Daily Logs

Jus'Do It 3 - missing log from Nuka Hiva!!!

v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) }   From: Ian Darby [mailto:jusdoit3@zap-email.com]Sent: 04 April 2008 18:22 To: 'Log' Subject: NUKA HIVA Tuesday 1.04.2008Having left Ua Pou (yesterday) at 11ish, we set the sails on a straight course for TaiohaeBay on Nuka Hiva, the most populated island of the Marquesas. There’s 16 knots of wind and we average 7-8 knots on a close fetch. There are lots of birds feeding and fish jumping – it’s a thoroughly enjoyable sail and we arrive in the bay at around 4pm. There are around 50 boats in this large, protected bay - a comfortable anchorage with no swell. As it’s another. read more...

Graptolite - A Niue Experience

19:03.29S 169:55.54 Tuesday 3rd June on a mooring buoy off Alofi, Niue, Pacific OceanIt is hard to describe the confusion onboard when the engine stops working; the engine is partly dismantled; the companionway steps are removed; the coastguard and several other yachts are trying to offer assistance over theradio; dangerous land is fast approaching; darkness is falling; the wind is doing funny things and worst of all there is a 20lb yellow fin tuna flapping around on the deck.For the benefit of fellow yotties, the taro root is a potato-like vegetable common in these parts that comes on a long stalk. In an emergency it makes a fine club for dispatching tuna.We are, of course, pretty experienced in bringing the boat into strange locations entirely under sail, in the dark and with major. read more...

Sapphire II - 29 Feb, Day 53, Win Some/Lose Some

The Wins: ---Aisling arrived on time with a ski bag full of spares and stuff. ---She got to see the fauna of the Galapagos (sea lions, pelicans and iguanas) on the ride from the airport to the boat. ---We had an excellent tour of North Seymour island;, the variety of animal and bird life was outstanding. ---The visit to Isabela island was great. We had a good tour on the afternoon we arrived, including giant tortoises in the wild, nesting iguanas, the "Wall of Tears", built futilely by mainland convicts in the 50s, penguins, a sealion pup occupying the cockpit (not the transom) who, when shooed off the boat, jumped into the tender! ---On the following day (is that only yesterday?) we went by horseback up to the rim of the Sierra Negra volcano at 1700 meters. Two hours up and two. back. read more...

Voyageur - Log Day 152 - Together alone

4 September 2010 Yesterday (Friday) was a lovely day. We saw no other vessel save our first Indonesian fishing boat on the horizon. We kept a watchful eye on it but it kept its distance. It was a day when we can enjoy being out on the open sea just for the sake of it. As soon as you see another WARC you are reminded it is a race and invariably we end up being "chased". The pressure is on. The temptation to shake out that reef might be strong, but we try never to do that. The last thing we want to do is put our lovely boat under too much stress and strain not to mention her crew! We must be one of the few boats not to have a sail repair at some point on this journey. Indeed because of that we were unable to get any canvas work done in either Mackay or Darwin. Twice we were measured up and. read more...

Lady Ev.VI - Daily Log, 3. Sept. 2010

Wieder hat uns die Routine des Wachegehens, der "kleinen Mahlzeit zwischendurch" und des Waschens mit Salzwasser aus dem Eimer gefangen. Christos liest zum fuenfundzwanzigstem Male "Das Jahrhundert der Chirurgen", Uli ackert den Peter Scholl-Latour durch und versucht, Partner fuer sein Backgammon-Spiel zu finden, Olli ueberrascht uns jedesmal mit leckeren Kreationen aus der "schraegstehenden" Kombuese und Joerg und Christos versuchen zum x-ten Male, den Text vom Chor der Gefangenen aus Nabucco heraus zu bekommen und, was viel schlimmer ist, auch zu singen! Gerd, der Skipper, versucht, die Bagage der unterschiedlichsten Segler zusammen zu halten.Joerg und Christos haben eine Rolle Angelschnur, einige Koeder und Haken gekauft und sie augenscheinlich richtig zusammen gesetzt: Denn heute. read more...

