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0 AROUND ALONE DAYS 73,74,75

Total miles sailed so far=9979 NM.
Miles sailed last 3-days=422 NM.
Miles left to go to Cape of Good Hope=92 NM
Top Speed so far=12.3kts

THE REST OF THE STORY:

Day 73
24hr Run: 126 NM.
Position: Latitude 46*02’S. Longitude 09*35’E
Weather: Wind 10-30 kts WNW.
Seas: 8-15ft.
Cabin Temp: 46-53*
Bar: 1005 mb

Sailed along nicely with just the staysail all day in 30 knots of breeze. I’m waiting for the winds to die down some before re-rigging how I free fly the main.

I awaken about 11pm and see it is just beginning to get light, and I also see our speed has dropped below 5-kts, and it’ time to get the main back up.

Once up on deck I remove the block that I use for my sea anchor and shackle it to the clew of the sail. I fit a new bolt into my double mainsheet block repairing it, then run the mainsheet line through the mainsheet block up to the block on the clew of the sail and back down to the becket on the main sheet block, giving me a two to one purchase and distributing the load over the mainsheet block.
I put the main back up and it looks great,and I feel that this set up will get us home.

Just a Little Clarification on all the Sail Issues:

A. The Main is brand new, but Lee sails chinced on the slides that go in the mast and they are pulling out in strong winds, and I have had to replace four of them that have failed, and now feel pretty confident that there will be no more issues with the main.

B. The Mizzen Sail is brand new and no problems with it

C. The Staysail is in brand new condition and no problems.

D. The “Genoa from hell”, is 5-years old and I totally overestimated its condition to be able to make this voyage. It obviously is suffering from UV-damage and can’t be flown partially rolled out, and I believe it sometimes is damaged when being furled in when winds began to increase. It is now sporting over 20-patches.

Day-74
24hr Run: 160 NM.
Position: Latitude 45*31′ Longitude 13*15’E.
Weather: Wind 18-25 knots WNW.
Seas: 8-12ft.
Cabin Temp: 46-55*
Bar: 1004 mb

Today is truly a great sailing day and the sun is out

I have had no luck catching rain water as it seems it only rains when it is blowing 25+knots and catching water is made impossible by salt water flying everywhere. I’m conserving water everywhere I can.
I have decided to build a water distiller, and I actually have the time to do it.

Day-75
24hr.Run 136NM
Position: Latitude 45*18’S. Longitude 16*15’E
Weather: Wind 20-40kts.WNW &SW.
Seas: 8-15ft.
Cabin Temp=48*-55*.
Bar: 1003mb

Today if I had been having the circumnavigation of my dreams, I would be halfway there
That is not the case, and it will be interesting to see when I reach that point mileage wise. Who knows maybe the second half will go faster.

Today I took two hours and built a water distiller and tomorrow I will bring it on line and see if it works.

I used two 5-gallon gas jugs that I only use for water.
One to hold the salt water and it will be wrapped in a black plastic bag, hoping to create heat. The other one will be the condenser unit that will feed water into a half gallon container, and this will all be lashed out in the cockpit. I’m hoping it works.

It was late afternoon when a cold front hit us coming in from the south west and I dropped the main out, as the winds were gusting to 40kts

The seas became very confused with the sudden wind shift, and the storm force seas coming up from the south were steep, and occasionally it felt like we were hit by a freight train. I saw lots of water come on deck, and it was very uncomfortable below decks as we “rolled “along.

It was frustrating to me, as the winds were perfect to sail the course line, but I had to sail NE to keep Sailors Run’s stern into the punishing waves.

“How dry I am, How dry I am ,nobody knows How dry I am”.  The Jefe’

0 AROUND ALONE DAYS 70,71,72

WHERE JEFF IS AT JAN 12TH LAT 45’9 S LONG 10’5 E

DIAGRAM OF THE GOOSENECK THAT ATTACHES TO THE BOOM-MAST THAT HAS FAILED

A PICTURE OF THE MAIN SAIL,BOOM,GOOSENECK WHEN IT’S ALL TOGETHER

SLIDES THAT ARE USED ON THE MAIN SAIL THAT SLIDE ON THE TRACK UP THE MAST THAT HAVE BROKEN

BIG WAVES ARRIVING FOR SAILORS RUN AND THE CAPTAIN

THE STAY SAIL IS THE SAIL CLOSER TO US IN THE PICTURE AND THE GENOA IN THE FRONT THAT HAS LOTS OF RIPS

0 AROUND ALONE DAYS 67,68,69

Total miles sailed so far=9193 NM.
Miles sailed last 3-days=455NM.
Distance left to go to Cape of Good Hope=789NM
Top speed so far=12.3=New Record

