Month: June 2025

Current Position: 17 44.318’S 168 18.643’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 0 kt COG: N/A; TWS: 14 kt; TWD: 121; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila): At Anchor; Total Miles Sailed: 6941 nm;
Comments: I have been looking at potential departure dates and Friday looks good if I can get my work done. I have been considering sailing directly to Darwin and skip Thursday Island. The distance would be similar to the passage from Cabo to the Marquesas, 2900 nm, and would probably take about 28 days. Darwin is perhaps 6 days beyond Thursday (750 nm). The advantage of not stopping is I’d probably save a week (by the time I do the formalities, etc.) and Thursday cannot do the Biosecurity, so I’d have to do that in Darwin anyway. Today I intend to continue with my punch list … focusing on water ingress. There are four problems: 1) water fills the starboard lazarette because the pump in it is places to the aft, which is several inches higher than forward. I need to relocate the pump. 2) the float switch has failed for the midship bilge pump. This is critical because that pump is the main one that keeps most of the bilge dry. I need to find a switch locally. 3) The automatic switch in the shower sump is no longer working. I need to pull the pump and the switch out of there, clean the pump (as it is fouled) and test the switch. I either need to repair the wiring or replace the switch. 4) I need to make a cover for the hawse pipe (chain locker chaise) to help prevent water ingress from the chain locker which in big seas. The float switch midship was indeed faulty and was replaced. The wire for the switch in the shower sump had corroded, was repaired, and now the pump works once more automatically. The shower sump was completely cleaned out and dried, but when the pump was lowered back into it, several inches of water drained from the hose. It appears that the one-way valve is no longer one way. This should not be an issue in that there is an anti-siphon loop. I removed the bilge pump from the lazarette. The plastic is brittle. While I think I can reinstall it in the new location, I am not convinced it is going to last. I have a new bilge pump that is somewhat bigger. It has a float switch built into it. I am going to install the new one, but U need to go to the hardware store too and get some more hose (what I have is a few inches too short).

Current Position: 17 44.318’S 168 18.643’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 0 kt COG: N/A; TWS: 14 kt; TWD: 121; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila): At Anchor; Total Miles Sailed: 6941 nm;
Comments: I woke up this morning and for the first time in weeks there were no clouds in the sky. I started my punch list in earnest. Since there was little wind, I removed part of the Yankee from the furler so I could reach the clew to reverse the sheets, which were becoming frayed where they came in contact with the lower shroud and where they went to through the block on the deck. I then turned my attention to the windvane. It had eaten through the double-braid again in a couple of months (3000 nm). It was wearing through multiple places. I devised a way of replacing part of the control line with Dyneema, which should not only be stronger and less prone to chafing, it is slippery and will have less friction. While examining the windvane, I discovered something alarming. There is crevasse corrosion at some of the connecting tubes and stress fractures where bolts go through the tubes. The tubing connectors need to be replaced. I will contact Scanmar and ask if there is a dealership in Australia that might have the parts. In the meantime, I have place steel hose clamps around the cracked tubing. I have contacted Scanmar about getting replacement tubes in (or sent to) Darwin.

Current Position: 17 44.318’S 168 18.643’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 0 kt COG: N/A; TWS: 14 kt; TWD: 121; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila): At Anchor; Total Miles Sailed: 6941 nm;
Comments: When I woke up, after tea, I went to the Au Bon Marche grocery store for so items for a meal, then the Ah Pow Bakery for some French bread and raisin rolls for breakfast. I then was introduced to the “mini bus” system, vans with a red “B” on the license plate, but otherwise unmarked. You flag them down and tell them where you want to go. The price is VT150 (about $1.25) regardless of how far you are going. The system is very efficient. I went to the Vila Marine store, which was supposed to get open half the day, but it was not. I was looking for double-braid rope. I will have to return next week. I returned to the boat to work on the fuel problem, running the polishing system and emptying the Racor filter if water several times, then the system stopped pumping. It has enough capacity to pump from the higher day tank but not the main tank. It acts like there is an air leak. Since the top of the Racor needs to be loosened each time it is drained, and that was the only part of the vacuum system they had been taken apart, I assumed that was where the leak was. However, I repeatedly reseated the cap and ever replaced the o-ring, gasket, and filter, but that did not help. It is possible the pump simply stopped working to capacity. I have already replaced the pump a couple of times, do I have a history with this model. It is my intention to look for a replacement pump in Darwin. While working on the pump I kept hearing strange noises. Earlier, I had heard water being pumped out like one of the bilge pumps had gone off. At that time I checked the bilges and they were relatively dry. Finally, I discovered the main bilge pump was indeed on, its noise masked by the fuel pump. Turns out the automatic switch gas failed and strangely turns it on when the switch is supposed to get off and off when the switch is supposed to be on. The pump was hot to the touch, so it had been on for a while. The switch needs to be replaced. I will look for one locally, but this may be another item for Darwin. I will need to add a reminder to my daily list to check that bilge compartment to manually empty it. However, I have not seen any significant water in it since I began the trip.

Current Position: 17 44.318’S 168 18.643’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 0 kt COG: N/A; TWS: 14 kt; TWD: 121; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila): At Anchor; Total Miles Sailed: 6941 nm;
Comments: When I woke up, after tea, I went to the Au Bon Marche grocery store for so items for a meal, then the Ah Pow Bakery for some French bread and raisin rolls for breakfast. I then was introduced to the “mini bus” system, vans with a red “B” on the license plate, but otherwise unmarked. You flag them down and tell them where you want to go. The price is VT150 (about $1.25) regardless of how far you are going. The system is very efficient. I went to the Vila Marine store, which was supposed to get open half the day, but it was not. I was looking for double-braid rope. I will have to return next week. I returned to the boat to work on the fuel problem, running the polishing system and emptying the Racor filter if water several times, then the system stopped pumping. It has enough capacity to pump from the higher day tank but not the main tank. It acts like there is an air leak. Since the top of the Racor needs to be loosened each time it is drained, and that was the only part of the vacuum system they had been taken apart, I assumed that was where the leak was. However, I repeatedly reseated the cap and ever replaced the o-ring, gasket, and filter, but that did not help. It is possible the pump simply stopped working to capacity. I have already replaced the pump a couple of times, do I have a history with this model. It is my intention to look for a replacement pump in Darwin. While working on the pump I kept hearing strange noises. Earlier, I had heard water being pumped out like one of the bilge pumps had gone off. At that time I checked the bilges and they were relatively dry. Finally, I discovered the main bilge pump was indeed on, its noise masked by the fuel pump. Turns out the automatic switch gas failed and strangely turns it on when the switch is supposed to get off and off when the switch is supposed to be on. The pump was hot to the touch, so it had been on for a while. The switch needs to be replaced. I will look for one locally, but this may be another item for Darwin. I will need to add a reminder to my daily list to check that bilge compartment to manually empty it. However, I have not seen any significant water in it since I began the trip.

