Hawaii to Victoria

Getting ready to set sail for Canada

Monday July 01, 2013

We left the Honolulu Yacht Club at 0600 with our buddy boat, Tahnoo still at the dock. They have some last minute repairs to attend to and will hopefully catch up with us over the next week or two. We plan to stay in touch by radio and e-mail. We motor-sailed out the Kaiwi Channel with winds of 15 knots and some of the predictable chop. By 0930 we are deep enough into the channel to turn off our engine, tack towards the NW and clear Mokapuu Point. There had been some dire warnings about heading out this channel but a very experienced transpacific sailor recommended it to us provided the winds were below 20k. It is the fastest way to clear land when leaving from Honolulu. In any case, the strategy worked for us and we kept off the lee shore by standing well off the point before tacking. Once cleared from land, the trades were steady and blowing at 15-20k. With 2 reefs in the main and the Jenny at 80%, the windvane was tracking us at 360° - pretty much our intended course. The North Pacific High is not yet set in and there is tropical storm Delilah pushing it around a bit so we are not quite sure how far NW we will have to go before turning. We’re hoping somewhere between 160 – 162 W and 40-44 N.  (Dream on!)

Some last minute advice from solo circumnavigator, Rona

Tuesday July 02

By 0000, Ger is really seasick. I guess the chop in Kaiwi channel was more intense than I gave it credit for. I am in survival mode, unable to eat, drinking minimal amounts and retching anytime I have to go below decks. We set a bed up in the cockpit and I hunker down. Manage to do a watch from 2400 to 0400. Starting to feel a little better. Ate ½ a banana.

Wednesday July 03

Got up at 0630with a grateful smile on my face. The seasickness had abated. I would be be eating cautiously for the next 12 hours but boy did I feel a lot better. Johnny is tired which is how he mostly manifests ‘mal du mer’-  but we are both supporting each other and are feeling more relaxed. This is the first time we have done a long passage with just 2 on board. In the meantime, Sea Reach has been sailing gloriously along on her own with very little attention from us making between 5-6k.There has been some adjusting of sails but our go to position is 2 reefs in the mainsail and a 50-80% Jenny depending on the wind. Today we are feeling well enough for a solar shower in the cockpit and enjoy a blissful warm shower. Made contact with the Pacific Seafarers Net so we have good radio coverage and our route is being tracked. Tahnoo has started her passage but is 2 days behind us.

 

Fresh fruit and veggies hanging in the salon

Thursday July 04

A beautiful day-ideal conditions with seas < 4 ft and winds of 13-15k. A very comfortable motion and making between 5-6k consistently. Our plan is not to push the boat but to choose a sail plan that will be comfortable and keep us going at 5+k. The only glitch right now is that we are going further west than north. Aiming for 40N/162W and already at 159W and only 27N.We are following the winds staying just off a close haul for comfort. Jay Bigland, our weather guru in Nanaimo tells us that Delilah is breaking up the trades and that we will run out of wind in 2 days. The North Pacific High is also being broken down by another low NW of us. We take down a number of weather faxes and plot all systems on a chart. We can see where the stationary ridge will cause us trouble. – but it looks like our westing may actually help us stay out of the calmest areas. We take down some GRIB files and see that our current course may allow us to get around the ridge with winds of 10+k. We are hopeful that this will work out.

 

Trying to stay in shape

Friday July 05

We had a very pleasant night and the morning dawned glorious. We still have maintained our boat speed but are now @ 161W and 29N. We have started to get into a very nice boat rhythm. I go to bed around 2000 after we have an evening reading and prayers. Johnny stays on watch until midnight and then I take over until 0400.  We are both readings books I downloaded to my kindle during our respective watches and snoozing for 15min breaks as required. We have breakfast together between 0700 and 0800 followed by morning prayers and then John goes back to bed from 0900 to 1200.

The wind and sea state near perfect today. We continue to make good progress but a bit more westing than we would like.  Today we get an e-mail from Jay – Delilah system is rapidly breaking down (we have dodged that bullet). We should stay the course and he confirms that we will continue to have winds to keep us moving along but that the Pacific High is setting up more west than normal (you don’t say!). Expect to have to go as far west as 165° (gracious- my Japanese isn’t that good!) and 47N before we can turn. We phone Tahnoo on the Satellite phone because we have been unable to contact them on the SSB. They are 300nm behind us and the trades have been disrupted by Delilah so they had to do some motor sailing but now have 12k of winds so are sailing again. We are

plotting their progress on our electronic chart.

