Friday 18th Jan to Monday 21st Jan '08

I hadn't realized just how badly fouled my fenders were until I went to leave - & had to destroy the homes of several small crabs in cleaning off the barnacles & growth where the ends had dipped into the muddy, tidal, river waters at the Zululand Y.C. where 'Nereida' has been berthed since late November!! That delayed my departure a bit... (Note to self: clean bottom before leaving Cape Town for Atlantic crossing!!)

Having decided to take advantage of a weather window of possibly several days to try to get down towards Cape Town, in the notorious Aghulas Current off the SE coast of Africa, I had quickly to organize 'Nereida' for passagemaking mode - no easy task! On Wednesday, my mainsail had arrived, & Thursday turned out to be a perfect day to deal with that. My newly-repaired ship's compass (actually replaced, thanks to Suunto) needed installing, together with new red LED lights (but the tiny wires needed
extending - a soldering job). The engine freshwater cooling hose was replaced on Thursday afternoon. The repaired autopilot control head was plugged back in place after being brought back from the Raymarine agent, Fonz Marine in Durban. That was an amazingly quick turn-around, thanks to John of 'Stingo', who'd kindly taken it down early Wednesday & come back just in time with it on Thursday night, and Steve Cawdron who worked speedily on the unit as soon as he got it - I'm grateful to both for
their help.

Then there was the actual passage to plan - I'd decided to try to find the maximum current which meant staying well out from the 200m line (often not too far from the 1000m line, the coastal shelf being so steep-to in a lot of places). Having had so many warnings & heard so many horror stories about heading down in the Aghulas Current, I was very keen to get the passage over & done with as fast as possible - & very intrigued to find out what my own experience would be, hoping for good speed - up
to 11 knots, perhaps. The worry was that I'd heard of 'local, unforecast, SW blows' being likely to come up unexpectedly out of nowhere. With the strong SW-going current, very nasty sharp waves would quickly build up & cause major problems.... However, the forecast looked good, so I kept to my plan of going well-offshore.. but I determined to use the engine as & when necessary in calms or for motor-sailing in light winds from astern, to make sure of maximum speed & minimum time 'at risk'!! The
weather window seemed to be good enough to make East London (, at least, in one 'hop' - this being the first possible stop after Durban - & maybe Port Elizabeth or even Mossel Bay. A SW looked likely on the last day of my 5-day forecast, so it was unlikely that I'd be able to round Cape Aghulas against that on this passage - but I'd be keeping a careful eye on the weather, in case that scenario changed.

I finally left around 2.30pm and was then told by Port Control to wait for a big ship to enter the harbour entrance before I could exit. Just outside the harbour is a large shallow area to avoid and several ships further out at anchor. (Richards Bay is the biggest coal terminal in the world, they tell me, with 3 ships a day leaving for China fully laden with lignite. It also has a bauxite facility and two power plants - a rapidly-growing, sprawling, industrial area, but with plenty of wild parks
nearby & open areas. The hospitable Zululand Yacht Club is beautifully situated with excellent facilities, although far from shops.)

The passage started out with minimal wind on the nose, SE 2-3 (~5-10kn), which overnight become NE 2-3, gradually increasing over Saturday to NE 5 (~20kn) by early Sunday. My course took me just W of S to the 1000m line off Durban (~70mls) and then SSW to off East London (~250mls), on SW to off Port Elizabeth (~135mls) and finally W about 200 mls to Mossel Bay over Monday. Soon after sunrise on Sunday, the wind died almost completely and then came up from the SW minimally, dying down to nothing
overnight. Monday saw just SE2-3. The current was SW/SSW flowing and gave a superb 'push' (I would estimate easily up to 5-6 knots at times!) once we got out to the deep water. But it also meant pretty rough conditions, except when the wind died down completely. Even when the wind was in the NE (and so with the current), the long SW swell, typical of the Indian Ocean, together with the NE 'wind waves', again made for lumpy seas. So most of the passage was fairly rough, until Sunday night & over
Monday, with a lovely sunny calm last day, passing S of Cape Seal and Knysna harbour and so on to Mossel Bay.

The net outcome of the NE or SW wind and the strong current flowing in our direction of travel was, unfortunately, a lot of motoring with either light apparent wind from astern or wind directly 'on the nose'. I did NOT wish to be caught out in 'SW buster' in the strong current, so I made sure we kept going, mainly motoring at around 5-6 knots (I kept engine revs down for fuel economy) with sails contributing as much as possible plus current..... which gave speeds over the ground of mainly 7.1-11.2
knots (I actually saw over 12 knots quite a few times)!! Friday's speed was just over 7 knots, Saturday's, 8.6-11.2 (!), Sunday's was 10-11 knots up to around 9pm when we left the deep water off St Francis Bay, being then SSW of Port Elizabeth. The noon-to-noon run over Sat/Sun was well over 250 mls!!! I'm sad to say, I only managed a joyous, peaceful sail for a couple of hours - in bright sun on Sunday afternoon, when a SSW wind was off the nose sufficiently and strongly enough for a beautiful
closehauled sail. Earlier on Sunday, 3 pilot whales cruised by and late that afternoon we were surrounded by a large number of curious dolphins...

As I finish writing this, we are 15 miles off Mossel Bay and it is nearing sunset. We shall have covered 670 miles since leaving Richards Bay on Friday afternoon! I hope to drop anchor some time after 9pm - it is said to be good holding in sand - and I shall enjoy a good meal and rest before going on around Cape Aghulas - the furthest point south in Africa and in my circumnavigation, being further south than the Cape of Good Hope which is just over 80 miles to the NW.

