04/08/2004 - 04/15/2004
Is this a fellow Puddle Jumper?
04/08/2004 - Day 15
- Latitude: 03° 48' N
- Longitude: 130° 27' W
- Miles to go: Around 950
- Wind Speed/Direction: E 10 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 6.2 knots
Not that we expected to see one, but it's been 7 days without seeing another vessel. Within the last 3 weeks, 43 boats left Mexico headed for the Marquesas. The first boat made landfall today. There are 5 boats ahead of us and 36 boats behind us. Within a 200 mile range, we are aware of 4 boats. If any boat appeared in our sights, we expected to see another "Puddle Jumper" boat or a commercial ship.
This fishing boat changed course to approach Whisper. Kind of weird to see a boat this close to us in the middle of the ocean.
Robin napped below while Duncan stood watch in the cockpit. "You've gotta see this", Duncan exclaimed as he raised Robin. "It's another boat". Ooo, how exciting. Charging toward us was a rusty, antiquated squid or tuna boat. Here are some of the thoughts racing through our minds:
- What the heck is a fishing boat doing in the middle of the Pacific Ocean?
- Is Johnny Depp on board doing research for Pirates of the Pacific?
- Hey, they look Asian. Perhaps one of you actually sent us Chinese takeout
Phew...they just wanted to say hi.
The boat proceeded to within 100 yards of Whisper. Duncan snapped lots of photos and started waving. Waves and smiles were returned from the 9 guys on board. They pointed at Robin with surprised looks. We guess they did not expect to see a woman on board. As quickly as they appeared, they turned northeast and motored away.
Here are our words of wisdom. Don't eat any of the fish they catch because it must be rotten by the time they get back to land.
A beautiful sunrise and a mellow ocean greet us on Day 16.
04/09/2004 - Day 16
- Latitude: 01° 47' N
- Longitude: 131° 34' W
- Miles to go: Around 800
- Wind Speed/Direction: E 12 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 7.0 knots
As the equator approaches, plans for ceremonial requirements and celebrations are the main topic of conversation.
Our favorite weather forecaster/router Don Anderson passed on these insights into ceremonial requirements. "Those who have never crossed the equator are called Pollywogs. On crossing the equator for the first time, one is immediately elevated to the title of Shellback and is entitled to hold that distinguished appellation until confined to the deep.
On crossing the equator at any time in either direction, all hands must toast King Neptune by individually pouring over the side, a wee dram of the most expensive beverage in the liquor locker."
Typically, Shellbacks deliver varying degrees of hazing to Pollywogs as an initiation rite. Since we are both Pollywogs, the hazing portion of the rituals will be eliminated.
The champagne is chilling and the excitement is mounting. Perhaps tomorrow's report will be from newly anointed Shellbacks.
Still ever so slightly in the northern hemisphere, equator crossing anticipation mounts.
04/10/2004 - Day 17
- Latitude: 00° 05' S
- Longitude: 132° 31' W
- Miles to go: Less than 700
- Wind Speed/Direction: E 8 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 4.8 knots
Clear skies and stars surrounded us last night. This was the first night in many days without a single squall or cloud. Duncan noticed a light on the horizon during his watch. On watch change, he pointed out the light. After a while, Robin identified the light as a boat. Another boat? Two boats in two days? Weird.
Then, on the radio, comes the sound of a voice in another language. Also weird since we've not heard a voice on the VHF in over a week. Duncan returns the call. The other boat responds. "Tuna, Fishy?". Duncan replies, "No tuna, no fishing, Sailboat". The other boat responds, "Tuna, Fishy?". Duncan replies, "No tuna, no fishing, sailboat" and gives our latitude and longitude. Then, the other boat declares, "I go 0-0-0, you go 2-0-0, ". Duncan confirms we will go on a course of 200 degrees since we were on a collision course. Then, the other boat shouts, "Tuna, Fishy, Taiwan". Duncan replies in Spanish, "Americano". Hmmmm, perhaps they are not Spanish. Sounds of another language emit from the VHF and Duncan replies "No comprende". Okay, we both realize they are not Mexican but we cannot get any languages other than English or Spanish out of our mouths.
As we watched on radar, we passed each other on the planned courses. Later that night, we started listening to our French language tapes not that these will help us with Taiwanese/Mandarin/Cantonese.
Exciting equator crossing photos such as this one must make you want to cross the equator, too.
At around 7 am , crossing the equator was celebrated with champagne and HagenDazs ice cream. Mates, thanks for the champagne. We are even more tipsy than normal on a sailboat. Neptune received his fair share of both treats. Now, we are Shellbacks.
