Things calmed down here and to be honest probably got too calm as we are now motoring with the wind at 4-5 knots which means sails get you nowhere and bobbing around in the middle of the ocean is not really a viable option. Yesterday we clocked a new low for miles made of 128 miles. When we went from Galapagos to Easter we were averaging more like 200 mi/day so at this rate this shorter leg will likely take longer. Plus because of wind and waves and trying to stay out of some dicey weather we have added quite a few miles to the 1400 rhumbline mileage from Easter to Gambiers(rhumbline being most direct route from point A to point B but rarely how a sailboat travels). Weather forecasts that the winds will pick up to a sailable speed by daybreak. Hope so as we will sure have to pay a high price for fuel replacement if/when we can get some. We are likely to see some big seas later in the weekend or early next week as there is a new low south of here but I think we have set ourselves up far enough north to not repeat conditions like what we saw at the beginning of this trip. One neat thing we have going this trip is that we are doing this in tandem with two other boats and so have radio (single side band) contact with them twice a day to compare conditions and weather forecasts. Definitely makes us not feel so alone out here and of course it will be great to rendevous once we all arrive in the Gambiers.
It is quite a beautiful night out here tonight. The moon is quite bright and finally the stars are out. It is amazing how light it is in the middle of the night when such is the case and for me alot nicer watch as I don't feel so freaked by the black of night. Not that there is anything to see. We have seen nothing nothing and more nothing for 4 days now and will most likely see nothing until we reach land still 1000+ miles off. We have not yet decided whether we will stop at Pitcairn or pass it by and head straight for the Gambiers. It is not high on my list and my interest in it as a stop was squashed when I heard about the recent discoveries of incest and sexual exploitation of the young women there that has gone on for eons with eyes averted from the community itself. There was an expose and trials finally so at least one can hope that things may change there.
We have heard snipets of news from friends' emails that both the senate and the house have passed some sort of health care reform(one friend more aptly called it health insurance reform). Would love to hear more if anyone has the time to enlighten us. We have mostly been OK with not having a clue what is going on in the world but this is one headline we would love to know more about as it may have a pretty direct impact on Bill and his medical future. Hoping that the politics and craziness like death threats over abortion concerns don't unravel what should be a healthy plan to provide better access for more people in this great country of ours. I wonder what the rest of the world thinks about us and it when you get right down to it.
So, I think both Easter and Passover are next week. Needless to say we will not be able to have a Passover Seder. I have no matzohs or any hope of getting them out here (tho Bill did try to bake bread awhile back and it was close to unleavened). We will miss the family gathering and most definitely Trudy's(Bill's mom) to die for matzo ball soup. Wishing all of you a happy whichever and more importantly the beginnings of spring that each of those holidays heralds in. For us in the southern hemisphere we are just beginning fall but that is in a climate that seems to have eternal summer. That is a wonderful thing.
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