Interesting morning, Friday, 5th June! We had reckoned on an eta Bermuda late Saturday afternoon, reaching a waypoint south west of the islands. Seas had been building and it had become more difficult to maintain a south easterly course with SE winds of 25 knots;) Breakfast was prepared at intervals and we managed to contain everything at the top of the companionway. Our morning "fix" with Chris Parker on SSB radio had confirmed our decision to "go slow" until the SW lighter winds filled in and we could make an entrance to St George early Sunday.
Quite pleasant really being "hove to", might I even say "relaxing", after close reaching for 48 hours with either too much wind and sea or not quite enough, having to deploy the "iron topsail". I paired the trusty Delorme inReach SE with my iPad via Bluetooth and sent a message to James. Quick came his reply "Bummer" was all it said, conveying what he thought would be our frustration! What he didn't know was that the Skipper was snoozing below and I'd finally found some time to BLOG. Not easy on a sailboat! All the time in the world you would think, but there's always something........
We departed Mac's dock in Town Creek, Beaufort NC on Monday morning 1st June, having spent two weeks fitting a new Force 10 stove, finishing the back stay wiring for the SSB radio, changing the position of the wash down pump on the bow, waiting for orders to be delivered after the Memorial Day holiday weekend, a more powerful inverter and a plate to fit to the engine sea water intake pump. Sending Bob up and down the backstay and the mast with the new Kranker was a breeze and having access to shore power and water made life easy.
Larry on his trimaran, Running Cloud, would overtake us en route to Bermuda with his crew of four, and John and Georgina on Shamal (Karpaz Gate Marina, North Cyprus 2012) would head north on the ICW. In the meantime Toby and Sam on Sweet Chariot (OCC mid Chesapeake Rally 2014) would take our place on the dock! We had caught up with Doug and Shanna on Hob Nob and Hugh and Linda on Wild Goose (Marina di Ragusa, Sicily 2013) and new OCC friends Stuart and Anne on Time Bandit, all of whom had just arrived in Beaufort after an ocean crossing from the Caribbean. Lots of fun for sundowners in the Beaufort pubs and restaurants listening to stories from abroad about folk we know so well.
Larry had his car and aeroplane in Beaufort and nothing was too much trouble when it came to sourcing spare parts and shopping for anything under the sun. His introduction to Mac and his private dock meant that our two week stay had cost only $200:))
The blog entry above was written on Friday and it's now Sunday 0500 hours, a beautiful morning but we're still 80nm from Bermuda and not looking like getting there until after dark! What had happened in those intervening 48 hours?
'Heaving to' was bloody uncomfortable with the wind at 25 knots from the SE and the seas crashing into the bow, and no prospect of let up for 36 hours, so we 'ran off' under 'bare poles'......to the north.....away from Bermuda....into the dark dark night. There was lightning to the west, poor visibility and heavy rain. It was like crossing the Atlantic with the trade winds but with no sense of purpose. A wave crashed into the cockpit and into the companionway. We closed ourselves in, in full wet weather gear and very wet. Chris Parker assured us that it would get better and by lunchtime we were drinking tea and eating peanut butter and crackers in the cockpit, finally making some progress under 80% jib and some engine power. The seas were still big and "jobbly" which is a Bob word and sounds just the way it was. But gradually they moderated and although there were still some squalls, the wind was in the right direction and we could motorsail relatively comfortably.
After a fantastic close reach through the night the wind died and we are now motoring in lumpy seas and I'm waiting until the skipper wakes up and we can have coffee and an egg and bacon roll! Roll on Bermuda.....can't wait to be peacefully anchored, have a hot shower off the stern and sleep for hours.
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