Yacht Delivery Blog

  The wind has held steady around 15 knots today, and the sea is still pretty lumpy. It's a bit of a messy chop, and while it's nothing 'Tugnacious' can't handle, it does make for a slightly more uncomfortable ride. You have to brace yourself a bit more when walking around the boat, and we've had to make sure everything is properly stowed to stop things from sliding around. It's been a completely grey day, the kind where the sky and the sea just blend into each other. There’s no sun, just a flat, overcast horizon. It makes for a less scenic view, but it's a good day for getting into the rhythm of the passage. We've all settled into our watch schedule, keeping an eye on the systems and the horizon. Life on board is ticking along as it should. The boat is just chugging along, doing exactly what she was designed to do—handle these kinds of conditions with ease. Everyone is in good spirits, and we're all looking forward to the next stage of the trip ...

The last 24 hours have been windy, wet, grey, and mostly uneventful. We had a few squalls and encountered several long-liners that seemed a bit suspect, but otherwise, it was pretty quiet. There was one moment of excitement, though. We were shaking out a reef, which meant Rhona was standing under the boom while I was on the coach roof prepping things and getting the sail ready to be hoisted. When Rhona started to raise the sail with the winch, about 100 liters of rainwater that had pooled in the sail poured directly over her head! It wasn't a steady stream like a shower; it was more like a ginormous bucket had been tipped over her head.  I also found one of my pesky nemeses in the main - a flying fish! It must have been 15 feet in the air when it hit the sail and fell into the sail cover. I cant say I am overly enthused about being attacked daily by smelly flying missiles like when we crossed the Pacific a few months ago. The weather to the south wasnt looking too peachy, so our t...

We're keeping a close eye on the weather forecast and preparing for a bit of a blow. The GRIBs all suggest that the wind will be southeasterly, which should make for a fast ride over the final 1000 nautical miles and perhaps we can smash the 200nm a day record. We're still on track to turn west by tonight and catch the wind starting to blow first thing tomorrow and bring it over the port quarter. The weather at the moment is fantastic, with clear skies, a few fluffy clouds, and 10-14 knots of breeze. There's no sign of what's coming around the corner. We're motor sailing to make as many miles as possible, which goes against my sailor instincts, but we're gaining around 30 nautical miles a day with the engine running. Yesterday evening, I found myself being hoisted up the mast again, an activity that's never pleasant, even in the safety of a marina. But at sea, with a partially raised mainsail swaying above me, the task becomes even more daunting. The upcomin...