WHEN: Wednesday March 30th. 2000Local / 2200EST / 2300BRZ / 0200UTC
WHERE: 17:30N 105:52W
MILEAGE: 353 miles since La Cruz (sailed), 2,395 miles to Nuku Hiva (straight line)
Third day in.
Last night was our most tiring period thus far. Just after I published yesterday’s post, the wind got very light and, worse, variable in direction. Our autopilot was getting confused with all the swirling around. At one point we took all sails down and stayed drifting, awaiting for the winds to come back. But without the sails, Pesto stood broadside to the waves and, as small as they were, we were still rocking wildly. In the end, at around 2am, I accepted the fact that the best to do would be to stay awake and steer Pesto by hand through those fickle winds for the rest of the night.
And I think it was worth it. By early morning today we entered a patch of good winds, and had excellent sailing all day long. We are now 300 miles away from shore.
It’s starting to feel more like a passage.
Each of us is adapting his/her own way. Adriana is recovering and her toe aches less and less. Raquel seems to have made it through the worst initial stage of seasickness. She hasn’t left the cockpit since departure from La Cruz. The first two days she was very quiet, but today she woke up quite talkative and bubbly. Paulo spends long hours inside, reading, playing or just doing nothing and will occasionally pay us a visit at the cockpit. Just a while ago he said that he “loves long passages”. And as for me, well Sturgeron is still doing me wonders and I havent gotten even close to being seasick. I am even able to stay inside and read for a while. A whole new experience.
The highlight of the day came wrapped up in feathers. A group of six Boobies decided to make Pesto their base last night. This morning four of them departed, leaving two behind. They spent most of the day grooming their feathers, left for a while to fish, and then returned to their station on top of our main solar panel. Our electric generation suffered as a consequence, but it was cool to have them around. One thing that called our attention is that they are not scared of us at all. I had to check the backstay in the afternoon and got very close to them, thinking they would fly away as a result. But they stayed, and even got quite interested on what I was doing. I suppose I could touch them if I wanted to, but as tempting as it may be, I prefer to keep their raw and positive impression of humans.
So, that’s it for today.
Have a great evening.
Pesto out.
I have an idea what was to be outside and no wind. I got this too. Fortunately your crew are improve together and in balance with this new environmental around you. I wish better weather and gorgeous sunset during your trip. As you know, we are your “digital” crew following your family until your destination.
Esses pássaros podem ser fofinhos mas devem deixar uma sujeira…
Edison, Claudia – thank you for being so close to us all the way along the trip. It was a joy every time the SatPhone beeped with your messages. Cheers