UTC/Local Time: Sunday, September 5 2100/ Sunday, September 5, 1100
Latitude: 13.54.206 S
Longitude: 166.50.783 W
Course Over Ground: 275T @ 5.3 knots
Wind Direction: SE 18 knots
Sea Swell: 1.5-2 meters
Sky: 90% cloud cover
Barometric Pressure: 1018 and rising
Temperature: 86 degrees
Humidity: 74 percent
Update: One year and 7,000 miles under our keel
It is hard to believe that we left San Francisco one year ago today. We could only imagine that we would be somewhere in the South Pacific, and here we are on day three of a passage from Suwarrow to American Samoa. The year seems to have gone by in a flash. We have 7,000 miles under our keel and two children that have gotten married. In addition to keel miles, we have flown round trip to Italy and back to states, and round trip to and from French Polynesia.
Despite our best efforts to encourage our children to get married before we left on our voyage, both of them chose to marry our first year out the Golden Gate.
Wedding Number One
In the time span from September 5 to September 5, we have traversed the coast of California and Baja California. We took a fabulous detour to Tuscany, Italy in late September for Garyn and Jessica's romantic villa wedding, before heading beyond California. While in Italy, we visited Florence, Venice, Vicchio, and the Cinqueterra with my brother and Russ's brother and sister-in-laws. The setting and the adventure of a destination wedding with friends and family that were able to attend was wonderful.
To Mexico
Our friends Clark and Nina joined us as crew on the Baja Ha Ha rally to Cabo. It was fun having them aboard. The 2009 Ha Ha was the biggest rally ever with some of the worst sea conditions on record. One boat sank after hitting a whale. In retrospect, the weather we experienced on the Baja Ha Ha doesn't seem as challenging as what we have experienced in the South Pacific.
Once in Cabo San Lucas, we turned north into the Sea of Cortez visiting La Paz and northern islands Espiritu and Partida, then across the Sea of Cortez to Mazatlan. We spent our first Thanksgiving aboard Worrall Wind the night before our first duo crossing. Previous to our 2 night passage to Mazatlan we had always had crew on overnight passages. Getting to the mainland of Mexico was a small victory for our self confidence. While in Mazatlan we were able to meet up with friends and enjoy the city and a trip to the Copper Canyon before heading to Puerta Vallarta.
Abby and our future son-in-law Neal joined us for the season's holidays in Paradise Village where we lounged, whale watched, surfed, and enjoyed many Mexican meals together. We ourselves returned to the states in January and February and planned not to return until the following January and February. But as we prepared for our South Pacific Voyage in Paradise Village, our plans changed as now Abby and Neal announced their engagement in late February, and there were plans for a wedding in July back in California only five months out.
To the South Pacific - French Polynesia
Before leaving Mexico, I ordered my Mother of the Bride gown online and could only hope that it would fit in July. Garyn joined us on March 29, and we left Mexico for the South Pacific on April 8 on the Pacific Puddle Jump Rally. It took us 29 days at sea to reach the Marquesas in early May. We are definitely the "Slowskis"....steady but sure.
Our daughter-in-law Jessica joined us in the Marquesas and traveled with us to the Tuomotus, Moorea, and Tahiti. We had some wonderful and adventurous times together.
Wedding Number Two
Garyn and Jessica returned to the states from Tahiti the second week in June; we returned with our new Tahitian tattoos late the following week to get ready for and to attend Abby and Neal's wedding at Shinneyboo on the Yuba River near Eagle Lakes trail head the fourth of July weekend. I got my mother of the bride dress two days before the wedding, and it fit perfectly! What fun we had for four days with over 120 family and friends. Neal and Abby did a remarkable job planning the event. It couldn't have been more perfect. Even the weather co-operated. The bride was beautiful and the groom tall and handsome....really, no bias here.
Back to French Polynesia
Once again, we returned to Tahiti in mid-July and took off for Moorea, Huahine, Raietea, and Tahaa, celebrating our 41st wedding anniversary at the Taravana Yacht Club. We confirmed our reservations for a hurricane trench in Fiji from the end of November 2010 to April of 2011. Unless we have a radical change of heart and some very experienced crew, we think we will forgo the passage in our boat to New Zealand. Some of the weather we have had in these upper latitudes is about as challenging as we are up for. While our boat is snug in the ground, we still plan to go to New Zealand. But as others have said, nothing goes to weather better than a 747. We look forward to buying a used camper van and touring for a couple of months.
Goodbye French Polynesia, Hello Cook Islands and American Samoa
We left for Bora Bora the second week in August and while in Bora, also visited the smaller island of Maupiti to the west. From Bora Bora during the third week in August and waxing moon we left for the Atoll and Islands of Suwarrow in the Cook Islands. It took us six days to get there and we spent 10 days enjoying the simple natural beauty of this remote atoll. Now we are on day three of our passage to American Samoa. We are more than half way there.
Yesterday turned out to be a pretty nice sailing day, once the seas calmed down to 2.5 meters. The winds averaged about 16 knots and the sky was absolutely clear. We had no squalls last night, and we both finished the books we were reading. This morning started out beautifully, but as the gribs predicted, the winds and seas are picking up again. We have three squalls going. Two strong rainy ones on our starboard downwind side (not worrisome) and one weak one to our windward port side that looks like it will blow in front of us. Because of the cloud cover we are not generating much solar power today, so we may need to turn the engine on in a little while. We expect the next couple of days to be a little more active with 10-14 foot seas.
The sea height is not as important as the direction, steepness, and speed. Unfortunately, our grib files and Clearpoint weather never seem to give us an accurate picture of this important data. So we just keep the sails conservatively reefed and try to take the waves from the stern and stern quarter. So far that has worked well. We have learned a lot this year and met many wonderful cruisers and made new friends.
It's been an exciting and beautiful year between September 5 and September 5. We are wondering how many boats on the Berkeley Yacht Club Labor Day Cruise to Half-Moon Bay took a southerly left this year as we did. We hope more will cast off their bowlines and wish them all well. Happy Labor Day weekend everyone.
All is well on Worrall Wind.
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