There's been precious little wind out here for the last few days. Every
little breath of air we try and catch with our gennekar, or dreamcatcher
coming to think of it. We have become experts at raising and snuffing our
dreamcatcher single-handedly, day or night. 95% of the operation you do
from the safety of your helming station. Piece of pie on a catamaran. 5%
is to flake the gennaker on the foredeck ready to fly again at a whim. In
stronger conditions we will have all hands on deck and safety harnesses
clasped to lifelines. We've got 8500nm to go, and 51 days will leave us
with 5 days for a Panama transit. Our ETA in San Francisco is 5 April,
which will give us enough time to replace all the sheets, lines and
halyards, and prepare for the Oakland Boat Show which runs from 10 - 13
April. Required average is 6.9kts and still well within our reach.
Alternating between port and starboard we keep the motors running to
maintain a reasonable average. I am not sure if we will be able to
maintain 6.9kts sailing up the West Coast of America, and therefore have
to try our very best to make up some time beforehand. Miles in the bank so
to speak. We shall wait patiently for the wind as the moon and the sun
also patiently waits for their time to shine.
Back to our dreamcatcher, I guess it is flying a kite. Have you ever had
the pleasure ? If not I highly recommend you find out how to build a kite,
find the materials, build your kite, find an open piece of field, and go
fly awhile :) Or you take the short cut and go buy one, assemble it, and
off you go. Be a kid again:))) You will the perhaps experience "yugen" /
yoo gen/n. (japanese) an awareness of the universe that triggers an
emotional response too deep and mysterious for words. Without a little bit
of wind though, your kite won't fly :(((
We've had a mixed bag of weather during the last few days. First it was
grey and overcast for a day or two. Then it cleared quickly and some small
with clouds drifted in. We normally associate these with the trade winds,
but no tradewinds yet. Yesterday we had open skies with high thin streaks
of clouds. Alto cirrus if I am not mistaken. Last night the waxing moon
was outshining most of the stars and in the early hours some clouds moved
in. Just before sunrise we had a decent spell of rain, and the boat looks
bright, fresh and clean in the sharp morning sunlight. A little rainbow
also smiled at us. The clouds all around us now are more substantial.
Towering here and there with a grey underbelly. The current is also cross
counter to us at times, then swings right around to the other side and
slowly turns in our favour again. We were heading just north of St.Helena,
but our weather office informed us that there is just no wind up there.
Should we pass south of the island, we have got a better change to get
some wind now and then. Altering course 10* to port we get a better angle
on our sail and heading straight for the top of Brazil. The South Sub-
Tropical current runs between St.Helena and Ascension, but by crossing
just below St.Helena we should catch the current soon enough. And then
slip into the Guiana Current up the Brazilian coast. This is normally our
fastest stretch to the Caribbean.
Our French photographer has also been rather busy with his GoPro. "In the
box" is his way of saying he captured something on film. Taking the
gennekar up and down, fish following us, he caught a flight of flying fish
on film, a short clip of Stuart servicing an engine. He finds things to
film and then sits on his Apple Mac and figuring how to edit his videos.
The instructions are in English, so it takes a little longer. If the
instructions were in French I would not have a clue. But we hope to post
some good material once we get to Panama and wait for our transit.
From behind there is a fair sized cloud moving in with a bit of grey and
some wind. I have to get back to work :) ... Ok !!!Our dreamcatcher is
flying again. 6 - 7 kts apparent wind, holding nicely, motoring and
getting up to 6.5 kts. Once the swell forms and we start sliding down the
slopes, we will gain momentum and our dream of getting the boat there on
time once again shines bright like a diamond :)
In a nutshell, all is well out here with us. Have yourself a really good
week. Your choice. And go fly a kite ........ :)))
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Friday, February 7, 2014
Flying the iron sail
The iron sail is a word we sometimes use for motoring. Here is so little
wind out here that we have to motor with no assistance from any sail. When
the wind does come trough occasionally, we are right and ready to hoist the
gennekar. It is now a one man operation, we have become fairly good at
raising anddropping the sail anytime day or night. Current is in our favour
and we arekeeping up a fair speed. Yesterday was the first time in seven days
thatthe skies cleared and we had a full portion of sun. It was Thibault's
turnto prepare supper, and also his turn to play music if he wanted. He had
his ipod on shuffle and quite a nice variety of music filtered through the
speakers. I could imagine myself being out on the ocean on a luxury
catamaran in good company :) Stuart had his first sea shower as well. The
water is still very cold, but he braved the chill and poured a bucket of
water over him. Thibault was filming on his gopro as we expected a few shakes
and shivers and gasping for air, but there was none.
Today the sun is out again in full force, and I am happy to see a lot of
shattered clouds in the sky as we should get some wind soon, that word we
use when we are not exactly sure when. And so the days roll on. Eight days
since we left Cape Town, and a few days from St.Helena. All three of us
has been on St.Helena before, and a little sad that we won't be stopping
there this time. I have very good friends on the island from always
stopping there over the years. There really is just no time to stop. But
the winds and currents do take us past there, so we will just wave at our
friends as we sail by. Make some radio contact and send our regards.
On another wavelength, to tie up with one of my previous blogs, a few
thoughts on freedom. I think freedom from the demands of ego, freedom from
the doctrines of religion, even freedom from what we perceive as real, that
in a way is real freedom. Every person has his or her own religion, formed
and based on that particular person's experience of life. Inbetween all the
hussle and bussle of everyday life there are also freedom to be found.
