THE BEAUFORT SCALE
IS A MEASURE OF WIND SPEED DESCRIBING VARIOUS BREEZE,GALES,STORMS
Total Miles sailed so far=11,586 nautical miles
Miles sailed last 3-days=404 nautical miles
Miles left to go to Cape Leeuwin, Australia=2640 nm
Top speed so far=12.3 knots
THE REST OF THE STORY:
Day 85
24hr. Run 149NM.
Position: Latitude 45*17’S. Longitude 45*23’E
Weather: Wind 10-40 knots NW. Seas: 8-15ft.
Cabin Temp=51-55*. Bar: 994mb
Sailing in the Southern Ocean requires staying on top of the ever changing environment.
A typical day aboard Sailors Run involves four to eight sail changes. The reason so many are necessary is the rapidly changing strength of the wind from 10-40+knots.
The weather here in the “Roaring-Forties” brings a deep low to your area every two to three-days, and normally gale force winds or worse.
DAY-86
24hr. Run 140 nautical miles
Position: Latitude 45*35’S. Longitude 48*36’E.
Weather: Wind=45kts Gusting 55kts.N. Seas: 18-30ft.NW.
Cabin Temp.53-55. Bar: 984mb
Day-86
Today the low that we have been sailing in has deepened and appears to be moving over top of us as the winds are now 30 knots and the Sailors Run has just turned up into the wind and an obvious steering problem has come up.
I scramble to get my foulies on and out into the cockpit. Immediately it is obvious what is wrong, as we have that silver looking salmon dragging along behind the boat, which in reality is the servo- rudder of the wind vane. I put the boat on the electronic auto pilot and go below to manufacture a new tube section to get the wind vane going again.
The wind vane does an amazing amount of work steering the boat and is perhaps the most valuable addition ever put on Sailors Run.
Thank God I got the wind vane fixed when I did as now the barometer continues to fall and is reading 984 mb.
The winds are now blowing 45 knots gusting 55 knots the seas are running 20-30 feet and now I’m forced to sail more south than east to keep these huge waves on my stern.
Before I turned more South Sailors Run was being slammed every 20-minutes on the side by breaking waves, and some water was finding its way below. Now that they are on our stern the only thing that happens is the cockpit is filled on a regular basis.
This Gale/storm is one of the worst we have seen on the voyage so far. It stayed on us hard for 18-hrs then the center passed over us after about 1-1/2hrs, and then we rode out the back side of the system.
A storm such as this has amazing amount of rugged beauty, with all the colors of the sea and the white foam of the breakers cascading down the face of the waves.
Although frightening it may be, it also makes you feel so totally alive, and you find yourself just staring at these amazing forces in action for hours.
DAY 87
24hr. Run 115 nautical miles
Position: Latitude 45*44’S. Longitude 51*16’E.
Weather: Wind SW 8-35kts. Seas: 15-20ft.
Cabin Temp.46-55* Bar=1010mb
“Today is very special day as we have arrived at the half way point of our circumnavigation!! Yea!!”
Well, at least mileage wise I believe this to be half-way, time wise could be different as no two days sailing are the same.
All things considered this should put me across the finish line at Bahia Caraquez on or about the 22nd of April,2016. I will have also celebrated my 70th birthday on the 17th of April. Of course the real party will be in Bahia with Debbie and friends.
Aging along the way, the Jefe’