Just a quick note.
Madrona has completed the passage through the Torres Strait. The last 36 hours were among the most tense we've ever had on this voyage, and all on board are thrilled to be past that leg of the journey.
So since the Solomon Islands we have sailed the Coral Sea, to the Gulf of Papua New Guinea, and then through the Torres Strait, and now into the Arafua Sea, and ultimately into the Timor Sea, where we will touch at Kupang, our first stop in Indonesia, roughly 11 days from now.
The Captain and the first mate need a couple days of rest before we become school teachers once more.
Owen & Carrie
10 33.289 S
142 06.451 E
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This is the blog for SV Madrona and her crew Griffyn, Tamsyn and their parents Carrie and Owen, as we navigate new waters for our family.
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Friday, July 5, 2013
Made our turn! 4 hours until Prince of Wales Channel
Ma and Pa Kettle here,
We made our turn, and are now sailing on the beam. Ride much better. Last night was like trying to grope ones way along a knife edge ridge when holding only a candle against the complete darkness, while at he same time the ridge is the travel path of very large elephants who may, or may not, deign to step on you. Oh, did I mention the high winds threatening to topple you into the chasm? Suffice to say we were very very tense.
Four hours to the entrance of the Prince of Wales Channel and the remaining twenty miles of the Torres Strait. In this upcoming stretch we were warned yesterday of 9 knot currents. Such currents could easily sweep one into a rock or island, so we must have steerage from either sails or engine; or both.
So in about 3 hours I will check he engine fluid levels, and we'll get ready for the next part of the big show.
Kids up eating wheatbix - Carrie and I too.
Owen
10 20.449 S
142 45.942 E
5.3 knots, 245 degrees true
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We made our turn, and are now sailing on the beam. Ride much better. Last night was like trying to grope ones way along a knife edge ridge when holding only a candle against the complete darkness, while at he same time the ridge is the travel path of very large elephants who may, or may not, deign to step on you. Oh, did I mention the high winds threatening to topple you into the chasm? Suffice to say we were very very tense.
Four hours to the entrance of the Prince of Wales Channel and the remaining twenty miles of the Torres Strait. In this upcoming stretch we were warned yesterday of 9 knot currents. Such currents could easily sweep one into a rock or island, so we must have steerage from either sails or engine; or both.
So in about 3 hours I will check he engine fluid levels, and we'll get ready for the next part of the big show.
Kids up eating wheatbix - Carrie and I too.
Owen
10 20.449 S
142 45.942 E
5.3 knots, 245 degrees true
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Passed Trancred Pass - Holding our course in 30 knots wind and strong current
Hi again,
So we've managed to get back on our line and have held it for many hours, and were able to pass Tancred Pass (our escape hatch from this route) and are proceeding SW, and expect to make our turn into favorable sailing winds in about 20 miles (or 8:30 am local time).
As I write it's 3:57 am local time (17:57 utc)and about half an hour ago we passes the U.S. naval support ship Wally Schirra. They even saw us on radar :-)
So that's the story here. My package of Oreo cookies is finished (aargh) and Carrie is off watch snoozing, and the kids are sleeping fitfully, as you might expect with engine noise and radio chatter.
Owen
10 01.896 S
143 03.103 E
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So we've managed to get back on our line and have held it for many hours, and were able to pass Tancred Pass (our escape hatch from this route) and are proceeding SW, and expect to make our turn into favorable sailing winds in about 20 miles (or 8:30 am local time).
As I write it's 3:57 am local time (17:57 utc)and about half an hour ago we passes the U.S. naval support ship Wally Schirra. They even saw us on radar :-)
So that's the story here. My package of Oreo cookies is finished (aargh) and Carrie is off watch snoozing, and the kids are sleeping fitfully, as you might expect with engine noise and radio chatter.
Owen
10 01.896 S
143 03.103 E
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Great Northeast Channel - very tough going - currents, wind & swell
Hi,
So Madrona is getting a bit of a tough go coming down the Great Northeast Channel. This passage is seriously not for the faint of heart. We sailed fine until we had to turn SW. Then it was fine until the wind came up to 25 knots out of the SE. The westerly moving current, combined with swell and wind made it so we couldn't make out course, and have had to motor for many hours now.
The currents are fierce and the seas are rough. For a while it looked like we were being swept inexorably towards Warrior Reefs.
As it stands right now we still might not make our course (angle of 206 degrees true, so we have developed a back-door alternate plan where we would escape this narrowing channel through Tancred Pass (10 01.183 S, 142 57.595 E), where we would then pass into the waters west of Sassie Island and then proceed SW until we meet up with the main shipping route down by Beresford Shoal. If we do take the alternate route it wouldn't be for something like 7 hours from now as we are moving very slow against tide and current and wind.
Of course we much prefer to make our course. We will let you know what happens.
We also had to replace the starboard sheet (line to the headsail) today because of a very strange fluky thing. The line got caught in the workings of a "block" (a nautical pulley. Anyway the line was shredded. we just happened to look over and saw it caught in the block's workings. So we had to replace that line with some mountaineering maneuvers.
Owen & Carrie & kids
at 13:05 UTC July 6th
9 45.095 S
143 11.921 E
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So Madrona is getting a bit of a tough go coming down the Great Northeast Channel. This passage is seriously not for the faint of heart. We sailed fine until we had to turn SW. Then it was fine until the wind came up to 25 knots out of the SE. The westerly moving current, combined with swell and wind made it so we couldn't make out course, and have had to motor for many hours now.
The currents are fierce and the seas are rough. For a while it looked like we were being swept inexorably towards Warrior Reefs.
