Close encounter of the wildest kind

Motorsailing merrily along, out of the blue, I noticed the familiar
shape of a turtle head peeping at us. I immediatly alerted the boys and
turned the boat around. In a flash they had their cameras ready and all
three diving, falling, jumping overboard to experience swimming with
this gentle giant. Ecstatically Steven and Eduard were screaming and and
laughing as they circled the turtle who showed no signs of distress at
all with these af madmen all around him. Nick was a bit more respectful
and reserved, probably seeing at the sacred experience it really is.
They swam a bit closer and touched his back that also hosted some
barnacles. I kept on cirlcling around them, hove to drift off and then
sail around again. They took a lot of photos and videos and was truly
blessed by this unexpected visitor, wild and free, resonating with that
same part inside of us all.

Quite a few fishing vessels around us at night and yesterday we
carefully went over a string of bouys that holds a net suspended in the
water. Fortunately the nets were low enough for us to pass over without
getting our props and rudders snagged in their contraption. This often
happens which is why we carry a hacksaw on board. Should we get snagged
we normally would tie a line to both sides of the cord that suspends the
net and cut through the part the part that is snagging us. That way we
can cut loose without to much damage to the nets. I sometimes think of
just dropping the nets but know it will even cause more damage to
wildlife if it just floats around. There are a lot of things that bother
me about fishing like this that makes me sad and angry at the same time,
especially the longliners that hunts sharks, cuts their fins off and
throw them still alive back into the ocean. And there is no one to
protect the sharks, no law out here. What can one do, greed and
stupidity or shortsightedness goes hand in hand. Being a sailor I have
an array of strong words that comes to mind but this is not the time nor
the place to show that side of me. All I can hope and pray for is that
all of us that shares this planet will become aware of the sacedness of
all around us. Harvest we must, but indiscriminate raping of resources
we are only wiping ourselves out. We can't safe the planet, the planet
and it's inhabitants will suffer, but to think we can safe the planet is
preposterous. Who do we think we are. We will wipe ourselves out in the
end and the planet will keep on revolving as it has since it became
planet earth. Since we got the idea that God gave us the right to rule
over the planet things have gone badly wrong. I am not a "green" person,
and I do respect the "green" people immensily. I think if we find our
true purpose on the planet the green issues will follow naturally.
Anyways, sooner than we think, these things will be upon us.

Our position at 10am today is 02*25'S/095*52'W. We are still moving in a
southwesterly direction to get into the trade winds and the south
equatorial current quicker. This morning there are a lot of clouds and
nice and cool, but already the temperature is soaring as it gets later
and closer to midday.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Captain Paul

Poem for the Pacific

In the early hours of the morning we crossed the equator again and are now back in the southern hemisphere. Our position at
7am our time was 00*43'S/094*08'W. About 3500nm to Tahiti and hope to arrive their before the 8th of April. The following
poem speaks somewhat of where we are.

Miscellaneous: Pacific Ocean

Southern Seas

William Howitt (1792-1879)

YES! let us mount this gallant ship;

Spread canvas to the wind,-

Up! we will seek the glowing South,-

Leave care and cold behind.

Let the shark pursue through the waters blue

Our flying vessel's track;

Let strong winds blow, and rocks below

Threaten,-we turn not back.

Trusting in Him who holds the sea

In his Almighty hand,

We pass the awful waters wide,

Tread many a far-off strand.

Right onward as our course we hold,

From day to day, the sky

Above our head its arch shall spread

More glowing, bright, and high;

And from night to night-oh, what delight!

In its azure depths to mark

Stars all unknown come glittering out

Over the ocean dark.

The moon uprising like a sun,

So stately, large, and sheen,

And the very stars, like clustered moons,

In the crystal ether keen.

Whilst all about the ship, below,

Strange, fiery billows play,-

The ceaseless keel through liquid fire

Cuts wondrously its way.

But oh, the South! the balmy South!

How warm the breezes float!

How warm the amber waters stream

From off our basking boat!

Come down, come down from the tall ship's side,-

What a marvellous sight is here!

Look! purple rocks and crimson trees,

Down in the deep so clear.

See! where those shoals of dolphins go,

A glad and glorious band,

Sporting amongst the roseate woods

Of a coral fairy-land.

See! on the violet sands beneath

How the gorgeous shells do glide!