Living in the very moment is the highest form of freedom I can think of. The
past is gone, and the future is just a guess, but most of us dwell in the
future or the past, and miss out on living in the moment. There are so many
precious moments to be had if you just look around a bit. Without judging,
just observe the people you pass in the shopping mall. Not staring at anyone,
just catching little glimpses of activity. Then you can live in the moment,
experience the moment fully, make a moment you hope to never forget, just
for a moment.
Most of us use less than 10% of our brain power. Our brains are not limited
to internet connections or storage space. Our brain capacity I believe is
infinite. So all those little moments, even before conception, is stored
somewhere. Every little sound, smell, feeling, sight or taste you have ever
experienced is stored. There are some who believe that we have thirteen
senses, and I can believe that. We sometimes allude to a sixth sense, some
mysterious ability to do things we normally can't do or experience. If we
use less than 10% of our brain capacity, I can imagine how many more senses
we can develop, or inherently have, if we just double the use of our brain
power. As children most of us were aware of things around us that cannot be
measured and weighed. As we grew older and more "educated", the more we were
told these things that we know do not exist. And then comes a time, further
down the line, when these little things you were always aware of becomes
once again important to you. You have listened to all the different versions
of what the truth is. Yet you know, as I do, that the truth we are being
sold falls rather short of the whole truth. Truth is not an intellectual
pursuit, although we certainly use our intellect as far as we possibly can
to find the truth. Why do we need to know what the truth is ..........?
Because once you know the truth, you will be free. You will know that death
is just a phase we go through, so we shake off the fear of death once we
realize that we are really infinite. We were born free, and since then we
have become ensnared in philosophy, religion, politics and many other man
made institutions and laws. I guess to go forward we first have to go back
to that place in time when we were children, when life was wonderful, a
miracle. Find that voice inside again that gently guides us.
Hope you find a moment in your busy day that you would want to remember
forever.
Our position at 10h00 UTC is 21*05'S/002*41'E.
Take care
Paul
wind out here that we have to motor with no assistance from any sail. When
the wind does come trough occasionally, we are right and ready to hoist the
gennekar. It is now a one man operation, we have become fairly good at
raising anddropping the sail anytime day or night. Current is in our favour
and we arekeeping up a fair speed. Yesterday was the first time in seven days
thatthe skies cleared and we had a full portion of sun. It was Thibault's
turnto prepare supper, and also his turn to play music if he wanted. He had
his ipod on shuffle and quite a nice variety of music filtered through the
speakers. I could imagine myself being out on the ocean on a luxury
catamaran in good company :) Stuart had his first sea shower as well. The
water is still very cold, but he braved the chill and poured a bucket of
water over him. Thibault was filming on his gopro as we expected a few shakes
and shivers and gasping for air, but there was none.
Today the sun is out again in full force, and I am happy to see a lot of
shattered clouds in the sky as we should get some wind soon, that word we
use when we are not exactly sure when. And so the days roll on. Eight days
since we left Cape Town, and a few days from St.Helena. All three of us
has been on St.Helena before, and a little sad that we won't be stopping
there this time. I have very good friends on the island from always
stopping there over the years. There really is just no time to stop. But
the winds and currents do take us past there, so we will just wave at our
friends as we sail by. Make some radio contact and send our regards.
On another wavelength, to tie up with one of my previous blogs, a few
thoughts on freedom. I think freedom from the demands of ego, freedom from
the doctrines of religion, even freedom from what we perceive as real, that
in a way is real freedom. Every person has his or her own religion, formed
and based on that particular person's experience of life. Inbetween all the
hussle and bussle of everyday life there are also freedom to be found.
Living in the very moment is the highest form of freedom I can think of. The
past is gone, and the future is just a guess, but most of us dwell in the
future or the past, and miss out on living in the moment. There are so many
precious moments to be had if you just look around a bit. Without judging,
just observe the people you pass in the shopping mall. Not staring at anyone,
just catching little glimpses of activity. Then you can live in the moment,
experience the moment fully, make a moment you hope to never forget, just
for a moment.
Most of us use less than 10% of our brain power. Our brains are not limited
to internet connections or storage space. Our brain capacity I believe is
infinite. So all those little moments, even before conception, is stored
somewhere. Every little sound, smell, feeling, sight or taste you have ever
experienced is stored. There are some who believe that we have thirteen
senses, and I can believe that. We sometimes allude to a sixth sense, some
mysterious ability to do things we normally can't do or experience. If we
use less than 10% of our brain capacity, I can imagine how many more senses
we can develop, or inherently have, if we just double the use of our brain
power. As children most of us were aware of things around us that cannot be
measured and weighed. As we grew older and more "educated", the more we were
told these things that we know do not exist. And then comes a time, further
down the line, when these little things you were always aware of becomes
once again important to you. You have listened to all the different versions
of what the truth is. Yet you know, as I do, that the truth we are being
sold falls rather short of the whole truth. Truth is not an intellectual
pursuit, although we certainly use our intellect as far as we possibly can
to find the truth. Why do we need to know what the truth is ..........?
