Logbook – March 17, 2014 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
1318 main + genniker
Min TWS 9.4 kts SE
Max TWS 14.3 kts SE
Daily Notes
Time change UTC – 8
Genoa repairs – All Day!
More squalls
More sail repairs – this time the genoa
Email to family and friends dated March 27, 2014
Subject: PPJ Day 17
We find ourselves stuck in the equatorial counter current, which is knocking off 1-2 kts from our boat speed. We’ve been trying to get as far south as possible to get out of it, but today that just didn’t work out. We had to pull down the genoa, and Tim made some repairs to it. During that time, we flew the genniker, which simply cannot point that high to windward, so we spent the day going more west than south. But Tim did a fine job on genoa sewing, and we got it back up before dark, so we’ve been able to point a little higher so far through the night. We made another time change today, so Exodus time is now UTC -8 hours. We are in the home stretch, and it feels good.
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At 3/28/2014 7:00 AM (utc) our position was 01°39.83’S 128°58.55’W
Logbook – March 26, 2014 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
Passage Log Highlights
0202 port engine, main, genoa
0355 port engine off
1500 depart equator
Min TWS 2.9 kts SE
Max TWS 11.7 kts SE
Daily Notes
Equator crossing!!!
A toast to Neptune
Our Equator Crossing
Email to family and friends dated March 16, 2014
Subject: Day 16 – Equator Crossing
There are now four new shellbacks on board Exodus. We crossed the equator today! We hove-to just after crossing and had a ceremony to toast to Neptune. Then we all cut our hair and gave it to Neptune along with other gifts from each of us. The boys got buzz cuts. I passed on that, but Tim did cut it well above my shoulders. The conditions were very calm so the boys all went for a swim off the stern of the boat. We tied a line and let it trail just in case someone started drifting. We made pizza and cookies, and overall a great day was had by all. The wind is dead and we have about a knot and a half of current against us, so it’s slow going right now. According to the forecast we shouldn’t expect a whole lot of wind until we get down to about 5 deg south. Last night and tonight with winds in about the 5 kt range, we’ve elected to run one of the engines to charge the batteries rather than the generator, since we haven’t motored much we have more of margin on diesel at this point than gasoline (for the generator). And the extra knot or 2 of boat speed we get is nice too when we’re just slogging along.
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At 3/26/2014 2:15 PM (utc) our position was 00°14.65’N 127°19.60’W
Editor’s note: This seems to be the ONE time I forgot to update our GPS location… really, we were south of the equator at this point!
Logbook – March 25, 2014 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
Passage Log Highlights
1225 D–>T main + genoa
2321 Port engine on 1700 rpm
Daily Notes
Day 15
Engine instead of generator to charge batteries
No Photos
Email to family and friends dated March 25, 2014
Subject: PPJ Day 15
When we were way back by Isla Socorro, and the boobies kept dive bombing our fishing lures, I made the comment that pretty soon there would be no birds and when we got close to the Marquesas and saw birds again they would be a welcome sight. I was dead wrong. There have birds with us the whole way! I wonder what they are doing way out here so far from land, but they don’t seem to care that I wonder. They are with us, our silent companions. Along with the flying fish and the occasional pod of dolphins. The flying fish are quite funny. They scatter to either side as Exodus plows through the water, looking like little mechanical drones that can’t quite seem to get into the air. And in the morning there are usually several unfortunate ones the became stranded on the deck during the flying frenzy. Tim uses them as bait.
There’s not much really to report from today. School, meals, naps, computer, heading checks, sail trims. Winds have been light, but the up side of that is the ride is more comfortable.
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At 3/25/2014 3:51 PM (utc) our position was 01°13.39’N 127°01.75’W
Logbook – March 24, 2014 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
Passage Log Highlights
0508 T–>D Main + genoa
Min TWS 7.5 kts SE
Max TWS 13.9 kts SE
Daily Notes
The most amazing rainbow
Email to family and friends dated March 24, 2014
Subject: PPJ Day 14 – Week 2
I almost didn’t write an update today, because I went to bed right after dinner instead of messing around on the computer as usual. I am so saturated with fatigue I’m having a hard time completing everyday tasks. Like cooking dinner last night. I made a simple stir fry and I felt like I had prepared a seven course meal. I’m up for my 11pm watch, and feeling a little better now.