I had NO radio communications until Sunday: neither voice nor email/weather.... too close to the stations concerned! The speed log was not giving a reading (must clean impellor before I leave Mossel Bay!), I could only estimate current and wind speed (although at least true wind direction is fairly obvious from reading sea surface!!) AIS was VERY useful - so many ships around..

Fri 12th Jan '08

Back in Richards Bay, S. Africa, at the Zululand Y.C.- busy, with lots of jobs still to do. Items include dealing with: boom/vang connection, shorepower connection, ship's compass, watermaker, freshwater hose on main engine, repaired mainsail & cover, deck-caulking, organizing of new laptop (& new camera - I managed to lose my last one). Some jobs I may be able to leave until Cape Town, where I'll be re-rigging, but most I need to do before leaving here. I've picked up a heavy cold so that's not exactly helping with fast progress just now! Pity I can't leave immediately - weather window looks good enough to get directly to Port Elizabeth, if not to near Cape Town, in one hop... hopefully, that will be repeated when I'm ready to go.

Happy New Year to all reading this!!
Even over the holiday period, progress has been made in important areas... I've been having discussions with Selden who have very kindly agreed to send replacement fittings from Sweden for the complete re-rigging to be carried out at the Royal Cape Y.C. in Cape Town in January, once "Nereida" arrives there from Richards Bay. The rigging is now over ten years old and I felt it best to replace it whilst in S. Africa and before my Atlantic crossing.
The ship's compass, taken back to London for repair from South Africa, has now been replaced with a new one by Suunto in Finland. They have been very prompt & helpful in dealing with it in a short time over the holiday period.
I have also bought a number of miscellaneous items for the boat, ready for my return in the New Year when I expect to be kept busy for several days before looking for a 'weather window' to head south towards Cape Town.

4th December '07

Having come around to the Zululand Y.C. early last week, I've been enjoying their hospitality and sociable 'club' atmosphere most evenings. Inexpensive meals make cooking pointless, my snooker shots are improving & I'm getting to hear a lot about S. Africa (mostly from the Afrikaaners' point of view, admittedly, but also with a touch of Zulu!). Shopping is difficult, although people have been quick to offer lifts - but I've been up to my eyes in repairs so have not taken up the offers very often.
The Commodore is a really friendly guy & invited me home last Friday for a 'braai' with his family and some friends- a very nice gesture, as was his insistence in giving me some champagne to celebrate my arrival in S. Africa on my circumnavigation!

The weather is a constant topic of discussion - more so than in the UK, if that's possible!!The wind switches almost instantly from NE to SW - NE bringing clear sunny weather, SW bringing overcast skies & rain. 'SW busters' come up regularly from the
Southern Ocean and affect all the eastern S. African coast - it's not possible to head south in the face of one so a constant eye is kept on the weather, looking for a weather window, by all wanting to go S towards Cape Town. 30-40 boats headed down last week and a lot ended up in Mossel Bay to wait for weather to get around Cape Agulhas.

The local Ham and weather nets are run by Fred (Peri Peri Net) and Alistair (Ham Net) - both of whom I met on Sunday at Alistair's house surrounded by sugar-cane fields south of Durban at his 28th annual 'yachtie' get-together & braai. Fabulous cakes cooked by his wife Davina with help from grand-daughter Sarah made an excellent breakfast with coffee on arriving at 8.30 am after an early start (6am!) from Richards Bay. I got to see the coastal area on the drive down and back with two other cruising
couples - and we narrowly missed being involved in a big pile-up on the motorway just before sunset.

My fridge is finally working again (with a new compressor), with a thorough cleaning of the interior being called for after finding it crawling with 'beasties' from some 'blue cheese' which had been allowed to get too warm...!

The main engine is also fine now, after the seawater pump was overhauled, although the impeller had to be changed a second time today after I moved to refuel & found very little cooling water was coming through - the engine had overheated on coming around from Tuzi Gazi last week and that had damaged the previous new impeller.

The generator start motor was finally fixed today and all seemed fine - until mechanic Frank discovered that the exhaust manifold was holed and giving off exhaust gases into the engine compartment - very unsafe, so I was pleased he found that problem now, in time to get it dealt with before I leave here early next week (welding of a new aluminium plate over the damaged area is needed).

The mainsail & cover are being repaired by Quantum Sails of Durban. I still have yet to get up the mast with the genoa unfurled in calm weather (it's been too windy) to see why the genoa wouldn't hoist fully after it fell down at sea recently...

I spent ages yesterday manually transferring stored diesel from jerry cans into the fuel tank, ready for refuelling today - which also took a long time and meant having to motor over to the fuel dock where I stayed overnight (a power cut meant the fuel couldn't be pumped until power was restored mid-afternoon).

While the cockpit locker was relatively empty of jerry cans, etc, I investigated the shore power connection - thoroughly corroded wires and connectors showed up, as I'd suspected, so finding & connecting up new (tinned) wire and connections kept me busy.

More washing/rinsing of lines & sheets is ongoing..... as is the attempt to prevent the chaos down below from degenerating further whilst repairs are being carried out, with the consequent rooting around under bunks & in lockers for bits & pieces.... I'm having to sleep in the main cabin for the moment.

A visit to the Home Affairs Dept was needed, in the Richards Bay Mall area, to get a document verifying my status as a skipper of a yacht here at the ZLYC, ready for my return here in early January from London. Without it, the S. African Immigration officials were likely not to let me into the country without evidence of a return flight out.