Because once you know the truth, you will be free. You will know that death
is just a phase we go through, so we shake off the fear of death once we
realize that we are really infinite. We were born free, and since then we
have become ensnared in philosophy, religion, politics and many other man
made institutions and laws. I guess to go forward we first have to go back
to that place in time when we were children, when life was wonderful, a
miracle. Find that voice inside again that gently guides us.
Hope you find a moment in your busy day that you would want to remember
forever.
Our position at 10h00 UTC is 21*05'S/002*41'E.
Take care
Paul
Flying the iron sail
The iron sail is a word we sometimes use for motoring. Here is so little
wind out here that we have to motor with no assistance from any sail. When
the wind does come trough occasionally, we are right and ready to hoist the
gennekar. It is now a one man operation, we have become fairly good at
raising anddropping the sail anytime day or night. Current is in our favour
and we arekeeping up a fair speed. Yesterday was the first time in seven days
thatthe skies cleared and we had a full portion of sun. It was Thibault's
turnto prepare supper, and also his turn to play music if he wanted. He had
his ipod on shuffle and quite a nice variety of music filtered through the
speakers. I could imagine myself being out on the ocean on a luxury
catamaran in good company :) Stuart had his first sea shower as well. The
water is still very cold, but he braved the chill and poured a bucket of
water over him. Thibault was filming on his gopro as we expected a few shakes
and shivers and gasping for air, but there was none.
Today the sun is out again in full force, and I am happy to see a lot of
shattered clouds in the sky as we should get some wind soon, that word we
use when we are not exactly sure when. And so the days roll on. Eight days
since we left Cape Town, and a few days from St.Helena. All three of us
has been on St.Helena before, and a little sad that we won't be stopping
there this time. I have very good friends on the island from always
stopping there over the years. There really is just no time to stop. But
the winds and currents do take us past there, so we will just wave at our
friends as we sail by. Make some radio contact and send our regards.
On another wavelength, to tie up with one of my previous blogs, a few
thoughts on freedom. I think freedom from the demands of ego, freedom from
the doctrines of religion, even freedom from what we perceive as real, that
in a way is real freedom. Every person has his or her own religion, formed
and based on that particular person's experience of life. Inbetween all the
hussle and bussle of everyday life there are also freedom to be found.
Living in the very moment is the highest form of freedom I can think of. The
past is gone, and the future is just a guess, but most of us dwell in the
future or the past, and miss out on living in the moment. There are so many
precious moments to be had if you just look around a bit. Without judging,
just observe the people you pass in the shopping mall. Not staring at anyone,
just catching little glimpses of activity. Then you can live in the moment,
experience the moment fully, make a moment you hope to never forget, just
for a moment.
Most of us use less than 10% of our brain power. Our brains are not limited
to internet connections or storage space. Our brain capacity I believe is
infinite. So all those little moments, even before conception, is stored
somewhere. Every little sound, smell, feeling, sight or taste you have ever
experienced is stored. There are some who believe that we have thirteen
senses, and I can believe that. We sometimes allude to a sixth sense, some
mysterious ability to do things we normally can't do or experience. If we
use less than 10% of our brain capacity, I can imagine how many more senses
we can develop, or inherently have, if we just double the use of our brain
power. As children most of us were aware of things around us that cannot be
measured and weighed. As we grew older and more "educated", the more we were
told these things that we know do not exist. And then comes a time, further
down the line, when these little things you were always aware of becomes
once again important to you. You have listened to all the different versions
of what the truth is. Yet you know, as I do, that the truth we are being
sold falls rather short of the whole truth. Truth is not an intellectual
pursuit, although we certainly use our intellect as far as we possibly can
to find the truth. Why do we need to know what the truth is ..........?
Because once you know the truth, you will be free. You will know that death
is just a phase we go through, so we shake off the fear of death once we
realize that we are really infinite. We were born free, and since then we
have become ensnared in philosophy, religion, politics and many other man
made institutions and laws. I guess to go forward we first have to go back
to that place in time when we were children, when life was wonderful, a
miracle. Find that voice inside again that gently guides us.
Hope you find a moment in your busy day that you would want to remember
forever.
Our position at 10h00 UTC is 21*05'S/002*41'E.
Take care
Paul
wind out here that we have to motor with no assistance from any sail. When
the wind does come trough occasionally, we are right and ready to hoist the
gennekar. It is now a one man operation, we have become fairly good at
raising anddropping the sail anytime day or night. Current is in our favour
and we arekeeping up a fair speed. Yesterday was the first time in seven days
thatthe skies cleared and we had a full portion of sun. It was Thibault's
turnto prepare supper, and also his turn to play music if he wanted. He had
his ipod on shuffle and quite a nice variety of music filtered through the
speakers. I could imagine myself being out on the ocean on a luxury
catamaran in good company :) Stuart had his first sea shower as well. The
water is still very cold, but he braved the chill and poured a bucket of
water over him. Thibault was filming on his gopro as we expected a few shakes
and shivers and gasping for air, but there was none.
Today the sun is out again in full force, and I am happy to see a lot of
shattered clouds in the sky as we should get some wind soon, that word we
use when we are not exactly sure when. And so the days roll on. Eight days
since we left Cape Town, and a few days from St.Helena. All three of us
has been on St.Helena before, and a little sad that we won't be stopping
there this time. I have very good friends on the island from always
stopping there over the years. There really is just no time to stop. But
the winds and currents do take us past there, so we will just wave at our
friends as we sail by. Make some radio contact and send our regards.