O sea! old sea, who yet knows half

Of thy wonders and thy pride!

Look how the sea-plants trembling float,

As it were like a mermaid's locks,

Waving in thread of ruby red

Over those nether rocks,

Heaving and sinking, soft and fair,

Here hyacinth, there green,-

With many a stem of golden growth,

And starry flowers between.

But away! away to upper day!

For monstrous shapes are here,-

Monsters of dark and wallowing bulk,

And horny eyeballs drear:

The tuskéd mouth, and the spiny fin,

Speckled and warted back;

The glittering swift, and the flabby slow,

Ramp through this deep sea track.

Away! away! to upper day,

To glance o'er the breezy brine,

And see the nautilus gladly sail,

The flying-fish leap and shine.

But what is that? "'T is land! 'T is land!

'T is land!" the sailors cry.

Nay! 't is a long and a narrow cloud

Betwixt the sea and sky.

"'T is land! 't is land!" they cry once more;

And now comes breathing on

An odor of the living earth,

Such as the sea hath none.

But now I mark the rising shores!

The purple hills! the trees!

Ah! what a glorious land is here,

What happy scenes are these!

See! how the tall palms lift their locks

From mountain clefts,-what vales,

Basking beneath the noontide sun,

That high and hotly sails.

Yet all about the breezy shore,

Unheedful of the glow,

Look how the children of the South

Are passing to and fro!

What noble forms! what fairy place!

Cast anchor in this cove,

Push out the boat, for in this land

A little we must rove!

We 'll wander on through wood and field,

We 'll sit beneath the vine;

We 'll drink the limpid cocoa-milk,

And pluck the native pine.

The bread-fruit and cassada-root,

And many a glowing berry,

Shall be our feast; for here, at least,

Why should we not be merry!

For 't is a southern paradise,

All gladsome,-plain and shore,-

A land so far that here we are,

But shall be here no more

We 've seen the splendid southern clime,

Its seas and isles and men;

So now! back to a dearer land,-

To England back again!

AND ANOTHER POEM IN THE SAME VEIN

Miscellaneous: Pacific Ocean

South Sea Islands

John Wilson (1720-1789)

(From The Isle of Palms)

OH, many are the beauteous isles

Unknown to human eye,

That, sleeping mid the Ocean smiles,

In happy silence lie.

The ship may pass them in the night,

Nor the sailors know what a lovely sight

Is resting on the main,-

Some wandering ship who hath lost her way

And never, or by night or day,

Shall pass these isles again.

There, groves that bloom in endless spring

Are rustling to the radiant wing

Of birds, in various plumage, bright

As rainbow-hues or dawning light.

Soft-falling showers of blossoms fair

Float ever on the fragrant air,

Like showers of vernal snow,

And from the fruit-tree, spreading tall,

The richly ripened clusters fall

Oft as sea-breezes blow.

The sun and clouds alone possess

The joy of all that loveliness;

And sweetly to each other smile

The live-long day,-sun, cloud, and isle.

How silent lies each sheltered bay!

No other visitors have they

To their shores of silvery sand,

Than the waves that, murmuring in their glee,

All hurrying in a joyful band

Come dancing from the sea.

How did I love to sigh and weep

For those that sailed upon the deep,

When, yet a wondering child,

I sat alone at dead of night,

Hanging all breathless with delight

O'er their adventures wild!

Trembling I heard of dizzy shrouds,

Where up among the raving clouds

The sailor-boy must go;

Thunder and lightning o'er his head!

And should he fall-oh thought of dread!

Waves mountain-high below.

How leapt my heart with wildering fears,

Glazing on savage islanders

Ranged fierce in long canoe,

Their poisoned spears, their war-attire,

And plumes twined bright, like wreaths of fire,

Round brows of dusky hue!

What tears would fill my wakeful eyes

When some delicious paradise

(As if a cloud had rolled

On a sudden from the bursting sun),

Freshening the Ocean where it shone,

Flung wide its groves of gold!

No more the pining mariner

In wild delirium raves,

For like an angel, kind and fair,

That smiles and smiling saves,

The glory charms away distress,

Serene in silent loveliness

Amid the dash of waves.

Hope you enjoy that as much as I do.