My main computer is still not 'seeing' modems (phone/wi-fi/bluetooth) & the 'back-up' is not quite 100% either, although at least now I can access the Internet to deal with emails - via my cellphone as modem, so neither very fast nor convenient, especially since it seems to gobble up time on pre-pay vouchers & run out of battery power too quickly. With no shops very close by, keeping up with prepay time becomes quite an important issue, since it cannot be topped up by credit card.

Last night was 'braai' night - very cold, so I kept working until late and then went over just for a chat, after cooking myself a meal onboard.

Some other important jobs are still outstanding, but hopefully things will improve once the engine & generator are finished
with so I can tidy up and pack away properly. I shall be moving to a new slip tomorrow, after joining an Australian family for breakfast on their boat. A new arrival in the area is an 84ft junk-rigged ferro-cement boat crewed by volunteers - 'Heraklitus' is a fascinatingly different boat from 'Nereida'!!

Just a quick note from Richards Bay - where I'm struggling to overcome computer & emailing problems....Radio will not connect to shore station so no Winlink or Sailmail that way.... and I've been trying to get land connections via either my cellphone or a separate USB cellphone network modem - but whatever I try to do I'm getting 'silly' messages... or my PC decides to go into a never-ending loop, getting nowhere... I'm still working on that & making use of Internet cafe but that's not as simple
as having the computer directly connected to the Internet....

I'm still in the Tuzi Gazi marina but expect very soon to move over to the Zululand Yacht Club a short distance away (in fact, I just got a phonecall from Jenny at the Z.Y.C. to say there's a slip available there for me now so I'll move over this weekend). Both places are very sociable with weekly 'braais' (barbecues) but to get from one to the other is again a matter of a short taxi or car ride out of daylight hours - it's not safe to walk between the marina & Y.C. at or after twilight..... "This
is Africa". (A phrase more normally used rather like "This is the Caribbean (or Mexico)" to shrug off delays and problems getting things done here ...often simply abbreviated to "TIA"!!)

I've still got a long list of jobs not dealt with but took advantage of an offer to join some people for a day-tour by car out to the Hluhluwe/Imfolozi Game Park on Wednesday (Hluhluwe is pronounced Shushui!!!). That was excellent and I was impressed almost as much by the unexpectedly beautiful, green, hilly landscape as by being close up to a pair of enormous white rhinos (hoping they were too sleepy to bother even thinking of charging us!!) as well as plenty of giraffe, nyala, impala, kudu, wildebeeste,
zebra, amusing warthogs & big buffalo. Lots of birds everywhere also, including tawny eagles. I always seemed to be hearing lots of birdsong everywhere - which is always nice after a long time at sea.

It's lovely to see the small grey & black vervet monkeys roaming freely on the grass nearby.

I had a nice simple meal at the Y.C. last night - just 20 Rand (at R14 to the pound sterling!) The taxi ride to get there was the same price but it's R45 to get into the main shopping centre at Richards Bay - it's a good taxi ride away, although other boaters with cars often offer a lift which is just great. The alternative for shopping is the smaller Meerensee - that, I gather, is within reasonable walking/biking distance but I've not got there yet.

It's been very overcast, with heavy rain yesterday & overnight, due to the present SW wind - lots of people are hoping for a 'weather window' on Sunday (the expected Wednesday one having vanished) - they want to move down the coast with a following NE wind.

I'd better get to the chandlery/Internet to send this off & then get on with some of those boat jobs.... my fridge is still shorting out, as is my shore-power connection(I've rigged up a direct shore-power connection to the battery charger, bypassing the usual boat connection)

Sunday 18th November

Today, the NE wind people need for sailing south has come - with clear skies and bright, burning sunshine....

I arrived on Saturday after an eventful sail overnight and during the morning.... Wind increased to 30 knots, with grey skies and rain as I closed the coast, and the seas built up correspondingly. What had happened to my vision of sunny South Africa, I wondered?? I was pleased to have my tiny stays'l hoisted in the strong conditions and made excellent speed with two reefs in the main, with the current helping.
The Richards Bay Port Control officer was very friendly and helpful as I approached, giving useful comments as I entered the harbour under sail alone. I had a lovely sail in lessening wind inside the breakwaters, as I looked for the channel leading to the International check-in quay. Plenty of people were around to help with my lines as I came in to the high concrete quay to tie up, relax and await Immigration & Customs clearance. Lots of international yachts around - and lots of people wanting
to chat to me, among them a boat from Perth who invited me join them at the marina braai (barbecue) nearby around 6.30 pm. They had plenty of meat, they assured me, as well as lots of salad!
Immigration and Customs finally turned up after 5pm and Jan & Ken ('Aquila') came by with fresh bread to chat and give lots of useful info - they're good friends of Jean & Ken on 'Renaisaance 2000' - cruiser friends from Canada (now in Australia) who'd put us in touch with each other.
The barbecue was a highly sociable event with lots of cruisers turning up & lots of new people to meet.

On Sunday, the Port Police came by at 7am to complete my check-in procedure - I would have been happy to stay asleep....!! Soon after, I moved off the concrete wall into an empty slip that Jan & Ken had spotted - far more secure and I was able to start rinsing the salt off the boat and organize my sails etc.
I'm getting plenty of useful info about the area and getting boat jobs & repairs done... I've a long list of work I'd like to get done here.

