Current Position: 19 27.317’S 178 55.631’E; Local Timezone: UTC+23; SOG: 6.0 kt COG: 265; TWS: 18 kt; TWD: 60; Distance to Waypoint (Vanuatu, Efata, Port Vila, 265): 614; Total Miles Sailed: 6239 nm;
Comments: According to PW, I was supposed to jibe about 17:30, when the TWA backed to 81. I jibed at 16:30 with a TWA of 82, putting me on a course of 295 (waypoint 266), better than predicted. There was no use heading further S if I didn’t have to. The TWD is supposed to shift to 70 by morning (and eventually to 65 as the wind dies down). I will be presenting more sail as the boat slows down to 4.5-5 kt. I am actually looking forward to getting off the rollercoaster for a while. While the seas are not exactly following yet, it is much more comfortable, especially as I can get off the sole of the cabin and back in my berth. I stayed awake until 22:00, 4 1/2h after jibing. However, the distance traveled was closer to what was expected at 1:30, a period of 9h. I was averaging 6.1 kt, whereas PW expected half that speed. Because I was moving so fast, the boat was not giving the wind time to back, so I was heading further E than expected. If this continues, I will need to jibe again before reaching Ono. Further, if I keep up this pace, I will reach Ono by Saturday evening rather than Sunday morning. That jibe may need to be taken well before I reach Ono because of the expected change in wind pattern. It is 23:00 and the wind is now from 70, so I am headed pretty much towards Ono. LI downloaded a new GRIB and weather route near midnight and the rest of the passage is looking better than previously suggested. The route has me jibing now to avoid Ono, but I believe I will wait until morning and see where I stand. I got an e-mail from Ertan Beskardes, one of the 5.80 racers who left Vava’u on Sunday for Fiji. He expects to arrive tomorrow. He said he lost his outboard in the waves. Must be brutal to be in a 19’ boat that probably does not weigh much more than twice the weight of my rudder. I have averaged 6.2 kt since 16:00, but I expect to slow down soon. Indeed, in the second half of the night, I averaged 5.6. By 7:00, I was averaging about 5 with 18 kt wind still at 85. The reason I slowed down is because I was nearly in a dead run trying to clear the W side of Ono. I pulled up a new weather plan and it confirmed what I feared. I was not going to clear Ono on the W and would have to pass it on the E. I was trying to avoid Kadavu Passage, the strait between Ono and Viti Levo, because it is fairly narrow, crowded with marine traffic, and will require multiple jibes at night. I accepted my fate and set a course for 300. I just noticed I crossed the ant-meridian and am officially in the Eastern Hemisphere. Winds were from 85 at 16-18, so I unfurled about 75% of the Yankee. I was reluctant to show more just now because although daylight, it was raining and I could not make out the weather. Also, I had seen some gusts of 25. I was averaging 5.2. I shook out the second reef at 8:00, which gave me an average speed over 6 kt. The sea conditions are much improved. I took advantage of the relatively calm state to inspect the foredeck but found nothing out of sorts except a strap that needed to be tightened on the dinghy. Although the cockpit was still wet from the rain storm, it was the first time to was comfortable enough to enjoy my tea outdoors. It was nice to be in a broad reach and not have to fight the wind and waves with accidental jibing. There were storm clouds 360 degrees. It does not look promising for solar. If the weather holds, I should be on the E side of Ono by dusk. As the sun gets higher in the sky, I see some patches of blue sky … and another squall headed my way. This is shaping up to be a perfect day for sailing. The first drizzle falls at 8:30. The storm brings 25 kt gusts from 45 degrees and 7 kt boat speed. The temporary change in wind angle as the squall passes drives me 40 degrees off course and directly towards the waypoint. If only this would keep up I’d be in Vanuatu in five days! The spray, drizzle, and cold wind finally drive me out of the cockpit at 8:45. I drank the second half of my tea below deck, studying the charts for the Kadavu Passage. It will be non-trivial. The PW course brings me dangerously close to underwater reefs. I will use the Navionics charts to create a series of waypoints to weave through the passage. Figuring I’d better be well-rested tonight, I laid down at 9:30 to sleep. A new GRIB was available at 11:00 and I downloaded it. Once again, PW suggested I pass S of Ono. To make that possible the TWD had to <70, and it was 68. The challenge was the air was dying S of Ono and if I didn’t keep up, I would be stranded on the windward side of the reef. However, favorable winds were predicted by midday tomorrow. Since I was arriving on the weekend in Port Vila anyway, I certainly had at least a day or two to spare, and to avoid the Kadavu Passage, it was worth the chance, so I jibed as recommended at 11:10. I was only making 4.7 kt, but this is a short jibe, perhaps 6-8 nm. It looks like the wind is going to fall to single digits midday tomorrow. If I make it around the W side of Ono by then, I will be in the clear, otherwise I will be bewinded near Ono for perhaps half a day. This is only 75 nm in 24h, so if I can average 3.5 kt I should be fine. After 10 nm, I jibed again, towards the W end of Ono, now about 67 nm. I completely unfurled the Yankee, left one reef in the main, and was averaging 4.6 kt in 14 kt wind from 72 on a heading of about 285 (WPT=264). I believe I will reach the W edge of Ono 1-2h before dawn. It is close enough that I may need to make one more jibe when I get there. By early Monday morning, I will be in 20-25 kt winds again for most of the rest of the passage. The distance on in the last 24h was 724-614=110 nm. The total distance was 6239-6106=133 nm. At present, remarkably, I am averaging 5.6 kt directly towards the waypoint with 19 kt of wind … better speed, more wind and a better heading than predicted … and it is sunny. Life is good. After all the gyrations of the day in dealing with Ono, everything appears to have turned out well, in part because I paid close attention to changing conditions and capitalized on them. It looks like I may be in a good position in the morning to avoid the dead air that is developing S of Fiji.