THE REST OF THE STORY:

Day-67
24hr.Run=174nm.
Position: Latitude 47*22’S. Longitude 06*44’W
Weather: Wind=35-45kts West.
Seas: 15-20ft.
Cabin temp=44-48*
Bar=1014mb

A day of “kick ass” weather, and it was midmorning, and I was below decks, when suddenly the stay sail started luffing and banging up on deck. Once I was into my foulies and boots I ventured out on deck, and it was immediately obvious what was wrong. The wire pennant at the bottom of the staysail had parted and the sail was flopping its way up the stay. I grabbed a 1/2″ piece of line and crawled forward, replacing the pennant with the line and re tensioning the sail, an easy fix.
It was also obvious that the Sailors Run was now over powered, so I tied in the second reef in the Main sail. I now felt confident that I had the right sail configuration for the weather that was coming our way.

In the early afternoon I was reading below decks when “Suddenly” Sailors Run turned up into the weather, this indicating a steering problem.
I scrambled into my foulies once again and leaped top side. I gazed at the wheel and seen it was moving with the rudder a good sign, but the steering lines from the wind vane were all slack. A quick look over the stern reveals that one of the knots had popped off the servo rudder disabling the steering.
I hurry below to get my trusty piece of coat-hanger that I use to fish the steering line out of the wind vane. It is after closing the boat up and as I turn to go aft, that Sailors Run is engulfed by a very large breaking wave, and I grab on to two stays for the mizzen mast and hang on.

I’m waste deep as the wave washes over the cockpit filling it, and my boots at the same time. “Holy Shit”. I hadn’t clipped in yet as I wanted to be clipped in at the stern of the boat, to be able to hang off the back and repair the steering vane. I was very fortunate that I had seen the wave just before it broke, and I hung on for dear life as my feet were washed clear of the deck for just a second or two.
Fortunately I was able to retie the stopper knot in the line before being engulfed by another wave.

The weather has deteriorated to where it is has been blowing consistently at 35-45 kts and the seas are running up to twenty feet high.
I get below and ring my socks out putting on a dry pair and drain the water from my boots.

Evening comes and the gale rages on, and now I’m trying to get some sleep in my berth, suddenly I hear the roar of a breaking wave, and Sailors Run is engulfed by a huge breaking wave and I’m sprayed with a blast of “icy salt” in my berth. The spray had managed to squirt from under the butterfly hatch.
I immediately grab my pillow jerking the pillow case off of it, and hang the wet portions of my bedding out over the side of the lee cloth to drip on the already wet cabin sole.
Fortunately I keep the computer in a plastic bag, strapped on the chart table.

Day-68.
24hr.Run=142NM.
Position: Latitude 46*57’S. Longitude 003*28’W
Weather: Wind=15-40kts West.
Seas: 12-18′.
Cabin temp=46-49*.
Bar=1001mb

Thank god the winds are abating now down to 25kts and the waves are also dropping. I go top side to shake out a reef in the “new Lee” mainsail and am very disappointed to see that three of the slides on the mainsail have actually bent because they are so “cheap” and thin that they popped out of the sail track on the mast and are permanently useless. This means I must now replace them with spares that I have.
During the shaking of the reef out I discover yet something else and a shadow of dread engulfs me.

The new goose neck I had fabricated in Mazatlan,Mexico is cracking and threatening to fail. There are two cracks in the end fitting of the boom that they made. One at the top eye hole where the connection bolt drops through and another about 1/3rd of the way up one side of the two inch plating that is welded to the axel that the boom swings on.

I spend about an hour brain storming this one and another hour trying to fabricate a reinforcement strap, but in the end I decide “screw it” I will baby it as long as it lasts and when it blows apart I can only hope I don’t get the boom in the “nuts”, as I’m pretty sure I will with the way things have been going so far.

When it breaks I will simply remove the boom and grind a sharp point on it and strap it on deck just in case I ever hit a whale and it attacks the Sailors Run, then I will harpoon the “Son-of-a-bitch”.
Without the boom I will just free fly the foot of the main from the sheet block on the main traveler. I should be able to fly the main full out on all points of sail except hard to weather where it will have to have one reef in it, due to the length of the foot of the sail. “Problem Resolved”.

