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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Captain's Log November 1, 2009

Captain's Log November 2, 2009
We had a great stay at Norfolk Island. The anchorage was rough with a great deal of swell. Other than that it was a great stop. I even got to play a round of golf which is always good. Still can't get over how nice all the people were. One of the locals left a car down at the wharf where the boats were anchored and anyone who needed a car or wanted to go sightseeing could use as needed, keys were in the ignition. The weather has changed and will give us a weather window to get to New Zealand so, Sunday November 1, we are off.

Currently the boat has a few mechanical problems that we will need to address when we get to Opua. The generator is down which is not good because we can't make water. I have done all the fix it stuff that I can do out here so we will need the experts to take a look at it when we get to port. We have plenty of water, cokes, and beer on board as long as we don't have to be out here longer than planned. The aft head is also out of commission but I am pretty sure it is just a wire connection that I can't get to while we are at sea. I guess if it was an emergency and the other toilet went out I could get it operational again. Not real important right now because we have 2 heads. Except for those 2 items and replacement of our house battery bank it has been a good cruising season, mechanically speaking, on Destiny.

We Left Norfolk Island around 0830 Sunday morning the 1st of Nov. Seas were pretty lumpy and tended to come at us head on. Our original plan was to sail a southeast course straight to Opua, but the winds were right on the nose for the fist 20 hours, so we had to alter course and head due south, waiting for the westerlies that were supposed to have come by now. We are now beginning to get a shift in the winds and at around 0400 AM turned more to the southeast. The weather is perfect and tonight is a full moon. Nothing better than sailing with the moon out. All is well on board and we have had a good first day out with 3 more to go. This is Destiny standing by on 1-6.

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Captain's log October 27, 2009

Captain's Log October 27, 2009

As we made our way to Norfolk Island the wind started to blow pretty well and we were able to sail the boat without the engine on. The weather is not suppose to turn bad until after 12 PM. We should have plenty of time to get safely at anchor before the wind and waves start coming at us.

As the sun rises the wind and seas also start to gain in strength and height. As we get closer to the island the winds are now blowing around 25 kts and the seas are building. We need to get to the lee of the island as fast as we can. We turn the engine on and continue to sail making great time. By 9 am we are in the lee of the island and the seas subside and the wind starts dropping . We have made it in time and we are very happy to be in the relative security of the anchorage. We put the anchor down at 10am. By 11 we had cleared customs and back on the boat to get things back in order after the 3 day passage.

All in all it was a very good 3 day trip and we have just 3 days 10 hours left to get to New Zealand. We will stay here in Norfolk Island until we have a good weather window to NZ. We are thinking that will happen in about 4-5 days. My next report will be when we head back out to sea and continue our journey to Opua, New Zealand. This is Destiny at anchor in Cascade Bay, Norfolk Island.

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Captain's Log October 27, 2009

Captain's Log October 26, 2009

Sorry for the delay in getting this update out to everyone. Your probably wondering what happened. In my last update I told you that we stand our watches to watch for boats that might hit us in the night. There is another reason we stand a watch and this is something that we are watchful for all the time and that is equipment failure.

It is Monday morning 2 AM and I have had a completely non eventful watch. I go down and get Barbara up and get ready for a 3 hour sleep. I take one last look around to make sure all was in order and suddenly, out of the blue, the auto pilot went out and started turning the boat in circles. It is pitch black the moon has just set and I am not sure what is going on other than the boat is not going in the right direction. I take the boat out of auto pilot and start hand steering. When you are in the middle of the ocean, in the middle of the night you have no visual reference to be able to steer the boat. I could use the compass but as luck would have it the light was out so no good to me at night. Anyway, we did about 3 turns not knowing which way we were headed. We got the idea to turn all the power off to our auto pilot and nav instruments and reboot everything. After we did that everything came up and started working again. Thank goodness! Hand steering the boat for the next 30 hours was not my idea of a lot of fun. We still have no idea what made it do that and makes it even more imperative to keep an eye on everything. So back on course with the auto pilot driving the boat and Barb and I sitting in the cockpit we wonder if it was going to go out again. It is now 3 am and I am still pretty wound up. I lay down to sleep and probably only get about an hour before it is my time to go on watch again.

Monday the sun rose on a beautiful day. The sea was like a lake early the morning without any wave chop. Absolutely flat dead calm. Since we are a sail boat a little wind would be good but that was not going to be in the cards today. We continue to motor sail and are on track for arrival in Norfolk Island the next morning at 9am.

Monday finishes with no more problems and it has been so calm Barbara was able to cook us a great meal with pork filets rice and fresh broccoli. On passages it is unusual to have a cooked meal like that because the boat is pitching and rolling so much you can't cook.

So, after an eventful start to the day we end on a good note and get ready to put the anchor down the next morning. This is Destiny clear and standing by on 1-6.