Ensemble - Day 51 (28 Feb 2012): Santa Cruz - Back on Ensemble after Magali meets penguin

Greetings from yacht Ensemble!We are now back on board Ensemble after 4 days touring the Galapagos on the Yate Fragata, a 12 room motor cruiser. We visited Santiago, Fernandina, and Isabela, before returning to Santa Cruz.On the trip with us were Dave, Claire and Ben (Peats Smoke), Carlo and Andre (Beatoo), and Casey (Wind Dancer) - as well as a group of non World ARCs - Jos and Fabiene as from Belgium/Netherlands, a French couple, Peter from UK, and Alice and Linda (from Australia and UK)... and our guide Ivan.The trip was a great complement to the places we had visited with Ensemble - the tour boat was able to go places we could not, and the guide was a wealth of knowledge - his favourite catch phrase being "... it is incredible...!"We managed to see: penguins, sea lions, fur seals,. read more...

A Lady - Sailing around the World (Presently at sea, Darwin/Bali)

Friday, 3rd September 2010 01.00hrs  Distance traveled..................................230 n miles               Wind                ....................................4 knots               Sea                  ....................................flat               The skies were clear and starry, but we could see lightning away in the distance to the NW. Did you know that Darwin has the 2nd. read more...

Glamorous Galah - Bahia post office

We have enjoyed the islands of Floreana and Isabella. A visit to post office bay was a highlight. I managed to pop a letter for home in the barrel which dates back to the seventeenth century. Whalers would drop mail off and eventually another ship would pick it up and deliver to the next port. It still works to this day. (photo) We have seen penguins and even saw three pink flamingos in flight while we were surfing yesterday. The surf has been pretty good although Isabella does not have the quality of Cristobal or Floreana.We are looking forward to seeing Santa Cruz island before provisioning for the next leg which starts in a week.Ted . read more...

Voyageur - Log day 151 - Out into the Timor Sea

2 September 2010Our final day in Darwin was the usual whirlwind of last minute shopping, stowing and socialising! After a skippers briefing we spent the rest of the evening with Olga and Srecko, treating us to a marvellous meal in a new Turkish restaurant, Alaturk, really the best food we have had during our stay in Australia. We raised our glasses in Nasdravias and Slaintes but not for the last time. We intend to introduce them to the delights of sailing in Scotland sometime in the future. The lock out went like clockwork, each yacht being given an allocated slot lasting 15minutes. It had to be completed by 10.15am before the water level dropped too low. We had had a quick coffee with Olga and Srecko and bade final tearful farewells on the pontoon. Once outside we were lucky enough to. read more...

Samsara - Volcano by horseback

Feb 25Yesterday we visited 2 volcanos - Sierra Negra Volcano and Chico Volcano. A group of 13 sailors from various boats went. The trip involved a taxi ride partway up and horseback ride for about an hour up the partially washed out trails - it's the rainy seasonhere and there were many puddles. The horses were smallish (Lee got a mule to ride - fitting huh?) and not so well behaved - they had a pecking order and if your horse decided to pass another that didn't want it to pass they took off at a trot or canter and when they all got bunched up together some would kick and bite at each other (the horses - not the sailors - we're usually better behaved than that). At the top of Volcano Negra we got to see the huge (8-10km across) crater - the last eruption there was in 2005 - so still an. read more...

Serendipity - Galapagos Offerings

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Crazy Horse - Sept 3

We just successfully arrived in our berth at Tipperary Marina in Darwin,Australia. Because of the high tides they have in this part of Australia wehad to come through a lock to get into the marina. It was like going througha mini Panama Canal. We tied up to the lock and the door closed behind usjust like in Panama. The water rushed in and then we were brought up to thelevel in the marina. This is the way that they deal with the high tides herein Darwin. The high tides range anywhere from 12 to 20 feet . That rivalsthe tides in the Boston area. We are not used to this coming from Maryland.The tides in Maryland are more like one and a half feet.Last night Matt, Jean , and I went to the Mindl Beach Market. They had food,arts and crafts, and an interesting group of people in the crowd.. read more...

Lady Kay - oh no not another tuna

We're just under 100 miles from Nuie.We are motoring across a limpid sea towards our destination.There is 6 knots of wind at the moment, if that coming from any direction.The sky is greying now with high clouds and it is very sticky.We avoided any thunderstorms last night although we could see lots of lighting, floodlighting the moonless sky.We caught yet another tuna today, about 20 pounds So it's tuna steaks tonight with some sushi.HoorayMichael, Jackie and Robtuna2. read more...