Captain Paul

Decisions decisions decisions

Last night for the first time in a long time, I had to put on some warm
clothes for my watch. The air was chilly and heavy with damp. My Oregon
Scientific Weather instrument is measuring humidity at 98%, and
everything inside and out is wet. The sea is like a mirror, reflection
the stars and as the day was breaking, a breathtaking scene unfolded.
The sun will soon be out to dry the surface of the boat, and it looks
like a warm day is ahead of us. I can't say wind is scarce, there is
just no wind. After studying our newest weather report and on advice of
our windguru, I decided to head more south, changing our heading by
about 30*'s. It adds another 100nm to our distance overall, but there
are some consistantly good winds further down, and that is what we are
now hunting for. Nearly overnight we have lost wind and current, and if
we carried on our course as we were, we would be in this state of near
limbo for a long long time. Such is sailing, the shortest route is not
always the fastest, and we are not gambling, no ways we can afford that.
Our speed have dropped about 30% and we don't have unlimited fuel on
board. There are three boats somewhere behind us, and we are in a race
of sorts, but we plan to stay ahead. I will get their positions in due
time, and it will be interesting to see how the different skippers rise
to the challenge.

Should we run out of fuel we will be in dire straights in the purest
sense of the term. Our boat batteries will run flat which will cause
great harm to them. No batteries, no instruments, no VHF,no navlights,
no satphone, no gas as our gas runs through an electronic solenoid. And
all this on the biggest ocean on the planet, with no land for thousands
of miles. But don't worry, we won't starve, we have plenty of baked
beans and other tinned food. And we can steer the boat by hand if we
have some wind, the autopilot is really a luxury. We also have
papercharts and a magnetic compass, so we should be able to find our
way.At night we have the stars to guide us, and the sun also rises in
the east and sets in the west, more or less. But this is a worst case
scenario, although things can get even worse, but I rather won't dwell
on that.So yes, these are testing times and trusting times in many
regards.

Last night we found our first squid on board, about 10cm long. Amazing
that these vreatures can propel themselves so fast that they can land on
board. When I sailed this ocean last, it was quite fun to walk around
the boat in the morning, collect all the squid, gut them and wash them,
add some garlic and butter and fry them in a pan. Delicious delicasies
from the deep. They sometimes hit the sail halfway up the mast, and
normally leave a purple like stain on the sails. Halfway up the mast is
about 12 mtrs, how they do it I don't know, but they certainly get up
there somehow.

We hope our decision to head more south will pay off handsomely, which
brings me to another term with nautical origins, 'Pay Off'. Literally to
pay the crew their wages at the end of a voyage. Since voyages often
lasted several years the amounts were comparatively large and this
coupled with the release from the long engagement plus the prospect of
leave gave the pay off a Christmas atmosphere. Ashore this innocence has
gone, the term still has a rewarding ring, a large sum of money, a
handsome return, but with curiously criminal undertones.

Well, I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday.

Captain Paul

Grazy Galapagos

Today we will be sailing past this most crazy of island groups. Darwin
was so taken in by it that he formed his theory of evolution here,
although on his deathbed he denounced it saying it he made a mistake.
The animals here are rather odd, the way they adapted to this
enviroment. But then there are other islands that also have animals and
plants like none other. Probably my favourite island in many regards
with unique species is Madagascar. Also strange that both Madagascar and
Galapagos lies on the equator, have very odd currents at times and are
probably right opposite each other on the globe.

Yesterday we were sitting outside when a group of small dolphins came
around, jumping high out of the water as they came past us,seemingly in
a great hurry. It was an amazing experience to say the least. Not a lot
of distractions on the ocean, and when things like this happen it
really makes a deep impression. I was toying with the idea of stopping
at Galapagos but for various reasons decided against it. Our long delay
in Panama, all the requirements you need to stop here and our base in
Tahiti waiting for us are few of the factors I had to consider. But
should I come this way again, hopefully we will be able to stop. I have
read a lot about yachties who have stopped here,have seen quite a few
documentaries on the group of islands, but it is not the same as
experiencing it in person.

The wind is gradually getting stronger and stronger and we are sailing
more and more. Fortunately we have a lot of diesel to motor when we have
to, but I prefer to safe as much as possible. It will be disastrous if
we burn all our diesel before we arrive in Tahiti so we try and pace
ourselfs. Running out of diesel means we will be adrift should there be
no wind, and our batteries will gradually run flat.When that happens we
won't have any instruments or VHF, no satphone, no email, won't be able
to cook our food and many other problems, like causing damage to the
batteries. In short, we will be in big trouble.