Day-69
24hr.Run=139NM
Position: Latitude 46*59’S. Longitude 000*46’W
Weather: Wind W.10-30kts.
Seas: 8-15ft
Cabin Temp=46*-50*.
Bar=100mb

Today finds us running before a gale out of the west blowing 35-50 kts and rugged seas to 20+ feet, under stay sail alone making over 6-kts most of the time
.
What has happened, a high pressure system to the north and on the 40 degree’s latitude has intensified and is moving east over the top of me.

I have installed the second hatch board after taking in some water through the louvered doors in the companion way. The seas are very steep and hammering in over our stern at times, other than occasional wild surf down a wave the ride is pretty good.

Rocketing along on a “Kick Ass” ride. The Jefe’

0 AROUND ALONE DAYS 64,65,66

THE REST OF THE STORY:

Total miles sailed so far=8748 NM.
Miles sailed last 3-day=421 NM.
Miles left to go to Cape of Good Hope=1160 NM.
Top speed so far: 12.2kts

Day-64.
24hr Run=131NM.
Position:Latitude 49817’S. Longitude 16*42’W.
Weather: Wind=12-15kts SSW.
Seas: SSW 6-8ft
Cabin Temp=42*-48*.
Bar=1002 mb

We are sailing in lighter airs now so I let more of the Genoa out on the furler only to discover another small tear. I immediately role it back in and decide that now I must wait for a good opportunity to pull the sail off the furler once again for repairs.

I’m awakened to the sound of the main boom bouncing against its restraints, as the winds have died down. Its 1 am and already light outside,I climb out of my berth and heat up some left over coffee as the time has come to repair once again the Genoa.
I stagger about the cabin getting the necessary materials to gather to make the repair. I drink the coffee looking for that little burst of energy that comes from the caffeine and the thawing out of my fingers that are warmed by clinging to the hot cup in my hands.
Once up on deck I get the sail rolled all the way out, I go forward and release the halyard dropping the sail down as I struggle to tug it aboard keeping it out of the ocean.

Once the sail is on deck, I take black marking pen and circle the tear and inspect the sail for other tears, finding three more. I go below and cut out the 8-patches needed to make the 4-repairs. Once again I find myself tethered in, on the fore deck and I set about gluing the patches into place on both sides with silicone sealant. During this process I discover two more tears, so more patches, and more silicone.
A squall comes along and I’m pummeled by hail as I struggle to complete sewing the patches into place, normally a not so difficult job, but here in a hostile environment it becomes much more challenging
.
By 6am the sail now has 6 new patches, looking now more like a quilt, that I once seen my grandmother making, than a sail. I pull the sail back up in the aluminum track and fly it full out. it appears to me that I have little choice but to either fly it all the way out or roll it all the way up in anything over 15kts, and rely on the rest of the sails to move us along in the heavier air.

Day-65.
24hr Run=138nm
Position:Latitude 48*29’S, Longitude 13*56’W.
Weather: Wind 5-15kts WSW.
Seas: 6-8ft. SW.
Cabin Temp=42*-48*.
Bar: 1012mb

I was out in the cockpit scanning the horizon, when I saw a whale blow off the starboard beam. The whale was some distance off and I never did see it, but the geyser it put up was amazing.
The winds seem to be going lighter now and we are having frequent isolated squalls with snow and hail in them.

I guess I should mention that the Seattle Seahawks had a great game against the Arizona Cardinals, and I think at one point in the game I could even here Debbie cheering clear down here. I think the score was 36-6.

One thing I notice down here is wrapping your fingers around a hot cup of coffee means almost as much as drinking it, and I know I like my “Tequila bottle” full of hot water, more than any of the ones I have with Tequila in them.

Day-66.
24hr Run 161NM.
Position: Latitude 48*07’S Longitude 10*48’W.
Wind: 12-30 kts West
Seas:6-12 ft.
Cabin Temp: 42*-47*
Bar: 101mb

I watch in amazement at the birds, that continually soar around the boat, and I can’t help but think about how getting older and things like arthritis can have such an effect on human beings, and then imagine the effects on a bird that needs to be constantly flying to survive.

I’m not sure what all can go wrong on the Sailors Run on a voyage of this duration but I’m pretty sure we are in record territory as the “refrigeration” has just gone “tits up”.
The good thing there is no meat in the freezer and the whole boat is just about at refrigeration temperature near 42* most of the time anyhow.
That ice machine that I was regretting dragging along might come in handy, when I hit warmer temperatures.