It was a lovely day of quite strong wind but blue sky - more like the sunny S. Africa I'd been expecting... but the air temperature is not that high - only 23C.

Friday 16th November '07 - end of Indian Ocean crossing in sight

I'm very close to making landfall - always exciting to arrive at a new place, but especially at the completion of such a big ocean crossing!!

What a difference a few hours can make in the weather!! Around noon yesterday, it was hot & sunny with light NNE winds. By just after sunrise, there were dark grey skies - and rain!! I'd not long spoken to the cargo ship 'Maple Ace' to check they knew my position to stay clear of me as they passed me by on their way to Durban, when I realized that the wind, which had backed to the SSW earlier but was still light at 11 knots, was suddenly gusting up... All was busy activity in the cockpit for
a time after, in the wind & rain, the 'Maple Ace' having a grandstand view as she passed very close by, as I hurriedly put two reefs in the mains'l. I also furled an equivalent amount in the genoa, as the wind rose to 25 knots. No complaints now about not being able to sail well! We were making excellent speed close-hauled with stays'l & reefed mains'l, having furled the genoa to under half in the strong wind and big seas. The wind stayed up for a couple of hours, although backing into the SSE,
but gradually slackened until by afternoon, & in to the evening, it was around 15 knots. Nice sailing - I let out all reefs and enjoyed the sailing conditions.
A major frustration since early today has been a complete failure to connect with shore radio stations to send/receive emails & weather info despite constant efforts to do so. Only late tonight was a connection finally made.
At 1700 today, after yesterday having had light winds forecast for Saturday, I spoke to Fred on the 'Peri Peri' Radio Net & it now seems there's a 'blow' due later tomorrow - so I've turned on the motor to help my speed & I'm now motor-sailing as fast as I can, hoping to get in early enough to avoid the problem of a strong S wind against the S-going Agulhas Current (dangerous conditions!) as I close the coast headed for Richards Bay, at the end of this ocean passage... I may yet have to heave to
& wait for the strong S wind to abate, if things don't turn out as I hope!

P.S. At 0600 (SA time), Saturday morning, the sky is clearing up, the sun is getting out & we're leaving the leaden grey clouds of night behind ... The wind is from the SW at 7 knots, having backed all around the compass overnight with rain coming through!! As I write this, I've about 50 miles to go.

Wed 14th Nov

Very pleasant, relaxed day but again, motor-sailing all day in around 6 knots of NE wind.

Ran the desalinator to fill water tank, had a lovely shower, washed clothes, etc - all to lots of music!!

Another beautiful sunset with delicate crescent moon hanging high above. Sky has been mainly clear all day and sea has been fairly calm. Forecast is for more of same light wind for next day or two... then stronger wind from S on Saturday and even stronger from N on Sunday. Had hoped to make landfall late Saturday, but have to be careful of S wind if crossing Agulhas current... will have to see how weather works out nearer time.

Noon distance to go: 451 n.ml.

Thurs 15th Nov

There's just not quite enough breeze to move me nicely W against strong S-going current.. I'm having to point really high, even helping our forward speed under full canvas & stays'l with the motor... The good news is that I probably needn't worry about crossing the Agulhas current - the cold front has moved off to the east and the forecast for Saturday is for more light winds, albeit from the S. I've given up hoping to make Saturday landfall - looks like Sunday, for sure, possibly very early, even if I have to motorsail gently most of the way - which with the forecast of light winds over next couple of days is probably what will happen - nothing up to around 15 knots expected until noon Saturday maybe... Will do some more fuel transfer this afternoon (from deep in cockpit locker)....

Another hot, bright & sunny day today out here!! Things are definitely tough on "Nereida" at present!!!

.....INCREDIBLE!!! Just had a VHF call from a singlehander on a boat ("Friendship" - Amel53) I'd heard on the Peri Peri Net this morning - but he's about 400 miles away!!! (He's at 22S, 37E, I'm at 28S, 38E) He'd heard me talking to a container ship a short while earlier (there's LOTS of shipping around) so thought he'd try calling me!! We chatted for ages...!! I couldn't believe his position initially!! All the more amazing since getting a connection to Winlink on the SSB (HF) radio seems to be so very difficult at the moment & I can't understand why... maybe it's the combination of the high pressure system and the heat..?

Noon distance to go: 320 n. ml.

Tuesday 13th November

Not a lot you can do about 2-4 knots of wind - except motor gently and check your fuel reserves!!

Good news is that the sea lies right down - so refuelling becomes perfectly safe in the gentle swell. I've calculated I've enough in the tanks (~190l) at the moment to motor gently for at least 84 hrs, or 3 and a half days!!! Having said that, it does look as though we may have very little wind for 3 days .... so I may yet need all that fuel since I don't expect to make landfall until Sunday or Monday at this speed. I could dig out my deep reserves - another 4x20l buried deep in my cockpit locker but what I'll do in the meantime is to pump out 30l into my smaller jerry cans to have ready to use, just in case.

Just had a look in the engine compartment to check on things there.... partly because I'm hearing a slight regular 'knocking' noise, which I don't think I should, from the prop or propshaft region. Found, lying beside the engine mounting, the same big nut off the top of the port-side forward engine mount which I'd replaced & tightened not that long ago .... why is it repeatedly working loose & coming off?? Something else I'd noticed, yesterday, in fact, is that I'd lost the starboard nav light fitting - torn off its cable and holder - presumably when the genoa fell into the sea on that side...

