and on the
seventh day we "work".We also listened to some Janis Joplin,Neil
Young,Peter Tosh,Nelly Furtado,Kings of Leon etc while we were working
outside.We had our lure out and although conditions were good for
fishing we did not had any action.The only action were some flying fish
that landed on deck.Looking forward to a nice hot shower and we will do
our best to relay our impressions of St.helena to you.I will instruct my
crew to hit the keys a little so you can get their impressions as
well,first hand.Have a fantastic Monday,I heard the Bulls won,still
don't know who they played or what the score was.

Adios

Surprise surprise !!!

Well,thanks for the info on the rugby saga.I hope the Bulls made it all
the way,please let us know.I won't elaborate to much on this issue
except that I will be naughty and say I am a little surprised,although
not really.In good times and in bad,since I could remeber,I supported
the Stormers,Province,WP,Maties.It was and always will be the home of
running rugby for me.All the phase type of rugby with the pack in front
of the ball I feel is obstruction,I prefer speed and skill over brute
force.Very sportmanlike to send their B team to play against the
Stormers,justify it any way you like.Now we can shift our attention to
the World Cup Soccer extavaganza.

Outside the moon is still hanging high in the sky.In the east,another
beautiful day in paradise is unfolding.We are about 170 nm SE of
St.Helena and if all goes well we will arrive there on Monday morning.As
the weather forecast predicted,the wind has dropped substantially and we
are motorsailing towards our first stopover.It will afford us enough time
to fill our watertanks,take Gareth up the mast to do some preventative
maintenance,and check all the other bolts,props etc properly.We should
also have enough time to climb Jacob's Ladder,699 steps increasing in
gradient and the steps nearly half a meter each.It is not easy at all and
my then five year old daughter and wife ascended the steps about a year
and a half ago.Well done to my wife and an incredible show of
determination on the part of my daughter.I told her that we don't have to
climb all the way to the top but she insisted,and did so step for step.

Tuesday we will have ample time to do a tour of the island,visit all the
interesting sites,climb to the highest point,visit the museum,do some
provisions and end up visiting with our friends at Ann's Place.Wednesday
morning at first light we will be on our way again,heading for the top of
South America.The moon will be waning,the stars will become brighter and
we will be posting our impressions daily.

Last night Gareth perpared supper and what a treat it was,Scottish Pie.We
all ate far to much and there was not a morsel leftovers.I warned him that
if he keeps this up he will be appointed full time chef.He smiled and
replied that he will then just have to get more recipies from his mom,so
Cheryl,be prepared,just in case.To one of our regular readers,Len
Gerber,IT Officer for Capitec Bank,congratulations on your Leopard
38,AMUR,that was launched just over a week ago.Hope you have some of the
best times of your life on this little beauty.To Paul Rackstraw from
Futuregrowth Asset Management,your Maverick must nearly be ready to be
launced and we are waiting in abated breath as we sure you are too.Thanks
for taking the time to see us in Cape Town.

A wonderful Sunday for everyone and standing by on 16.

Paul

East to West in the Trades

Little fluffy balls of cotton clouds fill the sky,the hallmark of the SE
Trade winds,and we are hooked solidly into them.The twin genoas getting
filled with up to 15 kts apparent wind and we are making best times on
this trip so far,maximum speed 13.8 kts surfing down a swell,averaging
7.4 kts for the last 18 hours.Our average since leaving Cape Town is
back at 6.6 kts giving us just under 160 nm per day.It seems that we
will set foot on St.Helena on Monday even though we are expecting the
wind to ease a bit as it already has done.This was our first fairly
intense run and both boat and crew held up well.Enough of the technical
stuff.

The energy on Synchronicity is steadily building and your comments and e
mails certainly adds to the equation.The awesomeness of this experience
which you are very much part of is slowly permeating our bodies,soul and
spirit and I certainly hope that you are enjoying it as much as we do.