Current Position: 17 44.318’S 168 18.643’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 0 kt COG: N/A; TWS: 4 kt; TWD: 105; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila): At Anchor; Total Miles Sailed: 6941 nm;
Comments: I got 10h of uninterrupted sleep last night, waking up at 6:00. The longest continuous sleep I have had in months. After trying to reach Customs on 16 for an hour, someone finally told me Customs does not have access to a radio. It turns out that their building was destroyed in the earthquake last year on December 22 (7.5) and they had just moved into a new building. I went first to Yacht World, the center of the Universe at Port Vila. A person there directed me to Ruth in room G01 and pointed down the street and said “the one with the brown roof. Turns out that brown is a popular color at Port Vila. It took me walking the streets for an hour to find G01 in a pitch black corridor in the basement of an apartment building. The office had the layout of a typical apartment, with a full kitchen. The customs official there said Ruth would help me, and she was waiting for me at Yacht World. I met Ruth there she asked where my boat was at and I pointed at it at the quarantine anchorage, where she had told me to anchor days before in an e-mail. She said I would need to move my boat to a bouy because three people would be visiting it. That was no problem because finding a moorig bouy was next on my list after the formalities. Willie, a very nice person in a yellow boat helped me moor. As I was instructed, once moored, I radioed Yacht World as the were tell Ruth. Turns out Ruth was busy in meeting and she sent me back to shore to the original person I saw at G01. They said they were still looking for Immigration and Biosafety officials. I went back to boat to take a nap and as soon as I closed my eyes I heard my name called over the radio. It startled me because you never hear people’s names … only the names of boats. They wanted me to come pick up the Immigration and Biosafety officials. My boat was inspected for the first time and the paperwork and my passport was stamped in the cockpit of Aegir-Ran. They took my lemons and limes. I took down the Q-flag and went ashore to have a cocktail and celebrate my freedom. I need to get started with my punch list tomorrow.
Sent from my iPhone

Current Position: 17 44.318’S 168 18.643’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 0 kt COG: N/A; TWS: 4 kt; TWD: 105; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila): At Anchor; Total Miles Sailed: 6941 nm;
Comments: Sunset is about 17:20. Now, 24h before sunset tomorrow, I have 100 nm remaining to the entrance of the harbor. From there, I have about 5 nm to the customs anchorage. I have managed to sail directly at the waypoint all day, but wind speeds are going to decrease, and my experience is slower boat speed make it more difficult to run without accidentally jibing. I only need to sail 4.2 kt on average to be at the entrance to the harbor and for tonight at least I expect to sail about 6 kt. Bottom line is I expect to make the anchorage tomorrow. Even if it is after dark, I intend to anchor because the route into the anchorage is simple. At 15:20 I could make out the shore of Erromango, about 20 nm away. I downloaded a new GRIB at that time. There were no major changes. Arrival was predicted at about 19:00 (after dark) with 17 kt winds and 21 kt gusts the whole way. Because the wind had already started to wane, the boat was slowing down a bit, and I really had not seen any violent squalls in several days (the rain storms had not been bringing with them high winds, I decided to shake out the second reef in the main and run with one reef for the remainder of the voyage. The boat picked up about half a kt of speed to 5.6-6.4 depending on whether it was gusty or not. I had to trim the sails and adjust the windvane. It is becoming increasingly difficult to head for the waypoint. At some point I will need to jibe. I will probably wait until I am close to Efata so I have a better idea how far I will need to jibe southwesterly. I went to sleep about 19:00 and set 1h alarms. In the middle of one interval, at 22:20, I was awaken because the boat was being driven N at high speed by a storm with heavy rain and 27 kt wind. I had slept only one minute before being awaken. I gained control of the boat and corrected the course. The wind only lasted a couple more minutes. I was now 20 nm NE of Erromango and 70 nm from the waypoint. I was just 2 nm NE of the point that PW had recommended the main jibe to align the boat with the waypoint. The PW course had arrived at this point by taking a smaller jibe of 5 nm earlier, but I had found that unnecessary. I was 3.5h ahead of schedule. I have 19h to cover the 70 nm to the waypoint and need to average 3.7 kt to arrive there before dark. I am indeed going to have to take a major jibe (adding distance, loosing time), but I am going to wait until daylight hours to do that. Besides the wind, rain, and dark, jibing now would bring me close to the N coast of Erromango. My current direction takes me to the SE coast of Efata. There is actually predicted to be better wind on this course than if I were to jibe now. I can go as far as 35 nm before I jibe, which will be 5-6h if the wind holds up. Sunrise is about 6:20, so it will probably still be dark. I plan to sail the 35 nm, jibe for 20 nm, then jibe again for about 25 nm to the entrance of the harbor. My best guess is I can do that in 14-16h, placing me at the entrance of the harbor well before dark. I would still need to sail/motor about an hour within the harbor to get to the anchorage. I downloaded a new GRIB and weather plan at 23:00. There are no surprises. The plan has me arriving at the waypoint about 15:00, jibing earlier than I plan. On the long-range AIS, I see another sailboat (Fluer) about 10h ahead of me on the same course. They are slow-walking to arrive in the morning, whereas I am pushing hard to get there before dark. A plan in hand, I went back to sleep knowing there are no obstacles until about 5:00. By 2:09, the boat had slowed down significantly, averaging 4.5 kt. But, it seemed like the course had shifted a bit westerly, as expected, so I pressed on without jibing. 