Current Position: 12 05.569’S 97 52.904’E; Local Timezone: UTC+6.5; SOG: 0 kt; COG: N/A; TWS: 17 kt; TWD: 157; Distance to Waypoint (Cocos): At Anchor; Total Miles Sailed: 11577 nm; Engine Hours: 248; Estimate Fuel: 60+11+50;
Comments: I was wrong about the Cocos being in the same time zone as CI. It is in fact 0.5h earlier (UTC+6.5). Accordingly, I will start using UTC+6.5 with this report. For the remainder of the passage, the next 24h, the wind is supposed to remain fairly constant 18 with 20 gusts from about 115. I do not believe it will be necessary to tack and the average speed should be about 5, giving me an arrival at the waypoint about 13:00. I should be anchored by 15:00. It is 17:00, just before sunset, and the wind had dropped to 14 kt. Further, I am running almost directly against a 1.1 kt current. I have 88 nm to go and the boat speed has fallen to 4.4 kt. The seas are bigger now, perhaps 9’. Sunset was at 17:47 and was filtered through a rain shower. By 20:30 it was blowing 19-24 kt and the current is closer to the beam, so I am making over 5 kt again. I was awaken at 22:15 because the boat had rounded up. It had been sailing due S for 10m. I have 65 nm to go, one unit longitude W. The boat rounded up again at 23:00. I think it is caused by a couple of waves hitting in succession before the windvane can correct. At 00:30, I relaxed the jib sheet in an effort to better balance the sails and prevent the tendency to round up. I will probably jibe at dawn for an hour or two to get the right angle for the northern passage into the lagoon. It is 5:19 and sunrise should be about 5:50. The wind has slowed to 14 and a current is working against me. As soon as it is light, I will tack N for about 2h, to get a better angle for the N passage into the lagoon, but also get a better wind angle to try to pick up some speed. Finally, the chart shows South Keeling Islands just E of the Cocos, although no elevations are shown. In any case, I want to steer well clear of the windward shore. I tacked at 5:30. The new course is 315 (waypoint 281), the best I can do with a TWD of 120. I am averaging 4.5 kt in 14 kt of wind with a little help from the current. I could gain more speed heading further N, but I’d just have to make up the distance and I would not have as much help from the current or following seas. It is 31 nm to the waypoint. I probably need to sail 6-8 nm on this course before tacking again. It should be sunrise soon but I won’t see it because there are storm clouds once again to the SE. This seems a pattern every morning. I am going to enjoy my tea then get to work on my pre-arrival checklist (sorting out the chain locker, switch out the flags and raising the Q, reviewing the arrival protocols for the Cocos, etc.). Some interesting new birds have started appearing. I will need to investigate if the Cocos have any unique species. At 7:20 a cargo ship appeared on AIS, but it will pass behind me. At 7:30, 2h after tacking, I have 26 nm to go (was 31) and the waypoint angle is 270 (was 281). To make sure I have the angle for the passage, I should probably try to make 260. That should place me about 20 nm from the waypoint. At 9:00 the waypoint was 24 nm away at 260 and I tacked towards it. It is 9:00. I have 23 nm to the waypoint and am only making 4 kt in 12 kt wind. Hoping the wind picks up as the ocean warms up today. Unfortunately (for both solar electricity and solar warming), it is heavily overcast. As it is, I won’t make the waypoint until 3:00, but certainly with plenty of time to anchor before dark. Since I am make a course now towards the waypoint, I should start making some progress. I am starting to hear chatter on VHF 16. I have completed my pre-arrival punch list. It is 9:15 and there is a large rainstorm upwind. It looks like it will hit me. I need a shower and I am hoping it brings some wind. It started to rain at 9:30. The clouds started to look a bit more angry than they did from a distance, but still not particularly threatening. The wind backed from 120 to 80 as the storm arrived. Almost at the same time, hundreds of seabirds showed up. The main storm hit at 10:00 with heavy rain. As the storm passed, wind speeds dropped to single-digits (not what I was hoping for) and veered to 180. It became clear the storm was made up by many cells, and the rain and wind shifts came in waves, latter making it difficult to navigate. The main storm passed about 10:30 and some sunshine peeked through the clouds. In the end, the TWA ranged from 70 to 190 and I steered