There is one more place we may stop before we get to Tahiti, Fatu Hiva.
The last small island in the Marquesas group of islands. No officials
here, just jawdroppingly beautiful. We would prefer to arrive at Tahiti
just after sunrise and will probably spend a few hours at Fatu Hiva to
time our arrival as such. At this stage our ETA for Tahiti is the 8th of
April, a Sunday. It will be better then for us to arrive on Monday
morning, or should we really get good winds further down the line, we
may just get in on Friday the 6th or earlier. As usual with these type
of things, only time will tell.

The vibe on the boat is very good, and yesterday we probaly swam about
three times in the Pacific, to cool down, to have fun and just to be
crazy. At night the watches are beautiful for many reeasons, and we
spend day and night just in our shorts. It is not unbearably hot during
the day but the nights are balmy beyound belief. The night skies are
changing all the time, the moon is waning, and it should be neap tides
in a day or so. Perfect for going past Galapagos as the currents are not
so strong then.

Unusual nautical term today is 'By Guess and By God'. From a method of
navigation whereby the skipper relies on experience, intuitiveness,
memory and implicit faith. Fishing boats in particular were said to find
their way around by guess and by God. Which reminds me of a flyer I got
in Panama. Two elderly gents missing at sea on a small skiboat. Last
time they reported their position was October 11 and they were about 5nm
offshore.

Our position now at 08:30 is 01*09'N/090*31'W. We will turn our clocks
on the boat an hour back again today which will place us 8 hours behind
SA time and UTC -6. Galapagos is just south of us and perhaps we will
spot some land before the sun sets.

Take good care

Captain Paul

To catch a booby bird is crazy

Tonight the stars are shining bright again, as they do every night I
guess, but without Sister Moon to brighten the skies, they were
certainly much more visible. At about 10pm our time the moon dressed in
shades of peach started peeping through the clouds to see who would be
watching her performance tonight. As soon as she was above the clouds
her long silver shadow was reflected upon the dark waters around us. My
watch was once again over far too soon and I reluctantly handed over to
Nick who also loves the night. We all do I think but he makes more of it
than the other two boys on board,a good time to reflect and connect.

Our passage from Panama so far has been very calm with a little wind now
and then to speed us up. Always awesome to turn the motors off and sail
a while. The motors are certainly not noisy, I guess one gets used to
the sound and learns to enjoy that as well. We are just under 4000nm
from Tahiti and although we are going a bit slow at the moment we should
gradually get some more wind once we have passed Galapagos. The little
we loose now in keeping an average of six knots we should catch up then.
We will be passing north of Galapagos in about two days and expect some
interesting currents during this passage. No stopping for various
reasons, but should we make good time further down we will maybe drop
anchor at Fatu Hiva just to stretch our legs a bit. Back to Galapagos,
it lies right on the equator and we will once again cross over, this
time from the North Pacific to the Soutrh Pacific.

The boys have been at sea a bit long I think, they are now trying to
catch one of the booby birds diving down at our lures every so
often. Apparently they have plans to roast it in the oven. I doubt very
much that they will succeed,but time will tell. In very calm waters like
we are experiencing at the moment fishing is normally not good, but once
we speed up and the surface of the water becomes more lively we will be
in with a chance. In the meantime we enjoy what we have on board. Steven
prepared some tuna pasta for supper and whipped up quite a delicious
meal. The tuna is canned tuna,just in case you thought you missed out on
something.

We are running out of tobacco and within the next week or so we will
probably be scratching around for some here and there. Guys even smoke
tea at times , but soon the craving will be over. No nautical term
today, but our position at midnight was 02*39'N/087*42'W.

Hope you have a marvelous Monday.

Captain Paul

Afloat at sea

If ever one wonder why they call this the Pacific Ocean, you should be
out here. Just before 10am Nick and Steven spotted what they thought
were whales and woke me up. There were no whale blows and it must have
been dolphins. I saw a splash in the distance but too far to make out
what it was. Interesting that every whale species have a different blow
and is one of the ways to identify what type of whale it is. Anyway, I
stopped the boat and the silence was awesome. In my language we call it
the quiet ocean if I translate directly. The vastness of this ocean
sinks quickly into your being, and the thought that it covers 70% of
Planet Earth makes it seem even bigger. Apparently the ocean was named
by Francis Drake after he rounded Cape Horn and found the ocean on the
other side completely pacifying, hence the Pacific Ocean. Once the boat
came to a standstill first Steven and then Nick went for a swim. The
visibility is as good as you will ever get and the boys enjoyed the luke
warm water tremendously.