I'm feeling much happier today with my computer situation.... I'd trashed the dongle I have to use in order to access the Nobeltec world charts on my computer - or to be more precise, the computer fell about in big seas a few days ago and the dongle in its side got bent & so stopped working, despite my attempted repair which worked for a short time! With my AIS stand-alone unit not functioning, I was using the Nobeltec software to show AIS information whilst on passage overnight. Knowing that if any big ship comes within 15-20 mls of "Nereida" an alarm will go off to warn me means I can get much better sleep at night, so to be without the AIS completely was a nuisance, to say the least. I've had to run my radar instead, which uses far more power & gives some warning but also goes off with storm & rain clouds and doesn't give anything like as much detail - like name of ship etc. So, having emailed Jeppesen Marine to explain my problem, I was delighted to get an almost immediate response with a simple solution - I had on board another time-expired dongle which I was told could be activated to enable me to open up the Nobeltec world charts to display my AIS info. I've been pleased with the accuracy of the charts when arriving close to harbours & I like them a lot for passage planning (it's a nice, 'user-friendly', simple and clear program).

So today has been excellent: sun, calm sea, lots of battery power (so lots of music played!) ... but not many miles covered. Ambling along at 3.6 knots SOG only equates to just over 85 mls per day... instead of the 150 mls I'd got used to in 20 knots of wind. So arrival time in Richards Bay recedes even further away.... ho, hum...!!

Distance to go at noon today: 566 n.ml.

Actually have a SSW-going current at the moment which is excellent news! (Boatspeed 4.9, SOG 6.1, in 12kn of E wind!) Picture-book Tradewind sailing all day today - bright, clear blue sky, wind astern, rolly (!!) but making my course with current helping - probably one of my last 'Tradewind'-type days on this passage & until S. Atlantic crossing in January. It actually feels warm, as well! It's calm enough to b able to have opened all the hatches to air the boat. Was sitting up in the sunny cockpit earlier, finishing the last delicious Reunion pineapple after Brie for lunch accompanied by lovely fresh coffee made with a newly-opened packet from Cairns. It's been a very pleasant and relaxing day - especially by contrast with yesterday!

Glad to say my genoa is functioning OK after yesterday's excitement although having to be careful not to unfurl it too much!! Fridge has a short somewhere (thermostat possibly??) so will not stay on - circuit breaker cuts power supply whenever I try to switch on, so having to plan my eating carefully to avoid wastage!!

Distance to Richards Bay at noon today: 683 n.ml.

Sunday 11th Nov

This has been an active 24 hrs!! Overnight, the wind backed, as expected. First, at around 1 a.m., the sails started flapping madly as it increased to 22knots and went to NW from N, heading us. I hurriedly furled the genoa but happily left the small stays'l up and adjusted our course slightly more to S, off the wind. I'd already taken in the first reef in the mains'l late last night so left that alone. The SE current seemed to have reduced as we actually ended up making the same (roughly SSW) course as during the evening before. Then I had to get up hurriedly into the cockpit again just before sunrise, with the wind having backed now to SW, to change onto port tack and unfurl some genoa, the wind having reduced slightly to under 20 knots, but a big SW swell developing. Stayed up a bit and enjoyed the sunrise and generally calm, sunny day but finally decided to get some more sleep during the morning.

Was just getting ready to make my regular noon log entry and was unfurling the last bit of genoa, having noticed I'd not let it all out, when, in disbelief, I saw genoa going slack and head of sail falling away, taking rest of sail with it into the sea... I hurriedly got to the winch & took in a bit more on the sheet to prevent too much sail going under water (I wondered if it would make us broach!) & slowly, with great difficulty, pulled the sail, bit by bit, over the rail and onto the side deck. The foil was still standing but when I looked at the shackle at the head of the sail, I found two sharp metal edges - the metal had sheared off at the connection between the shackle and the top furler fitting - which I then realized was still sitting up near the mast top, held by the halyard... and seemed determined to stay there when I released the halyard.... what to do??

The swell was big & frequent - I wasn't sure it was a good idea to go up the mast just then, better to think over carefully all my options - after all, I still had the two small hanked-on sails and maybe I should consider moving the inner (moveable) forestay forward to the base of the forestay... On the other hand, light winds were forecast for several days ahead and there was good wind at present, albeit on the nose .... definitely thinking time for coffee and a very late breakfast/lunch!! It seemed to me that a lot depended on whether or not I could fix the broken fitting to make use of the genoa, as I'd prefer to (it being so much larger than the small sails).

Initially, I'd switched on the motor to head gently upwind to help in recovering the sail & then to make way in the right direction, but later turned it off and sailed, but very slowly...1.5kn. I now realized that the swell had died down a lot and the sea was reasonably calm - time to go up the mast & retrieve that fitting - I got all kitted up & found the spool of strong seine twine which would be more than long enough for the purpose & went forward. I was just about to get up onto the first step when I noticed that the top furler fitting had slid of its own accord down to near deck level, with my having left the halyard free... excellent news! On examining the broken part, it seemed that a second shackle was all that was needed to make a temporary repair - I soon found one in my spares that was big enough and attached it, 'mousing' the pin with wire for security. Then came the difficult job of pulling the big, stiff, heavy sail forward, checking it wasn't twisted, and attaching the head to the furler fitting on the halyard. Finally, I made use of the pre-feeder given to me by Mark Butler in San Diego earlier this year. I'd not come across this item before - a very simple device, without which I'd have found it almost impossible to raise the genoa in its groove up the forestay foil by winching the halyard from the mast. Eventually, the sail was up - but wouldn't go high enough to tension the luff properly. Much as I tried to winch more, it didn't seem to want to go any further - I wonder if the luff of the sail has become stretched, or maybe my 'fix' has made it a bit longer than it was, or a bit of both. Either way, I had to pleat the foot of the sail while furling it a few turns, bit by bit, to get anything like a decent shape in the sail with the wind in it under sheet tension - means I cannot make full use of the sail but must keep it slightly furled at all times - small price to pay for having the use of the genoa once again!! By 6 o'clock 'radio net' time, all was finished and we were making good speed on our course ... I felt much happier!! I was very lucky this didn't happen at night &/or in strong winds &/or in really heavy seas!!!

