Pamina38 Weblog

Seeing a display of nature for the time can often be unforgettable experience. However, seeing a p henomenon  when you have no idea what you are witnessing is unnerving. Describing it, having no parallels, is confounding . A few days into our Indian Ocean crossing, we saw something extraordinary with 3 nights remaining. The passage had been terrific. We were making up for a late start from Opua in early July, and intended to cross the Indian Ocean before the cyclone season. We sailed to Vanuatu - first Tanna and then on to Port Vila. Leaving Vila on 21st July, we left our destination open, waiting to see what the conditions would bring. The first few days were fairly bumpy, winds on the beam in the 25kt range with awkward swell.  We arrived at the Torres Strait at the Pandora Passage (named after the ship sent to recover the Bounty mutineers, which foundered in the straits) mid-morning on Aug 1st. The 8 hours until dusk were quite easy, as winds were light and we were sailin...

The strange sea phenomenon we saw in the Indian Ocean (see the Journal entry from Aug 2006 “3900nm, 27 days at sea”) has been observed many times. For example, this account in from June 1854 in the same part of the Indian Ocean : June 1854. South of Java . Aboard the American clipper Shooting Star . Captain Kingman reporting: "The whole appearance of the ocean was like a plain covered with snow. There was scarce a cloud in the heavens, yet the sky...appeared as black as if a storm was raging. The scene was one of awful grandeur; the sea having turned to phosphorus, and the heavens being hung in blackness, and the stars going out, seemed to indicate that all nature was preparing for that last grand conflagration which we are taught to believe is to annihilate this material world." and " August 13, 1986 . Northwest Indian Ocean . The entire sea surface took on an intense white glow which was not unlike viewing the negative of a photograph." from http://www.sci...

Two weeks into our passage from Nonsuch Bay , Antigua to the Azores , we had less than 300nm to Flores and about 400nm to the main harbour, Horta. We were relying on weatherfax for short-term forecasting and listening to Herb Hilgenberg, a Canadian weather expert who was routing some near-by boats via SW radio. That evening (Sunday), Herb advised that a low pressure system was expected to form over the Azores by the middle of the week, bringing wind to 45 knots from the North West . A day earlier this had been forecast to bring wind in the 25kt range – quite an increase. With strong winds forecast, we ruled out heading to Flores as the habour is small, and would be upwind in a gale. The winds would also be gale force around the time we got to Horta. Not liking the changing forecast for a system due to form in only 2 days time, we reluctantly diverted to the NW, to wait for the low-pressure to form and then move east. Still wondering if we had done the right thing, we tun...

When we left St Helena in early March, we had several options for our destination: - Ascension Island about 700nm - Forteleza , Brazil about 2000nm - Fernando de Noronha , Brazil , about 1700nm - Tobago about 3,500nm. Ascension was ruled-out after a few days’ sailing as we were only getting into the passage at this stage and it seemed easier to keep going. We began to have some problems with the SSB around this time, which meant poor contact with Petrel and La Familia who were doing the same passage. Winds were light, but consistent, and we were making fairly good progress towards the equator. We hit the doldrums around 2S, 34W. Light winds, one large thunderstorm during the day followed by electrical storms at night. Listening to Herb on Southbound 2, we heard that the ITCZ (aka the doldrums) extended to about 4 N. Not having enough diesel to get to 4 N, we spent a few days sailing due North in light winds changing from twin sails to...

We arrived in St Helena early on 24 th Feb. St Helena rises, as Darwin promised, like a fortress from the sea. The first view of the tall volcanic cliffs and sparse vegetation hides a lush interior of rolling hills. The interior is dotted with pretty cottages and the occasional Georgian house with cows grazing in green pastures – not unlike rural England . Interestingly, this similarity extends beyond the landscape to the building style, culture and people. Politically, St Helena is a British Protectorate and its inhabitants enjoy full British Citizenship. Most islanders we spoke to had lived and worked in Britain for many years and many still had children working overseas (including in the Falklands Islands and Ascension Island ). Architecturally, Jamestown, the only town on the island, with its with many brightly painted buildings, beautifully kept public garden and old parish church is considered one of the best preserved Georgian towns. In terms of...

South Africa cannot be described as a cruising destination. There is plenty to see and do on-shore, but the objective of most boats is to get around Cape Aghulas without getting caught in a strong south westerly. The route from Richards Bay is via Durban , East London , Port Elisabeth and Mosselbaai. Of these it would be possible to leave a boat for a long stay in Richards Bay , Durban or Port Elisabeth. However, for whatever reason, the marinas are not always well organised and generally don’t take bookings. Richards Bay The options for cruising boats are - the public quay in the small craft harbour, - - the Tuzi Gazi marina in the small craft harbour and - Zululand yacht club which is the most pleasant place to leave a boat. Durban A well organised, secure, protected marina. Water but no electricity. They don’t take bookings, but the staff are helpful. There are two yacht clubs – the Point YC and the Royal Natal YC who give free membership to visitors ...