52 nm remain to the waypoint. At 2:30 I got hit by a storm, initially with 30 kt winds from 50. I took advantage by hand-steering due E at over 7 kt. Initially it rained, but that only lasted a few minutes. Eventually the winds died to 15 and drove the boat at little over 5 kt. It was as if I had jibed, but I was not loosing latitude. Every nm I traveled E made it that much easier to steer towards the waypoint later. At 3:15 I was still making do E at 5l kt in 13 kt of wind from 40. This was clearly driven by a nearby storm. The wind started veering again and by 3:30 was blowing from 60 at 8, so I steered towards the waypoint at 3 kt. Over the hour I had made 5 nm due E and was 47 nm from the waypoint. Now I was on the backside of the storm and it had sucked out the air. I went below and waited for the wind to return. By be “hands on” I had made good progress instead of being driven 7 nm N. By 3:45, the winds were beginning to return to normal, 95 degrees). At 4:00 I jibed to 240 making 4.5-5 kt in 15-20 kt winds from the SE. I got hit in the back with a large flying fish while in the cockpit. I threw him back in the sea. I need to travel 20-25 nm on this course before jibing again, I imagine around 10:00. Only half the distance will count towards the waypoint. After that, I will have 36 nm to sail, but it should be directly at the waypoint. At 4:30 I went back to sleep. I must have accidentally jibed/heaved to after that, but there was so little wind, it did not wake me up. I continued to make progress for an hour, essentially towards the waypoint, but only at 2 kt. When I woke up at 5:30 I corrected the course. I went on the foredeck with the intention of shaking out the last reef, then decided to wait for more light so I could put eyes on the weather. I was making 5 kt on 240 with about 16 nm to go before I could jibe again. Sunrise was at 6:15. The skies looked fine, but I was making 4.5-5.5 kt in variable 14-21 kt winds, so left the reef in for now. I took down the Tongan flag and raised the flag for Vanuatu as well as the quarantine flag (which according to Vanuatu law I was supposed to be flying when I was within 200 nm of any Vanuatu island). It is 6:45 and since sunrise the wind has shifted unexpectedly to 125-130, allowing me to steer a course (290) nit far from the waypoint (296). I am not complain because even at 4.5 kt I am making good progress. There are no storms in the area. The only thing I can think of is the wind may be funneling between Erromango and Efata. The endgame in arriving at a destination can be the challenging. When you have thousands of miles between you and a destination, your course is less critical. But when you are a couple of dozen miles, your choices a limited. But, those choices are defined by decorum may have made days or even weeks earlier. I believe ai have made very good choices on the passage that began when I decided to leave last Wednesday instead of Friday. At 8:00, I choke out the last reef and trimmed the sails it I did not like the impact the full main was having on the Yankee, so ai put the reef back in and was getting about the same speed without shadowing of the jib. Also, with the full main I was forced to 270, but with the reef in I could point to 285. The wind had backed from the 125 at dawn to 95 now, forcing me further S, but also making an earlier jibe possible. It is 8:40. I could jibe now and head for the waypoint, but I will get better boat speed if I wait, perhaps an hour. At 10:00 I jibed, 27 nm from the entrance to the harbor. I was doing over kt in a broad reach toward the waypoint I 19 kt wind. It seems that I have chosen wisely. Once the sails and windvane were dialed in, the average speed was near 7 kt. It seemed likely I would be entering the harbor sometime around 15:00, so I started preparing the boat, starting with the anchor locker. Of course, while buried in chain and behind all the stuff on the V-berth, a storm struck. By the time I finished and got to the cockpit, the boat was surfing N at 8 kt in 30 kt wind. It was also pouring rain. Filthy and hot from sorting out the chain, I gladly sat in the cockpit and hand-steered through the storm while getting a shower. When the rain cleared, about 11:15, I saw Efata, now about 10 nm away (the harbor entrance was 19). Once the influence of the storm passed at 11:40, the wind direction was perfect to sail into the harbor. The boat was doing over 6 kt in 19 kt wind in a broad reach with 18 nm to go. I had a fishing line out for a couple of hours today and had a strike around noon. I fought the fish for about 15m before it came off the line. Never saw what it was. I didn’t want to slow the boat down. If I had, I probably would have landed it. I am going to try to sail into Mele Bay, which is the 4 nm wide bay outside the harbor, then drop my sails there because it should be relatively sheltered from the wind. I’ll then motor the last fee miles into the anchorage. It is 14:00, I am 6 nm from Mele Bay, and it is engulfed in a ran storm, so I cannot make out any features, including the point that guards the S side of the entrance. I could use GPS and my charts, but the storm is localized, so I will wait it out if I have to. The big storm in the bay has passed, but there seems to be a long string of them. I will slip in between two of them. It is 14:30 and I see the point a couple of miles ahead. The wind is picking up as the next storm rolls in. I rounded the point at 15:15. The wind dropped to single digits. I motor sailed for a bit, then headed up and dropped the sails. I motored the remaining couple of miles into the anchorage. It was about 16:30 and a spectacular double rainbow arched over the harbor, as if to celebrate my arrival. I opened a beer and watched the sunset.

