Captain's Log May 4, 2010

Captains Log May 4, 2010 @ 0645
Day 4- Status- Our position is 27 21 S,179 10 E, speed over ground 6.5 kts, sailing. Heading 010, Wind is 15 kts from the ENE. Sea state- waves 1.5 mtrs with the swell out of the NE.

Another very good day of sailing. We had just about an hour where the winds went dead on us. Otherwise we have been making great progress. At about 3am this morning the 5th the winds started to move more East and even East North East. We are hoping that as the day progresses the winds will shift back to the SE . If they don't it will make for a long hard day of sailing into the wind. They call that Beating. The name fits because it really beats you and the boat up.

You will be happy to know we had no major mechanical problems and everything is working the way it should. We did try out the engine and did a little motoring. There was no noise coming from the shaft . We are fairly certain that we can use the engine to power thru reef openings and while in port . Thanks to good winds we have not really needed the engine so, life is good.
At our current speed the trip computer has us getting to Minerva reef around 5 pm on Thursday. We will be cutting it real close because you want good light when you go thru the pass so you can see the reef. If we are slowed down and can't get in on Thursday we will head away from the reef and wait till first light on Friday. That's about it from here . We are both feeling great the weather is turning warmer and we are settling into the passage.

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captains log day 3 May 4,2010

Captains Log May 4, 2010 @ 0730
Day 3- Status- Our position is 29 25 S,177 46 E, speed over ground 5 kts, sailing. Heading 050, Wind is 8-9 kts from the SSE. Sea state- waves 2 mtrs with swell out of the SE.

Yesterday was a good day for sailing until about 8 PM. Wind died and we had to slow way down and go off our course (rumb line). As I mentioned yesterday we have a mechanical problem with the prop shaft. We have now found out the engine needs a new CV joint (a short piece of shaft between the engine and the prop shaft). Island Packet is going to get the part for us and ship it to Fiji so I can install it. We are still working on the details of Where in Fiji. It is good to know what the problem is but in the mean time we have to use the engine only when necessary. So, no motor sailing , we are totally at the mercy of the wind Gods. If you noticed on our status above the wind has died and is out of the South. We will have to work the boat to go where we want to go. We will get there it will just take a little longer. Such is life on the high seas. Barbara and I are doing great and other than our shaft problem the boat is great. We are still planning on going to Minerva Reef but we probably will not get there now until Friday unless the winds really get strong and move to the East. Been a long night I am off to bed.

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Captain log May3,2010

VCaptains Log May 3, 2010 @ 0700
Day 2- Status- Our postion is 31 24 S,176 11 E, speed over ground 6 kts, motor sailing. Heading 018, Wind is 5-7 from the ESE. Sea state- waves 2 mtrs with swell out of the East.

Had a good day sailing and all was well until about 2:30 AM . Wind came to a dead halt. Seas went flat so that was good. When we turned the motor on we had some load knocking noises coming from the Main thrust bearing. Not to get too technical but this piece of equipment takes the forces that the propeller creates to move the boat in the water and transfers that power to the hull of the boat. Not a lot we can do out here about that so will have to make do. If the wind will come back up we can sail and not worry about it. It is only an issue if we have to use the engine. I will call the people at Island Packet tomorrow and ask them for a solution. For right now we have to live with the problem and hope it doesn't get worse. The weather has been great and we are sailing about 90% of the time. We are currently 488 miles from Minerva reef. Should arrive Thursday morning.

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Captain's Log May 2,2010

Captains Log May 2, 2010
Day 1- Status- Our postion is 33 22 S,174 51 E, speed over ground 7 kts, heading 040, Wind is 15 -20 from the SSW. Sea state- waves 2 -3 mtrs with swell out of the south.

We left Opua on Saturday morning at 1115 and headed in a northerly direction toward Fiji. We have been sailing the entire way which is very special. Seas are pretty lumpy but at least we are sailing. In our watery world this is a great first day. Before we get to Fiji we are going to stop at a reef out here in the middle of the ocean. It is one of those places that if you get to the South Pacific you have to spend 2 or 3 days there. As long as our weather stays good we will become one of the very few people in the world that have experienced Minerva Reef (look it up). So after 1 day all is well and we have completed about 150 miles which is a very good day for a sailor.

