Date: September 14, 2025
Location: West of Fiji, heading toward New Caledonia
The first night at sea was exactly what you hope for on a passage like this: calm and uneventful. The big, slow swell of the Pacific passed gently beneath us, and Tugnacious, the Nordhavn 76, just kept on plodding along, holding her course beautifully. It’s always a good sign when the boat feels this comfortable in her element.
The weather forecast we got before we left was a bit of a fib, but in the best way possible. It had predicted a bit of a headwind that would slow us down, but it seems to have overestimated the wind speed. We're maintaining a great pace, sitting comfortably at 7 to 7.5 knots and only burning about 27 litres per hour. It's fantastic to see the boat performing so efficiently.
As we were heading out, it was a busy little highway out there. We saw a few container ships and a handful of other yachts all departing Fiji. I even heard one of the yachts on the radio talking to customs, confirming they were heading for New Zealand. It's a reminder that we're all out here on our own separate adventures, and now, a day later, all that traffic has vanished. It's just us and the vast, empty Pacific.
A Minor Change in Plans
Late this afternoon, the forecast headwind finally arrived, albeit a little less than expected. While it's still under 15 knots, it brought with it a messy chop that's making the ride a bit uncomfortable. This is where the 'art of a passage' comes in—it’s not just about setting a course and sticking to it. To make things a little more comfortable and to keep the crew happy, we've made a slight course adjustment. We've come a little north of our original track to avoid the worst of the waves. It's a small detour, but it will make a big difference in the ride without losing too much ground on our overall journey.
Around 03.00 the wind began to come around to the SE and as it did we gradually turned back onto course and we are now making steady miles towards the South of New Caledonia. The boat is humming along, everything is in order, and we’re slowly but surely ticking off the nautical miles. The self-sufficiency of a vessel like this really is something to behold. The fuel burn crept up a little during the night as we pushed up the RPM slightly as the speed had been dropping.
Until next time!