Anyway, we think we are mostly through the ITCZ. Prevailing winds are from the SE now, and there’s only an occasional squall that pops up and if we get hit it’s just a lot of rain and not much wind. The winds have died down tonight and we are moving slowly, but still moving between 3-5 kts.
We saw the most incredible rainbow today. It was a full arc and was brighter and more vivid than any rainbow I’ve ever seen. Photos will not do it justice.
Since it’s the end of week 2, I thought I’d do an accounting of our fresh produce on board. Here’s what we have left:
2 squash
8 carrots
1 jalapeno
2 jicama
4 cucumbers
1 head of cabbage (will likely not get eaten, I have no idea why I keep buying these, I guess because people say they keep well. Doesn’t matter if you don’t like them, though)
1/4 head of cauliflower
5 onions
2 garlic
1/3 of a 5 lb bag of potatoes
5 oranges
Not too bad, I guess. My only regret is how early we ran out of apples, which was a few days ago. I brought 24, and in hindsight I would have doubled that. They are a standard snack around here, and we are missing them.
We have plenty of frozen and canned veggies, but I am savoring the last few fresh squash and carrots.
So, all of you back at home with access to whole foods, please, have a kale salad for me.
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At 3/25/2014 5:57 AM (utc) our position was 02°16.94’N 126°00.78’W
We played some more squall slalom last night and today. And the latest weather report I have says the ITCZ is down around the equator, so I really have no idea what’s going on. We are truly winging this and learning as we go. We’ve gotten pretty good at spotting and avoiding the squalls now, so we’ve kept full sails up today. The good thing is that the prevailing winds are still 15-20 kts from the NE rather than dead calm in between squalls that we experienced the other night, so we are still able to make good progress.
The boys have gotten a bit mutinous as of late. They’ve been neglecting the log entry at the end of their watches, even when I remind them. And last night they went to bed without doing the dishes, so this was one unhappy momma that got up for an 11pm watch to find a completely messy galley. So, I woke them at 7:30 this morning, made them do pushups and then the dishes. Mutiny simply cannot be tolerated aboard this vessel. 🙂
We had a little ceremony today because we finally took down our Mexican courtesy flag. I totally meant to do that as we were leaving Banderas Bay, but it completely slipped my mind. It’s not just a little bit tattered after flying from the spreader for just over a year.
I’ve gotten to the point where I’m looking forward to getting there. Getting anywhere, really. I’ve gotten over my ocean passage bliss and I’m ready for a glass of rum and a good contiguous night’s sleep.
I’ll go ahead and mention that we’ve designated this an alcohol free passage. Except for the couple of beers we’ve had. And the toast to Neptune we’ll do at the equator.
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At 3/23/2014 10:19 PM (utc) our position was 04°28.87’N 123°49.32’W
There’s been sunshine and NE trade winds again all day today. Go figure. So, either the ITCZ moved south out from under us, which is what I initially assumed. Or it moved north across us, which is what now seems more likely given the weather report this morning and the fact that True Blue V, who is a couple degrees N of us, encountered squalls and light wind after we passed through it. The lightening from the last squall we were in last night was amazing. Amazing in that way that you realize how utterly powerless you are against the immense forces of nature. One strike was instantaneous lightening and thunder and Tim said he saw it hit the water a mere 300 yards away from the boat. We’ve had a good day today with full canvas up and even managed to generate a couple hundred Ahr of solar power. The boys are learning to spot squalls visually and using the radar. Steve (Lady Carolina), with only a little bit of pride in his voice, reported that last night Kyle (age 13) reefed the sails and navigated through a squall on his own last night. Pretty cool the experiences these kids are having and what they are learning. There’s a pod of dolphins swimming with the boat right now so I think I’ll go see if they’ll do any tricks for us…
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At 3/22/2014 1:36 PM (utc) our position was 06°18.17’N 122°51.95’W
Logbook – March 21, 2014 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
Passage Log Highlights
0201 – D–> T genniker
0809 genoa only
1021 genoa & genniker wing & wing
1340 double reefed genoa
1508 main (3 reef) + genoa
1136 main (3 reef) + genoa (2 reef)
Min TWS 5.2 kts SE
Max TWS 21.6 kts NE
Daily Notes
Squalls
Rain – cell passed over us max 28 kts eh!