There are some gale force winds coming my way and will be with us for several days so I’m checking the old Sailors Run over, getting her ready for the wild ride that is on its way.
These winds are predicted to be 35kts with higher gusts,the good thing is they will be West or NW winds and hopefully warmer than the southerly’s we have been having

“Battening down the hatches” the Jefe’

0 AROUND THE WORLD DAYS 61,62,63

THE REST OF THE STORY:

Total Miles sailed so far=8327 NM.
Miles sailed last 3-days=454 NM.
Miles left to go to Cape of Good Hope=1496 NM.
Top Speed so far=12.2kts.

Day-61
24hr.Run=132 NM.
Position Latitude 49*01S. Longitude 26*57′.
Weather: Wind=12-40kts SSW.
Seas=SW. 8-12ft.
Cabin Temp=44*-46*.
Bar=997mb

Today the sun is out and the winds have moderated. It never ceases to amaze me, when I go out on deck and watch all the birds demonstrating their flying skills. Sometimes as many as 20+birds and usually three to five different varieties.

Today while washing dishes I happened to glance out the window and seen two birds floating up over a wave, and was surprised when they took off underwater as they were actually “penguins”. I guess they forage for food this far north from Antarctica or have an ice berg parked just over the horizon.

I try fishing again but must pull the line in as all the birds are attacking the rubber squid, and actually tearing the thing apart, and not even getting hooked

Overnight the winds go back up to gale force 35-40kts and I reduce sail to just the staysail and reefed main, and with that, it still feels like a bit too much sail.

Day-62 NEW YEARS EVE
24hr.Run=132 NM.
Position: Latitude 48*41’S Longitude 23*46’W.
Weather: Wind=12-25 kts.S
Seas: 6-8ft SW.
Cabin Temp=41-46*
Bar=1000 mb

The day starts out nice, sailing along in 25 kts

I have decided to stay home this year and avoid all the cops on the highway.
The really cool thing about sailing the Southern Ocean is you can get sloshed every day without drinking anything, not to mention staggering when you walk and things are always getting spilled, and it’s all free and just part of the experience.

I will be making some kind of Tuna fish spaghetti, with garlic, tomato sauce, onions, and Italian seasoning. I hope it turns out ok.

Overnight the winds crank up to Gale force once again. I prop myself up on one elbow so I can see the A.I.S. first to be sure there are no targets [ships],and then the speed which was 7-9 kts and the course which was about 40-degrees off from what I wanted but even with a jibe I would still be twenty degrees off, and the winds were forecast to shift favorably before too long, so I just curled back up with my “Hot Tequila” bottle and drifted off to sleep, awaking an hour later to see we were back on course.
I awoke to a very cool cabin at 41 degrees and was a little shocked when I looked top sides and found about one inch of slushy snow.
Now it’s summer down here with 19hrs of day light, and that makes me hope I get out of here before it becomes winter.
Oh well, I had a White Christmas thanks to the Ice berg and now a white New Year’s day with snow.

Day-63 HAPPY NEW YEAR
24hr.Run=161 NM.
Position: Latitude 48*37’S. Longitude 19*51’W.
Weather: Wind SSW.12-25kts.
Seas: 6-8ft.
Cabin Temp: 42*-46*
Bar: 1004mb

I want to wish you all a Happy New Year and hope many good things come your way in the New Year ahead.
Today looks like a good sailing day and it should put us beyond the half way point of crossing the Atlantic.
I fell about 4-days behind schedule in the Pacific due to adverse weather.
My hopes of making the Cape of Good Hope by the 7th are out the window and now it looks more like the 12th at the earliest.
When nature is your motor you just have to make the most of what you receive for power.

There is another low that appears will form directly ahead of me, although it is not intense, they are always like opening Pandora’s box full of unpredictability that “jumps” out at you.

Sailors Run “bumping along” on one “cold ass” ride, the Jefe’.

PICTURES OF NEW YEARS PARTY YR 2011 GRENADA ISLAND/S.E CARIBBEAN AT CLARKS COURT BAY MARINA

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM THE CARIBBEAN YEAR 2011

NEW YRS EVE PARTY AT CLARK’S COURT
MARINA 2011
DANCING OUR LEGS OFF TO GREAT OLDIES MUSIC

JEFF WITH LANI FR SV ASTOR,HAVING A GREAT TIME

SUPER FRIENDS RICHARD AND WIFE LANI FR SV ASTOR ,NEW YRS EVE PARTY 2011

CLARK’S COURT BAY MARINA WHERE WE WERE ANCHORED AT YR 2011/GRENADA/CARIBBEAN

0 AROUND ALONE DAYS 58,59,60

THE REST OF THE STORY:

Total miles sailed so far=7873 NM.
Miles sailed last 3-days=423NM.
Miles left to go to Cape of Good Hope=1910NM.
Top speed so far=12.2kts.