On another wavelength, to tie up with one of my previous blogs, a few
thoughts on freedom. I think freedom from the demands of ego, freedom from
the doctrines of religion, even freedom from what we perceive as real, that
in a way is real freedom. Every person has his or her own religion, formed
and based on that particular person's experience of life. Inbetween all the
hussle and bussle of everyday life there are also freedom to be found.
Living in the very moment is the highest form of freedom I can think of. The
past is gone, and the future is just a guess, but most of us dwell in the
future or the past, and miss out on living in the moment. There are so many
precious moments to be had if you just look around a bit. Without judging,
just observe the people you pass in the shopping mall. Not staring at anyone,
just catching little glimpses of activity. Then you can live in the moment,
experience the moment fully, make a moment you hope to never forget, just
for a moment.
Most of us use less than 10% of our brain power. Our brains are not limited
to internet connections or storage space. Our brain capacity I believe is
infinite. So all those little moments, even before conception, is stored
somewhere. Every little sound, smell, feeling, sight or taste you have ever
experienced is stored. There are some who believe that we have thirteen
senses, and I can believe that. We sometimes allude to a sixth sense, some
mysterious ability to do things we normally can't do or experience. If we
use less than 10% of our brain capacity, I can imagine how many more senses
we can develop, or inherently have, if we just double the use of our brain
power. As children most of us were aware of things around us that cannot be
measured and weighed. As we grew older and more "educated", the more we were
told these things that we know do not exist. And then comes a time, further
down the line, when these little things you were always aware of becomes
once again important to you. You have listened to all the different versions
of what the truth is. Yet you know, as I do, that the truth we are being
sold falls rather short of the whole truth. Truth is not an intellectual
pursuit, although we certainly use our intellect as far as we possibly can
to find the truth. Why do we need to know what the truth is ..........?
Because once you know the truth, you will be free. You will know that death
is just a phase we go through, so we shake off the fear of death once we
realize that we are really infinite. We were born free, and since then we
have become ensnared in philosophy, religion, politics and many other man
made institutions and laws. I guess to go forward we first have to go back
to that place in time when we were children, when life was wonderful, a
miracle. Find that voice inside again that gently guides us.
Hope you find a moment in your busy day that you would want to remember
forever.
Our position at 10h00 UTC is 21*05'S/002*41'E.
Take care
Paul
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Going fast slowly
We are somewhat becalmed and the weatherguru predicts the same for the next
few days. Sail fast live slow is how we would like it, but not just yet. In
order to maintain a decent speed in order to meet our ETA, we are motoring
and flying the gennekar at the same time. The wind is so light that the
gennekar backfills at times. To match the engine speed and keep the sail up
is the best we can do. To just motor drops our speed considerably. We have
got a bit of current as well, any little bit of assistance helps. Wind
predicted is 8 to 13kts. Travelling forward at 6kts brings this down to
almost nothing to 7kts in the sail, what we call the apparent wind. It will
change, and in the meantime we have keep on doing the best we can.
Yesterday we saw a big seaturtle, a sure sign of being in the current.
Earlier today a school of bonito followed us for a while. Overcast
conditions with high clouds. Bigger patches clearing up here and there as
the day progresses and the temperature rises. Once this happens early in
the day the wind will come through.
On watch last night I was wondering where the wind comes from, or what
causes the wind to blow. Cariolis effect as the earth spins causes wind,
The trade winds as they are called, the polar regions causes wind, jet
streams affect the wind hugely, hot and cold temperature causes wind, high
and low pressure systems causes wind. Indirectly I think tides and currents
also causes wind. Tides one can calculate exactly, currents are also fairly
constant.
In another way wind is symbolic of spirit, of freedom, of change. Now I
wonder if I look at the natural causes of wind and wonder how that relates
to the symbolic nature of wind. What causes our spirit to move and what
exactly is spirit. What is freedom and freedom from what, and how does one
deal with constant change. This is part of what one does when you are out
here, ponder these sometimes imponderable questions.
You may think to sail away is an escape from reality. I know out here is
the purest form of reality. So it is rather an escape from a perceived
reality created by the media, and evolving ever further into an infinite
reality. Where one feels that infinite part of you resonating with
Infinity. And that ones again opens other doors of perception. There is
always an answer to a question, but it may not be the right or wrong
answer. What is right for one is sometimes wrong for another. What is
universal is beauty. If the answer is beautiful, it is true.
This is another advantage of catamarans. One can sit and share one's
thoughts in utter comfort on a downwind run as we are :) And a 360* sea
view !!!. Our position currently 14h00 UTC is 23*27'S/006*14'E. We have
covered about a 1000nm in the last 6 days. Our C.O.G. is 306*T and we are
averaging 6kts at present. Temperature is a very pleasant 25*C.
Take care
Paul
few days. Sail fast live slow is how we would like it, but not just yet. In
order to maintain a decent speed in order to meet our ETA, we are motoring
and flying the gennekar at the same time. The wind is so light that the
gennekar backfills at times. To match the engine speed and keep the sail up
is the best we can do. To just motor drops our speed considerably. We have
got a bit of current as well, any little bit of assistance helps. Wind
predicted is 8 to 13kts. Travelling forward at 6kts brings this down to
almost nothing to 7kts in the sail, what we call the apparent wind. It will
change, and in the meantime we have keep on doing the best we can.