Electronics in Faraday bags
Squall – Max 40 kts!
Squalls bring a lot of rain
Email to family and friends dated March 21, 2014
Subject: PPJ Day 11
It seems we inadvertently entered the ITCZ. Or at least the fringes. Or something that seems a lot like what they say the ITCZ is like but surely can’t be the ITCZ since the NWS says it’s 3 deg of latitude south of us.
Anyway, last night we were moving along at 8 kts with the spinnaker flying. We left it up much later than usual, and Tim and I had agreed we would switch sails to the genniker at the first watch change, when I got up at 11. He woke me around 10:30 to change sails since he had seen lightening in the distance, and we REALLY didn’t want to get caught in a squall with the spinnaker up.
The rest of my 11:00 watch went just fine, well except for that crazy Lady Carolina who buzzed our stern about 1.5 miles away at 8 kts and kept lighting up our AIS proximity alarm.
When I got up for my 2nd watch at 5am, Tim told me there were “mini-squalls” all around us and you could see them on radar, and he went to bed. I talked to Steve (Lady Carolina) who said they passed within a couple miles of one and saw about 28 kts. So, I got Tim back up and we furled the genniker and put out just the genoa.
A little while later one of the pink blobs on radar passed right over us and we saw heavy, heavy rain, and a max of about 28 kts. No big deal.
Later in the morning after Tim was up and we had put the genniker back out, we got hit again, this time a bit bigger, with a max of about 40 kts. With the genniker up. The halyard actually slipped in the spinlock, but luckily we had it cleated as well, or that could have been a big issue. Once the wind died back down to the low 20s, we furled that big sail back up and put our the genoa, with 2 reefs.
After that the wind stayed constant at about 14 kts, and we moved along nicely at 5 kts with the main (at reef 3) and the genoa. We have the main at reef 3 instead of reef 2 because we chafed the second reefing line down to the core the last time we used it, and we didn’t want to see 40 kts again with just one reef.
Of course, after that the wind just kept dwindling and dwindling until we were slogging along at about 2 kts. And right now as I type this we have heavy rain and about 16 kts of wind and building, so it seems we may be getting hit again. 20 kts now.
We are just going to press on south. If we are stuck in these up/down conditions for couple days it will be quite tiring, but we’re committed at this point. In hindsight maybe we should have hung a right and headed due west at the first sign of lightening and waited for a better time to cross. But I’m not sure now how we would even know when a good time to cross would be. And it is what it is now.
We kept things light today by skipping school and making decorations for our equator crossing party.
Can’t wait.