Day-58

24hr.Run=117NM.
Position-Latitude 49*32’S Longitude 40*16W.
Weather: Wind=S at 10-20kts.
Seas: 6-8ft.
Cabin temp: 45-51*.
Bar: 995mb

This day finds us sailing along in the bright sunshine on a beam reach, and we have the fishing line out as the freezer is empty.
The temperature still seems very cool partially because the wind is out of the south.
I’m happy to report no new tears in the Genoa

Day-59
24hr. Run: 155N
Position Latitude 48*46’S Longitude 3*13’W.
Weather: Wind=S 15-20kts.
Seas: 6-8ft
Cabin temp.46-49*
Bar: 1000mb

We have finally gotten back up to the 48* latitude and it seems about -5 degrees warmer making life much more comfortable aboard.
Now all we have to do is sail due east until we get within 400 miles of Chile and turn north for “Home”.  Well it sounds simple but most likely “not”.

I see another low pressure system just ahead of us, but hopefully we will miss the worst that it has to offer

Day-60
24hr.Run: 151NM.
Position 48*22’S Longitude 30*36W.
Weather: Wind=0-40+kts. N+S
Seas: 8-15ft.N&S very confused seas.
Cabin Temp: 48*-50*.
Bar: 996mb

It seems truly amazing but today is the end of my second month at sea, and this month seems to have passed twice as fast as last month.

The first of our three propane tanks is empty. The replacement tank that has been tied on the rail seems light, like maybe only half full??? The third tank is full so we will see how this tank holds up.  “No Coffee” come on!!!

So far we have caught no water as it has either been foggy or a light drizzle and no good heavy rain. I might have to do a “Rain Dance”.

Just a tip on sailing in the Southern Ocean, don’t let these not so cold temperatures fool you, because when you are tying in reefs in 30-40kts.and it is foggy or drizzling you can only stand to be doing it for about ten minutes before you have to warm your hands.
Before you head topside you must have a clear picture in your mind what needs to be done to stabilize the boat quickly, and many times several things must be done, and you might have to pull off to warm your hands up.

On day 60 we have yet encountered another deep low and find ourselves sailing along in gale force conditions. The winds are 30-35kts gusting 40+kts.
The winds at first are from the north and these last about 12hrs, then suddenly we sail into the center of the low and the winds drop to zero.

This is the worst case scenario, as now you are bobbing around like a cork and sails are slamming and popping on the boom. I’m torn as to what to do as if I drop the sail down the rolling will be much worse if I leave it up there could be damage.
I make a cup of coco and try to drink it while my stomach is tied in knots over what to do. I go top sides grabbing for whatever will keep me in the cockpit, and it’s dark and I try to get a read on what the wind will do next. I decide at last to jibe as it appears the wind is just starting to fill slightly from the south about 180* from where it had been coming from. Soon I read two knots of speed on the G.P.S. and we are starting to move once again and the main boom has settled down some. The next 10-minutes see’s the wind increase to about 15kts. I roll out a small portion of the Genoa on the furler getting our speed up over 5-kts.

I go below where I had been sleeping before all the slamming and banging had started, and crawl back into my berth hugging my Tequila bottle with hot water in it, trying to warm up.
Soon I’m asleep, and stay that way for about an hour, but I awake to the sound of water rushing by the hull and the boat is forced hard over on her side. I climb out of my berth and look at the G.P.S. speed, and see we are doing from 8-10kts way to fast if you want to keep your rig in one piece.
This is the fun part as the winds are over 30kts once again I cannot get outside to do anything until I have all my foul weather gear on and safety harness. It’s the fire drill and it’s time to go full on.
After a very long 5 minutes I kind of stumble and dive out into the cockpit grabbing for the sheet line to the Genoa that must be released and that vulnerable sail furled up. This takes a couple of minutes then I slack the main to further reduce strain on the rig. The next thing I do is adjust the wind-vane to steer more downwind on a reach running away from the powerful winds.
Once back below decks it takes a few minutes to get the adrenalin turned off, and once again hop back in my bunk with the “Tequila” bottle.

The problem with the gale conditions is that you always must put all your foul weather gear on before going outside, I mean you can’t go out for one minute without it for fear you will be drenched by a breaking wave, and all your warm weather gear washed down with salt water. Once the salt water gets it, the stuff will never dry, until washed and then it will take days to dry.