Sat 10th Nov

Spent a lot of time on deck today, gazing at the big seas and absorbing the scene.... A lot of sail-trimming & course adjustment needed also.

I was able to cut the motor around 1am and have sailed ever since all day - in increasingly strong winds and big seas under overcast skies and some rain - found the front Fred was talking about!! Lightning is flickering ahead now (10pm) in the darkness. We're trying to round the S end of Madagascar against a VERY strong SE current - proving very difficult despite 6-7 knots of boatspeed! Quite a bumpy ride all day... and very frustrating to be making 7 knots through the water, but only 2-3 knots over the ground, not even making our course but being taken further south.... At one time, I was needing to head 285, trying to make 230!! I decided to cut my losses and head more off the wind, and hence also the current, to increase speed over the ground - that seems to have worked even though it's not quite in the direction I would have liked - but it's near enough for now... Let's see what the wind does overnight and tomorrow - forecast is for it to back completely around by tomorrow evening. "Stenella" have been hit by 40 knot winds (a SW 'buster'), as expected - I could well get something similar by the time I reach where they are, not too far off the coast.

I spent most of the afternoon taking my computer to bits and giving the fans & surrounding area a thorough cleaning - all very dusty. The good news is that when I finished, the computer still worked & I had no screws over & none missing!!! I suspect one of the two fans isn't working - seemed way too new-looking and dustless...

I'm expecting a disturbed night - with the wind expected to back steadily, sails will need trimming/checking and we may have to tack around at some point. I'm running the radar on 'guardwatch' and 'waking' it up every 10 minutes to check for shipping.

Time to get some sleep while all is calm....

Distance to go at noon today: 877 n.ml.

Friday 9th Nov

Having had a great sail for most of Thursday, the wind died a little by nightfall, so I motor-sailed while charging the batteries for around 3 hrs but then was able to cut the engine & sail overnight at around 4 knots, which is fine ...can't afford to motor unnecessarily since still a long way to go!! Today we lost the bright sunny skies & it became overcast soon after sunrise, but I managed to sail most of the time until near dusk when speed dropped to around 2.5-3 knots - time to motorsail ...Winds
yesterday were NNE just under 15kn but today were mostly N around 10kn.

The current is having a big effect on our speed & direction - reducing our boatspeed by over a knot & making it often difficult to maintain our rhumbline course to a waypoint 160mls off the S coast of Madagascar. It's not a good idea to get much closer to the coast since the seas there can get rather nasty in strong SW winds because of big seamounts rising up abruptly from the deep seabed. The forecast is actually for W-SW winds of 13-18 knots exactly around the time I expect to reach that area
early Sunday morning... not good news! Hopefully the forecast strength is correct though - another boat ("Stenella") is expecting SW 30-40 knots tomorrow but they're much nearer to S. Africa than "Nereida". ('SW Busters' are regular features of S. African weather, coming up the east coast from the Southern Ocean and making the strong SW-flowing Agulhas current a dangerous area to be in... Fortunately, there is good weather info available to avoid being caught out - the main reason I'm making daily
radio contact with the 'weather guru' Fred on the 'Piri Piri Net'.)

I've been trying to figure out what my best tactic should be in the meantime - I clearly don't want to head any further north & will maintain my course for the time being, expecting to have to sail S for a time when the W wind heads us before tacking around eventually when the wind backs more to the S later in the day - by which time I'll be wanting to make a course almost due W anyway towards Richards Bay. Hopefully that will all work out fine - but we'll see what actually happens to the wind speed
& direction at the time - often quite different from the predictions! I raised my little staysail (inner foresail) yesterday afternoon partly for fun, partly to try to give us a bit more 'push' but partly also to make sure I had the sheets leading correctly- it's still a fairly new thing to "Nereida" and it's nice to have it ready in case of those strong winds.

Just popped out on deck to adjust sails and see what would happen without the motor - 2.5knots!! Pitch black with no moon and total overcast...

The good news from yesterday is there is no sign of any water in the starboard tank fuel - and the bad news is that my main laptop decided to die... as well as my back-up already behaving erratically... so communications became a bit of a nightmare scenario... Trying to get the 2nd laptop to do things it couldn't or didn't want to wasted a lot of time and led to a lot of frustrated effort... like trying to get AIS input with GPS input as well (not possible). Today, the main laptop decided maybe
it wasn't ready to give up the ghost just yet... or not quite so... it's clearly overheating, although I did detect slight sign of a fan working at one point. Anyway, I was galvanized into backing up my emails and other important data files onto my external hard drive. Other good news is that, for the moment, the AIS display is working - I'm watching the 'Bulk Leher' (24 mls off) slowly making its way west to the north of us. Only problem is I don't know if I can rely on the screen to keep up the
display so I can use the alarm function to enable longer sleep .....

