Friday November 17, 2000 en route Opua

Winds were around 15 knots from the southeast overnight so we sailed along nicely with an average speed of about 5.6 knots. The high which is west of NZ is still stationary with another high lower down in the Tasman to follow, so we are hoping the weather will stay fine until we get to Opua, although since that won’t be until at least next Wednesday, it’s hard to say what will happen.

There are more flying fish around now and we have spotted several new kinds of shearwaters and petrels. About noon there was a pod of about 7 dolphins playing round the boat. They resembled the description of Pygmy Killer Whales in our fish book, but since the book is for North America, Paula is not convinced it’s a good identification. They had blunt head, no beaks, and were very narrow towards the tail, whitish on the belly,  with one at least having white markings round the mouth.

Early in the morning the wind dropped and Paula decided to take out the second reef. Just as she finished, the wind piped up and as we were heeling sharply the reef had to be put right back in again. Paula hadn’t even made it back to the cockpit! Still the stronger winds (SSE at 10-15) make for good progress.

In one of the interminable weather discussions on the SSB the latest routing from an outfit called the Commander was read out and it is predicting that a front will come across the top of the north island from the west on Wednesday and could produce strong southwesterlies, just what we don’t want, but there’s not much to do now except make the best speed possible. Lost sight of FIO OKO and other boats that were close by. AMALTHEA is having a slow trip as they have had a strong counter current and not much wind. SINGLE MALT, a Swiss boat that left four days before we did, is still slogging away trying to head due west as they got much too far south and stayed east early in their trip. ALLONS’Y, who also left four days ahead of us and are much further south,  and had been sailing into headwinds for the past seven days having been pushed south and east by strong winds near the Minervas early in their passage. TUCUMCARI is also having a slow trip, made worse by a loose headstay which Bob says he cannot tighten.

132 miles noon to noon. 699 miles to go to Opua.  Click here for Day six