A Lady - Sailing around the World (Presently at sea, Darwin to Bali)

Thursday, 2nd September 2010 01.00hrs Another beautiful night at sea. Distance travelled...................................  88n milesWind ....................................................  14  /  16 knots  ENESea.......................................................  Moderate We rolled out the sails and shut down the engine as the wind was getting stronger, and we need to reserve fuel. A  full tank of desiel would take us about 700 miles, and the total distance here is approx 930miles as the crow flies. One big tanker passed us during the night, and we had plenty of lightning too, but, it was away in the distance. T.G. It was humid, so humid around these parts, that wiping the bottom would bring out pesperation on the. read more...

Sapphire II - Feb 23, Day 47, Equatorial Pace?

We are on the Equator, so it's hot and humid. It rains every day too. Of course, it's the rainy season, so what can you expect! We've been in the Galapagos some 10 days now and after the first flurry of going on tours we have slowed down to island pace. One day slides into another; T shirts get saturated in perspiration and then it's evening and the decision of " Where will we eat tonight ? ". The restaurants (7 or 8 ) are surprisingly good and, importantly, all offer fairly effective WiFi. This contrasts favorably with Cristobal, where a couple of bars said they offered WiFi, but when you came to use it, there was some reason why it was " problemo ".I went to the airport today. It's on Baltra island, to the north of Santa Cruz. To get there you cross the island from south to north, then. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 150 - Train Travel

31 August 2010Now we travel overland taking a railway journey on the great Ghan train from Darwin to Alice Springs, right in the heart of the country, a journey of 1350km. This famous railroad, finally completed in 2004 having taken 140 years in its construction, gets its name from the Afghan camel trains, once the most effective means of transport. Our train had 28 carriages, carrying 270 passengers. It was the most wonderful relaxing way to travel and has whetted our appetite to undertake more train journeys in the future. Leaving the station on the outskirts of Darwin, we crossed the beautiful expanse of the Elizabeth River, the city skyline hazy in the early morning sun. Like Cairns, Darwin has seen huge expansion in the last four years. We settled into our comfortable leather cabin. read more...

Wind Dancer - LOG 12: Rawhide

Our third Island in the Galapagos Archipelago visited was Isla Isabella, a beautiful one with at least six volcanoes.  We opted to go for a tour of a couple of the lava mounds and were able to find a package that offered horses as the means of transportation. The Magnificent Seven, as we called ourselves, included Serendipity and Ensemble crew members to summit the crater.  Perhaps over romanticized, the ride included steep grades and narrow muddy trails, a bit of rain and not to mention surly and unruly steeds.  The volcano itself was very impressive.  Because there had been a bit of rain, we were able to watch steam rise from the cracks, allowing us to see that this volcano was by no means dormant.  We dismounted at the top and took a quick walk. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - a catch!

Friday 30th MayUneventful watches throughout the night – the wind has swung round to the S/SW as forecasted (it’s quite overcast) and we expect it to swing more to the SE as the day goes on. At 10.30am Tallulah Ruby radio to tell us they’ve just hooked a huge dorado – unfortunately they don’t manage to land it. At 11.30 am we hook a dorado – it’s a team effort but with top fisherman Stewy playing the line, top gaffer Ian belted onto the transom gaff in hand, able fisherman Brian and Annie passing up the vodka scoosher, it’s soon aboard. Success at last – it’s a metre long, and it’s thanks again to those Skippy and Dotty wedding present lures! Stewy fillets and skins, and it’s bagged and in the freezer in no time.. read more...

Lady Ev.VI - Daily log, 02. Sept. 2010

"Die schoenen Tage von Aranjuez sind nun vorueber...", so beginnt "DON CARLOS" und so fuehlen wir uns auf der Lady Ev, weil die schoenen Tage vor der Australischen Kueste, im Great Barriere-Riff und an der Nordkueste Australiens vorueber sind.Jetzt haben wir Australien verlassen und befinden uns auf dem Wege zu einem ebenso begehrenswerten Eiland, Bali, von dem so viele begeistert berichten. Was haben wir nicht alles in Australien erlebt: Krokodilfarm, Verlust unseres Ankers mit 50 m Kette vor Thursday-Island. Ausfall unseres Außenborders in der starken Stroemung vor der Horn-Insel und die Verzweiflung und die atemlose Anstrengung von Uli und Joerg, doch noch mit den verbliebenen Paddeln das ankernde Schiff zu erreichen, die genau in Nord-Suedrichtung ausgerichteten Termitenhuegel, die. read more...