Yesterday we saw a big seaturtle, a sure sign of being in the current.
Earlier today a school of bonito followed us for a while. Overcast
conditions with high clouds. Bigger patches clearing up here and there as
the day progresses and the temperature rises. Once this happens early in
the day the wind will come through.
On watch last night I was wondering where the wind comes from, or what
causes the wind to blow. Cariolis effect as the earth spins causes wind,
The trade winds as they are called, the polar regions causes wind, jet
streams affect the wind hugely, hot and cold temperature causes wind, high
and low pressure systems causes wind. Indirectly I think tides and currents
also causes wind. Tides one can calculate exactly, currents are also fairly
constant.
In another way wind is symbolic of spirit, of freedom, of change. Now I
wonder if I look at the natural causes of wind and wonder how that relates
to the symbolic nature of wind. What causes our spirit to move and what
exactly is spirit. What is freedom and freedom from what, and how does one
deal with constant change. This is part of what one does when you are out
here, ponder these sometimes imponderable questions.
You may think to sail away is an escape from reality. I know out here is
the purest form of reality. So it is rather an escape from a perceived
reality created by the media, and evolving ever further into an infinite
reality. Where one feels that infinite part of you resonating with
Infinity. And that ones again opens other doors of perception. There is
always an answer to a question, but it may not be the right or wrong
answer. What is right for one is sometimes wrong for another. What is
universal is beauty. If the answer is beautiful, it is true.
This is another advantage of catamarans. One can sit and share one's
thoughts in utter comfort on a downwind run as we are :) And a 360* sea
view !!!. Our position currently 14h00 UTC is 23*27'S/006*14'E. We have
covered about a 1000nm in the last 6 days. Our C.O.G. is 306*T and we are
averaging 6kts at present. Temperature is a very pleasant 25*C.
Take care
Paul
Monday, February 3, 2014
Gennaker up and flying !!!!
What an awesome sight. After waiting patiently for the wind to drop a
bit and the swell to settle it was time to rig the gennaker. It has been
a few years since I've had the privilige and the stress and the
responsibility to fly this huge sail. Made for downwind sailing in
lighter conditions, it certainly gives a good turn of speed. On a
catamaran it is rather easy to set up such a sail. As the boat is fairly
wide, there is no need for a spinnaker pole. One of the many advantages
of sailing a catamaran. With a gennaker one can also sail in those very
difficult wind angles when the wind is not from the side or from behind.
It also gives you a wider option to choose in which direction you can
sail.
I first had to scratch my head a bit when we were setting this sail up.
Which lines go where etc. Took it up the first time to measure the
length of the sail. In a nutshell the sail is covered by what we call a
sock. Once the sail is up, you haul the sock up with the uphaul. The
downhaul is used to pull the sock back over the sail when you want to
bring it down. Running both motors we hoisted the sail and allowed the
sail to open up slowly and under control. We do this by tying the
downhaul around a cleat, and slowly letting the sail open. It is quite a
powerful sail, and some people try to hold the downhaul by hand. This
normally results in the sail powering open, rope burns on your hand, and
the sock also having little burn marks from the friction. The sock in a
way protects the gennaker, but the stitching on the sail can also be
damaged if you burn the sock. This all sound technical I guess, so I
will explain quickly that the uphaul and downhaul are ropes that are
attached to the sail to lift the sock up or pull the sock down.
On the tack of the sail, the corner is attached to the boat by two even
lenghts of rope. On the clew we attach a long rope which comes back to
the helming station and around a winch. This we all a sheet and it runs
through a snatchblock which we attach to a cleat or a deckring. I have
to explain that we don't ever call ropes ropes on a boat. Every rope has
a specific name, for a very good reason. They all serve a specific
function, and if I give an instruction, the crew knows exactly what or
which rope I am talking about. To pull the sail up we use a halyard, of
which there are normally two. One for the mainsail, and one for the
gennaker. Halyards are thus used to pull a sail up. Ok, enough sailing
lessons for today. Bwahahahahahaha!!! If you want to learn how to sail
there are many good books and very good sailing schools in South Africa.
And there are also online courses. Nothing beats the real thing though.
Experience experience experience. Not position position position as with
real estate :) The colour of our gennaker is a deep azure blue,
absolutely beautiful. As you can imagine, Thibault, our French
crewmember, was out in a flash with his GoPro camera. We hope to share
some of our footage when we will have some time in Panama.
We will probably drop our sail before it gets dark as the weather is not
completely settled, we just couldn't wait to fly it.
And that is it for today. Oh wait. No. Another time. Next time.
Our current position is 26*24'S/10*33'E. Apparent wind is more or less
13kts south easterly. Take care and wishing you a great week ahead.
Paul
bit and the swell to settle it was time to rig the gennaker. It has been
a few years since I've had the privilige and the stress and the
responsibility to fly this huge sail. Made for downwind sailing in
lighter conditions, it certainly gives a good turn of speed. On a
catamaran it is rather easy to set up such a sail. As the boat is fairly
wide, there is no need for a spinnaker pole. One of the many advantages
of sailing a catamaran. With a gennaker one can also sail in those very
difficult wind angles when the wind is not from the side or from behind.
It also gives you a wider option to choose in which direction you can
sail.
I first had to scratch my head a bit when we were setting this sail up.
