Current Position: 16 24.357’S 75 29.888’E; Local Timezone: UTC+6.5; SOG: 6.0 kt; COG: 270; TWS: 17 kt; TWD: 110; Distance to Waypoint (Rodrigues, 263): 715 nm; Total Miles Sailed: 12919 nm; Engine Hours: 259; Estimate Fuel: 56+10+50;
Comments: It is 20:00 and I just downloaded a new GRIB. While this passage started out with a bang, it is shaping up to end in a whimper. There is only one cargo ship I might have to deal with tonight, and it looks like it will pass well S of me in the morning. It looks like the wind has begun to back, driving me S. I adjusted the windvane to increase the TWA. While it slows me down a bit, it will give me a more comfortable ride overnight while decreasing the push S. I had a squall come through at 21:15 with light wind, followed by a period of dead air, then higher winds that changed directions, messing with the windvane. I went on deck to tighten the preventer to keep the boom steadier. At 23:15 the boat accidentally jibbed, waking me up a few minutes before an alarm was going to. I am not certain what caused it, but it was raining, suggesting a squall and a sudden wind shift. The boat jibbed again at 23:45. I cannot figure out what is causing it except it seems to be when the winds are lighter. I may have too much weather helm built into the windvane for the light wind. Since I am staying awake a bit to see if I can figure out what is causing the jibbed, I downloaded long-range AIS data which shows the commercial traffic is going to steer clear of me. The boast did not jibe again the rest of the night, but it was a rough ride, I think because of the confused seas. I slept at 60-90m intervals and woke at 6:20. It was still drizzling and had been all night. The wind had blown the mist inside the boat and everything seemed wet. I will have a mildew problem if I don’t get the boat dried out. I tried for an hour to connect to the IGE, but the network was “unstable.” The reception is five bars. I tried rebooting the IGE several times and the DataHub once. I tried accessing through the Internet interface to the DataHub and and when trying to do a position report or a fetch mail. It would wait indefinitely for the network to stabilize. I bypassed the DataHub and connected directly to the IGE network but this did not help. All of the error lights and other signals suggest both the IGE and DataHub are working correctly. I do not know what is causing the unstable network. The offline manuals have not b en useful. I downloaded a copy of the on-line manuals before I left, but for some reason I cannot open them with the Dell tablet. There is a copy on the Apple laptop, but it stopped working some time ago. If I cannot get the IGE system to work by the time I am to submit my log, I will activate the InReach and send a message to everyone that I am okay. At 10:30 the Iridium network stabilized. I don’t think it is a coincidence that the trouble began with the heavy cloud cover and drizzle and returned again when the weather started clearing up. The latest GRIB affords no big surprises. The 30+ kt gusts are leaving this afternoon and the 20+ kt winds are leaving this evening. They will be replaced with 17-23 kt winds that are supposed to be nearly due E overnight. I will unfurl the rest of the jib this afternoon and plan to be driven S. This is what I planned for. Now that the cockpit is dry again and the waves are not as massive, I had my oatmeal at 11:00. Never did make tea this morning. Vy It is noon and I am averaging 7 kt at 260. The distance sailed towards Rodrigues in the last 24h was 859-715=144 nm. The total distance sailed was 12919-12766=153 nm (153/24=6.38 kt avg.).
Comments: It is 20:00 and I just downloaded a new GRIB. While this passage started out with a bang, it is shaping up to end in a whimper. There is only one cargo ship I might have to deal with tonight, and it looks like it will pass well S of me in the morning. It looks like the wind has begun to back, driving me S. I adjusted the windvane to increase the TWA. While it slows me down a bit, it will give me a more comfortable ride overnight while decreasing the push S. I had a squall come through at 21:15 with light wind, followed by a period of dead air, then higher winds that changed directions, messing with the windvane. I went on deck to tighten the preventer to keep the boom steadier. At 23:15 the boat accidentally jibbed, waking me up a few minutes before an alarm was going to. I am not certain what caused it, but it was raining, suggesting a squall and a sudden wind shift. The boat jibbed again at 23:45. I cannot figure out what is causing it except it seems to be when the winds are lighter. I may have too much weather helm built into the windvane for the light wind. Since I am staying awake a bit to see if I can figure out what is causing the jibbed, I downloaded long-range AIS data which shows the commercial traffic is going to steer clear of me. The boast did not jibe again the rest of the night, but it was a rough ride, I think because of the confused seas. I slept at 60-90m intervals and woke at 6:20. It was still drizzling and had been all night. The wind had blown the mist inside the boat and everything seemed wet. I will have a mildew problem if I don’t get the boat dried out. I tried for an hour to connect to the IGE, but the network was “unstable.” The reception is five bars. I tried rebooting the IGE several times and the DataHub once. I tried accessing through the Internet interface to the DataHub and and when trying to do a position report or a fetch mail. It would wait indefinitely for the network to stabilize. I bypassed the DataHub and connected directly to the IGE network but this did not help. All of the error lights and other signals suggest both the IGE and DataHub are working correctly. I do not know what is causing the unstable network. The offline manuals have not b en useful. I downloaded a copy of the on-line manuals before I left, but for some reason I cannot open them with the Dell tablet. There is a copy on the Apple laptop, but it stopped working some time ago. If I cannot get the IGE system to work by the time I am to submit my log, I will activate the InReach and send a message to everyone that I am okay. At 10:30 the Iridium network stabilized. I don’t think it is a coincidence that the trouble began with the heavy cloud cover and drizzle and returned again when the weather started clearing up. The latest GRIB affords no big surprises. The 30+ kt gusts are leaving this afternoon and the 20+ kt winds are leaving this evening. They will be replaced with 17-23 kt winds that are supposed to be nearly due E overnight. I will unfurl the rest of the jib this afternoon and plan to be driven S. This is what I planned for. Now that the cockpit is dry again and the waves are not as massive, I had my oatmeal at 11:00. Never did make tea this morning. Vy It is noon and I am averaging 7 kt at 260. The distance sailed towards Rodrigues in the last 24h was 859-715=144 nm. The total distance sailed was 12919-12766=153 nm (153/24=6.38 kt avg.).