We had solar showers again in the cockpit and our daily game of scrabble. Johnny has beaten me 3 times in a row now- I’m rapidly losing my status as scrabble Queen!

Saturday July 06

Hanging up the washing

Today is Andrew and Margaret’s birthday. I sent them an e-mail from Lat 31° 20 – Long 162°06. Greetings from the blue planet as we venture forth on our space ship – Sea Reach, a small speck in a universe of blue. This is a pilgrim’s progress, slow and dogged, fueled by passion and faith in the goal to be reached – trusting in Divine Providence to guide our steps aright.

We had a blurred noisy contact with Tahnoo today on the SSB radio. We will phone on the Sat phone in a day or two if this poor communication continues. They are still at least 300 nm behind us, their progress dulled by the effects of Dalilah in her death throes, somewhere to the SE of us. Our weather and wind conditions continue steady and helpful. We had a very pleasant sunny day today and I am happy to report that the Queen is back and not yet out on the marathon scrabble tournament. – where we are not keeping a written tally but psychologically the score is emblazoned on the competitors mental states. We thought about a Bar-B-Q this evening but then the winds picked up to 16 and Sea Reach leaned over and the Bar-B-Q looked less than steady on the back rail! Steak, potato scallop and baked beans were cooked in the galley and tasted quite delicious. We are making good contact every evening on the Pacific Seafarers Net. My favorite relayer, Jane, was on tonight. I can always hear her so clearly, as long as the propane switch is turned off. It is a wonderful service to have all these land based ham radio operators keeping tabs on our progress and helping us connect with other boats.

Sunday July 07

Weather is still really nice but as we slip away from the tropics and head further north, now at 32°N we sense the solar showers on deck will soon come to an end. Our watch system is working really well – with John taking 2000-2400 and Ger from 2400 – 0400. John takes over again until I get up at 0730.We have breakfast together, morning prayers and then Johnny goes back to bed from 0900 to 1200. The rest of the day we spend together. We seem to be getting enough rest and as all systems are working really well (so far) and with a sea state of less than 5 ft waves, we are getting a taste of pleasant passage making. Today we had some marine birds follow and hover around us for a while. Johnny had a visit from dolphins on his early morning watch. Our kindle is proving to be a great reading source and thankfully I downloaded several books before we left Honolulu. I am currently reading “Olive Kitteridge – an excellent book that weaves a story of small town New England life through a series of short stories that are threaded together by the title character, Olive Kitteridge, a somewhat cool and unattractive heroine who nevertheless keeps things grounded and human as she plods along clumsily through both her own life and lives of her neighbours.

Monday July 08

We are making steady progress towards the halfway point and the turn eastwards. We have issued a challenge to Tahnoo to come up with a poem/song with references to the NP High, Japan and the Bering Strait. Right now we are hoping that the turning point will be 44 N and 162W (dream on). We are staying as close to the wind as comfort allows. Because the seas are minimal, this makes it quite doable- doesn’t really feel like beating and the motion is very acceptable- thanks to Sea Reach’s sea kindliness. Johnny rebedded the bolts in the mast collar today. While in Honolulu we replaced the partners with ‘spartite’. John did not rebed the bolts, just rethreaded them and there has been some seepage of water down them when we take water over the bow.

Tuesday July 09

We saw our first ship today, Nord Voyager. Today is the Commemoration of the Martyrdom of The Bab, Herald of the Baha’i Faith. We chose readings and music to play at 12 noon. Almost 1000 nm covered so far. Another 513nm and we should be at the turn point. The east winds have started to fill in allowing us to move over from 163° to 162° as we continue north. This is good news. Sea Reach galloping along at 7k on a beam reach. We are in daily e-mail contact with Tahnoo. They are currently about 260nm behind us and doing well. They got off to a slow start but were not pushed as far west as us and are now charging up 160°.