Which lines go where etc. Took it up the first time to measure the
length of the sail. In a nutshell the sail is covered by what we call a
sock. Once the sail is up, you haul the sock up with the uphaul. The
downhaul is used to pull the sock back over the sail when you want to
bring it down. Running both motors we hoisted the sail and allowed the
sail to open up slowly and under control. We do this by tying the
downhaul around a cleat, and slowly letting the sail open. It is quite a
powerful sail, and some people try to hold the downhaul by hand. This
normally results in the sail powering open, rope burns on your hand, and
the sock also having little burn marks from the friction. The sock in a
way protects the gennaker, but the stitching on the sail can also be
damaged if you burn the sock. This all sound technical I guess, so I
will explain quickly that the uphaul and downhaul are ropes that are
attached to the sail to lift the sock up or pull the sock down.
On the tack of the sail, the corner is attached to the boat by two even
lenghts of rope. On the clew we attach a long rope which comes back to
the helming station and around a winch. This we all a sheet and it runs
through a snatchblock which we attach to a cleat or a deckring. I have
to explain that we don't ever call ropes ropes on a boat. Every rope has
a specific name, for a very good reason. They all serve a specific
function, and if I give an instruction, the crew knows exactly what or
which rope I am talking about. To pull the sail up we use a halyard, of
which there are normally two. One for the mainsail, and one for the
gennaker. Halyards are thus used to pull a sail up. Ok, enough sailing
lessons for today. Bwahahahahahaha!!! If you want to learn how to sail
there are many good books and very good sailing schools in South Africa.
And there are also online courses. Nothing beats the real thing though.
Experience experience experience. Not position position position as with
real estate :) The colour of our gennaker is a deep azure blue,
absolutely beautiful. As you can imagine, Thibault, our French
crewmember, was out in a flash with his GoPro camera. We hope to share
some of our footage when we will have some time in Panama.
We will probably drop our sail before it gets dark as the weather is not
completely settled, we just couldn't wait to fly it.
And that is it for today. Oh wait. No. Another time. Next time.
Our current position is 26*24'S/10*33'E. Apparent wind is more or less
13kts south easterly. Take care and wishing you a great week ahead.
Paul
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Getting up to speed
What a pleasure it is being out here on the big blue. Our tight schedule
demands that we keep going as fast as conditions and safety will allow.
Yesterday we still had the wind on our beam from the SW. Main sail 1st
reef and full genoa kept our pace above 7 kts, and at about 4pm I
decided to take in a reef on the mainsail. The wind was building and
backing ever so slowly towards the south, making it increasingly
difficult to create speed with our sails. At about midnight we decided
to drop the main as we were now sitting on a 130* angle to the wind from
behind. We could turn a bit more west, but our grib weather files
clearly showed a mid-Atlantic high, sitting smack bang on a direct route
to the top of Brazil. With a full genoa and motoring we maintained 7
kts. Apparent wind speed stayed between 15 and 20 kts, and heading a bit
more north the current also favoured us. Our aim is to sail around the
mid- Atlantic high, which is an area of very light winds which moves up
and down as the seasons dictate.
We are aiming for a point between St.Helena and Ascension Island and the
wind settled this morning in a south easterly direction. The initial
shift started with a light 9 to 14 kts which tempted us to set up our
genikar, a light wind super sail. I did not feel comfortable yet and
will never just throw caution to the wind. Our weather data also clearly
showed 20 red coming through and I decided to rather rig our loose
headsail in conjunction with our genoa. We had to keep on motoring, but
an hour later the predicted stronger winds came through. The genikar is
good for up to 17 kts, and it also prefers fair winds and following
seas. The swell follows the wind but it does take some time to settle. I
was glad we did not set up the genikar, as we would have been in a bit
of trouble with the wind gusting at 25 kts at times. It is still early
in the trip and to blow the genikar so early would certainly not make
for a happy ending. We are now doing a pleasant 8 kts and should be able
to keep up our speed with our current sail setting till tomorrow
morning. The wind is then predicted to drop to 15 kts which will be
perfect for the genikar as the swell would by then also have lined up
with the south easterly winds.
Last night I cooked our first proper meal on board, pasta shells
and mince, with a bit of this and a bit of that to add some flavour.
Very nice for the next day as well. My watch started from midnight to
3am, and once again I was mesmerized by the glittering night skies out
here. All the flickering little stars sending their message of love and
life into infinity. The grande constellations slowly moving through the
air. Being new moon or dark moon amplified the spectacular beauty
above and around us. Stardust........all of us. Planet Earth is not
turning around and around as we have been taught, but moving in a spiral
in harmony with all the other planets and stars. Slowly moving back
towards the centre of the Milky Way. The 21/12/2012 Mayan day marked the
point where we have moved the furtherest from the centre, and we are now
on our way back. In the same fashion we as a human race are also moving
back to what and who we really are.
It was fun on my watch to see a faint light in the distance, power up
the radar, and spot a ship moving straight at us from 12nm away. I
altered course 10* to starboard and watched as the ship slowly moved by
on our port side and turned 10* to port again. This morning there were
streaks of brown in the water, and on closer observation saw krill and
jellyfish floating on the current. The skies are blue at the moment, and
we are leaving long white lines in our wake, surfing down the swells at
speed. Our GoPro camera is also capturing these special moments, but it
will be quite a while before we can post them on the blog. We are
looking at going non-stop for Panama, and should we make a quick stop on
the way, it will be just that, a very quick stop.