Wind Dancer - LOG 11: Thanks Charles Darwin

It is hard to know where to begin, with every day exceding the next here in the Galapagos. We arrived into Isla San Christobal and straight off the bat went for a snorkel day trip. Destination One on the tour brought us over to Five Finger Rock where we had a glimpse at out first Blue Footed Boobys.The next stop was over to a shallow snorkel that provided a black fin reef shark as soon as we hit the water, as well as acrobatic sea lions (not seals as these ones have external ears) camouflaged rays and lethargic sea turtles. We cannot complain as all this was in front of us in a matter of fifteen minutes.The next spot was Kicker Rock, a massive rock outcrop jutting to great heights out of the Pacific. We attempted a snorkel through the cut, but poor visibility and strong current cut that. read more...

Crazy Horse - Sept 1

Well, Crazy Horse and Ocean Jasper made it to Darwin and are anchored inFanny Bay. We arrived  at 5pm Darwin time and yes, in time for Sundowners. Captains and crews were all equally proud and excited about our venture over the top of Oz and making the 1100 miles safely from Lizard Island. The navigation was tricky at times and weather give us a challenge at times. We heralded our successful captains! Of course we all had to process the trip at length over Sundowners and later dinner. We had our water treatment at 9am this day (Sept 2) and must stay here in Fanny Bay until tomorrow before proceeding into a marina called Tipperary Waters Marina.Matt, Bob, and Maggie just went ashore to scout out the Sailing Club nearby and bring back us back information about the area and resources.. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - a bouncy night!

st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) } Wednesday 28th MayIt’s a grey overcast day – and it’s a bit chilly! We get the laundry picked up as arranged , Ian and Stewy go off to organise the duty free booze dropping Annie at the supermarket on the way. We do a big shop.get it all aboard and stowed. Stewy has  a frustrating morning with his computer – Skype delight – not! Brian is off hiking again,having agreed to take Petra from Viva on the cross country walk.. We lunch aboard, then have a look at the charts and weather – we’re thinking of going to Palmerston Atoll. It only extends our journey to Nuie by 56 miles so, if the conditions are right we’ll go there. When the laundry man returns Ian gets chatting to him – he’s a 70. read more...

Ensemble - Day 47 (Friday 24 Feb 2012): Surf's up

Greetings from yacht Ensemble!The headland next to the Iguana hotel boasts lots of interesting wildlife - including these marine iguanas who seem to have realised that it is better to surf than to swim. What would Darwin say - survival of the fittest? And who says evolution is dead!Yesterday we had a nervous trip from Isabella to Santa Cruz. Nervous not because of the weather (there was no wind) - not because of the waves (the sea was flat as a tack) - but because we had very little fuel, the distance travelled was over 50nm, the current of nearly 2 knots was on our nose, and the wind (when there was any) was in our face.We made it in on fumes, just on sunset, having put a couple of hours sailing in a slow speed for a marginal gain in distance. What a relief!We went into the Rock for a. read more...

Ensemble - Day 45 (23 Feb 2012): The Magnificent 7 meet the Volcano

Greetings from yacht Ensemble!Yesterday it was an early start for the planned trip to the volcano. Magali decided to take a 'boat day' to do internet and household chores (and was a bit nervous about the climb and the horses anyway). So Mike and Carsen (Wind Dancer) and David, Peter, Bob and Linda (Serendipity) and myself all waited in anticipation for the morning water taxi at 7:15am, for our 7:30 meeting at the tourist shop. In the end the water taxi was late - so David ran Mike, Carsen and I in to 'hold the fort' until the water taxi arrived. It did eventually - but then took the others to the far dinghy dock - and they needed to catch another taxi to get to the shop. 8am and we were safely away, in two dual cabs for a 30 minute drive to the start of the volcano.There were other. read more...

A Lady - Sailing around the World ( Presently about to depart Darwin for Bali.)