mostly by hand from a close haul to a near run. Another rain storm showed up at 11:00. It seems larger in area than the last one. I am still 16 nm from the waypoint. In the last 2h I have only make 7 nm on. It seems fairly certain U will anchor before dark, but perhaps not to much before. The seas have settled down with perhaps 5’ waves suggesting the 20+ kt winds are gone. I have had mostly single digits the past few hours. The forecast did not pan out, either in terms of wind speeds/directions or precipitation. The larger rainstorm arrived at 11:40. In contrast to the previous storm, this one brought wind … initially 28 kt gusts. However, the wind was well-behaved with respect to direction, so the windvane was able to handle it. By the time the initial 20+ kt gusts subsided 20m later, I was 12 nm from the waypoint. Rain continued for another 20m with more manageable 12-18 kt wind. This was all well-timed with respect to giving the boat a good washing and propelling it to the waypoint. Unfortunately, when the storm had passed it sucked the air out of the and the wind dropped again to single digits. It is 13:00. The storms are long gone, but the wind is still 7 kt with occasional gust of 10. I have 8 nm to go to the waypoint. I contacted Cocos Police in VHF 20 per protocol and they gave me permission to proceed to Direction Island. I am averaging under 3 kt. I see another storm building on the horizon. At 13:40 I was 6 nm away and spotted the Cocos. I am guessing I will be ready to drop the sails about 15:00. At 15:00 I was 1.8 nm from the waypoint. A rain storm was crossing Home Island and would soon reach me. At 15:15 I was 1.2 nm away, had lowered and lashed the sails, and was motoring to the anchorage. By 16:00 the hook was set and by 16:20 I had been in contact with the authorities about the formalities, which will be taken care of tomorrow. I spoke with Ertan by video chat and he filled me in on what is going on at Home Island. There will be a ferry there on Thursday from Direction Island which I will take to pay my port fees. I was feeling “homesick” for Mexico and in serious need of a good meal that was not lamb curry (which I ate five days straight during the passage). So, I made myself Pescado a la Veracruzana. Shockingly, I had all of the ingredients … including the capers!!! I prepared it using the Dorado I caught on the way in. Life is good.
Comments: I was wrong about the Cocos being in the same time zone as CI. It is in fact 0.5h earlier (UTC+6.5). Accordingly, I will start using UTC+6.5 with this report. For the remainder of the passage, the next 24h, the wind is supposed to remain fairly constant 18 with 20 gusts from about 115. I do not believe it will be necessary to tack and the average speed should be about 5, giving me an arrival at the waypoint about 13:00. I should be anchored by 15:00. It is 17:00, just before sunset, and the wind had dropped to 14 kt. Further, I am running almost directly against a 1.1 kt current. I have 88 nm to go and the boat speed has fallen to 4.4 kt. The seas are bigger now, perhaps 9’. Sunset was at 17:47 and was filtered through a rain shower. By 20:30 it was blowing 19-24 kt and the current is closer to the beam, so I am making over 5 kt again. I was awaken at 22:15 because the boat had rounded up. It had been sailing due S for 10m. I have 65 nm to go, one unit longitude W. The boat rounded up again at 23:00. I think it is caused by a couple of waves hitting in succession before the windvane can correct. At 00:30, I relaxed the jib sheet in an effort to better balance the sails and prevent the tendency to round up. I will probably jibe at dawn for an hour or two to get the right angle for the northern passage into the lagoon. It is 5:19 and sunrise should be about 5:50. The wind has slowed to 14 and a current is working against me. As soon as it is light, I will tack N for about 2h, to get a better angle for the N passage into the lagoon, but also get a better wind angle to try to pick up some speed. Finally, the chart shows South Keeling Islands just E of the Cocos, although no elevations are shown. In any case, I want to steer well clear of the windward shore. I tacked at 5:30. The new course is 315 (waypoint 281), the best I can do with a TWD of 120. I am averaging 4.5 kt in 14 kt of wind with a little help from the current. I could gain more speed heading further N, but I’d just have to make up the distance and I would not have as much help from the current or following seas. It is 31 nm to the waypoint. I probably need to