With no pictures of the easter bunny or the chocolate eggs, we thought you might enjoy another shot of our booby friend/foe. We saw birds throughout the passage. Why do they get so far away from land? Of course, you may want to ask why WE get so far away from land.
04/11/2004 - Day 18
- Latitude: 01° 48' S
- Longitude: 133° 41' W
- Miles to go: Around 550
- Wind Speed/Direction: NE 6 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 5.7 knots (yes, the engine provides a boost)
Happy Easter! The Easter bunny left us a couple of chocolate eggs with surprises inside. Due to temperatures being hot, we need to quickly eat the chocolate. Darn!
The winds are very light and we are motoring. Discussions of taking a swim in the ocean are being bantered about the cockpit.
As realization sets in that we will arrive in the Marquesas in a few days, Robin pulled out the South Pacific cruising guides. We've been reading about all the places to go in French Polynesia. Our first anchorage will most likely be Atuona, Hiva Oa in the Marquesas. After exploring Hiva Oa, we will visit a couple of other islands in the Marquesas before heading southwest to the Tuamotus. Wow, what an amazing adventure!
The remanent of a squall appear on the horizon.
04/12/2004 - Day 19
- Latitude: 03° 58' S
- Longitude: 135° 12' W
- Miles to go: Around 400
- Wind Speed/Direction: NE 9 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 4.2 knots
The last day proved to be uneventful with no wind, lots of motoring and rain squalls. As a result, we spent most of our time reading. Between the two of us, we've finished 9 books. With harness and line attached, Duncan went for a swim (in the gin-clear 83F water) to check out the rudder and look for any problem barnacles. The rudder looked good and the barnacles were minimal.
The questions we've received in your emails have been interesting. Questions range from "What point of sail you on?" to "How does Robin shave her legs?" to "What do we do all day?" The burning question is "When we you arrive in the Marquesas?" although some think the shaving question is more important. Our best guess is that we will arrive in the Marquesas on Thursday, April 15th. Visions of long naps and baguettes are dancing in our heads.
Oooo, gotta go, here comes the wind.
The "Here Fishy, Fishy" call does not seem to be working too well.
04/13/2004 - Day 20
- Latitude: 05° 41' S
- Longitude: 136° 12' W
- Miles to go: Less Than 300
- Wind Speed/Direction: E 16 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 7.2 knots
Excuse us if we are repeating ourselves. We are getting SO excited about arriving in the Marquesas. Consistent wind and forward progress leave us less than 300 miles from landfall. We are able to get reports from boats already in Hiva Oa about the anchorage.
Just as we find ourselves 90% of the way to our destination, we are feeling in the groove of our watch schedules. We both feel well rested although thoughts of napping frequently pop into our heads. The frig and freezer have room for fish, so we are dragging the fishing lines in hopes of a sushi dinner or a celebratory landfall fish dinner. "Here fishy, fishy" is our mantra.
Have we got a whale of a tale to tell!
04/14/2004 - Day 21
- Latitude: 07° 37' S
- Longitude: 137° 21' W
- Miles to go: Around 150 miles
- Wind Speed/Direction: E 14 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 6.8 knots
Today's scheduled Week 3 statistics update has been interrupted. Just when you thought we were out of interesting stories, we came up with one. The lengths we will go to keep the updates intriguing has "hit" a new level.
Duncan settled into bed after the 5 am watch change. Robin sat in the cockpit listening to the weather report and looking forward to the sunrise. "BAM!" Whisper lurched at the bow. Robin stood up and started looking around. "BAM!" This is obviously not normal. The second "BAM" hit forward of the port midships.
Duncan called "Was that a wave?". Robin responded, "Nope. I'm trying to figure out what we hit." Now if that doesn't get someone out of bed, nothing will. Wacky waves are bouncing all around. Duncan started to climb up the companionway. "BAM!" Whisper heels and Duncan gets knocked back down into the cabin. Duncan, now with a broken toe, made his way up toward the cockpit just in time to see the WHALE!
The fluke of a WHALE is within two yards of Whisper's port side. Then, the whale spouted its seafood-breath blow right into the cockpit -- soaking Robin and spraying Duncan. Simultaneous shouts of "It's a whale!", "Start the engine", "Check for holes", "Is water coming into the bilge?" jolted us into action.
At this point, we are not certain who was more startled -- the whale or us. Robin powered us forward while Duncan went below to check the bilge for incoming water and assess damage. Robin kept looking behind to see if the whale was following us to get revenge.