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Captain's Log April 16,2010

CAPTAIN'S LOG APRIL 16, 2010

As you have noticed I have been away and have not done much in the way of updates. It is now time to get started again. In about 2 weeks we will head out to Fiji from the Bay of Islands in New Zealand. It has really been an exciting time for us this off season here in New Zealand.

We started our time ashore by flying home for a couple of weeks during Thanksgiving. We told everyone that we would fly into Virginia and stay with my sister and Barb's brother. Eeveryone made it out to see us except Bill , my son, who could not get away from work. It was a great time seeing our families and catching up on what's happening in the world. After a couple weeks home we flew back to New Zealand and began a journey of seeing the country by boat. After about 6 weeks of cruising in and out of little harbours and bays down the east coast we parked the boat in Auckland and headed, by air, to the South Island.

We teamed up with another cruising couple, Marsha and Earl May, and spent 30 days land cruising by car. There were 3 high points for me. A cruise thru the Doughtful Sound. A breathtaking trip made even more special by the fact that there are probably only 60 days in the whole year when the weather is clear and you can see the tops of the mountains . We got to experience one of those days. My next place of interest was Hayes Hardware store in Invercargill. This is the home to Burt Monro who held the fastest motorcycle records at the Bonneville Salt Flats for many years. You might remember the movie "The Fastest Indian". If you haven't seen it rent it, great true story and Anthony Hopkins looks and acts exactly like old Burt, so the locals say. I digress, the motorc ycles are pretty cool but the real treat is the hardware store. They had everything you could ever wish for in a hardware store. I felt like Tim the Tool Man in hardware heaven. The girls were not that impressed but Earl and I could have spent a whole day there. My next place was the Speights Brewery in Dunedin. What more do I need to say. Take the tour and belly up to the bar.

After a month on the South Island we came back to Auckland to do a quick check on the boat and then off to a wedding in Sri Lanka. In our first season cruising we met Andy and Melissa on Spectacle. They had invited us to their wedding and it was going to be hosted by the Sri Lankan Cricket Team in Sri Lanka. That would be like having the New York Yankees host your wedding in the US. It is a very long story
how Andy and Melisa became friends with these guys but it happened and we ended up going to the wedding. What an event! I have been to a good many weddings in my day but nothing could equal this. Five days of food and party. What a terrific time was had by all and it was amazing to see 90 people, friends and family, from all over the world show up. In addition to the wedding Barbara and I stayed 4 days in Kula Lumpur, Malasia and 3 days in Melbourn Australia. You couldn't be in 3 more diverse cultures than those 3 places. That brings us to the end of March and back to the boat.

For Easter we had the great fortune to be invited to stay with Billie and Grant at their Beach house . To get there it would be a 4 hour trip by car but we did it by air. Grant happens to own a helicopter so it only took us 30 minutes to get there. Billie did all the design work and had the house built. When she showed the plans to Grant he said he looked at them and thought all the measurements were in feet but found out later they were all in yards. What a beautiful home overlooking Opita Bay on the Coromandel of New Zealand. It is one of those homes with a great big front porch that you can sit on and watch the ocean and never get tired of doing so. What great friends we will really miss them.

After the Easter weekend we got a few things done on the boat (a leaky toilet ugh, and a salt water leak on the generator). Everything was now in order and we headed to Whangerei Harbor for provisions and then up to Opua in the Bay of Islands to wait on good weather to head to Fiji.

It has been a fast 6 months and we have seen and done more than we intended. As we get ready to leave New Zealand we leave behind some truly great friends and we hope to some day come back to visit . For now we must move on we have only covered about a third of our route with many more miles to go.