Wednesday July 10

Got an e-mail from Jay today suggesting that we can start to head a bit more eastward. A new turning point has been set at 150W and 47 N (Dream on). We made 143nm in the last 24 hours which is the best run we have had so far this trip, an average speed of 6 k.

Thursday July 11

0700 and our AIS alarm is going off. Hoegh Autoliners are on a near collision course with us currently on a course that will bring them less than 1/2mile from us. Too close. We contact them on our VHF and ask them to give us a bit more space when passing – not less than 1 nm. They courteously agree and change course. They pass us at 1.2nm so we get a good view of them. We have our AIS alarm set to go off for any vessel whose CPA (closest point of approach) is less than 3 nm. It is a fantastic piece of technology and much easier to interpret than radar. The range is set at 15nm so we see the position and course of any vessel with AIS – (all the big boys)- that is within 15nm. The alarm is particularly useful now that we are doing some snoozing during watches or even the distraction of a good book can pull one’s attention away longer than might be safe. Still it’s such a vast ocean out here – crazy to think that a ship is going to actually run into a 42’ vessel.

A low has developed SW of the Pacific High. We are going to get the benefit of a good push NE over the next 2 days. Another 140nm made good over the last 24hrs. We are having a great ride home. Expect to make the halfway point tomorrow – on day 12 of our passage. Excellent, considering how far west we were pushed at the start of the passage. It’s definitely starting to get cooler. We officially took down and put away the sunshades on the portholes today.

Friday July 12

This SE low is catapulting us north eastwards –quite a bit of easting now as the Pacific High has also moved east, so were are shaving off the miles as we swing NE on a bearing of 60° - a direct line to Amphitrite Point just northeast of Cape Flattery. We covered 160nm in the last 24hrs – a new record for Sea Reach. That is an average speed of just under 7 k. Our hull speed is 8k- so that gives an idea of how engaged our little vessel is. We have 3 reefs in the main and the Jenny at 80%. The hydrovane is keeping us on course. John made a new brake for the steering wheel and it is working extremely well. Makes adjustments minimal and is much easier than before when we were wrestling with bungee chords to keep the wheel locked. Only glitch now is that the Pacific High is tracking northwards with us and will veer back west again by Monday or Tuesday. Rats! We are in a race with it to try and get over the top before it moves back west. Looks like we will have to go as far north as 47°.

We are pretty sure that we are halfway now though the turn point keeps moving.

 

Cam cleats on swivels make a good wheel break with easy adjustments for weather helm

Here is our HALFWAY song.

HALFWAY THERE – It’s A Long Way to Vancouver

(sung to the tune of It’salong way to Tipperary)

It’s along way to Vancouver. It’s along way to go.

When you start from Honolulu, You can’t sail straight there, I know.

Goodbye, Hawaii, Farewell Mexico!

It’s along, long way to Vancouver – but we’re heading there.

So we sailed out, past Kaiwi Channel, Past Mokapuu Point, and more.

Caught the trade winds, headed northwards, Cause that’s how we have to go.

There’s a storm out there, called Delilah, She’s causing trouble everywhere.

It’s a long, long way to Vancouver – but we’re heading there.

Climbing northwards up 160°, but the wind’s now from NE. Pushing Sea Reach ever westward, Japan will soon be within our reach. (God Bless US!)

Goodbye Oahu, farewell tropical Shore.

It’s a long, long way to Vancouver, but we’re heading there.

We are heading, north of  40° , to get round the Pacific High. Now our course is , set for Dutch harbor, The Bering Strait is quite close by.

Goodbye, solar showers, farewell snorkel time.

It’s a long, long way to Vancouver – but we’re heading there.

Now the turn point is approaching, and we’re very glad to say.

That our compass, will soon be heading – northeast – the Juan de Fuca way.

Goodbye, late night night watches, so long endless waves.

It’s a long, long way to Vancouver – but we’re HALFWAY THERE!

Saturday July 13

A very boisterous night last night with winds 20+ and the waves rolling by fast and furious. Sailed with3 reefs in the main and the Jenny at 30%. Maintained our course and speed and racked up 150nm. Phoned Jonathan this morning to wish him a happy birthday. Delighted we managed to get hold of him. He is currently on holidays with Shosh and the kids in West Hawk Lake, Manitoba. Two vessels today within our AIS range but CPA about 10nm away. Made contact with Beth from Sarah Jean 11 tonight on freq.14.347@0430 Zulu. Net control is Peter, from California, longtime friend to BCA members traveling in the Pacific. Sarah Jean 11 has been in regular contact with him during its passages to New Zealand and home.