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At 3/21/2014 9:12 PM (utc) our position was 08°07.17’N 121°55.47’W
Logbook – March 20, 2104 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
Passage Log Highlights
0458 T–>D wing & wing
1208 D–>T main/genoa port tack
1534 T–> D spinnaker
2256 T–>D genniker
Min TWS 13.7 kts N
Max TWS 19.7 kts NE
Daily Notes
Day 10
Flying fish
Change in approach to ITCZ – weather forecasts in the realm
Extra hot & muggy. No pants on watch last night, barely needed long sleeve shirt
I have to admit I did a lot of laying around
Email to family and friends dated March 20, 2014
Subject: PPJ Day 10
We are definitely in the trade winds. Looking back through the log, I think it’s possible we hit the trades as early as Sunday morning, because that’s when the wind shifted NE and has been that way every since. However, yesterday and today have been the most consistent higher wind days, and we’ve been moving along at a good clip. We’ve changed our target ITCZ crossing point to further east because it looks like there may be a gap we can get through if we hustle. At this point we are going to try to cross between 122 and 124 W, which is why our course has taken a decidedly southern turn. Of course, we are checking weather twice a day and will adjust our plan accordingly. Today seemed a lot hotter and muggier than it has been, I guess that’s just what 10 deg latitude is like. I had that feeling today that I haven’t had since summer in the sea where I just wanted to crawl into the fridge. Last night on watch I didn’t need pants and I barely needed a long sleeve shirt.
The southern hemisphere is feeling close.
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At 3/20/2014 1:39 PM (utc) our position was 10°07.37’N 120°50.29’W
Logbook – March 19, 2014 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
Passage Log Highlights
0158 D–>T main + genoa
2320 T–> D wing & wing
Min TWS 13.6 NE
Max TWS 18.8 NE
Daily Notes
Day 9
Propane free day – changed to tank #2
Email to family and friends dated March 19, 2014
Subject: PPJ Day 9
We ran out of our first propane canister today, just as the water boiled for coffee this morning (thankfully not before). So, we (I) decided to have a propane free day, woo hoo! Cereal and fruit for breakfast, tuna poke w/ crackers for lunch, and sandwiches, cold veggies and chips/salsa for dinner. Easy day for the cook. And to top it off it looks like we don’t have to make a sail change before dark, so I can go to bed a little early too. Amazingly, we just came back into VHF range with Lady Carolina, so it’s nice to know you can just pick up a radio and talk to someone. The boys have had the last two days off from school and they’ve been staying busy baking, reading, playing Legos, and playing Minecraft. Tim stays busy reading and catching up on boat projects, including a couple of sewing projects (Marsha, you would be proud.) As for me, between watches, meals, and school, I find I don’t have the energy for much else. Every time I crack a book I doze off. Without school these past two days I’ve caught up on some of my writing and started working on a movie of our first-year cruising, but it’s slow going. In these seas, just sitting at the computer is an intense core workout. In case anyone is interested I’ve included our watch schedule below, so you can see how we share the load of keeping us safe out here.
Exodus watch schedule
0800-0900 (1 hr) Alex
0900-1000 (1 hr) Brenden
1000-1200 (2 hr) Deanne
1200-1500 (3 hr) Tim
1500-1700 (2 hr) Deanne
1700-1800 (1 hr) Brenden
1800-1900 (1 hr) Alex
1900-2300 (4 hr) Tim
2300-0200 (3 hr) Deanne
0200-0500 (3 hr) Tim
0500-0800 (3 hr) Deanne
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At 3/19/2014 1:47 PM (utc) our position was 13°21.79’N 119°11.19’W
Logbook – March 18, 2014 (Punta de Mita to Hiva Oa)
Passage Log Highlights
0153 D–> T genniker only
1100 sail change – spinnaker
1930 main + genoa
Min TWS 9.5 kts E
Max TWS 18.9 kts NE
Daily Notes
Day 8
Another tuna last night. B says, “I don’t want sashimi,” so we did cajun pan seared (again…yum!)
Sail repairPassing the time by reading
Email to family and friends dated March 18, 2014
Subject: PPJ Day 8
The guys caught another tuna last night at dusk just when Tim and I were getting to ready to change sails for the night. It was a historic moment, though, because once they got the fish on board, Brenden looked at me and said, “I don’t really want sashimi again.” Who would have ever thought a day would come when Brenden wouldn’t want sashimi?! I’m not going to write much tonight; Tim and I need to figure out what our sail plan is going to be tonight and then make the changes. Just know that all is well on-board Exodus.
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At 3/19/2014 12:21 AM (utc) our position was 14°30.28’N 118°38.00’W
Gresham Family Exodus 