Current Position: 11 59.755’S 98 35.873’E; Local Timezone: UTC+7; SOG: 5.1 kt; COG: 268; TWS: 19 kt; TWD: 116; Distance to Waypoint (Cocos, 269): 100; Total Miles Sailed: 11475 nm; Engine Hours: 247; Estimate Fuel: 60+12+50;
Comments: I made water today. It has been awhile since I have had enough sunlight to do that. It is 15:00 and I am finally out of the thunderstorm warning area. The little pink squid was not getting any hits so I switched to a diving red and white fish-shaped plug, but after running that all day I didn’t get any hits. There are fishing boats N or me. Perhaps this is not a fish-rich area. It is 16:00 and just before sunset the wind tends to die down, and today is no exception … 12 kt and the boat speed has fallen to 4.8. Overnight, the wind is supposed to build to 20 with 25 gusts by morning. It will repeat tomorrow night. I am counting on this and the veering from 100 to 120 to allow me to continue on an approximate rhumb line. All I caught today fishing was plastic bags. I wonder if the unusual amount of plastic and other trash in the water has something to do with the poor fishing. Sunset was at 18:13 and I have 202 nm to go to the waypoint, which is just a few nm from the anchorage at Direction Island. At 2:30 the wind was blowing 17 with 20 gusts from 110 and the boat was averaging 5.8 kt on a course of 253 (262 is the waypoint). I got up at 6:00, just before sunrise. It was dark and I was unexpectedly surrounded by showers. The wind was blowing 17 from 129, probably affected by the storms. I have 143 nm to go and have done 74 nm in the mast 15h (4.9 nm/h on). I am on track to arrive at the waypoint midday tomorrow. The seas are bigger, but not big, maybe 5’, and are following. At 6:30 the boat rounded up and the wind dropped to 12, probably both due to the small weather disturbance in front of me. The GRIB was 15h old, so I downloaded a new one and long-range AIS. No real surprises regarding weather. I predict I will arrive at the waypoint midday tomorrow. I will encounter a couple of cargo ships today. I finished the last of the giant batch of oatmeal I prepped back in Dawin six weeks ago. I had a huge bag of stale walnuts that I couldn’t bear to throw out, so I have tasted those walnuts every morning for a month and a half. I am very glad to be rid of it. Unfortunately, I am down to my last tangerine as well. Those have been a joy each morning. The first of the cargo ships passed 12 nm off my port quarter at 8:30. I will almost certainly have to jibe to the Cocos, but I will wait until tomorrow morning so I know exactly how far I need to travel NW. At 9:00 I landed the perfect-sized (2’) Dorado, enough for three or so large meals. It was hooked using the homemade pot metal South African lure. You always know when you hook a Dorado … they love to leap in the air. It was small enough, so I landed it without slowing the boat down or using the gaff. By 9:30 it was filleted and in the fridge. The timing is perfect as I am down to my last portion of lamb curry. I will eat some for lunch and then make a nice celebratory meal when I arrive tomorrow. It is 10:00 and I no longer have the current working g with me … 1.3 kt from 210 on the port now. It is however helping me stay on the rhumb line. The second ship showed up on the AIS at 10:30.it looks like it will pass behind me about 12:30. There was a little precipitation at 14:30. The distance sailed towards Cocos in the last 24h was 217-100=117 nm. The total distance sailed was 11475-11357=118 nm (118/24=4.9 kt avg.). The discrepancy is due to the current.
Comments: I made water today. It has been awhile since I have had enough sunlight to do that. It is 15:00 and I am finally out of the thunderstorm warning area. The little pink squid was not getting any hits so I switched to a diving red and white fish-shaped plug, but after running that all day I didn’t get any hits. There are fishing boats N or me. Perhaps this is not a fish-rich area. It is 16:00 and just before sunset the wind tends to die down, and today is no exception … 12 kt and the boat speed has fallen to 4.8. Overnight, the wind is supposed to build to 20 with 25 gusts by morning. It will repeat tomorrow night. I am counting on this and the veering from 100 to 120 to allow me to continue on an approximate rhumb line. All I caught today fishing was plastic bags. I wonder if the unusual amount of plastic and other trash in the water has something to do with the poor fishing. Sunset was at 18:13 and I have 202 nm to go to the waypoint, which is just a few nm from the anchorage at Direction Island. At 2:30 the wind was blowing 17 with 20 gusts from 110 and the boat was averaging 5.8 kt on a course of 253 (262 is the waypoint). I got up at 6:00, just before sunrise. It was dark and I was unexpectedly surrounded by showers. The wind was blowing 17 from 129, probably affected by the storms. I have 143 nm to go and have done 74 nm in the mast 15h (4.9 nm/h on). I am on track to arrive at the waypoint midday tomorrow. The seas are bigger, but not big, maybe 5’, and are following. At 6:30 the boat rounded up and the wind dropped to 12, probably both due to the small weather disturbance in front of me. The GRIB was 15h old, so I downloaded a new one and long-range AIS. No real surprises regarding weather. I predict I will arrive at the waypoint midday tomorrow. I will encounter a couple of cargo ships today. I finished the last of the giant batch of oatmeal I prepped back in Dawin six weeks ago. I had a huge bag of stale walnuts that I couldn’t bear to throw out, so I have tasted those walnuts every morning for a month and a half. I am very glad to be rid of it. Unfortunately, I am down to my last tangerine as well. Those have been a joy each morning. The first of the cargo ships passed 12 nm off my port quarter at 8:30. I will almost certainly have to jibe to the Cocos, but I will wait until tomorrow morning so I know exactly how far I need to travel NW. At 9:00 I landed the perfect-sized (2’) Dorado, enough for three or so large meals. It was hooked using the homemade pot metal South African lure. You always know when you hook a Dorado … they love to leap in the air. It was small enough, so I landed it without slowing the boat down or using the gaff. By 9:30 it was filleted and in the fridge. The timing is perfect as I am down to my last portion of lamb curry. I will eat some for lunch and then make a nice celebratory meal when I arrive tomorrow. It is 10:00 and I no longer have the current working g with me … 1.3 kt from 210 on the port now. It is however helping me stay on the rhumb line. The second ship showed up on the AIS at 10:30.it looks like it will pass behind me about 12:30. There was a little precipitation at 14:30. The distance sailed towards Cocos in the last 24h was 217-100=117 nm. The total distance sailed was 11475-11357=118 nm (118/24=4.9 kt avg.). The discrepancy is due to the current.