As it stands right now we still might not make our course (angle of 206 degrees true, so we have developed a back-door alternate plan where we would escape this narrowing channel through Tancred Pass (10 01.183 S, 142 57.595 E), where we would then pass into the waters west of Sassie Island and then proceed SW until we meet up with the main shipping route down by Beresford Shoal. If we do take the alternate route it wouldn't be for something like 7 hours from now as we are moving very slow against tide and current and wind.
Of course we much prefer to make our course. We will let you know what happens.
We also had to replace the starboard sheet (line to the headsail) today because of a very strange fluky thing. The line got caught in the workings of a "block" (a nautical pulley. Anyway the line was shredded. we just happened to look over and saw it caught in the block's workings. So we had to replace that line with some mountaineering maneuvers.
Owen & Carrie & kids
at 13:05 UTC July 6th
9 45.095 S
143 11.921 E
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Thursday, July 4, 2013
Entered Torres Strait
Hi,
We've entered the Torres Strait about a half hour behind our predicted time. We will turn SW in three miles. Weather is unsettled with rain on and off. Passed, or been passed by, three vessels overnight. The last one was the 500 meter M/V Helene Rickmers - an enormous green container ship. Her Captain agreed to pass the word to oncoming vessels that we are n the straits heading west.
Family is waking up. It's nine in the morning local time and folks are hungry.
So far so good.
9 14.961 S
143 52.973 E
Owen
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We've entered the Torres Strait about a half hour behind our predicted time. We will turn SW in three miles. Weather is unsettled with rain on and off. Passed, or been passed by, three vessels overnight. The last one was the 500 meter M/V Helene Rickmers - an enormous green container ship. Her Captain agreed to pass the word to oncoming vessels that we are n the straits heading west.
Family is waking up. It's nine in the morning local time and folks are hungry.
So far so good.
9 14.961 S
143 52.973 E
Owen
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Eight hours from Bramble Cay - Torres Strait entrance
Just a quick update.
We are about 8 hours from the Bligh Entrance to the Torres Straits. We should be there around sunrise as planned. Winds light. Just passed a ship that just came through and he advised us of 9 knot westerly currents at Hammond Rock. Wow.
9 9.940 S
144 39.313 E
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We are about 8 hours from the Bligh Entrance to the Torres Straits. We should be there around sunrise as planned. Winds light. Just passed a ship that just came through and he advised us of 9 knot westerly currents at Hammond Rock. Wow.
9 9.940 S
144 39.313 E
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Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Out of PNG... and headed for the Torres Strait
Hi,
We've been extremely busy in Port Moresby the last week. We anchored in the marina "pond" of the Royal Papuan Yacht Club - a place that has been described as "the last bastion of white elitism" in Papua New Guinea. That about sums it up, but the folks there were very good to us, and saw to our needs, and we are grateful.
We made some friends there, Brian Hull a 50 year PNG resident, and James Baker an American working at the Bank of Papua New Guinea. We also had a nice dinner with Walter North, an RPCV like myself and U.S. Ambassador to PNG, The Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Water is a friend of my friend Nancy (Hi Nancy), and we had a great time visiting.
We Had a false start out from Moresby on Wednesday - Customs came three hours late to clear us out, and by the time we did the paperwork, and brought up the anchor (the sow way), the wind was howling. It was blowing 25 - 29 knots in the bay, and after three hours of trying to get out to the entrance we turned around and took a slip for the night and left again yesterday at 7:00 am when the winds had calmed down again.
So now we are headed for the entrance to the Torres Strait. Wind was steady and brisk yesterday but calmed down during the night. Right now we are make 4 knots due west which is fine, as we want to do as much of the Torres in daylight as possible. Have only seen one ship so far but that will increase no doubt, as the strait is one of the busy shipping places on our little globe.
Wind is out of the SE and steady in direction is not speed. Once we enter the straits we will turn SW and our wind angle for sailing should be around 70 degrees - knock on wood. We'll try not to hit anything and make some sailmail posting of our progress, as power will not be a problem; I will have to charge batteries with all the radar and computer usage we will need to have as we pass through the waters ahead.
Had some heavy rain this morning. Kids squirrelly. Carrie making pancakes.
9 11.953 S
145 19.687 E
Owen
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We've been extremely busy in Port Moresby the last week. We anchored in the marina "pond" of the Royal Papuan Yacht Club - a place that has been described as "the last bastion of white elitism" in Papua New Guinea. That about sums it up, but the folks there were very good to us, and saw to our needs, and we are grateful.
We made some friends there, Brian Hull a 50 year PNG resident, and James Baker an American working at the Bank of Papua New Guinea. We also had a nice dinner with Walter North, an RPCV like myself and U.S. Ambassador to PNG, The Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Water is a friend of my friend Nancy (Hi Nancy), and we had a great time visiting.
We Had a false start out from Moresby on Wednesday - Customs came three hours late to clear us out, and by the time we did the paperwork, and brought up the anchor (the sow way), the wind was howling. It was blowing 25 - 29 knots in the bay, and after three hours of trying to get out to the entrance we turned around and took a slip for the night and left again yesterday at 7:00 am when the winds had calmed down again.
So now we are headed for the entrance to the Torres Strait. Wind was steady and brisk yesterday but calmed down during the night. Right now we are make 4 knots due west which is fine, as we want to do as much of the Torres in daylight as possible. Have only seen one ship so far but that will increase no doubt, as the strait is one of the busy shipping places on our little globe.
Wind is out of the SE and steady in direction is not speed. Once we enter the straits we will turn SW and our wind angle for sailing should be around 70 degrees - knock on wood. We'll try not to hit anything and make some sailmail posting of our progress, as power will not be a problem; I will have to charge batteries with all the radar and computer usage we will need to have as we pass through the waters ahead.
Had some heavy rain this morning. Kids squirrelly. Carrie making pancakes.
9 11.953 S
145 19.687 E
Owen
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