VIVACE HAWAII - SITREP 2024-07-13 - EVENING WATCH REPORTING - FINAL (HOPEFULLY)
CREW HIGHLIGHTS: Reaching the end of the delicious meal plan established and primarily executed by Kirill, Craig whipped up breakfast burritos with chorizo and eggs for breakfast while Kirill practiced the art of bread making with a guiding hand from Iain. Piping hot seafood chowder for lunch with the last of the salmon, accompanied by chunks of Kirill's first successful peasant loaf, fresh from the oven. For dinner thawed and baked off the frozen lasagna that had been the cold "anchor" in the on-deck cooler. Our first taste of cheese in days!
CONDITIONS: Winds have remained 15-20 knots from the east, good for consistent sailing but the course has proved uncomfortable with persistent oscillating direction and rolling waves over the past three days. Crew have endured with minimal grumbling but it's not the downhill sleigh ride we might have enjoyed if the down-the-coast route had looked palatable earlier in the voyage.
While we were dealt a challenging hand with the unusual wind patterns, the ambitious calculated route threading through the low pressure was frustratingly unachievable in part due to our reliance on the vessel's "out of the box" performance polars. These describe how the boat should perform, in terms of speed and wind angles, and allows weather routing routines to put us "in the right place at the right time". Taking the generic polars and tuning them for this specific vessel and crew would have taken quite a bit of practice time, with this crew sailing the boat in varied conditions and on all possible sail configurations. In practice this activity is more available to crews who regularly sail together on the same vessel, and a cruising vessel would be strongly advised to make the effort before relying on generic polars. For our delivery crew who had one quick shake-down sail, it might be best to stick to the "south till the butter melts, then turn right" route. If the winds allow.
HOPES AND DREAMS: As of this writing, just over 60 nautical miles remaining to waypoint "ALOHA", the northern entrance to Kane'ohe Bay on the North-East side of the island of Oahu. Planning to make landfall at first light on 14/July.
GOINGS ON: Flurry of finishing course work for the American Sailing Association (ASA) in celestial navigation and offshore cruising. We've tried to document our work and practices to fortify and enhance the course material for future participants. Our ship's time remains in the Pacific Time Zone, but we've travelled so far west and south that dawn isn't until around 1000. There we have a detailed list of tasks to tidy and prep the boat, aiming to get Craig all set up to remain at anchor until his crew for the return voyage move aboard. The delivery crew will depart the ship at the fuel dock and make preparations to fly home.Iain