sail 6-8 nm on this course before tacking again. It should be sunrise soon but I won’t see it because there are storm clouds once again to the SE. This seems a pattern every morning. I am going to enjoy my tea then get to work on my pre-arrival checklist (sorting out the chain locker, switch out the flags and raising the Q, reviewing the arrival protocols for the Cocos, etc.). Some interesting new birds have started appearing. I will need to investigate if the Cocos have any unique species. At 7:20 a cargo ship appeared on AIS, but it will pass behind me. At 7:30, 2h after tacking, I have 26 nm to go (was 31) and the waypoint angle is 270 (was 281). To make sure I have the angle for the passage, I should probably try to make 260. That should place me about 20 nm from the waypoint. At 9:00 the waypoint was 24 nm away at 260 and I tacked towards it. It is 9:00. I have 23 nm to the waypoint and am only making 4 kt in 12 kt wind. Hoping the wind picks up as the ocean warms up today. Unfortunately (for both solar electricity and solar warming), it is heavily overcast. As it is, I won’t make the waypoint until 3:00, but certainly with plenty of time to anchor before dark. Since I am make a course now towards the waypoint, I should start making some progress. I am starting to hear chatter on VHF 16. I have completed my pre-arrival punch list. It is 9:15 and there is a large rainstorm upwind. It looks like it will hit me. I need a shower and I am hoping it brings some wind. It started to rain at 9:30. The clouds started to look a bit more angry than they did from a distance, but still not particularly threatening. The wind backed from 120 to 80 as the storm arrived. Almost at the same time, hundreds of seabirds showed up. The main storm hit at 10:00 with heavy rain. As the storm passed, wind speeds dropped to single-digits (not what I was hoping for) and veered to 180. It became clear the storm was made up by many cells, and the rain and wind shifts came in waves, latter making it difficult to navigate. The main storm passed about 10:30 and some sunshine peeked through the clouds. In the end, the TWA ranged from 70 to 190 and I steered mostly by hand from a close haul to a near run. Another rain storm showed up at 11:00. It seems larger in area than the last one. I am still 16 nm from the waypoint. In the last 2h I have only make 7 nm on. It seems fairly certain U will anchor before dark, but perhaps not to much before. The seas have settled down with perhaps 5’ waves suggesting the 20+ kt winds are gone. I have had mostly single digits the past few hours. The forecast did not pan out, either in terms of wind speeds/directions or precipitation. The larger rainstorm arrived at 11:40. In contrast to the previous storm, this one brought wind … initially 28 kt gusts. However, the wind was well-behaved with respect to direction, so the windvane was able to handle it. By the time the initial 20+ kt gusts subsided 20m later, I was 12 nm from the waypoint. Rain continued for another 20m with more manageable 12-18 kt wind. This was all well-timed with respect to giving the boat a good washing and propelling it to the waypoint. Unfortunately, when the storm had passed it sucked the air out of the and the wind dropped again to single digits. It is 13:00. The storms are long gone, but the wind is still 7 kt with occasional gust of 10. I have 8 nm to go to the waypoint. I contacted Cocos Police in VHF 20 per protocol and they gave me permission to proceed to Direction Island. I am averaging under 3 kt. I see another storm building on the horizon. At 13:40 I was 6 nm away and spotted the Cocos. I am guessing I will be ready to drop the sails about 15:00. At 15:00 I was 1.8 nm from the waypoint. A rain storm was crossing Home Island and would soon reach me. At 15:15 I was 1.2 nm away, had lowered and lashed the sails, and was motoring to the anchorage. By 16:00 the hook was set and by 16:20 I had been in contact with the authorities about the formalities, which will be taken care of tomorrow. I spoke with Ertan by video chat and he filled me in on what is going on at Home Island. There will be a ferry there on Thursday from Direction Island which I will take to pay my port fees. I was feeling “homesick” for Mexico and in serious need of a good meal that was not lamb curry (which I ate five days straight during the passage). So, I made myself Pescado a la Veracruzana. Shockingly, I had all of the ingredients … including the capers!!! I prepared it using the Dorado I caught on the way in. Life is good.