Sunday July 14

Container ship XIN Los An…sets our AIS alarm off. Will pass < 1/2mile from us.  Contacted them, gave them our Lat and Long and asked them to give us a bit more room when passing. Readily agreed. We are playing it safe with these big containers. If they get too close to us they can’t see us and just not worth the risk. By contacting us we verify that they know we are out there and that they will be watching out for us.

Another good day of sailing despite living dangerously close to the centre of the high. The barometer keeps creeping up – 4 points today –and by the early hours of July 15 is up to 1039. We still have 10-11 k of wind but must be slipping into it. It is quite squished and narrow in the middle right now so we are setting our course for as close to home as we can sail to the wind. We will keep this up as long as we have wind then motor sail out of the high when we lose wind.

Monday July 15

Engine went on on this morning from 0200-0300. Then we had wind again until 0500 – at which time someone switched the fan off – dead calm. We switched the engine on and expect that we may have to motor sail for the next 24-36 hours. The barometer is now at 1040 but the GRIB files tell us that the high will move westward on Tuesday so this will help us. Seas very calm out here right now- a silver hue from horizon to horizon.

Tuesday July 16

Got sailing again @ 0100 after just 20 hours of motoring. Winds are from the NW. We are now on the home stretch though there is still 880nm left before we get to Canadian inshore waters. We have set our waypoint for Amphritite point about 30nm north of the Juan de Fuca to allow for slippage south if the winds shift as we move inshore. Baked scones in the oven today.  Solar showers are no longer an option and our hot water system isn’t working so we boil a kettle each day for sponge baths. Winds came up to 20+k later in the evening. We’re in for a boisterous night. I can’t imagine doing this short handed without a windvane or autohelm.

Wednesday July 17

A long cold gray day with poor visibility. The seas continue to roll us along with wind coming from the NW@ 15-20k throughout the day. Not the most comfortable ride right now but we are making good progress. We are spending most of our time below deck – just going up to do checks and make adjustments. I play my Ukelele every morning while John is having his morning sleep. It’s a fun little instrument and very easy to play- if you already play the guitar. A great little travel instrument. This afternoon we watched a detective movie, part of a television series that John downloaded in Honolulu before we left. Pretty surreal to be transported back to land by the images on the screen, while huddled below decks as our ship sails on through the mist.

Thursday July 18

Today the winds started to weaken much as we had expected from communication with Jay and our GRIB file download. Jay gives us the big picture and our GRIBs help us make daily adjustments where necessary. With less than 6 knots in our sails Sea Reach continues to move along between3-4k. The seas are very calm and we are gliding along. Pretty sure there is a current helping us out. I baked a cake and we both washed each other’s hair. Watched another episode of Detective Lewis – a very well scripted BBC series.

By 2100 the winds had completely dissipated and we were dead in the water. With 525 nm left to go we haven’t enough diesel left to motor the rest of the way. John takes down the sails that are now just slapping around the place and we bob around for a couple of hours until we can get a weather update. We managed to get some GRIB files down and also an e-mail from Jay – we should get some winds again by Saturday. We decided to motor towards them and turn off the engine whenever there is enough wind to make way.

Friday July 19

Turned off the engine at 0830 as a small zephyr of wind slowly started to breath life into the sails. We are amazed at how Sea Reach can ghost along in such light winds. As long as we can make over 3k we are prepared to sail. This is exactly how we progress throughout the day, gliding along between 3-4.5k.  The sun comes out for a few hours in the late morning to mid-afternoon. We have lunch and our daily scrabble game in the cockpit. One ship passes today at a distance of 3nm- Global End. Seemed to be heading for Vancouver. We toasted Sea Reach as we passed below the 500nm mark. Were able to make contact with Bill on Tahnoo on freq 7095 these past few days. They are doing fine. They are now about 400nm behind us.

