More pics of the Big Island and Hilo

Representing King's College (which I didn't attend) and some old coconut milk stains on my shirt.  

South Point, Hawaii

Dead fish clothing

This sequence represents the state of my current fitness.  

This sequence is a mess.

6.0 on the landing.

Green Sand Beach

Dan.... semi-impressed

Crazy crowd

Lava pile

There used to be settlements and towns near the shore....

Hair-whisps

Sylvie muckin about on a lava pile

Fresh lava

We could pretty much touch this rainbow. 

Waipio Valley

Videos of Tradewind Sailing in the South Pacific

Wing on wing from Galapagos to the Marquesas

Huahine and Tahaa

These aren't ripe but I'm clearly intrigued. 

Setting up a faulty chicken trap at Crab Bay. 

This is what you find at crab bay.  Catching these guys is a lot of fun, all you need is a bright flashlight and an oven mitt. 

We went to Crab Bay 3 times.  

Kids playing with massive blue eyed eels.  You show up with a can of mackerel and the kids put on a show.  One girl called us her 'clients' even though no one pays her.  She asked Sylvie if she had any 'heart friends', Sylvie asked her if she had any 'heart enemies', she had plenty, she claimed.

This kid just hung out at the eel place rambling in baby talk.  

Southern tip of Huahine.

Sylvie hiking.  Yes, hello Sylvie.

We found avocado trees up here.

Moose burial ground.

Beach strolling in Huahine.

The Saltbreaker brothers (Alex and Nick) at anchor in Tahaa.  They do very few things without welding goggles.  On this particular night we are supplying the beer as Saltbreaker helped us get off the reef earlier that day.  Early the next morning a metal piece on our mooring line would break and Ustupu was set adrift.  Alex happened to be up at 6AM and waved as we drifted by. 

Sylvie telling me what things she sees in the clouds.  An endless conversation.  

Wild birds.  

Bora Bora

Bora Bora was a special place for us.  This was as far west as we made it on the trip, in fact we turned around here and sailed back to Tahiti, directly into the wind.

We spent weeks here doing little.  I think it was the climax of the trip.

Our arrival to the beautiful island of Bora Bora.  We anchored in 85 feet which is insanely deep for us.  It took us a long time to pull up the 200 feet of chain. 

Our favorite anchorage, maybe of all time. 

These little guys were sold to us for a few bucks and some cigarettes we have for trading.  Delicious.

Sylvie, checking on the anchor or something?

This guy was actually drafting us, at like 4 miles/hour.  Lazy.

Bora Bora as seen from the Coral Gardens of Tahaa.

Hilo, Hawaii

In case you were curious, yes, we made it to Hawaii without sinking the boat.  Pat on the back for Dan and Sylvie.

After the squalls and rain subsided we had a beautiful sail the rest of the way to the big island until 50 miles out when the wind died, again.  This time there was no patient waiting and we motored right to the anchorage.   After we dropped the hook we wanted to play by the book so as not to upset the American authorities, which means that only the captain is allowed on shore to check into the country.  So I rowed into shore to find customs and some sushi (our craving/obsession for the last week of the passage) while Sylvie sat very patiently on the boat.  I came back without having checked in but with two meat dishes by accident, one of which was mostly spaghetti and spam.... let's just say Sylvie was none too ecstatic to see me and the exotic meals I'd brought her.  The next day when I tried again to check in alone the customs guy tells me Sylvie need to be there for the check-in.  This is after a security guard held me for a half hour between a cruise ship and the customs office.  Anyway, we finally got checked in and sorted out.

Then, two nights later there was a tsunami warning.  We were having a friendly Peruvian couple over for dinner and I could sort of hear the coast guard saying stuff on the vhf radio but I was trying to impress our guests with our wide selection of Latin music so I just turned up the Enrique or Pedro Infante or whatever I'd cleverly lined up on the i-pod to drone out the coast guard and apparently the tsunami warning siren that was blaring outside.  Eventually we figured it out, and one hour after the first wave hit we took the boat out of the harbour into open water to wait it out.  Luckily nothing serious came of it and we were back in the bay and anchored by 4am.