Just trying to stay upright and dry, Sailing Along in The South Atlantic, the Jefe’

0 AROUND ALONE DAYS 55,56,57

CHRISTMAS ON SAILORS RUN

A Picture online view imaging Sailors Run going by the Huge Ice Berg they saw

This Iceberg I found online imaging this is what jeff saw,we will see the real thing when he gets back

SAILORS RUN & JEFF AT LAT 50’S-LONG 40’W
WHERE RED DOT IS

THE REST OF THE STORY:

DAY 55 “Christmas Eve”

24hr.Run=144 NM.
Position: Latitude 53*06’S. Longitude 46*15’W
Weather: Wind 12-40kts.
Seas 6-10ft
Cabin Temp=44*-51*.
Bar=984 mb.

I was looking forward to a great Christmas Eve as the winds were filling in and starting to build up the seas, meaning we could once again cover some miles towards home.

It was about noon and I was inspecting the Genoa, and was disappointed to see three tears starting to open up. I pulled the Genoa down off the furler, it’snot an easy job while running before about 17 kts of wind, and one of the tears went from about 3-inches to 18-inches.

Once again I find myself sliding around tethered off on the for deck sewing on patches. Fortunately two of the small tears I was able to cover with one patch. My contact cement was no longer a liquid so I had to resort to silicon to hold the patches in place on both sides while I stitched them together.

After about 1hr 30 minutes I struggled to get the sail back up on the furler and trimmed in. It was when I was admiring my not so beautiful patches that I discovered 3 more tear’s. Once again I pull the sail off the furler and do the patching drill, fortunately the wind had died down a little this time and it was much easier to get the sail back up and flying.

Now I have to tell you the thumb on my right hand is killing me, as I have been doing so much hand sewing that it bleeds each time I do it as the finger nail is cutting into my thumb, and it doesn’t get a chance to heal up, it seems I cannot do anything without using it or jamming it in to something. By the time I got everything cleaned up and put away I was pretty” knocked out”, an celebrating would have to come on Christmas morning.

DAY 56 “MERRY CHRISTMAS WITH ICEBERG IN SITE!”

24hr.Run:157 NM.
Position: 51*36’S Longitude 42*50’W.
Weather: Wind: W at 25-40kts.
Seas: 12-18ft.
Cabin Temp: 44*51*
Bar:992mb

Christmas morning started out like a fire drill, when the winds built to 40 kts and I was anxious to get out there and roll in the little bit of Genoa that I had out and drop the Mizzen sail down altogether trying to get the boat back under control, as it was ripping across the ocean, careened way over on her port side.
At last we were back sailing in a civilized manner, even in the powerful winds that had now backed down to about 30-kts.

Once below I started the coffee percolating, and getting things ready for a nice breakfast, it was then that we were slammed by a rogue wave on the side and I watched as the coffee pot flew across the galley spilling water and grounds everywhere, “Merry Christmas”.
Ohhh ! Here we go again, on the second pot it was watched it much more closely, and like the last one it was again bungee corded down.

It was time to go outside and get the spot locator device, that was out in the bracket on the stainless steel rail, out in the cockpit. I pushed open the double companion way doors and felt I had entered the world of “Ozz” as right before my eyes was a HUGE ICEBERG over a mile long and some 800ft high.

My knees shook as I gazed in disbelief as we were already past it and could have just as easily T-boned the thing. It appeared to be about a mile away. But once I got the radar up and going after a bunch of filming and pictures it was actually 4 miles away, but its enormous size made it seem much closer.
The iceberg was very visible on the radar even at 16 miles I was still able to see it. (It was with the radar that I could determine its size.) Our track showed that we had come within two miles of it when we passed. “We had truly lucked out”.

I thought I was north of the Icebergs as the ones I have the locations on, are all 200 miles to the south of me, from now on the radar stays on 24/7.

I can imagine had we slammed into that IceBerg at 7-knots we probably would have not only peeled some paint off the bowsprit, but it is possible we could have caused the iceberg to emit some “CO2” into the atmosphere, as I’m also sure there would have been a huge release of “Methane Gas” from the Sailors Run.