WEDNESDAY  1st   SEPTEMBER    2010. Its hard to believe that its September already, but today we are leaving Darwin and sailing 990 n miles to Bali inIndonesia, so as usual there is plenty of excitment. We checked our emails, had some tea, freshened up before Neill winched the skipper up the mast to change the Tricolour bulb. We are replacing the LED bulb with a 25 / 50 w  bulb as the one installed in Mackay was only 12w and definatly not bright enough. Especially when we had passing Ships Captains giving out about it. We then topped up the water tank , secured the rib and put on the cover, disconected the shore power, and we were almost ready to roll.  08.45hrs,  We manovered ouselves out of the berth and made our way. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - farewell to Rarotonga!

Thursday 29th MayWe wake up to a much better day, the sky is blue and the wind is blowing from the SW at a good angle for Palmerston. Ian and Paul go to see the harbourmaster who gives advice on the Palmerston anchorages and a print out of his 3 day forecast – this shows the wind swinging to the SE – ideal for Palmerston. The decision is made to leave at lunchtime today. Right away the Marsters family appears from nowhere asking if we can take out a few boxes to be delivered to their family. Four adults and a baby appear with 14 boxes, 3 suitcases, sacks of cabbages, fruit , vegetables and a huge branch of bananas . We split the cargo between ourselves and Tallulah Ruby – we’ve now got to make sure we get there! The family are extremely grateful and assure us we. read more...

Cleone - CLEONE Leg 8 Day 3 - No Wind, no Gas

Lumpy seas with a counter-current andno wind to drive us through it, capped by no gas!   The unsettled weather continues.  Last night the threat of squalls wasever present, and we could see lightning to the south of us, both to east andwest.  As ever, Harmonie was there to advise - she picked out the worst ofthe squalls on her radar, and was able to direct us around it.  And so weavoided the rain, but motor-sailing was very uncomfortable.  Theconfused sea, with swells coming in from at least two directions, gavesteep waves of eight feet or so, and worse has been a persistentcounter-current (it should have been helping us at half a knot or so) that hasbeen driving against us at one-and-a-half to two knots. Progress has been slow,and we are. read more...

A Lady - Sailing around the World ( Presently in Darwin , Australia )

TUESDAY  31st   AUGUST   2010 A slow start today, the weather was clear and hot. We all walked to the Yacht Club to get our Customs Clearance as we are leaving Darwin for Bali tomorrow. The crew for this leg are :-    Stephen Hyde    ( Skipper )                                          Aileen Hyde     . read more...

Anastasia - Isabella

0:57.8S 90:57.7WOn Tuesday we sailed from Floreana to Isabella.  We did actually manage to sail most of the way, which was a refreshing change, even if it did take most of the day to cover the 40 miles.  We didn't see any sea lions as we sailed into the bay and so we were lazy and did not erect the usual network of chairs and ropes.  Obviously that meant that a sea lion took up residence as soon as it got dark.  It was a tenacious little beast and I had to shoo it off using a chair to avoid getting bitten.  Isabella has a very sheltered anchorage in a lagoon surrounded by reefs.  Here is a shot of a neighboring yacht, as the sun sinks over the western end of Isabella. 104. read more...

Anastasia - Floreana

1:14.5S 90:32.0W  On Monday we sailed to Floreana.  Floreana is a small island whose main claim to fame is a postbox in which ancient mariners used to post letters for other mariners to collect.   We just anchored there overnight on our way to Isabella, just offshore of this Eco-lodge which apparently is the best hotel on the island.We put up our sealion defenses (chairs and rope) and were not boarded during the night, although Bertie and Estella were kept awake by two fighting over the bottom step on their hull 103. read more...

A Lady - Sailing around the World (Presently in Darwin, Australia)

MONDAY    30th  AUGUST  2010 Litchfield National Park................. All this land as We said before is owned by the Aboriginal tribes,  Lictchfield nat. Pk. is a joint venture between the Aboriginals  and the Government of of the Northern Territories.and It is much smaller than Kakadu and much more accessable for one day tours from the city of Darwin. so they have approx 300,000 visitors a year,  most of these during the dry season.  ( april  /  Oct.) We had an early breckfast and off again in the blinking 4X4. This time we went to the " Florance Falls," which were magnificant. From there we travelled to Wangi Falls, once the 4X4 stopped , we all got into our togs and went swimming in really nice clear cool. read more...