I am very much looking forward to seeing some old friends on St.Helena
and introducing them to two new friends of mine,and although our visit
will be short one,we always pack in as much as we can when we are
there.They are probably expecting us as their are two boats ahead of us
who would have informed them of our imminent arrival,and I am sure they
are just as excited as us.It's been seven months since I've been there
and we will have a lot of catching up to do.

We have just crossed the Prime Meridian and our position is
19*01'S/000*06'W.Time is now 1 am here by us,3 am in SA.Temperature of
both water and air is 21*C and the barometer is at 1017 mb/hPa.In the
meantime I wish you a pleasant weekend,enjoy the rugby,we on board are all
blowing our foghorn for the Stormers as we do not have vuvuzelas on
board,brace yourself for the worldcup soccer and take care.

Paul

And the wind whispers Mary

The day before last we crossed over the Tropic of Capricorn and
yesterday,as to be expected in the tropics,we had our first little bit
of rain.All around we could see patches of clouds pouring their load
into the see and knew sooner or later we would also get a turn.The
clouds are low and therefore not much squally conditions were
expected.When it was our turn the wind shifted just a little,speeded up
a fraction and lovely fresh rainwater poured over us and rinsing all the
soot from Cape Town and the salt deposits from the last six days
clean.It's good and clean and fresh ...The water temperature is up to
21*C.

For the last few days we have witnessed the wind gradually shifting from
NW to W to SW to S to SE where it should more or less settle for a while
and become what is known as the trade winds,a constant wind direction
and speed.We are now well set for our final run to St.Helena,about 500
nm ahead of us.Depending on how strong the wind will blow we could
arrive at noon on Monday which would be fantastic.It will allow us to do
some preventitive maintenance,fill our water tanks and have Tuesday free
to explore the island and mingle some.Wednesday morning we will set sail
again for the coast of Brazil.

Yesterday was Malcolm's turn to prepare supper and we were firstly
treated to an omelette with bacon,cheese,tomato,onions and toast.Sorry
if you haven't had breakfast yet.For supper we had lovely tuna
steaks,potato wedges,coleslaw and mayonaise.With all this cuisine it is
no wonder the crew need to exercise to get in and stay in shape.I have a
fast metabolism and do some exercise on the quiet to keep my muscles
toned and ready for any eventuality.Gareth wants to build some,Malcolm
wants to trim some,I am just maintaining.

For mental fitness we read quite a bit.Gareth,as it is with the younger
generation,is getting to nibble on the habit of reading,Malcolm who has
evolved from reading Stephen King and Louis Lamour is in the swing of
things and for me reading is like breathing.The full moon is hovering
overhead,giving us the eye from a fairly clear sky.Our postion this
morning at 3 am was 20*11'S/002*33'E.The barometer is at 1015,temperature
20*C,wind SSE at 13 kts.

May you have a wonderful Friday and may the weekend not be too swift.

Paul

Full moon on the Atlantic

We have just covered our 1st 1 000 nms out of Cape Town,mainyaining a
steady 6.6 kts average.At 21h00 we reached our one waypoint and changed
our heading a little.As on cue the wind also picked up a little,enough
to set sail and cut the motor.After more than two days of motoring
and motorsailing it is a welcome relieve to just hear the wind and
the water.12 kts of wind,1 kt of current and we are clipping along at 7
kts.Our position at 9 pm was 22*35'S and 004*53'E,690 nms to
St.Helena.The nearly full moon is entrancingly drifting through the
sky.On my watch at 6 am I will see the moon set and the sun rise at the
same time.At 6 pm I will also be on watch,watching the moon rise and the
sun set at the the same time,magical moments await us.

It was Gareth's turn to prepare supper and we were treated to sumptious
cordon bleu chicken fillets and potato bake.The young lad has got some
hidden talents it seems.Initially he thought he'll make only pasta when
it is his turn to cook.Malcolm too in the beginning said he would rather
do dishes every day than cook.He is also turning out to be quite a force
to be reckon with behind the pots.The two of them are also into some
physical exercise as you probably gathered from an earlier posting and
very good on them.Once they can outdo me in any form of physical
exercise I will join them,so good on them.A 100 m swim in the open ocean
will be the first hurdle they will have to cross...ha ha ha.