Day-57

24hr.Run: 132NM.
Position: Latitude 50*22’S Longitude 40*16’W
Weather: Wind: WNW-SSW-10-20kts.
Seas: 6-8ft.
Cabin Temp: 44*-51*.
Bar: 992mb

The winds have dropped way down and we are sailing along very comfortably towards our destination, under sometimes even sunny skies.
Heading for my other Cape- The Jefe

A Happy time Christmas Day on Dee Boat

0 AROUND THE WORLD DAYS 52,53,54

Total mile sailed so far=7027 NM.
Miles sailed last 3-days=299 NM.
Miles left to go to cape of Good Hope=2450 NM..
Top speed on trip=12.2kts.

The Rest of the story:

Day 52:

24hr.Run=144 NM.
Position: Latitude 54*30’S. Longitude 53*01’W
Weather: Wind-3-30 kts NW.
Seas: 7-10ft.NW.
Cabin temp 47-50*
Bar-990mb

Today was an amazing day as I had no projects to do, so in the morning I cleaned up the boat, and decided to take a shower. The showers are only being done every fourth day now to conserve water, and I’m still trying to figure out how to take one with my long-underwear on, but still no luck on that.
I felt great after the shower, and had gotten the dishes all washed up and put away, and it seemed like a good time to set down with my kindle and read a mystery story.

After what must have been twenty-minutes I noticed the boats motion had changed and it seemed that the wind vane might not be steering.
Once out in the cockpit I was shocked to see what looked like a large silver salmon swimming just behind the boat. Upon closer examination this was no salmon at all, it was the shinny servo rudder off the wind vane, trailing behind on the safety line.
Now this was all as it should be as the thinner coupler tube connecting the rudder to the wind vane had broken off as it should when something rolls up from under the boat, like a log etc. I just hoped it wasn’t my rudder leaving that had done it, as I had not heard us hit a log.
I dug through my compartments and on the third one I came up with a couple of replacement pieces of stainless steel tubing to make the repair
Once again with the Makita cutting wheel leading the charge and the Milwaukee drill, punching out the holes, soon a replacement appeared right before my eyes.
Bolting it back on was the interesting part as we were sailing fast and the stern wake was up around the bolt that had to be removed then replaced after new tube was inserted in the hinge socket Once again I find myself tethered off hanging by my knees off the back of the boat working in frigid waters to make the installation happen. “Fixed”!

It appeared the breaking of the wind vane was metal fatigue, more than any one big hit.

Day 53:

24hr.Run=56 NM.
Position Latitude 54*23’S Longitude 51*43’W
Weather: Wind light and variable from all directions.
Waves: 2ft.
Cabin Temp. 47-49*
Bar=990mb

Today the Sailors run is challenged by light and variable winds from many different directions, and this always makes for lots of work trying to keep the boat moving in the right direction. It appears that we are in the middle of a low and must wait for it to move over us, hopefully taking off on the back side of it.
I installed a new LED light over the nave station, after finding the fixture yesterday, while digging through the compartments.
I’m a grandfather once again as our daughter Heather just had a New Baby Boy that came a little early, weighing in at 6 lbs.1oz. The name is Brayden Lucas Thornton, sounds like more crew for the future.

Day 54:

24hr.Run=99 NM.
Position-Latitude 54*15’S Longitude 49*06’W
Weather: Wind-8-12ktsNE
Seas: 2-4ft.
Cabin temp=44*-49*.
Bar.986mb

The winds seem to be on Christmas break, so first let me wish all of you out there a “Merry Christmas and Happy holidays”. Now for me I have a card to open from Debbie and I hope Santa swings by Antarctica, dropping off some fresh breezes that will allow me to get crashing along to where I’m going.

I’m still undecided what will be on the menu for Christmas, but Roast “Albatross” sounds intriguing!! HA HA!!

I have seen 3 ships since the Horn. Two of them were at the Horn, and were small 90-meter passenger ships, the “Plancius and the Polar Princess that both appeared to come up from Antarctica and went to the Horn for photos. The third ship a much larger freighter by the name of “Britannia” was paralleling my course just to the south of me, other than that alls been quiet in the South Atlantic.

Looking for wind your Amigo the Jefe’

0 AROUND ALONE DAYS 50,51

THE REST OF THE STORY:

Total miles sailed so far=6738 NM.
Miles sailed last 3-days=411 NM.
Distance to go to Cape of Good Hope=2690 NM.
Fastest speed so far=12.2kts

DAY 50- 24hr Run=102 NM.

Position: Latitude 55*28’S Longitude 60*23’W

Weather: Wind-NNE3-12 kts

Seas: 2-4ft.

Cabin temp: 44-51*
Bar: 995mb

Now after a day of “rocketing away” from the “Horn” in winds up to 30-kts that were created by a low that slipped below us to the south it is once again time to pay my dues.