Lady - Passage to Tortola - Day 3

Sunday November 12th to Monday November 13th, 2011 At Sea. Another uneventful day with very little wind, and what little there is is mostly from the south-east - exactly the course to our destination.We have been motoring quite a lot, with the engine at about 1800 rpm, enough to keep Lady moving, and if we motor-sail in the 5-8 knot winds, sometimes we can move at 5 knots.Normally, it's rare for us to motor so slowly, but we need to do this in order to conserve the fuel.   The big project yesterday for Charlie and Steve was to get fuel from three of the five-gallon jerry cans on the deck into Lady's tanks. Steve put on life-jacket and tether and went forward to untie the cans and moved them one by one back to the cockpit. Charlie had a special clear plastic short (about two feet). read more...

Kasuje - Kasuje ,Log Wednesday 4th June.

Hi from skipperSteve, Firstly apologies for our inconsistency in postinglogs, but after many frustrating hours I have at last mastered this Vistasoftware and we are back on line sending and receiving mails. I am unsurewhether you have been writing to us as most of the emails appear to have beenlost in the ether, (perhaps there is someone out there in Wagabubo landwho is having great fun reading them as few have come through tous) so it would be great to hear fromyou!   We have just left Tonga ,Vava'u for the passage toFiji. a distance of just under 500 nm and we anticipate arrival over theweekend.Tonga was not for me as expected, it ismuch poorer than Polynesia their culture being quite different and possibly akinto our rural life maybe 100 years ago. The island. read more...

A Lady - Sailing around the World (Presently in Darwin)

  Sunday, 29th August 2010 Kakadu National Park Skipper and Aileen have an early day again. Today, we are off to "Nourlangie Rock"  followed by a visit to "Katherines Gorge" 08.00hrs We said goodbye to the crocodile Hotel and off with us in the 4X4.   Nourlangie Rock is an amazing place, again like yesterday, it is full of Aboriginal Art work on the rocks and cliffs. Much of the film Crockodile Dundee was shot in this area, needless to mention, tourism mushroomed for the next few years as a result of the film. The weather was very hot, but not as humid as it has been since we arrived. We had a good cooling breeze on top of the Rock and the views were fantastic as far as the eye could see, out over the mostly green flood. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - FW: Darby Q on the Quay

v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) } Darby Q on the Quay Tuesday 27. 5, 2008It’s a blue sky, bright sunshine, a little breeze. Annie gets up early and goes for a run (/ walk! ) round the village before defrosting the fridge and freezer. Ian and Stewy fiddle faddle with jobs, wash the decks and fill the water tanks. We’ve organised a dock BBQ to use up our steaks and burgers. The Barton family arrive and we invite them to stay for the BBQ. We set up camp on the dock and get the BBQ going where we’re soon joined by Andante of Mersey, Tallulah Ruby, Strega, Into the Blue, and Graptolite. The Harbour Café kindly lend us their picnic. read more...

Sapphire II - Feb 21, Day 45, Galapagos Tours

We came directly to Santa Cruz island from San Cristobal because it has the international airport and we have crew changes to make. Most of the other World ARC boats have gone around the islands clockwise, visiting Floreana and Isabella islands en route and so have not shown up here yet.However, Santa Cruz is the population center of the Galapagos and has the best infrastructure for provisions, for restaurants (surprisingly good) and for booking tours. We have taken day trips (leave at 7am, back at 5pm) to South Plaza (sea-lions, many large land iguanas, marine iguanas which are smaller, blue-footed boobies which are peculiar to the islands (Photo Blue Footed Booby) and a variety of other birds). We went to Santa Fe, primarily for snorkeling in a protected bay with waters of blues and. read more...

Samsara - Off To Isabela

Feb 22We spent last night in an anchorage at Floreana - it's a very sparsely populated island. We didn't even go ashore - just swam around this morning and took off (motoring as there is no wind) for the next island - there should be a lot of good activities there. We have seen a number of sea turtles and rays jumping (essentially doing flips in the air) - that's not something we've seen before.We're trying to knock out a few math lessons while motoring so we can spend our days exploring. Motoring in calm seas also allows me to do a load of laundry while the watermaker is topping off the tanks and the motor is topping off the batteries..... I'll hang it out to dry when we anchor.Off to finish lessons and fix lunch! Pauline. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - Darby Q on the quay

The message is ready to be sent with the following file or link attachments:Cook Islands 032Note: To protect against computer viruses, e-mail programs may prevent sending or receiving certain types of file attachments.Check your e-mail security settings to determine how attachments are handled.Cook Islands 032. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 149 - Stopping the Stowaways!