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Captain's Log November 5, 2009

Captain's Log November 5, 2009
Sorry about the delay in getting the rest of the report for this passage done. We arrived back in Opua, New Zealand at 1:30 AM Thursday morning. We had a beautiful last 2 cruising days on the water. We would have liked to have had a little more wind but you have to be careful what you wish for. As we rounded North Cape (north end of New Zealand) we had an interesting experience.

The winds were very light but the seas were flat calm. We thought that with the seas so calm just a little wind would allow us to sail. We turned the engine off and put the sails out and started sailing. After about an hour we were not making much progress so we decided to put the sails away and motor the rest of the way in. When I attempted to start the engine it wouldn't start. We started going through the check list of things that could prevent it from starting and still had no luck. At just about this moment I got a call on the radio from the New Zealand Navy. I also noticed across the water a Navy warship headed toward our position at flank speed. The Navy radio operator asks us where we were coming from and where we were going. I might add here don't ever think you can sneak into New Zealand waters without being noticed they are watching from the air and sea. After a few more standard questions they ask if we were having a problem. I explained what had happened with the engine and that I was having trouble getting it started. The Captain of the Navy ship came on the line and said he would send help. So as this Navy ship is moving at full speed they lower their tender in the water with 6 personnel aboard to come over to help. In no time they were alongside our boat with 2 ships mechanics, customs and quarantine officers, and an Officer in charge.

When they boarded our boat I am not sure who was more excited the navy guys or Barbara. She had the camera out taking pictures and having them pose one way and then another. They were there on business but you could tell they were really enjoying this. The mechanics went to work trying to figure out what was wrong. They were eager to help but lacking some experience on this type boat. We got out the operators manual and while one read the other went through the engine compartment looking at various fluid levels and checking to see what he could find. I had already done all that but what the heck let them look again. I could see we were not making much progress so I called another cruiser (my golfing buddy, John), who was close by and ask him what I could try. He suggested that I might try laying a screwdriver across the 2 terminals on the back of the starter motor. The mechanics found the starter, and we then used the screwdriver to get the engine started. The mechanics were very happy with their accomplishment and Barbara took some more pictures and then they were off to the mother ship. We decided that we wouldn't stop the engine again until we were at the marina but were pretty sure the problem would not come up again even if we stopped.

That was the excitement of the trip. Other than that it was a calm and peaceful passage. We are now at the Marina in Opua getting the boat worked on and ready for our next journey. It has been a great summer with many memories and we can't wait to head back to the islands next year. This is Destiny standing by on 1-6.

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Captain's Log November 2,2009

Captain's Log November 2, 2009

As we start the day the winds have died and the seas are calm. According to the weather maps sometime in the early morning the winds should shift around to the SW. When that happens we will be able to put the boat on a direct course for the North Cape of New Zealand. As I said in one of my earlier reports it takes about 3 days to adjust to the boat at sea. The first day out it is difficult to get to sleep so Barbara and I both sit in the cockpit and talk till almost 11. That gets us out of sync with our watch schedule. So for tonight we just go with when you get tired bring the other person on deck. Not much of a schedule but it will get us through the night.

At about 3 am without turning the boat the wind shifts to the SW and the sails flop over to a starboard tack. I don't think I have ever been on a boat when we changed tack without touching a line. I know some of you out there have no idea what I'm talking about but take my word it's pretty cool.

After the wind shift the winds pick up and we are able to turn the motor off and just use the sails. You would think being in the open ocean and the South Pacific just using the sails for power would be pretty common. That is not the case and especially this year. I would say that during our passages about 40% of the time we use motor only, about 40% with motor and sail and just 20% with sail only. When we are able to just sail it is real special. This was one of those days. From about 10AM till 7PM we had a great sailing day. Seas were calm, the wind was between 15-20 kts and the wind was coming at us from a right angle to the boat or what we call beam reach. This boat can really fly when it gets those conditions. A fun time was had by all.

Mechanically speaking no new issues to report. We are currently 170 miles NW of North Cape New Zealand (32 48 S,170 29 E). Our ETA into Opua is Thursday, Nov 5th sometime before noon. I am happy to report all is well aboard Destiny. This is Destiny clear and standing by on 1-6.

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