The initial damage assessment is one broken toe and a damaged boat-speed transducer. Checking the hull to see if there is any surface damage will be a priority upon arrival. No water is coming in the boat. The rudder still seems to be functioning as usual. Damage to the whale is unknown.
We've been sailing along for the last several hours without any issues. Did someone say we were supposed to get bored out here?
Through the miracle of GPS, radar, charts and navigation skills, we managed to find an island in the Marquesas.
04/15/2004 - Day 22
- Latitude: 09° 43' S
- Longitude: 138° 45' W
- Miles to go: Around 20 miles
- Wind Speed/Direction: SE 15 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 6.8 knots
LAND HO! We spotted land at approximately 5:30 am this morning. At present, we are 2 miles east of the island. The plan is to sail around the bottom of the island and anchor near a town called Atuona. By early afternoon, the anchor should be set. Rumor has it that baguettes will be awaiting us.
Yet again, the champagne is chilling. The big question is will we be too tired to drink it. Have we mentioned that we just crossed the Pacific Ocean?
The north side of Hiva Oa does not appear lush.
Let's get a little closed to make certain. Yep, this part is not lush and tropical.
Aahhh, here is the lush stuff on the south side.
Duncan hoists the French courtesy flag and the Quarantine flag in preparation for our arrival in French Polynesia. Once we clear customs, the Quarantine flag will be lowered.
Okay, this is exciting. After over a year of flying the Mexican courtesy flag, we arrive in a new country with a new language flying a French courtesy flag.
Lush valleys greet us upon entering the bay near Atuona.
Fellow Puddle Jumpers, Fred from Mary C and Dominique from Outer Limits, greeted us upon our arrival.
We anchored near Atuona at around 1:00 pm. Friends welcomed us with baguettes and a bottle of red wine. WOO HOO!
Fred and Dominque gave us a warm welcome with a fresh baguette and a bottle of French wine.
More fellow Puddle Jumpers, Roger & Nancy from Equanimity stopped by to welcome us.
A beautiful bay surrounded by green hills is a perfect setting for landfall. The "house" on the hill is actually the barracks for the Marquesan Navy. Nice digs!
Wrap-Up
Whisper sits anchored in a little bay near Atuona in Hiva Oa, Marquesas. The bow and stern anchors set at around 1:00 pm yesterday. Euphoric shouts of "Woo Hoo!" and "We just crossed the Pacific Ocean!" resonated throughout the bay. Three sets of fellow Puddle Jumpers greeted us on the VHF and in person. The main salon morphed from sleeping quarters back into living space. We settled into the cockpit to watch a few other boats arrive as well as to eat an early dinner of grilled ostrich burgers.
Unbelievably beautiful peaks and valleys surround us. Remanants of the volcano caldera hide under an almost permanent cloud.
As the sun started to set, we kept asking ourselves "Where are we?" and "How did we get here?". Palm trees, lush foliage, black sand beaches, rugged volcanic peaks to 4000 feet surround us. Marquesans in outrigger canoes paddled around the bay in preparation for the big festival tomorrow on the other side of the island. This is unbelievable.
Check out Whisper's final Puddle Jump statistics:
|
Number of Oceans Crossed: |
1 |
|
Trip Miles to First Sighting of Hiva Oa: |
2997 nautical miles |
|
Trip Miles to Anchor Down near Atuona: |
3014 nautical miles |
|
Best Daily Miles: |
162.3 nautical miles |
|
Trip Average Speed: |
5.7 knots |
|
Highest Speed Over Ground: |
12.8 knots |
|
Highest Wind Speed: |
28 knots |
|
Lowest Wind Speed: |
1 knot |
|
Trip Engine Hours: |
66 hours (thanks to Diesel Dunc and his helpers) |
|
Trip Generator Hours: |
72 |
|
Average Daily Generator Hours: |
3.2 hours |
|
Trip Fuel Consumption: |
Approximately 90 gallons |
|
Current Time Zone: |
Alaska + 1/2 hour (or Hawaii - 1/2 hour) |
|
Longitude for Crossing the Equator: |
132.5 degrees West |
|
Books Read: |
12 |
|
Number of Boats Sighted Underway: |
12 (no fellow Puddle Jumpers) |
|
Number of Whales Hit: |
1 |
|
Fish Caught: |
0 |
|
Great Days of Sailing: |
12 |
|
Uncomfy Days of Sailing: |
3 |
|
Occurrences of Lightening & Thunder: |
0 |