{"id":2105,"date":"2025-10-24T03:28:44","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T03:28:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aegir-ran.com\/?p=2105"},"modified":"2025-10-24T03:32:32","modified_gmt":"2025-10-24T03:32:32","slug":"check-in-october-24-2025-330-utc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aegir-ran.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/24\/check-in-october-24-2025-330-utc\/","title":{"rendered":"Check-in October 24, 2025; 3:30 UTC"},"content":{"rendered":"
Current Position: 27 22.936\u2019S 43 13.987\u2019E; Timezone: UTC+2; SOG: 5.9; COG: 265; TWS: 18 kt; TWD: 110; P (6:00): 1019.0; P (12:00): 1020.1; P (18:00): 1019.0; P (24:00): 1017.9; Distance to Waypoint (Richards Bay): 598; Total Miles Sailed: 14939nm; Engine Hours: 282; Estimate Fuel: 36+15+50;
\nComments: Note that since I am more than halfway into this passage, with this log entry I will switch to the local time of my destination (UTC+2). I will move the time of my report to UTC 3:30 (so my report is 5:30 local). It is 5:00. The wind direction is wrapping around the southern end of Madagascar. Later today it will be due E. I have a decision to make, allow the boat to drift S or jibe N. I have sought Des\u2019s advice. I put the TillerPilot back on to stabilize my course. I am already in a broad reach, which I imagine I will be able to maintain until midday or possibly early afternoon. In the absence of advice to the contrary, I will let the boat drift S until I have an angle to tack. At that point I will probably try to maintain the latitude rather than work my way back up to 26s. In any case, I can expect some dead air in a couple of days. I continue to have commercial traffic pass by, but the ships are traveling NE\/SW. It started to rain lightly at 6:00. A beautiful sail-through rainbow appeared. The wind has dropped to 16 from 165. The boat is slowing down. I unfurled two-thirds of the Yankee and trimmed the sails, but was making only 4.7 kt. Sea conditions are not favorable. I set the last (moldy) raisin roll and two rock-hard (never that good) croissants free. At 7:15 I was awaken from a nap because the boat accidentally jibed. In addition to a change in wind direction, I was now running against a current. I changed to a more southerly course but could only make 5 kt. PW suggests I will be driven down to 27s when around midnight I can tack N. Des recommended a new waypoint (RBay2b, 27 30\u2019s 44e), which is 118 nm from my current position. I set course from RBay2b at 9:20 averaging 6.1 kt with 22 kt wind on the beam. It looks like I will have similar conditions to the waypoint, arriving early tomorrow morning. From RBay2b, it is recommended that I sail due E 215 nm (RBay2c, 27 30\u2019s 40e). After that \u2026 we\u2019ll see. It is 11:20 and the direction of the current is beginning to rotate clockwise and is now making a positive contribution to the 6.3 kt average boat speed. At 13:00 the wind was 20-25 kt from 160 and I had averaged 6.8 kt since changing the course to RBay2b. It is 15:30, the boat speed is over 7 and the SOG over 8 with a 2.4 kt cross current driving the boat SW. the wind is 24 kt in the beam. It is 76 nm to RBay2b, but it would appear that I will reach 27.5s well W of the waypoint. It is 16:30, the current is 3.4 kt, and the boat is doing almost 10 kt! To take full advantage of the current and the prevailing wind, I changed the course to 260 at 17:00. I may end up in the morning closer to 43e than 44e, depending on how far\/fast the wind backs. Or, I may need to tack starboard before sunrise to avoid going below 27.5s. It is 22:00 and I am only 28 nm from 27.5s 44e. I have changed my course to 26.5s 43e for several reasons \u2026 make needed distance E, slow down the boat so I do not have to tack until daylight, a more comfortable ride. I am still averaging 7.3 kt and if I can maintain this heading will cover the 60 nm in 8-9h, arriving 6-7:00. This will have saved me half a day of sailing relative to where I expected to be. At 1:00 the \u201carrival\u201d alarm went off. I was still 22 nm from 27.5s 44e, but that was as close as I would get because of the course set for 43e, which was still 41 nm away. I was still averaging 7 kt, so I anticipate arrival at 7:00, well after light. However, since it was my plan to head E from that point, I decided to change course again. The current was about 270 and had decreased to 2.2 kt (from 3.4), meaning it would continue to drive me S even if I had a heading of 280. The wind was still blowing from 140 (it was supposed to be 78 by now according to PW). Between the wind and current direction, it would be extremely inefficient to do a starboard tack at this point. So, I changed the heading for 285, which placed me in a deep broad reach. I would continue to drift S, just not as fast. I downloaded new GRIB data. All of the models are consistent and they all say the wind should be blowing from about 80 (not 140). I note that Des\u2019s forecast also predicted wind from the NE. I have been averaging 6.5 kt since changing my heading to 285. The COG is more like 260 with the effect of the current. At 3:30 the wind was blowing 16 and had begun to back at 115. The current was still at 270, but had decreased to 1.5 kt. The jib was slatting, so I adjusted the heading to 275. I still have 25 nm to 27.5s 43e (having made 41-25=16 nm in 2.5h,m) I have averaged 16\/2.5=6.4, but am only making 5.9 now, mainly due to less current. I am going to have to let the changes play out until the wind is blowing less than 90. Sunrise in RBay (32e) was at 5:05, so at my current location (43.3e) it should be (43.3-32)*4=45m earlier, 4:20. The sun came up behind a bank, but that\u2019s about right. Since changing my course yesterday about 9:00, I have sailed approximately 145 nm (145\/20=7.25 kt avg.). I just downloaded a GRIB (for what it is worth) and it looks like I can make decent progress for the next 24-36h. After that I will hit dead air around 39e that runs N\/S and cannot be avoided.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Current Position: 27 22.936\u2019S 43 13.987\u2019E; Timezone: UTC+2; SOG: 5.9; COG: 265; TWS: 18 kt; TWD: 110; P (6:00): 1019.0; P (12:00): 1020.1; P (18:00): 1019.0; P (24:00): 1017.9; Distance to Waypoint (Richards Bay): 598; Total Miles Sailed: 14939nm; Engine Hours: 282; Estimate Fuel: 36+15+50; Comments: Note that since I am more than halfway into … <\/p>\n

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