Current Position: 18 59.135’S 169 51.253’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 7.1 kt COG: 302; TWS: 24 kt; TWD: 95; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila, 297: 116; Total Miles Sailed: 6805 nm;
Comments: Starting with this post, I am switching to UTC+21 because all of Wednesday the 25th will be sailed along the coastlines of Vanuatu. When I posted my log yesterday, I also downloaded a new GRIB and plotted a new course. My hard work yesterday paid off, namely avoiding loosing too much latitude. The new predicted arrival time is 23:56 on THURSDAY!, shaving 14h off the time. I went to the cockpit at 14:30 to prepare it for the jibe in the middle of the night, and specifically to move the jib furling line from the port wench to the cleat. While doing that I steered the boat to shadow the jib in the main and while it was depowered I furled more of the Yankee in, leaving a little more than a third exposed. I noticed how much better the boat behaved. With less weather helm, I was able to change the course closer to a run, and in fact due E. After trimming the foresail, I was still making 7.3 kt on average, very close to hull speed. The added bonus was the seas were more following, so the boat was rolling less (I could have a hot meal). The new course, if it holds, means I will be sailing longer before jibing tonight, but, I will have less distance to travel tomorrow with the waves on my beam. Also, less distance to travel overall because I won’t be loosing as much latitude. I set 1h alarm intervals. I woke up 56m into the first one (20:30) because “things weren’t right.” The boat was headed due S, probably hit wrong by a wave or something. I always check the trace recording to see how long something like this had been going on. It was 3m, including the time to correct it. It is now 20:55 and a figure I need to travel another 35 nm before I jibe. I have been averaging 7 kt, so that’s almost 5h, or about 2:00. At 21:30, the boat was headed due S again. In the dark, I had not seen what the problem was. The outer sheath of the port control line of the windvane had been chaffed through and the control line was sliding through the cut portion in the cam on the tiller.i pulled the sheath up so I could grip the core itself and now the windvane is working like it should. These were the control lines I replaced in Hiva Oa. The quality of the double-braid I purchased was probably not up to standards. This is a major issue because if that core breaks, I do not have a replacement line. It’s got to last another 48h or so. I imagine I can find double-braid in Port Vila. It only really needs to last a few more hours. After that I will jibe and be on a starboard tack, so the port control line will not be as stressed. I figured out a way to fix it temporarily, I don’t have 1/4” double-braid that is long enough. However, I have shorter pieces. I will just cut back the present line at the point that it is still good and tie on a shorter piece that I have around. It is 5:30. Sunrise is in 45m and I am about 10 nm off the E coast of Futuna Island (Vanuatu). It is starting to get light despite the fact a storm is passing through and it is raining. Two days ago my course had me intersecting with this tiny island that is only about 2 miles across. I find it amazing that after all the storms I went through that I ended up so close to it. I will jibe now, but first I will heave to and temporarily repair the windvane control line on the port side. Before heaving to, I removed the preventer and sheeted the main. I had to measure carefully where the knot was going to be so it did not interfere with the control line passing through the control blocks. Once repaired, I jibed, set course, and installed the preventer on the port side. The winds were less, so I completely unfurled the Yankee. I need to take advantage of the last of the “good” wind. I spotted Futuna about 6:00. It was covered in clouds. The island is remarkably tall and cone-shaped. It is 7:35. I enjoyed about an hour of sunshine before the storms returned. Everything went as planned. The windvane is repaired and I am averaging 6.5 kt in 18-23 kt wind. I am about 10 degrees off the waypoint, so will likely eventually need to make a couple more jibes. I have 152 nm to go as the bird flies and the new PW model has me arriving tomorrow evening. I have looked at the numbers and it seems like a possibility. We’ll see how far I make it in the next 24h. It feel strange to watch Futuna disappear behind me. It is lush and green. What is ahead looks like a nasty storm. Half the eggs got smashed last night creating a huge mess. Remarkably, they were the first eggs I have lost since the voyage began. I hard boiled what remained and am entangled couple in the cockpit … getting some fresh air before the storms returned hits. At 8:00, just before is arrives, I shadow the Yankee and furl in about 25%. The main still has two reefs. The rain was heavy, and despite the black clouds, surprisingly little wind. In fact, the wind died down and the boat went from 6.5 to 4 kt. There was wind somewhere … I could hear is howling, just not where I was. Although I finished my breakfast in the cockpit, I had to enjoy my tea on the galley floor while the storm blew through. After 10m, the rain stopped and the sun came out. I went to the cockpit and could see the majority of the storm had passed in front of me. I unfurled the jib, but only made 5 kt as the storm was sucking the air out of my sails. Upwind actually looks pretty decent. PW says I will have wind until midnight, hopefully long enough to get past Erromango. I was tempted to shake out the second reef but decided to see what the morning had to offer. Soon I was back up to 6 kt. By midmorning, the sun was shining and the boat was moving along at 5.5 to 6.5 kt in 18 to 27 kt wind from almost due E. With careful trimming if the sails, which were naturally unbalanced by a full Yankee and double reefed main, it was possible to balance the windvane to steer a course directly towards the waypoint, in sharp contrast to the PW course that comprised of dozens of jibes. Unfortunately, the boat still rolled, but at least after a week on the floor I was back in my berth. At 10:30 I passed Aniwa Island (and the much larger Tanna behind it), but at 25m away, there was nothing to see. Now, the only obstacle is Erromango. I am scheduled to pass the NE corner of it sometime this evening. This afternoon, the wind is supposed to decrease 3-4 kt, at which time I will take out the second reef. There are not supposed to be any gusts overnight that exceed 25. I sent an e-mail to Port Vila Customs informing them of my arrival Friday morning. Even if I happed to arrive tomorrow, it will be after they close at 4:30. I received a reply right away acknowledging my planned arrival. The distance travelled on in the last 24h has been 235-116=119 nm. The total distance sailed was 6805-6654=151 nm (average 6.3 kt).

