Well, we absolutely smashed our previous day's record! We logged a very healthy 163 nautical miles in the last 24 hours, and I'm very excitied about it. That definitely puts us on track to reach Port Vila in good time tomorrow. Hopefully, we can get checked in and docked without any delays, no waiting around overnight.
The past 24 hours have been remarkably uneventful, which, honestly, is just how I like it. Smooth sailing is good sailing. We had the main up for most of yesterday, until around midnight. Unfortunately, it's now sporting a rather… unsavory pattern courtesy of our latest avian hitchhiker. Hopefully, the rain that's chasing us will take care of that little artistic addition.
It's hard to believe we'll be in Port Vila tomorrow. Nine days at sea, and it feels like both yesterday and a lifetime ago. The days just blend into one big mass of four-hour watches. Time takes on a different meaning out here.
And the weather yesterday? Oh my gosh. I was looking forward to a little treat, a few hours of air conditioning to take the edge off the heat. But, of course, the moment I decided to indulge, it turned overcast and cooler. Didn't seem worth it to fire up the generator and burn precious diesel for just a few hours when its already cooling off.
The only potential hiccup tomorrow during the clearance process will likely be the AIS. They have a habit of wanting to photograph the MMSI on a screen, but our AIS is a standalone unit, not integrated with the chart plotter, so that's not an option. It's going to be a bit of a challenge explaining that to someone trained to check AIS without ever sailed accross the bay on a rowing boat let alone a sailing yacht. We can thank our antipodean cousins for this as they have been through recently and persuaded the local authorities that yachts are to be treasted with maximum suspicion - its a little frustrating really as its knee jerk reaction. It reminds me of the customs process in Indonesia, which is a whole other level of… interesting. Amongst other things they come aboard and take photos of the engine, including the fuel filters. When I asked why, they simply said, "It's for the boss." It's just something they always do and no one knows why. The last boat we delivered to Indonesia had two electric motors, and I knew that would be far too complicated to explain, as they don't have fuel filters or an engine plate. So, I showed them the generator, and they were perfectly happy. You have to be adaptable!
Anyway, we are looking forward to getting to Port Vila so we can fill up with fuel, get the hull scrubbed and smash out the last 1000nm to Brisbane.