Comments: According to PW, I was supposed to jibe about 17:30, when the TWA backed to 81. I jibed at 16:30 with a TWA of 82, putting me on a course of 295 (waypoint 266), better than predicted. There was no use heading further S if I didn’t have to. The TWD is supposed to shift to 70 by morning (and eventually to 65 as the wind dies down). I will be presenting more sail as the boat slows down to 4.5-5 kt. I am actually looking forward to getting off the rollercoaster for a while. While the seas are not exactly following yet, it is much more comfortable, especially as I can get off the sole of the cabin and back in my berth. I stayed awake until 22:00, 4 1/2h after jibing. However, the distance traveled was closer to what was expected at 1:30, a period of 9h. I was averaging 6.1 kt, whereas PW expected half that speed. Because I was moving so fast, the boat was not giving the wind time to back, so I was heading further E than expected. If this continues, I will need to jibe again before reaching Ono. Further, if I keep up this pace, I will reach Ono by Saturday evening rather than Sunday morning. That jibe may need to be taken well before I reach Ono because of the expected change in wind pattern. It is 23:00 and the wind is now from 70, so I am headed pretty much towards Ono. LI downloaded a new GRIB and weather route near midnight and the rest of the passage is looking better than previously suggested. The route has me jibing now to avoid Ono, but I believe I will wait until morning and see where I stand. I got an e-mail from Ertan Beskardes, one of the 5.80 racers who left Vava’u on Sunday for Fiji. He expects to arrive tomorrow. He said he lost his outboard in the waves. Must be brutal to be in a 19’ boat that probably does not weigh much more than twice the weight of my rudder. I have averaged 6.2 kt since 16:00, but I expect to slow down soon. Indeed, in the second half of the night, I averaged 5.6. By 7:00, I was averaging about 5 with 18 kt wind still at 85. The reason I slowed down is because I was nearly in a dead run trying to clear the W side of Ono. I pulled up a new weather plan and it confirmed what I feared. I was not going to clear Ono on the W and would have to pass it on the E. I was trying to avoid Kadavu Passage, the strait between Ono and Viti Levo, because it is fairly narrow, crowded with marine traffic, and will require multiple jibes at night. I accepted my fate and set a course for 300. I just noticed I crossed the ant-meridian and am officially in the Eastern Hemisphere. Winds were from 85 at 16-18, so I unfurled about 75% of the Yankee. I was reluctant to show more just now because although daylight, it was raining and I could not make out the weather. Also, I had seen some gusts of 25. I was averaging 5.2. I shook out the second reef at 8:00, which gave me an average speed over 6 kt. The sea conditions are much improved. I took advantage of the relatively calm state to inspect the foredeck but found nothing out of sorts except a strap that needed to be tightened on the dinghy. Although the cockpit was still wet from the rain storm, it was the first time to was comfortable enough to enjoy my tea outdoors. It was nice to be in a broad reach and not have to fight the wind and waves with accidental jibing. There were storm clouds 360 degrees. It does not look promising for solar. If the weather holds, I should be on the E side of Ono by dusk. As the sun gets higher in the sky, I see some patches of blue sky … and another squall headed my way. This is shaping up to be a perfect day for sailing. The first drizzle falls at 8:30. The storm brings 25 kt gusts from 45 degrees and 7 kt boat speed. The temporary change in wind angle as the squall passes drives me 40 degrees off course and directly towards the waypoint. If only this would keep up I’d be in Vanuatu in five days! The spray, drizzle, and cold wind finally drive me out of the cockpit at 8:45. I drank the second half of my tea below deck, studying the charts for the Kadavu Passage. It will be non-trivial. The PW course brings me dangerously close to underwater reefs. I will use the Navionics charts to create a series of waypoints to weave through the passage. Figuring I’d better be well-rested tonight, I laid down at 9:30 to sleep. A new GRIB was available at 11:00 and I downloaded it. Once again, PW suggested I pass S of Ono. To make that possible the TWD had to <70, and it was 68. The challenge was the air was dying S of Ono and if I didn’t keep up, I would be stranded on the windward side of the reef. However, favorable winds were predicted by midday tomorrow. Since I was arriving on the weekend in Port Vila anyway, I certainly had at least a day or two to spare, and to avoid the Kadavu Passage, it was worth the chance, so I jibed as recommended at 11:10. I was only making 4.7 kt, but this is a short jibe, perhaps 6-8 nm. It looks like the wind is going to fall to single digits midday tomorrow. If I make it around the W side of Ono by then, I will be in the clear, otherwise I will be bewinded near Ono for perhaps half a day. This is only 75 nm in 24h, so if I can average 3.5 kt I should be fine. After 10 nm, I jibed again, towards the W end of Ono, now about 67 nm. I completely unfurled the Yankee, left one reef in the main, and was averaging 4.6 kt in 14 kt wind from 72 on a heading of about 285 (WPT=264). I believe I will reach the W edge of Ono 1-2h before dawn. It is close enough that I may need to make one more jibe when I get there. By early Monday morning, I will be in 20-25 kt winds again for most of the rest of the passage. The distance on in the last 24h was 724-614=110 nm. The total distance was 6239-6106=133 nm. At present, remarkably, I am averaging 5.6 kt directly towards the waypoint with 19 kt of wind … better speed, more wind and a better heading than predicted … and it is sunny. Life is good. After all the gyrations of the day in dealing with Ono, everything appears to have turned out well, in part because I paid close attention to changing conditions and capitalized on them. It looks like I may be in a good position in the morning to avoid the dead air that is developing S of Fiji.