SY Visions of Johanna Bermuda to Dingle, Ireland Crossing Day 13

DATE: Thursday, 9 June, 2016, 09:30 AM Mid Atlantic time
SY Visions of Johanna Bermuda to Dingle, Ireland Crossing Day 13

North Atlantic Ocean
Position: 48 32.5 N/26 44.8W
SOG 6.59 knots; COG 086 mag
TWS 14.2 kn ; TWD: 219 mag

Conditions: Engine was on overnight until 04:30 when we jibed around to a starboard tack and sailed, broad reaching with jib. Wind continued to (sloooowly) back and eased some, and reacher went up at 06:30. Sky is mostly sunny, Bar is all the way up to 2016.5. A noticeable wave/swell set is coming onto the starboard quarter, probable first signs of the "Newfie Low".

Current situation: We continued easting as much as possible along a general GC route last night - my mantra has been...get east, young (?) man. At 1800 hours last night generator went on, but then I decided to turn on main engine for battery charging instead, and also because both our desired course and the the rhumb line were less than 30 degrees from DDW, and engine on allowed us to make best time to our Dingle Bay entry mark. Still mostly broad reaching, we are slowly heading up for speed toward a beam reach while keeping 10 - 20 degrees windward of our rhumb line - theoretically allowing the continued backing wind to bring us to the GC rhumb line...patiently...over time. Winds have been steady over the past several hours at 220 degrees mag, around either side of 16 Kn. Working hard to keep speed up near 7.5 Kn in these conditions.

Tactical: We have put enough distance between ourselves and the low to mitigate the possibilities of an unfortunate encounter of the harshest kind. In doing so, we have also delayed passage of the accompanying occluded front as described by Ken McKinley, and my read is that we will see a building wind through Thursday night, but the higher winds and frontal passage will not occur until after daybreak on Friday, with a 6ish hour interval between 05:00 and noon Friday morning as the snottiest (Yes, I can add, but please allow me some literary license for generalities). Good news is that the event will be more moderate than initially anticipated. Better news is that we have already been through (at least) this on our passage, and dealt with it for a longer time frame. Best news is that afterward, we can set our sights on Dingle.

Lunch yesterday was tuna salad with chopped celery, onion, and cumin, in wraps, with a bowl of red pepper tomato soup. Half the tuna salad was made with mayo, half with yogurt. Can you guess who ate what? Don't blame me Corinne, I'm trying! Dinner was burgers and pan fries, with cole slaw. Fresh baked chocolate chip cookies for desert. Gotta love our quartermaster, Jo!!

We moved clocks ahead again 1 hour, to Mid Atlantic time, or UTC -2.

All is well on-board. 656 nm. to Dingle Bay approach waypoint, 10 more miles to the harbor. So, there is a possibility of a late evening landfall on Sunday (light is late up here), but we will need 3 1/2 consecutive 200 nm days to achieve it. Certainly possible (to average 200 per day), but I won't count on it yet.

Best wishes,
Bill Strassberg and crew, SY Visions of Johanna



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