Current Position: 19 21.248’S 172 03.930’E; Local Timezone: UTC+23; SOG: 7.3 kt COG: 234; TWS: 32 kt; TWD: 114; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila, 265): 235; Total Miles Sailed: 6338 nm;
Comments: The storm’s rain and wind arrived at 17:30. The wind is now coming from 95, making impossible to make a course for the waypoint. Unless the direction changes after the storm, I will loose latitude. At 18:15, the rain let up and I could actually see some small patches of sky in the distance. The 30 kt wind continued, but did veer a bit. I have made a habit of checking the shower sump for water and was shocked to see several gallons had accumulated in a couple of hours. I went on a search for the source. I reorganize the V-berth are so I could inspect the storage areas. The chain locker was wet, but not as wet as I expected, and there was little water collected. The drain is on the port (I put it in myself) and the boat was heeled to the starboard, so I expected a big pool of water there, but only found a few cups. It is possible that rolling had allowed it to drain before I inspected the locker. I found the screw-down latches on the forward hatch had vibrated loose, and combined with the loss of the canvas cover earlier, that could be a source, but the frame was only damp and there was no evidence that the items below it (mostly sails) had gotten wet. I opened up the forward compartment under the V-berth itself, but it was dry. If the chain locker was loosing water from anyplace but the drain, that forward compartment should have been wet. I then opened up the main compartment that has the bow thruster and secondary house battery bank, but it was dry. I had installed an emergency bilge pump in the bottom of it, but there was no evidence it was wet. This was a relief, because my friend Dylan had an Alajuela 38 and the metal bracket on the bow to which the dolphin striker is attached had been leaking through the hull and it was a major job to replace it. The lack of water in this compartment ruled out damage to the bow (I had heard the boat hit something some days ago). I then moved to the head. The cabinet beneath the sink was dry (no evidence of the sink/shower through-hull leaking. I opened up the compartment with the plumbing for the head, but it was dry. I couldn’t get to the through-hull for the head water supply (the heavy bins on the floor block it), but the compartment with the mast step was pretty dry … some water is suppose to leak down the inside of the mast when it rains because the sheaves at the top of the mast or open), but there was not enough water to account for what I was seeing. Also, I replaced the through-hull and ball valve for the water supply last year. The bilge in the galley was relatively dry, so water was not flowing from the stern forward across the baffles until the shower sump. I ran out of ideas. I put a bottle under the drain hose in the shower sump to confirm the water is coming from that hose. If it is, there is only two sources, the chain locker (which is wet) and the bow thruster compartment (which is dry). While I was typing this, the boat heeled over violently. I rushed to the cockpit to learn the block on the port side that supports one of the windvane control lines had busted free. The boat was out of control. I put the boat back on course and with one leg wrapped around the tiller, I lashed the block back into place temporarily, then I got some cord and secured it better. While doing this, it occurred to me I should check the pan of the shower (which is covered with a wooden lattice), but it was dry, so the head did not overflow (it shouldn’t because there is a check valve. Also, the “mud” in the shower sump did not smell. There is a little water coming out of the drain hose for the chain locker, but it does not look like enough to account for the volume of water I am seeing. Also, the clear drain hose is not dirty in the inside (although I suppose the mud could have been washed from the chain locker and the inside of the hose cleaned by subsequent fresh sea water. The bottom line is I can find no breach of the hull and the only source of water appears to be the chain locker. In another note, at 19:15, the wind is blowing from 85, forcing me S. The PW course has me loosing 90 nm of latitude, but I am hoping that won’t be the case. The mystery of the water has been solved. The cup I put under the hose for the chain locker had no water in it. The bilge pump in the shower sump has a check valve in it to keep water from flowing from the through-hull back into the bilge. The valve is leaking. It is a 2” hose that is perhaps 10’ long. It goes from the bottom of the shower sump as far as the top of the deck (behind the storage cabinets in the head) to form an anti-siphon loop before going to the same through-hull as the head (the liquids can never mix because of the way the hoses are routed). So what is happening is I am pumping the water out of the shower sump all the way to the anti-siphon loop, then it is slowly leaking through the check valve back into the shower sump. The hose volume must be several gallons. The temporary solution is to pump the water out of the shower sump into a bucket, thereby emptying the hose. The original water came from the chain locker (before I plugged the source with a rag). The sailing overnight was uneventful. The windvane kept the boat on the course plotted by PW. At 6:00 I downloaded a new GRIB and got the bad news. Over the next couple of days I was going to loose air. The ETA is now 15:30 on Friday, too late for the formalities. However, the boat speeds look conservative for the wind speeds predicted, so if I push hard there is still a chance. The current model has me jibing at 6:00 tomorrow. PW is on UTC+22 (Fiji time, because my iPhone received cell service there), the boat is on UTC+23 (Tonga time, because I said I was not going to change it until I got to Vanuatu), and Vanuatu is on UTC+21. It is 7:30 (5:30 local) and it is starting to get light. I can see blue sky for the first time in a couple of days. There are still storm clouds, but nothing that looks threatening. However, the forecast calls for 35 kt gusts today, so I will need to pay attention. I might need to furl the jib a bit more, but I want to make as much distance as possible today and tomorrow before I loose this wind. At 7:45, a fishing trawler suddenly appeared 10 nm S of me. It is the northern most part of a chain of them, like the ones I went through yesterday. They like to leave their AIS off and flip it on only when they are close (although they show up on the long-range PW AIS maps). Since 6:00, when I plotted a new course, for the past 6h I have been able to surprisingly head due W, averaging over 6 kt. The winds have been steadily building and I am currently averaging 7 kt in winds that are gusting to 30. The increasing wind is starting to drive me further S, but nothing nearly so much so as predicted. The closest land in the Vanuatu chain is the small island of Futuna, which is about 150 nm due W. I will be jibing past it and eventually passing between the main islands of Erromango and Efata to get to the W coast of the latter, where Port Vila is located. It is 10:30 and bright and sunny outside with relatively few clouds. I have not seen the sun in days and I am finally generating solar. I have not made tea. The cockpit is not inviting with waves routinely crashing over the cowling. The winds are 28-31 kt and the boat is averaging 7 kt and sometime surfing up to 10 with the double-reefed main and half the Yankee on nearly a run. Because of the obtuse angle to the wind, the boat does not feel overpowered. The main issue is the occasional rogue wave that knocks her sideways, necessitating I go to the cockpit to straighten her out (because the windvane isn’t strong enough to overcome the wind). This has happened a couple of time in the past few hours. I got the “GRIB is 15h old” message at 10:30, which generally means a new one is available. There was not much change in the forecast or the route except I am to arrive an hour earlier (because I made up an hour this morning) and I am in a thunderstorm watch. It is 11:00 and cloudy again with a storm coming in behind me. Also, the long-range AIS data suggests I am past all the Chinese fishing boats. The proposed route is becoming simpler as I get closer … head as W as I can without loosing any more latitude than necessary, jibe to head N parallel to the chain of islands, jibe W between Erromango and Efata, then jibe N again to reach Port Vila. Huge waves developed by 13:00, some 15’, causing the boat to roll and pitch more than I have ever seen. It became dangerous to move around, particularly outside the cabin. The forecast was for this to continue the rest of the passage, although I imagine the effect will depend on the angle I am sailing to the waves. At 16:00, the boat has averaged 7.6 kt, the fastest I have observed, sometimes surfing at 12 kt. Still, the boat does not feel overpowered. I believe it will be time to jibe northward about 2:00. Because of careful management of the sails and windvane, I am going to end up 40-50 nm further N than the original PW route. Furthermore, it is taking less time to sail E. I am clearly ahead of the schedule I plotted at 6:00 this morning. That is remarkable because PW usually overestimates my efficiency during the day and underestimates it at night. I don’t like the idea of going on deck to untie/retie the preventer under these conditions, but I do not have much choice. I will take every precaution (helmet, double tethers, overalls, etc.) and of course I will pick the best opportunity (between gusts). PW says the rolling will decrease after the jibe. It is more dangerous not to have a preventer on. An uncontrolled jibe with these wind strengths would break something. I have not been able to cook today, but fortunately I cooked when I was becalmed near Fiji, so I ate the curried lentils and squash cold. The distance travelled on in the last 24h has been 370-235=135 nm. The total distance sailed was 6654-6498=156 nm (average 6.7 kt, similar to yesterday).