Mon 5th November

Weather forecast is consistently showing light winds for several days at start of passage to Richards Bay - so I decided to get starboard fuel tank seen to in view of expected motoring. Pumped out some fuel from bottom of tank - as expected, had a fair amount of water but next lot of fuel showed very little water so I filled tank with fresh diesel and replaced gasket etc. Must keep a good eye on sight glass - but that being very clean now, it should be easy to see if there's a water problem. I'd
already replaced a spade terminal on the fridge power supply - it kept failing to start up & the wire at that terminal was getting very hot. Boat is now fairly sorted ready for passage - 7 boats on evening radio Net, 1 boat ('Megusta') almost arrived (3 knots of S-going current 450 miles off Durban!!), another one on passage and rest of us starting tomorrow or by later in week - looks as though most of us will meet up again in Richards Bay. Must try to contact Fred on 'Piri-Piri Net' tomorrow or
day or so after (9am LT on 8108).

Tues-Thurs 6-8th November

Left 8am Tuesday in warm haze with NNE wind around 10 knots, which made for gentle sailing initially but by early afternoon it had dropped to 5kn (from astern!) - so motor on... Motor-sailed on & off overnight, wind veering SE for a short while in the evening before backing to E and increasing to ~12-15 kn which meant motor could be cut, but only for a short while since wind died early Wed morning and backed into NE. With a SW course, we were doing around 2knots - so on with the motor yet again...until
the next time the wind increased enough to sail - lots of periods of motor-sailing mixed in with gentle sailing in a calm sea & in bright sunshine.

I had a busy night up & down on Thursday - lots of ships - clearly in a busy shipping lane & had to call up a couple to make sure they knew I was on their path, to avoid me. Having to run the computer to get AIS (Automatic Identification System) input there, since Nasa Marine display has been playing up - only showing ships around when first switched on - then it seems to lose them & screen goes blank. Must be faulty instrument since AIS input via VHF aerial & the Milltech 'smart splitter' is working
fine into Nobeltec charting. The good thing about the Nobeltec software, apart from its charting & positioning having been excellent in & around most islands & all major harbours, is that it shows all possible AIS info, as well as giving both audible & visual warnings of ships likely to get too close..

We're actually sailing beautifully now with a helpful current (as I write this around noon Thursday) in NNE-N 5 (~16kn). Swell is up a bit but not too bad - only the occasional 'bash'! Expecting SW swell soon but NNE at present. Spoke to Fred on the 'Piri Piri Net' again this morning - he expects 10-20kn N/NNE wind for next two days, which would be nice...he didn't indicate what was to come after...!

Switched over to port fuel tank when st'bd one got to halfway when motoring yesterday. Need to drain a little from filter sight-glass to check it's OK before using any more - don't want to take any risks...! Yesterday, I also finally organized my second preventer line - so now have one on each side, leading to a dedicated jammer & then via a block on the quarter to a winch. Should make life easier when gybing in future.

Was sitting out this morning enjoying a lovely grapefruit in the warm sun when I had to jump to the wheel to avoid a yellow marker buoy with what looked like a transmitter aerial attached - weather or fishing...?? There seemed to be a second small buoy a short distance away downwind and we were headed directly between - didn't want to take any chances!!

Distance to go to Richards Bay at noon on Thursday: 1120 n.ml. 24 hr distances run noon-to-noon (local time) Wed & Thurs: 125 n.ml. & 130 n.ml.

2nd-4th November Back to "Nereida"(Photo: Tree ferns & mountains near Col de Fourche)
Originally uploaded by svNereida

2nd-4th November Back to "Nereida"(Photo: Tree ferns & mountains near Col de Fourche)

Over the weekend, I've provisioned, got fuel & generally been getting 'Nereida' ready for
the next leg - to South Africa, which will complete my Indian Ocean crossing. A lot of time
has been spent at the local Internet cafe, trying to get weather information (and emailing)
- not so easy when the service provider keeps going down...!!
Both Friday and Saturday, there have been people out & about at the marina relaxing - a live
band on the opposite side of the marina... lots of people playing music from their car while
they enjoy a barbecue or picnic food - all very sociable!
The winds look as though they may be rather light, but I'm hoping not to have to motor too
much. We'll see....

Life is precious - make the most of it!

Thurs 1st Nov (cont) - Patrick & son make music
Originally uploaded by svNereida

Thurs 1st Nov (cont) - Patrick & son make music

I'd met a couple along the path who were also making for Hellbourg & in chatting to them,
I'd commented about my feet giving me a problem. As the afternoon wore on, the air started
to feel very moist with the clouds being so close and finally it started spitting. To my
surprised delight, when I got to the beginning of the final section - a dirt road leading to
a steep, zig-zagging made-up road - I found them waiting for me in their car.... wonder of
wonders! How kind some people are...they'd waited in order to take me (the easy way!) down to Hellbourg and my 'gite' for the night.

Patrick, the owner of the 'gite', entertained us royally during our meal with his Creole
guitar-playing and his sons accompanied on 'tambour' (drums).. it was a very pleasant
evening in good company.

Life is precious - make the most of it!