Our current position is 29*03'S/17*34'E at 13h00 SA time. We are about
200nm west from the Orange River mouth which forms the border between
South Africa and Namibia. We are about 3 days out of Cape Town and have
covered over 500nm which gives us an average of +- 7 kts. There were some
quiet spells but we are now up to speed. Catamarans are like that. They
can sail fast. One of their many advantages. One stays with the good
weather longer and easier to outrun bad weather. Much more about this in
future postings.
I hope your week ahead will be filled with wonderful moments.
Paul
demands that we keep going as fast as conditions and safety will allow.
Yesterday we still had the wind on our beam from the SW. Main sail 1st
reef and full genoa kept our pace above 7 kts, and at about 4pm I
decided to take in a reef on the mainsail. The wind was building and
backing ever so slowly towards the south, making it increasingly
difficult to create speed with our sails. At about midnight we decided
to drop the main as we were now sitting on a 130* angle to the wind from
behind. We could turn a bit more west, but our grib weather files
clearly showed a mid-Atlantic high, sitting smack bang on a direct route
to the top of Brazil. With a full genoa and motoring we maintained 7
kts. Apparent wind speed stayed between 15 and 20 kts, and heading a bit
more north the current also favoured us. Our aim is to sail around the
mid- Atlantic high, which is an area of very light winds which moves up
and down as the seasons dictate.
We are aiming for a point between St.Helena and Ascension Island and the
wind settled this morning in a south easterly direction. The initial
shift started with a light 9 to 14 kts which tempted us to set up our
genikar, a light wind super sail. I did not feel comfortable yet and
will never just throw caution to the wind. Our weather data also clearly
showed 20 red coming through and I decided to rather rig our loose
headsail in conjunction with our genoa. We had to keep on motoring, but
an hour later the predicted stronger winds came through. The genikar is
good for up to 17 kts, and it also prefers fair winds and following
seas. The swell follows the wind but it does take some time to settle. I
was glad we did not set up the genikar, as we would have been in a bit
of trouble with the wind gusting at 25 kts at times. It is still early
in the trip and to blow the genikar so early would certainly not make
for a happy ending. We are now doing a pleasant 8 kts and should be able
to keep up our speed with our current sail setting till tomorrow
morning. The wind is then predicted to drop to 15 kts which will be
perfect for the genikar as the swell would by then also have lined up
with the south easterly winds.
Last night I cooked our first proper meal on board, pasta shells
and mince, with a bit of this and a bit of that to add some flavour.
Very nice for the next day as well. My watch started from midnight to
3am, and once again I was mesmerized by the glittering night skies out
here. All the flickering little stars sending their message of love and
life into infinity. The grande constellations slowly moving through the
air. Being new moon or dark moon amplified the spectacular beauty
above and around us. Stardust........all of us. Planet Earth is not
turning around and around as we have been taught, but moving in a spiral
in harmony with all the other planets and stars. Slowly moving back
towards the centre of the Milky Way. The 21/12/2012 Mayan day marked the
point where we have moved the furtherest from the centre, and we are now
on our way back. In the same fashion we as a human race are also moving
back to what and who we really are.
It was fun on my watch to see a faint light in the distance, power up
the radar, and spot a ship moving straight at us from 12nm away. I
altered course 10* to starboard and watched as the ship slowly moved by
on our port side and turned 10* to port again. This morning there were
streaks of brown in the water, and on closer observation saw krill and
jellyfish floating on the current. The skies are blue at the moment, and
we are leaving long white lines in our wake, surfing down the swells at
speed. Our GoPro camera is also capturing these special moments, but it
will be quite a while before we can post them on the blog. We are
looking at going non-stop for Panama, and should we make a quick stop on
the way, it will be just that, a very quick stop.
Our current position is 29*03'S/17*34'E at 13h00 SA time. We are about
200nm west from the Orange River mouth which forms the border between
South Africa and Namibia. We are about 3 days out of Cape Town and have
covered over 500nm which gives us an average of +- 7 kts. There were some
quiet spells but we are now up to speed. Catamarans are like that. They
can sail fast. One of their many advantages. One stays with the good
weather longer and easier to outrun bad weather. Much more about this in
future postings.
I hope your week ahead will be filled with wonderful moments.
Paul
Friday, January 31, 2014
Cape Town to San Francisco
Once again I have the wonderful privilige to be out on the big blue.
Mission is to get to the Oakland Boatshow on time. The boat we are
sailing is a Leopard 44, and we will have to focus all the time to sail
as fast and as safe as possible if we want any chance to make the
boatshow. From Cape Town to Panama non-stop, a run of about 6500nm.Hoe
to crack that in 30 days or so. We can more or less determine how long
that should take us. The unknown factors are how long it will take us to
get through the Panama Canal, and then how long it will take us to get
up to San Francisco.
I am also fortunate enough to have very experienced sailors on board.
Myself we named the " Flying Dutchman ", Thibault whom I have done two
very tough deliveries before is now the " French Rocket ", and as 1st
Mate Stuart, the " Scary Scotchman ". Thibault flew in from France a few
days ago, and as a team we are going to give it our best shot.