On the eve of the heavy weather sailing day, during an inspection of the Genoa sail I noticed three new tears in the sail. I furled the sail in and buried the tear’s

Now down here it starts getting light at 1am Bahia Caraquez time and at 2:30am I rolled the Genoa sail out, and glued patches over the tears in the Genoa. I could just barely reach the tear’s while standing on the bow pulpit lashed onto the furled part of the sail with my safety harness. Once again I furled the sail allowing the contact cement to set up.
It was 6am when I pulled the Genoa down off the furler tube, and spread it out on deck where I could finish a proper repair. I glued patches backing the first patches on the opposite side of the sail, and then sewed the patches together, all the time sliding about on the fore deck, harnessed into my jack line and being very thankful for a high tow rail, to brace myself against and stop my slide off the deck.

After about one and a half hours the sail was back up and flying at 100% as we waited for the winds to build.

Sailing on a passage such as this is like having a new baby in your home, there is no set routine and you never know when nature [baby] will call.

I should mention that as of this day I believe we are nearly 30% complete on our solo circumnavigation. Yahoo!!

DAY-51 24hr.Run=144 NM.

Position: 54*49’S. Longitude 56*30’W

Weather: Wind=NW 7-15 kts.

Seas: 4-6ft

Cabin Temp: 47*-52*.
Bar: 996 mb

The sun is out and the winds have returned making this day tolerable to be outside. It seems when the wind comes from the north the temperature is nearly 10 degrees warmer than the southerly winds off of Antarctica.

I take advantage of the good conditions to put a fishing line out and do a much needed outside project. I moved the double cheek block that the control lines from the wind-vane pass through, aft about ½ an inch. I believe this change will stop the steering line from ever dropping of the wheel again.

The fishing lure a cedar plug was my choice as it runs a little deeper so the Albatross can’t get it as they do not dive below the surface.

Now you can imagine my surprise when I came on deck to see Five Giant Albatross all trying to get my lure. My first instinct was to grab the camera, but then I seen what these guys were up to. They would fly right up near the stern of Sailors Run where the line entered the water, and grab the fishing line in one of their beaks and the one with the line in his beak just slipped aft towards the lure as it was leveraged to the surface and all the birds could get after it.

I grabbed the meat line and started pulling it in all the time trying to scare the birds away, to no avail. Suddenly the lure got to the albatross and somehow hooked him or tangled him in the line. I knew the bird would surely drown if I did not haul him in and try and set him free.
I know from experience you do not want to attempt this without first putting on gloves because those “suckers “bite hard.

The bird was towing in pretty well when, suddenly it turned over creating a huge drag on the line. I was “shocked”, at what happened next, the bird reached out with his beak and bit the leader in half and suddenly took flight. Now whether he had the lure in him or not he flew vary well and circled the area looking perfectly normal.

That was the end of the cedar plug and my attempt to fish on this day.

From deep in the Atlantic, your amigo the Jefe’

One of the many wandering Albatross who love to get my fishing lure

Having a great time together on our boat

0 DAY 49: DECEMBER 19TH- AT CAPE HORN

“CAPE HORN AT LAST AND ONE CAPE DOWN!

After 49-days and 2hrs Sailors run arrives of the most rugged and beautiful Cape in the world. I can barely see it even though it is less than 5-miles away for the tears in my eyes.

I shudder when I think, I have once again been granted passage to this amazing place. It seems as though someone has caused me to linger along the Chilean coast as I beat my way to the Horn in Light winds. Being slowed by nature and forced north I got to see some of the most amazing sea life that presented itself to me as I “worried” my way down to the Horn.

Now I’m at last here which is amazing!! and I want to thank my wife Debbie for all her wonderful support and to all of our family and great friends for their prayers and emotional support in this huge undertaking.

I must thank Robert Perry for designing such an outstanding cruising boat, the Baba 40 ketch, and those of you that have donated gear, and money to help all this to be possible.

To all “MY Amigos much thanks”.

Now we rapidly sail clear of the Horn into the depths of the Atlantic and all it has in store for us.

The next leg will be about 3000NM to a point nearly 1000-miles south of the “Cape of Good Hope” at Latitude 48*south.

24hr.Run=165NM.
Position-Latitude- 55*38’S Longitude- 63*12’W.
Weather: Wind=20-30kts.NW.
Seas=8-10ft.W.
Cabin Temp=46*-51*.
Bar=994mb

CAPE HORN AND MY SECOND TIME AROUND

CAPE HORN ISLAND SEEN AS I GO BY