Current Position: 18 59.068’S 174 39.550’E; Local Timezone: UTC+23; SOG: 6.8 kt COG: 254; TWS: 27 kt; TWD: 116; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila, 265): 370; Total Miles Sailed: 6338 nm;
Comments: It is 16:20, right after I checked in yesterday. The storm that has hit me is not a squall. It is probably the storm front that is filling on the dead air that becalmed me yesterday. There has been sustained 20-25 kt winds for the past hour and no sign it’s letting up soon. After 90m, I see daylight on the backside of the storm, but no letup on the wind, which is still blowing 25. I had forgotten that I got almost no sleep last night while dealing with the reef, so I want to get the boat bedded down for the night so I can sleep too. I noticed that the gusts were coming in waves, and immediately when the wind dropped to 20 at 17:00, I rushed on deck and put a second reef in just as the wind picked up to 28 again. The boat is no longer overpowered and is performing well at 6.5 kt towards the waypoint. The forecast is basically what I see now (20/25) for the next 4d. Thursday during the day will be 13/18. Friday will be about 15 day and night with no real gusts. I only have to average 4.8 kt between now and Friday morning to be in a position to arrive at Port Vila then, provided I don’t have to stray too far from the rum line. There is a double line of 20 fishing trawlers strung out perpendicular to my route over a distance of 50 nm the I may encounter tomorrow about this time, but I do not see any other obstacles until then, so I may get a good night’s sleep. It is incredible how quickly the big seas build. It was practically flat and a couple of hours later there are 12’ rollers. I am back to sleeping on the salon floor. Because the wind had changed directions so quickly, the swell and the wind-driven waves are not aligned. Twice in the past two hours the boat has accidentally jibed despite the fact the TWA=140 because the wind/water is corkscrewing the boat. I am going to have to set short-interval alarms to check throughout the night, although the change in heeling will probably wake me up … or maybe not … I am quite tired. It’s 18:30 and I am going to sleep. It is 19:25. I have been asleep twice and in the cockpit twice in the last 45m. The windvane is struggling with the 28 kt sustained winds, first heading up causing the boat to surf at 8 kt uncontrollably abs then accidentally jibing. I am having trouble finding a sweet spot for the control lines and vane. For the next several hours, I got up every 15m to keep the boat on course. By about 22:00, the initial violence of the storm had passed and the windvane was operating well. Thereafter, I woke every 30m to check and make corrections. By 1:30, I was where I was supposed to be at 8:00, 7.5h ahead of schedule. I had been averaging 7.2 kt. I was about 60 nm from the last known position of the 20 trawlers, 8h away at this speed. At 2:00, I downloaded a fresh GRIB and long-range AIS tracking data. For the first time, the weather route predicted I would arrive Friday (14:30). Also, the trawlers had moved and were for now not in my path. The weather forecast had not changed significantly … good wind for the remainder of the passage. When I got up at 5:45, it was gusting 30 kt, as predicted. I made an adjustment to the windvane to put the boat back on course to the waypoint, perhaps the 20th time overnight, and measured the average boat speed during a 5m interval … 8.1 kt, the fastest I’ve measured for the boat. Over the last 5h, since charting the new course, I am ahead of schedule another 2h. At 6:15 I downloaded new long-distance AIS data and there are no vessels that are an immediate threat. My arrival is now scheduled for 10:30 on Friday. The wind has been backing easterly all night, making it increasingly difficult to steer a heading towards the waypoint. As predicted, my course is becoming more southerly and I am loosing latitude. I am scheduled to jibe on Wednesday morning. At 7:00 I eased the sheets as I am now closer to a run than a broad reach. There is not much more I can do without jibing. I have sailed a remarkable 100 nm on in the last 15h, since my check-in, averaging 6.7 kt. I apparently forgot to set an alarm at 7:00. It was 8:50 when I woke up. Although the sun had been up for 1 1/2h, it was still dark because of the storm clouds. One reason I slept so long was the wind had backed 10 degrees, stabilizing the course. I looked at the track and could see the backing of the wind had been happening gradually over the past hour, since sunrise. AIS showed a cargo ship 28 nm off my bow. I had seen it earlier on PW long-range AIS. It would safely pass my bow in about an hour. Despite getting up on average every 20m or so and not getting much sleep the night before, I felt rested. I have become an expert in power naps and probably slept 10h since going to bed 14h ago. I averaged my course and speed over 5m and was making 6.5 kt towards the waypoint. I had lost latitude all night as I struggled to stay on course. Now I was gaining, made possible because of the wind shift at dawn. The shower sump was completely filled with water from the chain locker even though I emptied it last night, about 14h ago. I will need to set an alarm to empty it four times a day and when in Vanuatu I am sewing a cover for the chain chaise to restrict water from getting in. The GRIB was 14h old, so I downloaded a new one at 10:00. Not much had changed except my arrival time (now 6:00 UTC+23, 4:00 local) and the fact I can expect at least 20 kt wind the remainder of the passage. Fingers crossed, but it looks like I will arrive in time to complete the formalities before the weekend. I will contact Customs on Thursday when I have a better idea when. The cockpit was a bit wet, but I celebrated with some green tea and shortbread cookies in the cockpit. I could even see a little sunlight peeking through the dark clouds. I tried to polish some fuel from the main tank to the day tank and have some water in the main. Probably came from the vent on the starboard side of the hull and the violent seas. Will wait for the engine to cool down, drain the water from the bowl, and hope the backup fuel pump isn’t damaged. As a further complication, a two parallel strings of fishing boats that didn’t appear to be a problem are suddenly upon me, 11 nm off my port and heading straight for me. It looks like I will outrun the string to the east, but not the one to the west. The lead ship, Hangton 116, does not respond to VHF. Right now, it looks like I will pass its stern. Fortunately, the visibility is good, but the problem is I do not know what it has in tow. The last thing I want is