There are earth quakes here all the time and the volcano is very active, in fact you can see lava flowing into the ocean not far from Hilo.  And this, is the place we're hoping to settle in.  We've listed the boat for sale and we're planning to buy a cheap lot and build something in the not too distant future.  In the mean while we'll continue to cruise the Hawaiian islands until we get to Honolulu where the sailing portion of our trip will probably end, but who knows.  Like the wind, or a fickle friend, our plans change all the time.

Until next time,

Dan, Sylvie & Ustupu

The proper documentation!

Sylvie says "Peace Out!!!" to Tahiti and Moorea in the background.

Semi-delirious dancing in the rain to Rasputin.  Notice the seizure-like eyes.

Gotta look good for the guys at the spam spaghetti food stand.

Angry volcano. 

                                                   A video!  We have fast internet again.

Dark Days

Imagine this. You have been at sea for 22 days and the last week has been full of constant rain, irregular weak wind coming from all directions, your clothes are wet, your bed is damp and you have to sit outside for 12 hours a day on watch only to see more black clouds on their way. Welcome to Ustupu north of the equator. We have been experiencing really miserable squally weather and when it's so wet and swelly outside, the only options we have are to sit outside in the rain on hard wet fiberglass or lay in bed with wrinkly skin. We have tried to make the best of it, but it has gotten to us and our moods are reflecting the weather: we are grumpy and seemingly depressed for the first time in our lives!

Squalls are generated by the action of unstable air which then displaces large amounts of cold air downward and can result in heavy rain, strong winds and lightening. Luckily for us, the only thing the big grey monsters have been dishing out is rain and the strong wind. Squalls look like massive grey clouds that seem to have an uncanny ability to hit you when you are just starting to dry out.
Luckily for us, the weather seems to be improving and the wind is becoming steady. We are 375 miles way from Hilo and we really hope to arrive Thursday or Friday morning. After a shower, a bento box and a shaky walk on land, these wet miserable days will seem like a distant memory.

After 2 weeks at sea...

So we have been out here for 2 weeks. Time flies and doesn't fly by at the same time. It's a different world out here.

We are experiencing our 3rd day with minimal winds and are drifting at a speed of about 2 miles an hour. That's not very fast. At this rate, we'll have no cookies left by the time we arrive in Hawaii. That would be a real nautical disaster! One good thing about the very mild conditions is that we are catching up on our sleep and the swells are small so the motion of the ocean is pretty relaxing. On the other hand, it is hard to see our extremely slow progress and the lack of wind is turning the boat into an inferno. It is so hot we are constantly throwing buckets of salt water over our heads to cool off.

We have been having the big sailing debate: should we just turn on the engine and motor closer to Hawaii until the wind picks up or should we keep waiting for the wind while slowly drifting aimlessly in the Pacific. So far, we have decided to stick to our guns and wait for the wind. One of the things we have right now is a lot of time and we would much rather arrive in Hawaii having used the power of the wind than the power of dirty stinky diesel. We shall see whether another few days of sweating out socks off will change our minds...

Friday the 12, October, 2012

Day 14:

We have passed the half way point of our passage as well as the equator.  For the equatorial crossing we drank French Champagne and had a 3 course meal (borscht, cheese/salmon/spinach stuffed pasta shells and chocolate mousse) compliments of Sylvie, the chef.  Getting to the half way point in a passage is much like taking a long dump; you have somehow convinced yourself that you're done, but then you realize there's still a long way to go.  Sylvie says this is the most poetic statement I've ever made.

Today I caught a dorado. Catching fish on board is generally the most exciting part of our days.  Here's what happens: we're both lying in the cockpit lazily reading, snoozing, or having some variation of a previous conversation when you hear a loud bzzzzzzz of the fishing reel and look up to see a half bent fishing rod.  I grab the rod and start frantically barking orders to Sylvie "get the gaff, no the net, where did you go? gaff it, gaff it!  And then there's a flapping fish on our deck and Sylvie disappears to avoid the death and blood that ensues.  I bonk it to death over the head and stab it in the brains, gut it and then behead it.  By the time it gets to Sylvie it's just two beautiful fillets of fish.  Sylvie then prepares dishes like fish burgers, fish risotto, fried fish, seafood chowder, cheviche and sometimes sushi.  I love fishing and Sylvie loves eating fish but sometimes we both wish we could skip the in between part.