26 August 2010There was little in the way of a lie in. We had to be up early for the treatment of the hull. In 1999 an infestation known as black striped mussel was found in Darwin marinas. In addition, the Asian green mussel was found in the port of Cairns in 2001. Being serious marine pests having the potential to cause economic and environmental damage, the Darwin authorities allow no one into their marinas until these unwanted stowaways are dealt with. It was a very pleasant surprise for us that the system has changed from four years ago. Then the officials had to come aboard, inlet pipes had to be disconnected for the solution to be pumped through. Since then a very enterprising young lady came up with the alternative of doing the treatment from the outside. All it required was for. read more...

Ariane - Darwin, Australien

Darwin, AustralienLiebe SegelfreundeEeeeeendlich Krokis! Das hat ja gedauert... Im Fluss Adelaide leben angeblich 1700 solcher Echsen. Wir sind mit einem Schiff auf den Fluss gefahren und siehe da: Die Krokis kennen diese Schiffe bereits sehr gut und schwimmen auf sie zu. An einer Art Angelschnur werden dann Cotelettes angeboten. Damit es die Krokis nicht allzu leicht haben, wird der Köter etwas angehoben. Die Krokis müssen so ziemlich hochspringen, um den Happen zu erwischen. Nur mit dem Schwanz treiben sie sich an. Wenn man an das Gewicht von bis zu 700 kg denkt, eine bewundernswürdige Leistung. Natürlich hat das wie eine Zikusnummer gewirkt. Aber dennoch: eindrücklich sind diese Tiere schon. Übrigens machen sie einen sehr friedlichen Eindruck, nichts von Aggressivität ist spürbar. Ich. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - songs of praise for the Cooks!

st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) } Sunday 25.5.2008After a heavy downpour at dawn, we rise to bright blue skies and a fresh breeze. Straight into the car in search of a church service – we soon find one in an old, coral built church. Brian and Annie go in while the heathens of the crew go for breakfast. The service is a feast for the eyes and the ears  - it’s a full congregation of all ages, and all the women are wearing their traditional woven hats decorated with flowers. The unaccompanied hymn singing is exactly what we were looking for - harmonic, soulful and very moving. The minister welcomes the overseas visitors and when we come out we’re invited into the neighbouring hall for tea, triangle egg sandwiches and home-baking, including a fantastic pineapple. read more...

Ensemble - Day 44 (22 Feb 2012): Penguins, Boobys and Flamingoes

Greetings from yacht Ensemble!Yesterday we decided to use the internet cafe to catch up with emails and see what is going on in the rest of the world.I soon tired of this and went for a walk around the town and was rewarded by - Flamingoes. In the middle of the town they have a couple of shallow lakes where the flamingoes like to hang out.The town itself has a good feel - better supermarkets than we've seen elsewhere in the Galapagos (still limited) - and plenty of bars and restaurants. In hindsight we may have been better spending more time here.We went back into town in the afternoon (to pay for today's horseback ride to the volcano - no ATM's in town) - and on the way stopped by the penguin rookery (100m from our anchor).The town's roads had all flooded with the afternoon's downpour -. read more...

Samsara - Preparing to leave San Cristobal - and surfing sea lions

Feb 20We have spent the last few days exploring San Cristobal - tomorrow we head to another island.We were watching the sea lions yesterday and saw something really amazing - all the little ones were playing and jumping and they body surf in the waves - we never knew that sea lions body surfed! They like to play with items in the water - a stick, a stray shoe....they toss it about and carry it with them while swimming. They are really adorable - but stinky in large numbers! Lee can sometimes tell if one gets on our swim platform as they do stink.Today we went to the tortoise breeding center, they collect and hatch the eggs then nurture them for a number of years until they are ready to be reintroduced to the wild, usually at about 5 years old. We saw some up to almost 20 years old. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - Island night - rarotonga

The message is ready to be sent with the following file or link attachments:Cook Islands 046Note: To protect against computer viruses, e-mail programs may prevent sending or receiving certain types of file attachments.Check your e-mail security settings to determine how attachments are handled.Cook Islands 046. read more...

