Cruising with the crew of CALOU on the Baja Ha-ha and Pacific Puddle Jump

Day 19

Bruce04/14/2011, Southern Pacific Ocean

Today we finally found the tradewinds and sailed south west towards our destination, Hiva Oa. The sailing was highly variable, which kept us in our toes and busy all the time. Squalls are abundant, so we found ourselves frequently reefing the sails in anticipation of a big blow, then unfurling the sails after. At around 3 this afternoon, the wind died to almost nothing, less than 5 knots. We tried raising the spinnaker but even that would not stay filled. Finally around 3:30 PM we started the engine and motored. Less than a half hour later we had wind again, and within minutes we had 20 to 25 knots on a beam reach. We had a nice time sailing, getting 8 to 9 knots boat speed. Finally we saw another squall approaching so out of prudence we reefed the sails yet again. This was followed by about an hour of rain, then clear skies and reduced wind, so we unfurled the sails again.

This has been the pattern today: big wind, big seas, followed by very light winds and flat seas.

We seem to have entered squall territory as we are encountering them much more frequently now. Last night we sailed through several mild ones. During my watch last night we were able to do more than six knots for much of it, thanks in part to winds from the squalls.

Just as we were getting ready to have lunch we entered into the middle of several squalls. Conditions went from sunny and hot to completely overcast, rain, and cool temperatures. Suddenly we were making 7.5 knots over ground. If only we could keep that speed up we would be in the Marquesas in 78 more hours. I had a fun time driving the boat at those speeds, and it was a nice break from the monotonous slower speeds we've been experiencing. Then, about an hour later, the skies quickly cleared and the wind died. Thinking conditions were good for the spinnaker we had all hands on deck helping to raise it. But once we got it up the wind died completely so we lowered it and are now motoring along at 6.5 knots, with some help from a light breeze. At this rate, my GPS says we will be there in 81 hours. But unfortunately we don't have quite enough fuel to motor all the way. Plus, we are trying to save some diesel for when we arrive as we have been notified that Hiva Oa has run out of diesel and they don't expect more until April 28th.

It is fun to see how we are slowly closing in on Hiva Oa though. We are almost back inside a regular chart on my GPS. For the last thousands of miles we have been off the chart, so to speak.

For lunch today we had a nice cabbage salad with canned pineapple and diced tomatoes. We finished the last of our pressure cooked meat a few days ago and are now starting to dig into our supply of cans. In one hammock we are down to one mango, one grapefruit and two oranges. In the other hammock under the dinghy davits we still have lots of tomatoes and apples. Our bread supply is a few loaves of Bimbo brand bread that is growing some white mold, but we can't taste the mold when the bread is toasted and peanut butter spread on top. White mold is harmless and we are glad it is not black mold which is not healthy to eat.

Our solar panels are working nicely and when we have wind our wind generator produces enough power at night so that we don't need to charge the batteries. Last night was one of the first nights we did not need to run the motor at all to charge the batteries.

The trade winds finally filled in, we have succesfully transited the ITCZ. We had to use a lot of diesel fuel to get across the windless Doldrums. We planned for this, carrying about 80 gallons of extra fuel in jerry cans. We are getting a steady wind from the south east at about 10 knots. Not much, but we can make 5 or 6 knots boat speed with the spinnaker. We hope that the winds will get stronger as we get to more southern latitudes.

So we are now on our final leg of the trip, destination Hiva Oa, about 600 nautical miles away.

Hi. Just wondering - are you updating this bog with a satphone or radio? Great reading! Thanks.

John and Francois swim across the Equator

Bruce04/12/2011, equator

Here's the photo of John and Francois swimming across the equator. The Equatorial Line shimmered in view, it's a transient optical effect, I think because the sun's rays arrive from directly overhead. We were lucky to have crossed over in mid day so that it could be seen.

Absolutely fascinating!!! To be in the Pacific at the middle of the world. Would have never know about this....thank you. May the wind fill your sails!!
All the best from the Pacific NW, S/V Sabrina Faire

Francois and I jumped into the water about 100 feet north of the equator and swam across. The water is around 93F and so warm. We were lucky to have calm seas and arrive at the equator during daylight. Although it was partly cloudy we had enough sun so that we were able to see the equatorial line created by the sun. While swimming we inspected the bottom of the boat and were surprised to see a lot of growth on the hull. I am sure it is slowing us down a little bit, but there was way too much to clean off last night. It will be one of our first chores to take care of when we arrive though. If we don't clean it off right away, we have been told that it hardens very quickly and becomes much more difficult to remove.