Galapagos is about 3 days away. In Spanish Galapagos means enchanted
islands, or bewitched. This is due to the currents that run around this
group of islands like rivers in the ocean. I can imagine the Spanish
galeons and the confusion when they get swung all around. As I was
writing this, Steven spotted a log with a bird on and turned towards it.
Knowing what we can expect I woke Nick and Eduard and once again stopped
the boat. A huge amount of fish took cover under our boat, big and small
from different species. Steven and Eduard tried climbing on the log but
it just turned around. Crabs and barnacles were clinging to this
floating little eco system in the deep blue. Took some nice pics, had
some fun and we are on our way again. Quite a bit of debris in the
water. Eduard thought it was a ship ahead of us dumping some stuff but I
showed him the current running down the west coast of North America, the
current running up the west coast of South America and where they meet
is where we are, using whatever bit of current we can find to assist our
progress. Mostly small polystyrene pieces, now and then part of a
plastic doll, or a shoe and things like that.Yes, the ocean here is like
a big blue dam, flat as anything. Just a nice gentle swell rolling
through.

32*C and warming up. Our position at the moment is 03*57'N/084*37'W.
Word for today is Junk. From the Latin juncus or jungo which means to
join. Junk became the word for rushes which were tied together to make
baskets and mats. By extension that included rope because it was also
made from rushes. It came to be applied more specifically to old rope
which had begun to break down and resembled its basic material. Hence
its present use to describe dumped and worn out items.

Till we meet again.

Captain Paul

An unexpected breeze

The full moon was an amazing sight in the clear skies last night on the
Pacific. So much so that I was prompted to take the binoculars, lie on
my back and stare at this bright ball in the sky. Soon after I took over
watch at midnight the breeze started settling in. First I had the genoa
out, still motoring but now going a knot faster. Half an hour later I
turned the motor off and soon it was time to set up our second headsail.
The moon was so bright that I did not need to switch on the deck light
or wear a headlamp. Got all the lines ready, started one motor to make
hoisting the second headsail easier and up she went. What an immense
thrill as always to see both sails working in unison, catching the
breeze and gradually building speed.

I was just about to settle in for my watch when it was over, far too
quick. Steven and Eduan also decanted ten 30ltr drums of diesel into our
tanks, packed the drums away and cleaned the area where the drums were
tied down. Lovely to work at night under the moonlight as it is getting
rather hot during the day. The wind we are having was not really
predicted and we are truly thankful for this blessing. We have a long
way to go, should have enough diesel, but the more we sail the harder we
can motor when we have to.

We saw two turtles yesterday. Nick spotted the first one while we are
having a delicious roasted chicken ala Nicolas. As we were motoring it
was easy to turn the boat around but we could not find the turtle again.
Such a pleasure to get up close to these creatures and swim with them a
bit. An hour later Eduard spotted another turtle but we were
motorsailing with the mainsail and genoa up and would take some time to
turn around. Conditions are good for fishing this morning and we have
two lures out, both new lures. Who knows what will be served for supper
tonight.The sushimi we had yesterday was such an appetizer, we were
really grateful to be able to use our pickled ginger, wasabi and soya
sauce. Had the sushimi portions in the freezer for a while to firm it
up and the results were first class. Steven and myself had some for
lunch, Nick had his portion when he woke up although he seared some of
his, ?, and Eduard was not used to the delicasy at all, only managing
to stomach one piece.Mmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Nautical term today is Rummage, from the French 'arrumer' which means to
pack closely. The word was common in the 16th century and described the
method of cargo stowage and later the cargo itself. Its later meaning,
to poke about, ransack, turn over roughly or jumble, is thought to have
come from the warehouses and quayside where cargo was stored awaiting
shipment. Such a variation of items and materials, frequently intended
for different destinations, would have needed some sorting out.

Our position at 10am was 05*23'N/082*37'W. We are about 670nm from
Galapagos and 4300nm from Tahiti. Long way to go still, but we are
back into the rhythm of the motion of the ocean.

Wishing you a fabulous weekend.

Captain Paul