The grib weather file is not proving very accurate as far as wind
direction is concerned but I do trust that we will get good winds from
Friday onwards.The wind we have now is WNW and still a young wind
.Should we hook into the more consistent South Easterlies on Friday we
should make it to St.Helena in ten days,perhaps eleven.

Kisses to the moon...

Paul

Thanks

Hi Ma,

Thanks for the positive energy.

Love,

Mal

Mellow Yellow...

I wouldnt want to be anywhere else in the world at the moment but here.
There isnt the hussle and bussle of the "Big city" and no stress. I have
lost all conception of time and the only thing that matters right now is
how i am going to cook a good supper.

Its odd what the ocean does to a person, it changes them, it makes them
mellow.

We've now done 926nm and unfortunatly motoring again. the sea is super
flat and the sun is out(its finally begining to warm up WOOHOO!!).

Malcom and myself have compiled an exercise routine for our watches so
that we keep in shape and so that i can finally put on some muscle. Im
not to sure if Paul will partake in the exercise but we'll have to see.

Catch you soon,

Gareth

5 days out and chilled

This is what life is about!

I made it a goal of mine over five years ago to own a yacht and live on it not as a weekend toy but a home on the water, one
that you could follow the summer with or at least take where you wanted it to be.
Up until January this year I had got as far as a vision board.I was granted a 2 month sabbatical by my company and suddenly
found myself doing a sailing course which I thought would take me a little down the path of understanding this way of life.
While on my course I had to fly to Durban to crew a yacht back to Cape Town.I fly a lot in my job and always ask for and
isle seat in an emergeny exit. I dont normally promote conversation with the person sitting next to me but on this occasion
the person sitting in the window seat, seeing me reading a sailing almanac simply said,"You on a sailing course"? I affirmed
that I was and he then said "Howsit I am Paul, a delivery skipper, on way back home from a trip to New Zealand"
Obviously this got the conversation going so much so that we covered every subject from religion to relationships,kids and a
bit of sailing.
The flight seemed over in 15 minutes and we left the plane with each others business cards.
I finished my course and out of the blue came a mail from Paul inviting me to crew for him to Tortola. I must admit that
besides the fact that I had only been home and back at work for a week the thought of 6000 nautical miles in plus minus 6
weeks frightened the hell out of me.
I bounced it off Miek's and the family and everyone said go for it, so here I am.
Miekie and l live in our home above Knysna, at the top of Queen Street with the forest behind us and the view in front.She
is a majic little woman that came into my life about seven years ago. We held a committment ceremony on the rocks at Roberg
some four years ago and regulary enjoy a bottle of champagne with two dozen oysters on the beach. She doesn't like sailing,
but I am working on it.
My claim to fame are my four kids who I have had the pleasure of working with for the last sixteen years and hopefully can
maintain with this sailing bug.These bods are first and foremost my friends so long may they be prepared to put up with me.
My eldest daughter has just turned 40, one of my grandsons is almost 17 and I turn 48 this year. If you battle with these
numbers read Deepac Chopras "Live longer and grow younger". Stuart Wilde will get you going if Deepac doesn't,try his book
"Infinite Self" or maybe for the not so big readers try "Magic" or "The Force".
If you dont have time to read phone Ocean Sailing Acadamy in Cape Town speak to any one of the magic people there, do a Day
Skipper course,look for a delivery skipper ( make sure you chat to the next person you sit next to on a plane)and ask him to
take you anywhere its warm.
You will read and you will learn how to live in the moment,no cell phones,very expensive SAT phone, lots and lots of sea,
sometimes friendly and sometimes not,wind, birds,fish, dolphin and whales.
My good friend Russ conned a phrase for me many years back, when ever you looked chuffed with yourself, he would say,"So you
think you are on your fathers yacht". This experience gives new meaning to those words.
What a great privalage this is, thank you the Universe, thank you Paul,thanks Robertson and Caine for the Leopard 46 and
thank you Gareth for being with us.