Crazy Horse - Aug 31

The last couple of days were a bit much with the wind and waves. It was blowing 25-30 true w. the waves were short , choppy and seas confused. We were glad last evening when the weather broke and the wind died to about 15 true. The waves took a bit longer to calm but we had a break for sure. In all the wind, waves and bumping around the lightening arrester at the top of the mast worked lose and was hanging on by one wire. It was banging into the mast and hitting all the stays and lines in proximity. We tried getting he topping lift to wrap around the arrester and jerk it off. Of course the wire stayed firm. So when the winds died a bit and the waves calmed a bit we sent Matt up the mast to cut it away. You ask what kind of parents send their beloved son up the mast in such weather?Well,. read more...

Lady Kay - bird island on suvarrow

We took a trip with John and his family to Bird Island on Suvarrow.It is one of the islands that comprise the atoll.The birds simply nest on the ground littering the ground with their eggs.The trip was a long dinghy ride of two or three miles.We are just under two days from Niue and are looking forward to it.Today the skies have been cloudy all day with quite a lumpy sea.We are making good progress though with decent wind strength.Last night we got soaked a couple of times in two squalls but no bad thunderstorms.Michael, Rob and Jackiebirds. read more...

A Lady - Sailing around the World (Presently in Darwin, Australia)

Saturday, 28th August 2010  06.30hrs Aileen and Stephen set off in a pre arranged taxi to town on their way to a 3 day tour of Kakadu National Park, Katherines Gorge, and Litchfield National park.    The tour was in a 4X4 Toyota land cruiser and our guide for the 3 days was Max, an australian guy. There were 4 others in the jeep besides ourselves, 2 OBE's (as they referred to themselves, and means "over bloody eighty") two ladies from Melbourne, and a mother and daughter from Rome. One of the OBE's was Fay Daniels who's forefathers came from Ireland and her brother in law wife was a Kathleen O'Flaherty from Tralee and was one of the original "Rose of Tralee" girls. Small world... The day was beautiful yet again, but less humidity than in the. read more...

Samsara - Exploring San Cristobal

Feb 17We spent the day exploring San Cristobal - we went to the Interpretation Center which gives the history of the Galapagos Islands - it's a pretty fascinating history. Then we walked among the paths and saw the amazing volcanic rocks, cactus, birds....to the beach with the marine iguanas, red and black crabs everywhere, and of course sea lions. The sea lions can be really cute but they are stinky and they like to climb on the boats. We had 2 last night that climbed on several times - we'd go out and chase them off and they would come back. Luckily they didn't climb into our cockpit because they can make a heck of a mess if they do.Tomorrow is a full day of snorkeling so hopefully we will get to see a variety of fish/sharks.......We're not having great internet connections so I can't. read more...

Cleone - CLEONE Leg 8 Day 2 - The North Sea with a Difference

This lumpy sea, grey skies and gustingwind reminds me of the North Sea.   The difference is that I am wearing shorts and a life jacket, and whatlittle water that comes over the side is pleasantly warm!  But the seas areshort and steep, there are thunderstorms about and we are keeping a careful eyeopen for squalls, which look set to accompany us all the way toNiue (unless Commanders' Weather has managed to arrange something differentfor us - I hope to get another forecast from them when I send this off toyou).  Last night we put two reefs in the main, even though there was verylittle wind to speak of and we were motor-sailing.  We needed to keepCleone powered up so she can make a reasonable passage (else we shall miss thecut-off time) and force her way up and down. read more...

Crazy Horse - Aug 30

I still seem to be confused about the time. It seems that we are ahead of the UTC time and it keeps telling us the wrong current time. There are so many time changes along the way. No wonder we are confused. We are living in a world with feet in too many time zones. I feel like the "time traveler".This is a long trip to the other side of Oz. It is quite bouncy but with lots of wind. We were going at times last night at 12 kts.with a 90deg. windangle. Now that's really fast for a sailboat. We had a hard wave that knocked everything off the port side of the boat that wasn't tied down with glue. It convinced Matt to put on his lifejacket and hook on even while sitting in the cockpit. He realized if he would have been looking over the rail he would have been a goner.Yesterday Matt and I were. read more...

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