Our team in Cape Town made huge efforts to get us out as early as
possible, and they did so in great fashion. Good to have the best team
in the world behind you. Our departure on Wednesday was abandoned an
hour or two out of Cape Town. We just passed Robben Island when I
decided to check my laptop......and it wouldn't boot. Start it and off
it goes, start again, and off it goes. I phoned Cape Town and made it
back in time to purchase a new laptop, have the data from my old one
transferred to the new one, and had to wait till the next day for Imtech
to load skyfile on my new laptop. Skyfile is the program we use to send
and receive emails via satphone. Thursday afternoon late all was set to
depart again, and at about 7pm we casted off. There was still an hour or
so daylight left, and wonderful to have radar on board. We had to dodge
a few ships on our way out, with an aggressive blow from behind, the
wind gusting up to 53kts. Once we were on our way I decided to send my
crew to bed and took watch from 7pm till midnight. Just to make sure we
are clear of any obstruction on our way out. Our watches are four hours
per day and three hour night watches.
We have a genikar as well. A genikar is a huge sail we fly when the wind
is not too strong, and a fantastic sail to make good miles. For stronger
winds we have an extra headsail. We use this sail in unison with our
genoa to create a safe twin headsail configuration that will spill some
wind if a strong gust or squall come through. On board we also have
1200ltrs of diesel to keep up the pace should we encounter some quiet
spells. As weather guru I once again have the honor of having my mom
sending me updated weather gribfiles every few days. She has been doing
it for many years, and at 75 years old this year, she rocks. Thanks Mom.
Currently our position is 32*31'S/16*13'E at 17h40 SA time. Our COG is
295*T or said in another way, we are sailing in a north westerly
direction. More west, expecting the wind to back a bit. Wind is a
steady 15kts South Westerly and on a close reach we are doing 7.5 to 8
kts. Full genoa and first reef in the main, not a cloud in the sky here
by us, good current, sailing smooth and fast enough for now. Total
distance we have to cover is just over 10 000nm.
We haven't cooked a meal yet, first finishing our bread and cold meats
on board. We normally do this for the first day or two at sea while our
sealegs settle. I'm not prone to seasickness and glad to see my crew are
also not to bleak in this department. Hope you have a nice weekend, and
will post our experiences out here as often as I can. Lots of miles
still to go, lots of fun ahead and lots of challenges.
Take care
Mission is to get to the Oakland Boatshow on time. The boat we are
sailing is a Leopard 44, and we will have to focus all the time to sail
as fast and as safe as possible if we want any chance to make the
boatshow. From Cape Town to Panama non-stop, a run of about 6500nm.Hoe
to crack that in 30 days or so. We can more or less determine how long
that should take us. The unknown factors are how long it will take us to
get through the Panama Canal, and then how long it will take us to get
up to San Francisco.
I am also fortunate enough to have very experienced sailors on board.
Myself we named the " Flying Dutchman ", Thibault whom I have done two
very tough deliveries before is now the " French Rocket ", and as 1st
Mate Stuart, the " Scary Scotchman ". Thibault flew in from France a few
days ago, and as a team we are going to give it our best shot.
Our team in Cape Town made huge efforts to get us out as early as
possible, and they did so in great fashion. Good to have the best team
in the world behind you. Our departure on Wednesday was abandoned an
hour or two out of Cape Town. We just passed Robben Island when I
decided to check my laptop......and it wouldn't boot. Start it and off
it goes, start again, and off it goes. I phoned Cape Town and made it
back in time to purchase a new laptop, have the data from my old one
transferred to the new one, and had to wait till the next day for Imtech
to load skyfile on my new laptop. Skyfile is the program we use to send
and receive emails via satphone. Thursday afternoon late all was set to
depart again, and at about 7pm we casted off. There was still an hour or
so daylight left, and wonderful to have radar on board. We had to dodge
a few ships on our way out, with an aggressive blow from behind, the
wind gusting up to 53kts. Once we were on our way I decided to send my
crew to bed and took watch from 7pm till midnight. Just to make sure we
are clear of any obstruction on our way out. Our watches are four hours
per day and three hour night watches.
We have a genikar as well. A genikar is a huge sail we fly when the wind
is not too strong, and a fantastic sail to make good miles. For stronger
winds we have an extra headsail. We use this sail in unison with our
genoa to create a safe twin headsail configuration that will spill some
wind if a strong gust or squall come through. On board we also have
1200ltrs of diesel to keep up the pace should we encounter some quiet
spells. As weather guru I once again have the honor of having my mom
sending me updated weather gribfiles every few days. She has been doing
it for many years, and at 75 years old this year, she rocks. Thanks Mom.
Currently our position is 32*31'S/16*13'E at 17h40 SA time. Our COG is
295*T or said in another way, we are sailing in a north westerly
direction. More west, expecting the wind to back a bit. Wind is a
steady 15kts South Westerly and on a close reach we are doing 7.5 to 8
kts. Full genoa and first reef in the main, not a cloud in the sky here
by us, good current, sailing smooth and fast enough for now. Total
distance we have to cover is just over 10 000nm.
We haven't cooked a meal yet, first finishing our bread and cold meats
on board. We normally do this for the first day or two at sea while our
sealegs settle. I'm not prone to seasickness and glad to see my crew are
also not to bleak in this department. Hope you have a nice weekend, and
will post our experiences out here as often as I can. Lots of miles
still to go, lots of fun ahead and lots of challenges.
Take care
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