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Captain's log October 25, 2009

Captain's Log October 25, 2009
We start this day much better than the day before. Seas have calmed down and the winds are from the SE at 15-20 Kts. Wind speed is good but still right on our nose. Instead of motoring directly into the wind and using a whole lot of fuel we elect to bear off to the SW and continue to motor. It really hurts to have to turn the motor on when we have good wind and seas. Oh well those are the cards dealt this trip so we will make the best of it.

We get a weather update in the morning and it appears there is a pretty strong system heading to the north end of New Zealand on Tuesday and another to follow on Thursday. We are not excited about going into heavy seas and gale force winds so we are going to opt out of the passage temporarily and divert to Norfolk Island. This Island is an Australian Territory and lies about half way between New Caledonia and New Zealand. Perfect stopping place for us to duck into and wait out these weather systems. Besides how many people in the world can say they have been to Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea? I will help you with this one, Not Many. My golf buddy and fellow sailor, in a boat just ahead, is to stopping as well and he thinks there is a golf course on the island. That would really be a bonus. We should make land fall Tuesday morning, tomorrow, around 10 AM. I will get back to you on what Norfolk Island is like.
As the day progresses the winds die even more and the ocean is like a lake. There are no clouds in sight and we anticipate a calm evening as well. As the sun went down it was so clear we were able to see the sun's "green flash" at sun set. Very rare to see even out here. Because it was so clear we really got treated to 2 green flashes. Just as the sun went down and we saw the first flash the boat hit a swell and the boat rose up so we were able to see another flash. How many can say they have seen 2 in one sun set?

Barbara cooked a great meal for supper and off to bed she went while I stood my first watch of the night. For a passage you couldn't ask for much more well maybe a little less motoring and a lot more sailing. This is Destiny clear and standing by on 1-6.

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Captain's Log October 23, 2009

Captain's Log October 23, 2009

It is now time for us to wrap up another sailing season in the islands. We have been to 3 island nations and each one as different as night and day. It was a great summer for us and so now back to New Zealand. I thought I would write this time about our clearing out and start of the journey back to our home for the winter.

It is Friday the 23rd and the day before we head out. I start the day by going to an informal captains meeting to discuss weather and routing to New Zealand. This is a time when everyone only thinks about the weather and if it is a good time to make the crossing. From Nuomea to NZ it is about 900 miles of Open Ocean. The weather systems start down off the east coast of Australia and move eastward through the Tasman Sea to NZ. They seem to appear about every 4-5 days. It is prudent to miss these systems because the weather in them can be quite nasty. Whoever I run into today will want to know what I think of the weather and when I am leaving. You don't take the weather lightly but once you leave port it is anyone's guess as what it will be. If you are very lucky the weather will be as predicted for the first 3 days and then anything could happen.

The weather briefing didn't change my mind Destiny would leave early the next day. The next order of business is clearing out of New Caledonia. This is about the same in every country and is a labor in patience. I start out by walking about 2 miles to the customs office. I hand in a couple of forms to the customs officer and they are checked and rechecked then photo copied. What they do with all this paper is a mystery. The customs official then fills out another form for me to take to the immigration officer which is in the next building down the block. I am lucky because in this port the offices are close by each other. It is not uncommon for these offices to be on opposite ends of the town. I get to immigration and hand in the forms from customs and give him our passports. He makes copies to keep for his files and fills out more paper for me to take to the Port Captain, my next stop. The Port Captain is about a half mile walk and on a hill overlooking the harbor. Very logical place for this office most countries we visit are not that strategic with their Port Captain. He usually occupies an office that is nowhere near the port or the water. OK, the port Captain takes the paper work from the first 2 offices and then fills out another form which is the most important form because it allows me to enter New Zealand and it says that I have officially checked out of New Caledonia. Without that piece of paper Destiny would have to wander the ocean never to put into a port. I am sure you get the picture, and I am now done and this only took about 2 hrs.

I walk back to the Marina and pick up some last minute groceries and then go to the boat. Barbara sometimes goes through the checking out process with me but she was on the boat getting things stowed. We spend the rest of the day cleaning and securing things on the boat. We pretty much have this down to an art form. Barbara works below deck and I get things put away topside. While we go about the job of readying the boat to leave some of our sailing friends stop by to ask us about the weather and are we leaving and how we are going to go , etc,. It is really all anyone can talk about. It is as if this were their first passage. I personally don't have a lot of patience for the same questions over and over so I will hide out on the boat for a while.

At 5 we head in to happy hour to sit at a big table with our sailing friends and, you guessed it, talk about what the weather is going to do and what will our track be. It goes on and on. Last year before the passage to New Zealand we had meetings every day about the weather. Not as bad this year but still pretty tiring. We don't last long at happy hour, we wish everyone safe journey and head to the boat for dinner a movie and a good night's rest. Destiny stand

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