to get tangled up in fishing nets in these seas. I finally spotted the lead vessel with the binoculars at 12:10. It was passing 1 nm off my bow. It had several vessels in tow, but they were close to the main ship. It passed at 0.25 nm. My guess is it was the support ship servicing a couple of trawlers. The next “free” trawler was 4 nm behind it. I assumed the support ship was not towing lines or nets, but the one behind might be, so I steered my boat between the lead and following ships. Having dealt with the traffic jam, I went below to deal with the fuel issue. I drained the water out of the secondary fuel pump and the Racor water separator, but it is not pumping fuel. It may need to be primed (shouldn’t) but it is rolling too much to handle diesel in the engine room. I will fill the day tank using one of the Jerry cans on deck, which is probably a better idea until I figure out how much water is in the main tank. While in the engine room I noticed the water tank pump had shaken loose from its shelf and was dangling by its hoses. I put it back temporarily, but need to secure it better. When I got out of the engine room I noticed a fault light on the LP gas detector. I know exactly what happened, the water pump swung into the back of the detector panel and loosened one of the wires. It is really cramped to get to, so will have to deal with it at anchor. It is 13:30 and the shower sump was already full. That’s only 5h. Also, there was mud … apparently from the chain, although I was mostly in the ball at Vava’u. Maybe it came from Tahiti. It was relatively calm, so I went to the foredeck to see if there was something I could do about the water ingress. It was a good thing, because the dinghy had worked loose, the canvas cover of the forward hatch was off, and the staysail, which I store under the dinghy, was on the starboard side of the walkway on the deck. I brought the staysail to the cockpit, recovered the hatch, secured the dinghy, and stuffed a rag in the chain chaise (although I’m not sure how much help that will be). It had clearly been much more violent on the bow during the storm than I had realized. At 14:00, I prepared a meal, rather, I prepared some rice to go with the second-to-last meal I got from the Tropicana Cafe, Butter Chicken. I studied the charts as I ate. In contrast to last night during the storm, the windvane has done a good job today keeping the boat headed for the waypoint. This is unexpected because the PW route had me headed way S to follow the change in wind direction. I’ve already saved perhaps 25 nm S (and back again). This is part of the reason my arrival time keeps being pushed forward. The only significant issue are accidental jibes because I am close to running. In fact, I have noticed that me sitting on the port side of the cockpit is sometimes enough to cause the boat to jibe … which is pretty remarkable in that I weight 180 lbs and the boat 18 tons. I noticed the control lines I replaced on the windvane in Hiva Oa are already starting to chafe. I need to buy a couple hundred feet of the double braid in Darwin and make extra sets. It is 15:00 and another big storm is brewing. It could be a repeat of last night. The distance travelled on in the last 24h has been 522-370=152 nm (maybe a new record). The total distance sailed was 6498-6338=160 nm (average 6.7 kt).
Sent from my iPhone

Current Position: 18 59.068’S 174 39.550’E; Local Timezone: UTC+23; SOG: 6.8 kt COG: 254; TWS: 27 kt; TWD: 116; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila, 265): 370; Total Miles Sailed: 6338 nm;
Comments: It is 16:20, right after I checked in yesterday. The storm that has hit me is not a squall. It is probably the storm front that is filling on the dead air that becalmed me yesterday. There has been sustained 20-25 kt winds for the past hour and no sign it’s letting up soon. After 90m, I see daylight on the backside of the storm, but no letup on the wind, which is still blowing 25. I had forgotten that I got almost no sleep last night while dealing with the reef, so I want to get the boat bedded down for the night so I can sleep too. I noticed that the gusts were coming in waves, and immediately when the wind dropped to 20 at 17:00, I rushed on deck and put a second reef in just as the wind picked up to 28 again. The boat is no longer overpowered and is performing well at 6.5 kt towards the waypoint. The forecast is basically what I see now (20/25) for the next 4d. Thursday during the day will be 13/18. Friday will be about 15 day and night with no real gusts. I only have to average 4.8 kt between now and Friday morning to be in a position to arrive at Port Vila then, provided I don’t have to stray too far from the rum line. There is a double line of 20 fishing trawlers strung out perpendicular to my route over a distance of 50 nm the I may encounter tomorrow about this time, but I do not see any other obstacles until then, so I may get a good night’s sleep. It is incredible how quickly the big seas build. It was practically flat and a couple of hours later there are 12’ rollers. I am back to sleeping on the salon floor. Because the wind had changed directions so quickly, the swell and the wind-driven waves are not aligned. Twice in the past two hours the boat has accidentally jibed despite the fact the TWA=140 because the wind/water is corkscrewing the boat. I am going to have to set short-interval alarms to check throughout the night, although the change in heeling will probably wake me up … or maybe not … I am quite tired. It’s 18:30 and I am going to sleep. It is 19:25. I have been asleep twice and in the cockpit twice in the last 45m. The windvane is struggling with the 28 kt sustained winds, first heading up causing the boat to surf at 8 kt uncontrollably abs then accidentally jibing. I am having trouble finding a sweet spot for the control lines and vane. For the next several hours, I got up every 15m to keep the boat on course. By about 22:00, the initial violence of the storm had passed and the windvane was operating well. Thereafter, I woke every 30m to check and make corrections. By 1:30, I was where I was supposed to be at 8:00, 7.5h ahead of schedule. I had been averaging 7.2 kt. I was about 60 nm from the last known position of the 20 trawlers, 8h away at this speed. At 2:00, I downloaded a fresh GRIB and long-range AIS tracking data. For the first time, the weather route predicted I would arrive Friday (14:30). Also, the trawlers had moved and were for now not in my path. The weather forecast had not changed significantly … good wind for the remainder of the passage. When I got up at 5:45, it was gusting 30 kt, as predicted. I made an adjustment to the windvane to put