The wind has died today and it's very hot.  My elbow is itchy and there are some new interesting spots on it, maybe it will rain.

Dan, Sylvie & Ustupu

Get that bag of peanuts!

We are on our way to the Northern Hemisphere! We left Tahiti 3 days ago sporting our baguette spare tires around the mid riff and already remembering French Polynesia as a dream. We are slowly gaining our sea legs, but the going is rough. We have become accustomed to the serene island life and with it, a very slow lazy pace.

The wind has been strong and steady which is great, but the waves- oh the waves! The sea it hitting us from all directions and constantly flooding the cockpit after slapping us in the face. I literally had to dive for a bag of peanuts that was floating away as the sea was exiting. Paprika flavored peanuts- I love those! Luckily, we haven't lost anything yet, and all the peanuts are dry and accounted for.

The good news: we have already gone 300 miles. The other news: we have 2,200 to go.

Random Photos!

Linda and David come for a visit to Costa Rica.
Still sporting the 'stache.

Moorea, French Polynesia

Here's what Moorea's like:

Moorea is about 15 miles east of the Island of Tahiti.  Sailing there is about as easy as sailing gets.  It's all downwind so you just have to throw up a sail and let the boat get pushed there.  Even the lamest of sailors can figure this one out.  So we threw up some sails cracked a beer and before we knew it we were in Moorea.  There are basically two anchoring areas on the island, the first is Cook's Bay where presumably Cap'n Cook left some sort of unsolicited legacy or there is Opunohu Bay.   At Cook Bay you're in slightly murky but deep water and at Opunohu you're in 10 ft of water and it's crystal clear, so we chose Opunohu.  We drop anchor, floaty toys and boom, we're in the water drinking beer and floating behind Ustupu in the lee of Moorea under her towering mountains.

Incidentally the film The Bounty, about Captain Bligh and the mutiny on his vessel the Bounty was filmed in Moorea.  When we watched it a few weeks later it was cool to point out all of the places we recognized.


The next day we went snorkelling with Sting Rays at 'Sting Ray World' or something.  I don't know why they call it Sting Ray World because it was just a bunch of Sting Rays and Sharks in front of a bungalow hotel on the water.  Regardless, it was pretty fantastic, you bring some canned fish and sprinkle it around and on your body and the Sting Rays come and slurp the fish off you.   They rub you and bump you in groups of 3-4.  It felt weird but good.

Hmmm, what should we do next?  We hopped back in the dinghy and went to a motu to snorkel and hang out on the beach.  What is a motu you ask?  Well it's an island that forms on the fringing coral reef that surrounds the main island.  This one was basically uninhabited less a few speedo clad Europeans wading in 2 feet of water.  Dear Europeans, what's with the speedos?  Leave some of the male anatomy to the imagination, please.

On our way back to the boat Sylvie was kayaking and unbeknownst to her a humpback and her calf were splashing around directly in her path.  When the whales surfaced some 20 feet in front of her I saw in her eyes first horror, then shock and finally amazement.  Of the 5 boats following the whales, she had the best seat in the house.  Way to not get swallowed by a whale Sylvie!

To top off the day we jumped in the water, sat in the inflatables and drank cold beer.  Spot the trend??


Here are some of the other things we did in Moorea:

-Hitch hiked around the island in 4 different cars.  It took us the better part of the day but met some really cool locals and wannabe locals.

-Had our own Olympics to make up for the fact that we couldn't catch any of the London games on TV.  The participating nations were Canada and the USA.  Guess who won these summer games??? Not Canada.  The events included kayak time trials, a swim race from one boat to another, the long jump, the coco-put (my idea), and the timed coco nut opening with a machete and chugging.

-Drank cold beer in inflatables nightly behind our boat.

We liked Moorea.

The Sting-Ray, an interpretative dance by Dan Schroeder

Up close and squishy 

Sylvie, play it cool!