Crossing Paths

October 6, 2018

Day 2

Noon Position: 32 59N 125 37W

Course/Speed: SSW 7+

Wind: NNW 16 – 20

Sea: NNW 6 – 8

Sky: Overcast, squally, part sun

Bar: 1021, falling (1018 by evening)

Cabin Degrees Fahrenheit: 72

Water Degrees Fahrenheit: 67

Percent Relative Humidity: 76

(Note: I’ve added this last statistic just for the interest of it. One might think that, with water right there, humidity should be rather constant. We shall see.)

Sail: #2 genoa, full; main, one reef; tack starboard quarter.

Noon-to-Noon Miles Made Good: 172

Avg. Miles/Day: 159

Miles since departure: 318

Today was all about shipping. I had thought we were on our own when we worked through coastwise shipping night before last. But I had forgotten the Panama Canal. Today we’ve had ships on the scope constantly since 9am all angling down toward Panama or up from it. The last is exiting to the SE as I type at 5pm. I’m not saying that’s the last we’ll see of shipping, but the scope is now clear.

Total encounters: seven. Total sighted from on deck: two.

By name: Ultra Rocanville; K Asian Beauty; Glovis Star; Xin Ya Zhou; Maersk Gateshed; Cosco Harmony; HMM Blessing (Her Majesty’s Merchant Vessel?).

Only the last two were close enough to set off the AIS alarms, and the closest of these was three miles off. This was the Maersk Gateshed. So massive it did not appear to be moving. Length: 1200 ft (four football fields?). Width: 200 ft. Draft: 45 ft (it draws more than Mo is long). Speed: 20 knots.

Only the ocean could make such a behemoth seem small and far away.

Solid sleep last night in one and two hour shifts. Wind remained strong (25 knots) but consistent.  No deckwork required. I let Mo go, and she burned up the road.

Wind eased in the morning but has been cycling between 18 and 25 and between N and NNW all day with bright sun one hour and squalls the next.

The morning forecast continued to show hurricane Sergio recurving toward Baja within three days. I plan to follow my down-and-to-the-right course to about 25N and 130W (an approximate three-days-on position). If Sergio does recurve, I’ll head due south at that point. If not, will likely stop until Sergio declares his intentions. Water temperature is now 66 degrees; up from 59 on departure, but is still way too cold for a hurricane up here. Let’s see at what rate it increases with more southing.

Sadly, it looks like Sergio will suck up all the wind and leave a great load of nothing in his wake. This may be our fastest week for a while.

One flying fish on deck when I rose.

One sand fly remains. A wary bastard, but I’ll get him.