the boat back on course to the waypoint, perhaps the 20th time overnight, and measured the average boat speed during a 5m interval … 8.1 kt, the fastest I’ve measured for the boat. Over the last 5h, since charting the new course, I am ahead of schedule another 2h. At 6:15 I downloaded new long-distance AIS data and there are no vessels that are an immediate threat. My arrival is now scheduled for 10:30 on Friday. The wind has been backing easterly all night, making it increasingly difficult to steer a heading towards the waypoint. As predicted, my course is becoming more southerly and I am loosing latitude. I am scheduled to jibe on Wednesday morning. At 7:00 I eased the sheets as I am now closer to a run than a broad reach. There is not much more I can do without jibing. I have sailed a remarkable 100 nm on in the last 15h, since my check-in, averaging 6.7 kt. I apparently forgot to set an alarm at 7:00. It was 8:50 when I woke up. Although the sun had been up for 1 1/2h, it was still dark because of the storm clouds. One reason I slept so long was the wind had backed 10 degrees, stabilizing the course. I looked at the track and could see the backing of the wind had been happening gradually over the past hour, since sunrise. AIS showed a cargo ship 28 nm off my bow. I had seen it earlier on PW long-range AIS. It would safely pass my bow in about an hour. Despite getting up on average every 20m or so and not getting much sleep the night before, I felt rested. I have become an expert in power naps and probably slept 10h since going to bed 14h ago. I averaged my course and speed over 5m and was making 6.5 kt towards the waypoint. I had lost latitude all night as I struggled to stay on course. Now I was gaining, made possible because of the wind shift at dawn. The shower sump was completely filled with water from the chain locker even though I emptied it last night, about 14h ago. I will need to set an alarm to empty it four times a day and when in Vanuatu I am sewing a cover for the chain chaise to restrict water from getting in. The GRIB was 14h old, so I downloaded a new one at 10:00. Not much had changed except my arrival time (now 6:00 UTC+23, 4:00 local) and the fact I can expect at least 20 kt wind the remainder of the passage. Fingers crossed, but it looks like I will arrive in time to complete the formalities before the weekend. I will contact Customs on Thursday when I have a better idea when. The cockpit was a bit wet, but I celebrated with some green tea and shortbread cookies in the cockpit. I could even see a little sunlight peeking through the dark clouds. I tried to polish some fuel from the main tank to the day tank and have some water in the main. Probably came from the vent on the starboard side of the hull and the violent seas. Will wait for the engine to cool down, drain the water from the bowl, and hope the backup fuel pump isn’t damaged. As a further complication, a two parallel strings of fishing boats that didn’t appear to be a problem are suddenly upon me, 11 nm off my port and heading straight for me. It looks like I will outrun the string to the east, but not the one to the west. The lead ship, Hangton 116, does not respond to VHF. Right now, it looks like I will pass its stern. Fortunately, the visibility is good, but the problem is I do not know what it has in tow. The last thing I want is to get tangled up in fishing nets in these seas. I finally spotted the lead vessel with the binoculars at 12:10. It was passing 1 nm off my bow. It had several vessels in tow, but they were close to the main ship. It passed at 0.25 nm. My guess is it was the support ship servicing a couple of trawlers. The next “free” trawler was 4 nm behind it. I assumed the support ship was not towing lines or nets, but the one behind might be, so I steered my boat between the lead and following ships. Having dealt with the traffic jam, I went below to deal with the fuel issue. I drained the water out of the secondary fuel pump and the Racor water separator, but it is not pumping fuel. It may need to be primed (shouldn’t) but it is rolling too much to handle diesel in the engine room. I will fill the day tank using one of the Jerry cans on deck, which is probably a better idea until I figure out how much water is in the main tank. While in the engine room I noticed the water tank pump had shaken loose from its shelf and was dangling by its hoses. I put it back temporarily, but need to secure it better. When I got out of the engine room I noticed a fault light on the LP gas detector. I know exactly what happened, the water pump swung into the back of the detector panel and loosened one of the wires. It is really cramped to get to, so will have to deal with it at anchor. It is 13:30 and the shower sump was already full. That’s only 5h. Also, there was mud … apparently from the chain, although I was mostly in the ball at Vava’u. Maybe it came from Tahiti. It was relatively calm, so I went to the foredeck to see if there was something I could do about the water ingress. It was a good thing, because the dinghy had worked loose, the canvas cover of the forward hatch was off, and the staysail, which I store under the dinghy, was on the starboard side of the walkway on the deck. I brought the staysail to the cockpit, recovered the hatch, secured the dinghy, and stuffed a rag in the chain chaise (although I’m not sure how much help that will be). It had clearly been much more violent on the bow during the storm than I had realized. At 14:00, I prepared a meal, rather, I prepared some rice to go with the second-to-last meal I got from the Tropicana Cafe, Butter Chicken. I studied the charts as I ate. In contrast to last night during the storm, the windvane has done a good job today keeping the boat headed for the waypoint. This is unexpected because the PW route had me headed way S to follow the change in wind direction. I’ve already saved perhaps 25 nm S (and back again). This is part of the reason my arrival time keeps being pushed forward. The only significant issue are accidental jibes because I am close to running. In fact, I have noticed that me sitting on the port side of the cockpit is sometimes enough to cause the boat to jibe … which is pretty remarkable in that I weight 180 lbs and the boat 18 tons. I noticed the control lines I replaced on the windvane in Hiva Oa are already starting to chafe. I need to buy a couple hundred feet of the double braid in Darwin and make extra sets. It is 15:00 and another big storm is brewing. It could be a repeat of last night. The distance travelled on in the last 24h has been 522-370=152 nm (maybe a new record). The total distance sailed was 6498-6338=160 nm (average 6.7 kt).