Saturday July 20

One of the Maersk Line passes in front of Sea Reach one of the largest container ships in the world

As we get closer to both B.C. and the U.S. coast we see more freighters each day. Today we had three pass us, all at a good distance- Young Spir, Xin Tai La and Noble Hawk. Our track takes us just north of the traffic separation zone for incoming and outgoing large ships. John saw a whale this morning on his early morning watch. Seems to be the best watch for wildlife sightings. Was also visited by several–Pacific white-sided dolphins yesterday on the same watch.

This afternoon we watched the last of our detective Lewis series – so no more video entertainment for us. Have been in contact some evenings with fellow BCA member Beth on Sarah Jean 11. Very glad we both got our ham radio licences before going offshore. Really nice to be able to touch base with other sailors even if they are a couple of hundred miles away from us.

 

Music time on Sea Reach

Sunday July 21

Made contact with Jim from Salt Spring Island on the Ham. He asked to join a conversation as I was finishing one with Bill from Tahnoo. Jim is one of the relay volunteers with the Pacific Seafarers Net and a former communications officer with BCA. Apparently, he has been following both Tahnoo and Sea Reach since we left Hawaii and wanted to offer any assistance now that we are closing in on the BC coast. Very nice to know that there are people out there –listening and ready to help.

Our speed has been lack lustre for the past couple of days – just making between 4-5k but we expect this to radically change as we approach the coast. The Juan de Fuca has been blowing a snot for the past few days. Are now considering a course that will allow us duck into Neah Bay on the U.S. coast if the weather is nasty as we enter the Juan de Fuca.

e-mail from Tahnoo today – they caught a 20lb tuna! Just as well there are four of them aboard. They are currently 400nm further west than us so unlikely that they will catch up with us before we get to Victoria. Saw what was probably our first fishing vessel this evening. It did not show up on the AIS but I could see the lights in the distance. Was moving slowly in our direction but we passed ahead of it.

Monday July 22

The anticipation is starting to build as we head into the last 48 hours before we make landfall. We put the engine on for a couple of hours today to keep the boat speed up so that we can reach Neah Bay before night fall on the 23^rd. It will require a big push over the next 24 hours and we will need to keep our speed up to 6k. I baked scones in the oven today so that we have a nice treat for what will hopefully be our last ‘nightwatch’. Winds were around 12k for most of the day but picked up 15k by the evening .We pole out the jenny for the night passage and make the most of the winds on a broad reach. We will need to correct to the N in the morning but we are making 6+k so this is definitely going to help us along.

Tuesday July 23

The big push is on as we head for Neah Bay. We will have to make an average of 6k to get there by 2200. Winds are favourable and strong -20-25k. Sea Reach races along and gives us a terrific ride – though it is cold and visibility is really poor (thank goodness for AIS) as we approach the north end of the Juan de Fuca we meet a strong ebb tide and with the wind against current the seas are stacked up. They are steep and breaking at 10ft. Fortunately they are breaking behind us not in front of us and Sea Reach manages to dodge them all – but it is a tense couple of hours. Our boat speed slows down to 3 knots sometimes lower as the ebb tide pushes against us. There is a spectacular sunset with an equally spectacular rising of the full moon. Never seen anything like it. We make Neah Bay at 2200 under a full moon. A fishing vessel that passed by earlier has given up after being pounded by the standing waves and arrives back to Neah Bay right behind us. When those boys give up you know it’s rough!

Sunset on our approach to Neah Bay

Now with the anchor down in Neah Bay, Sea Reach sits motionless and we go to bed for a full night’s sleep before tackling the Juan de Fuca.

Wednesday July 24

We head out at 1100 with the last of the ebb tide so that we will have full benefit of the inflow all the way to Victoria. The fog has lifted and we have good visibility while crossing the traffic lanes over to the Canadian side. Winds are 15k but pickup to between 20-25 for most of the afternoon. It is a cold ride down the Juan de Fuca but as we round Race Rocks we hit a welcoming wall of warm air and are greeted by sparkling sunshine that hangs in the evening sky all the way to Victoria. We are tied up at the customs dock by 1930. Very grateful to be home again. What an adventure we’ve had. Couldn’t have been completed without the wonderful support network of BCA, the Pacific Sea Farers Net and the fantastic ongoing weather assistance from Jay in Nanaimo. 

Approaching Squamish Harbour on Howe Sound - Home at last!