After our swim, back onboard we opened a bottle of Champaign, and, as tradition dictates, first poured some into the sea as an offering to King Neptune, and then drank the rest ourselves. Next we opened gift bags from Pascale as part of our equator crossing party. Everyone received a nice tee-shirt from Puerto Vallarta. My bag also contained a few shots of Tequila from The Tequila Factor in PV and a tube of Pringle potato chips.

Today the wind seemed to pick up some and we tried flying the spinnaker the last few hours, but the wind is still pretty dismal so we are back to motoring. In about 60 more miles we should get into the southern trade winds. If not, we can afford to motor a bit further as we currently have enough fuel to cover about 350 miles. Our destination is about 770 miles away.

We crossed the equator into the Southern Hemisphere this afternoon at about 6:15 PM, with great fanfare. This was a very special occasion, for we, the crew of Calou, have graduated from being mere "Pollywogs" (those sailors who have not crossed the Equator) to "Shellbacks". To become shellbacks, one must not merely cross the equator on a boat. One must partake of the traditions of the sea. This includes an offering to Poseidon (we opened a bottle of Mexico's finest champagne and let some of it spray into the ocean), as well as a dunking in the waters (we went for a swim, and the actual equator crossing was by swimming across it for John and Francois).

Following this, we brought out the gifts and favors that we had prepared back in Mexico, all five of us had presents to open.

Antoine dressed himself as Poseidon, reigning majestically over the proceedings.

CHEERS to you all!!! How exciting for you to experience becoming "Shellbacks". Continued safe journey. All the best from the Pacific Northwest. S/V Sabrina Faire

Crossing the Equator: Pollywogs to Shellbacks

Bruce04/11/2011

We crossed the equator into the Southern Hemisphere this afternoon at about 6:15 PM, with great fanfare. This was a very special occasion, for we, the crew of Calou, have graduated from being mere "Pollywogs" (those sailors who have not crossed the Equator) to "Shellbacks". To become shellbacks, one must not merely cross the equator on a boat. One must partake of the traditions of the sea. This includes an offering to Poseidon (we opened a bottle of Mexico's finest champagne and let some of it spray into the ocean), as well as a dunking in the waters (we went for a swim, and the actual equator crossing was by swimming across it for John and Francois).

Following this, we brought out the gifts and favors that we had prepared back in Mexico, all five of us had presents to open.

Antoine dressed himself as Poseidon, reigning majestically over the proceedings.

To say the sea at the equator is calm would be a serious understatement. The last two days we have had nothing but seas as glossy as my laptop screen. Despite the lack of wind, the water keeps moving though, gently rolling swells. It is like looking across a desert of low lying blue sand dunes.

The heat, combined with the humidity, is almost unbearable inside the cabin. So now I've taken to writing these updates from my new office location, up in the cockpit. With the breeze generated by the fact of us motoring through the water, conditions are much more tolerable on deck. We also have the sun shade up all day long which helps immensely as well.

Today Pascale did a load of laundry using her blue bucket and plunger. Bruce had hoped to be hoisted up the backstay in order to take a look at our damaged radar unit, but has opted to wait one more day. The radar unit stopped working early on in our passage, and a few days ago, the bracket which attaches it to the backstay seems to have given out and now the whole assembly is just hanging there loosely. Even if we can't fix it out here, it won't matter too much since we are getting close to our destination, and we have ordered a new one which we will pick up when we get there.

We are planning an equator crossing celebration tonight at 6:10pm. Although we are unable to put the Champaign on ice, we will still enjoy a glass or two. Bruce, Francois, and I are planning to swim across the line. We are lucky to be crossing during daylight hours as we hope to see the equatorial line on the water which is created by the unique angle of the sun at this latitude, but which can only be seen right at the equator. If it is not too cloudy, it should be bright enough to be seen in a photograph. Also interesting to note is that the sun is almost directly overhead at noon and that we have almost exactly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. The sun rises at 7:30 AM and sets at 7:37 PM. Enough for today, tomorrow we will be updating from the Southern Hemisphere.

following your blog with interest, as you are going thru the same journey as my family this time last year, their blog www.elixirpacific.com
I envy your journey you have in front of you,safe sailing ! Enjoy