Friday 1pm LT Sun trying so very hard to peep out from behind cloud layer - just not managing... NW wind of 18kt, sailing nicely on a broad reach, pretty much on course for Cape Horn - just over two weeks away, I'm hoping. Weather looking not bad for next few days - maybe up to 25kt, so possibly gusting 30kt, still from NW, for a short time overnight and into tomorrow morning, easing off and then maybe up to around 25kt again, from W-WSW, over Sunday, during the day. But on Tuesday, 30kt or more is forecast over the daytime, easing to 23kt overnight and building again on Thursday to 38kt or more...
Finishing off some Saltspring Island soft goat's cheese for lunch - very ripe....!
4PM Foggy - not a thick fog - but lots of moisture in the air and visibility is only a few boat lengths. Cool air so cooking a thick broth in the pressure cooker - split (dried) green peas, diced ham, onion, potatoes, sweetcorn, tomatoes - anything I can think of to add in! The green peas should make it nice and thick and it will thicken even more over time. Should last me a few days and will make very welcome, easy meals.
7pm Fog has thickebed - can only just see one or two boat lengths away. We're now gliding silently and smoothly through the water into the fog. Quite a different sensation from when heading upwind and bashing into the seas! Wind and seas are less now, which helps - from WNW at around 16kts.
10pm Reefed down, furled in genoa and unfurled small staysail. All after gybing around to head more east than south, with idea of avoiding worst of Low passing just S of our position over next 12-18hrs. Possibility of gusts to 50kt - definitely something to avoid if possible!
With missing lazyjack, problem with tying in the excess sail once sail lowered to take in reef. Need to adjust the reef line position where tied around the boom so that, as reef taken in, the sail is, at least partly, held in by the reef line - presently it's way too far aft on the boom and doesn't take in any of the sail whatsoever - so the sail dangles and needs to be tied in - tried to do that with a sail tie but not easy in a big swell and 22kt wind, even though the boom was brought in close to the cockpit to try to do it....
Saturday 4:30am Grey daylight, soon after dawn. So far, no sign of Low passing by to S. Still has time to show up since chance of higher gusts not forecast to have finished until about 3pm later today.
930am Sailing well at up to 6.3kt, making ESE in 24-28kt of NW wind - still with 3rd reef and staysail. Quite rolly in prevailing seas but downwind so relatively smooth. Occasional 'biggie' gets the boat swerving back and forth as Fred gets us back on course after we've been hit rather harder.
Midday Wind has backed a tad, so course has changed in line with the wind shift. Will wait a short while before gybing around. "All's well on board"..!
1900GMT (=1200LT) - end of Day 59. We made 127 n.ml.(DMG) measured in a straight line between the two points, over the 24 hr period since yesterday's 1900 GMT position.
Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 59 (by daily DMGs): 6,217 n.ml.
Distance from Cape Horn LH (to SE): 1,605 n.ml.
Position & weather report for 1900 GMT posted to Winlink.org and Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign of kc2iov):
TIME: 2018/12/01 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 42-42.47S LONGITUDE: 103-43.25W COURSE: 105T SPEED: 5.7kt
WIND_SPEED: 26kt WIND_DIR: NW SWELL_DIR: NW SWELL_HT: 4.0m CLOUDS: 100%
BARO: 1011.8hPa TREND: 0 AIR_TEMP: 15.0C SEA_TEMP: 14.0C
COMMENT: Wind up a bit. Low still passing - pressure low. Seas up..