Catch you soon.

Mal

PS Apologies for the spelling- No spell check on this program and a very small Oxford dictionary(2.5 readers fail to deliver
clear vision)

5 days at sea

It is our fifth day at sea.The weather has been kind to us and it is
ever so slowly becoming warmer.The water temperature has also steadily
been climbing at exactly 1 degree per day.Starting at 11 degrees we are
now sitting on 16 degrees.This morning at 3am the water is 18 degrees C.
We,ve had more sun than clouds although today
was overcast.We are maintaing our average of 6.6 nm per hour,whether
under sail,motorsailing or just motoring.The current is helping us along
as well and we have no reason for not becoming one with all that is
around us.

On the one hand we are on an outward journey,on the other the other hand
on an inward one.Both work well together as we are
shifted out of our familiarities,deal with elements in their purest form
and have time to contemplate in between.Between Gareth,Malcolm and
myself we span about four generations.Gareth is our IT Officer amongst
many other portfolios he fills.Malcolm,at 63 is seasoned at life and
what makes it work.His first ocean crossing,way to go Malcolm!Me,I am
inbetween,this world and that world.Together the dynamics are dynamic
and good things are happening around us.One of them that Carolina landed
an opportunity with Ocean Sailing Academy.May both Carolina and OSA benefit
richly from this,and may many more people be prompted to answer that call
to the sea and enjoy a little of the best of what life has to offer.

The first night we had soup,a freshly packed variety of veggies and it
went down well whilst waiting for our sealegs to take shape.The second
night we had fresh yellow tail and spuds,the third night we had
beefstew,the fourth night spaghetti and tonight Malcolm introduced us to
Toad in the Hole,an old English dish.I heard about it from Emma that you
will remember from our trip on Angie.An English rose of note,the thought
of her brings back pleasant memories.We did not had the right
ingredients for Toad in the Hole but then she also introduced me to mushy
peas...mmmmmmmm.She and Ben is now working on a boat in Fort Lauderdale and doing
just fine.

Thanks to Mom for sending a grib weather file.Looks like we will have about 15 kts
SE for the next two days,petering out to a breeze for another day or two and then
coming in strong again at 20 kts from ESE,perfect for a final run to St.Helena.On
a bit of a technical note we have been motorsailing with both genoas up and the wind
on our stern for the last two days.To bring the free flying genoa down is really easy.
You get your spinnaker halyard ready to drop,ready your sheet and turn the boat towards
the side the loose genoa is on.Soon it will backfill into the furled out genoa,you
release the sheet tied to the clew and then drop the spinnaker halyard.Save ,quick and
effective.Flake it,fold it,bag it.1,2,3.

I wish you a fabulous day and may you see more than meets the eye.Capture a moment.

Paul

A yacht called Synchronicity

Ahoy ahoy

At last we are back on track.We departed on Thursday,20 May at about
noon.The sight of Table Mountain growing smaller and smaller,the signals
on our cell phones getting weaker and weaker,a sigh for the family and
friends we leave behind.Ahead of us miles and miles,5 900 nautical
miles,of ocean,islands,mainlands but mostly water,sky,the sun,the
moon,the stars,rainbows,dolphins,whales,fish and live aboard.Time to
really dig deep to control the emotions of heartache,to channel the
trepidation of what lies ahead.On this journey I have Malcolm and
Gareth.You will learn much more about them and how they experience the
big blue.We are taking turns in writing and sincerely hope you will
enjoy it as much as we do.

We wanted to start posting the day we left but there was a problem with
our system.Fortunately not on board and the problem was resolved on
Sunday.No e mail for five weeks means a lot to me,but if that was to be
I would have to accept it.Now it is all systems go.We have logged 533 nm
since leaving Cape Town,averaging 6.6 nm per hour.We also landed two
fish within an hour of letting our lure out,an albacore or yellow tail
and a longfin tuna of about 12 kg.our position @ 21h00 on 23/5 was
27*08'S and 012*46'E.Wind light S.

Take care.

Paul

Test posting

Test posting