Thurs 1st November (All Saints) - Over the Col de Fourche to Hellbourg
Originally uploaded by svNereida

Thurs 1st November (All Saints) - Over the Col de Fourche to Hellbourg

It was a beautiful clear morning, as usual here in Reunion, when I started out at 8am for
Hellbourg in the Cirque de Salizies. My route was over the Col de Fourche, rather than the
easier Col de Boeuf which would have meant a longer route... Stunning scenery and views,
lovely woods with a variety of trees and plants depending on the height ..and even steeper
paths!! I took my time and made the most of my magnificent surroundings. It was a Public
Holiday, so I occasionally met others along the way - but mostly I was by myself again, in
wild countryside - but stunning views as I climbed higher and higher.
Eventually, around midday, clouds began to form and by one o'clock it was quite grey -
absolutely normal for the mountainous area in Reunion. It was much more thickly wooded
along a lot of this route than yesterday's had been and there were plenty of birds & their
song as well as an abundance of pretty flowers and shrubs. The birds were not at all shy,
often perching very close and gazing at me... I also caught sight of a kind of hedgehog...
as well as a black rat!!

Wed 31st Oct Col de Taibit path starts here! (Cirque de Cilaos)
Originally uploaded by svNereida

Wed 31st Oct Col de Taibit path starts here! (Cirque de Cilaos)

Up early to make for the little town of Cilaos and the footpath to the Col de Taibit. The
talk the previous night was of clouds forming usually by midday on the mountains - so it was
important to get an early start if I wanted to get a good view from the top of the col
before the cloud formed. As I got to the beginning of the path, I was surprised at the
steepness of it, with logs across forming steps - little did I realize that this was to be
the norm for my next two days of hiking!!
It was certainly a tough climb and I was very happy when I came across a hut selling a
herbal infusion a short time later - I needed it!! That hut was unusual - all the rest of
my walking was along paths in otherwise virgin countryside with the occasional other hikers
met with along the way. The paths are generally well-marked, so a map wasn't needed, but I
had much further to walk than I expected and got very worried by the afternoon that I might
be stranded in the woods overnight... especially when, in crossing a river, I lost sight of
the marks for a time!!
The area I was walking in was basically made up of three huge old craters with steep walls
between them - on which were the cols I had to cross. To get from Cilaos to La Nouvelle, in
the Cirque de Mafate, I had to climb up to the Col de Taibit... and, of course, down the
other side to the tiny hamlet of Marla, after which I followed a deep ravine for quite a
way, zig-zagging down along its sides and occasionally crossing the river in its bottom....
With shoes clearly not adequate for the test I was putting them to, my toes & nails decided
they were not happy - which slowed me down rather... I eventually reached my 'gite' by
5.30pm - a very pleasant experience, meeting with others at dinner after a gorgeous, long,
hot shower. I've not slept in a dormitory for quite a number of years, so that was an
amusing experience also!!

Life is precious - make the most of it!

Tues 30th Oct - a difficult harbour entrance at lovely St Pierre
Originally uploaded by svNereida

Tues 30th Oct - a difficult harbour entrance at lovely St Pierre

To St Paul Tourist Office in morning (actually tucked away in St Gilles) to organize my
walks up in the mountains, staying at pre-booked 'gites' overnight over Wed & Thurs. The
girl in the office clearly didn't know a lot about the distances and times involved in my
proposed 'randonnees' - which would later cause me a major problem!! Then we drove down the coast to St Pierre - a lovely harbour town with a beautiful park area stretching behind the
seafront - but a difficult harbour entrance, which becomes positively dangerous in times of
SW swell. 3 fishermen died this year trying to enter in those conditions (see photo!).
Later had sundowners with English-teachers David & Martine (met in Rodrigues) by the little
harbour at St Leu before driving to their house perched high up on the mountainside, with
lovely views over the coast, for a thoroughly enjoyable dinner & evening - but late to bed!

Life is precious - make the most of it!

Mon 29th Oct Reunion west coast
Originally uploaded by svNereida

Mon 29th Oct Reunion west coast

Having settled in nicely to a slip on arrival on Sunday morning, it turned out that the slip
owners were due in at any time from Madagascar so I had to move to the now-empty visitors'
dock - with the bonus of no berthing charges & free electricity & water!! "Bowtie Lady" was
berthed adjacent to "Nereida" & we later walked into Le Port (NOT St Denis, as I'd thought!)
and, having heard that buses are not convenient for getting about the island, shared the
cost of car hire for 4 days at 100 Euros (seemed really cheap although the car was very
knocked about & in need of some basic maintenance - but it kept going OK, apart from
developing a flat tyre!).
An immediate short tour of the coast south of Le Port seemed in order - dramatic black
basalt rocky coastline somewhat reminiscent of Cornwall but not so high) alternating with
sandy beaches backed by tamarind trees. Went down to Salines-les-Bains - nice beach with
windsurfers & kitesurfers - and then back up to St-Gilles-les-Bains - little harbour crammed
with small fishing boats and with surfers off beach to north of entrance. (Had grilled fish
& chips at 'Chez Joseph' - well-known local fisherman) Took a wrong turn at one point early
on and ended up on a raised little windy road going uphill - gets rather worrying when cars
come at you at speed around bends - nowhere really to go to get out of their way without
ending up toppling over a very steep edge into a deep ditch!! Lots of motorbikers also,
overtaking at breakneck speed on the main roads, weaving in & out of the busy traffic.
It seemed very odd to me to be in such French surroundings - Reunion very recently became a 'departement' of France and switched to the Euro from the Franc - with a consequent 50% hike in living costs! A big new motorway is being built with EC funding to relieve the major traffic jams regularly encountered along the coast. The small towns and villages are a mix of gaily painted old Creole buildings, with 'gingerbread' wooden latticework adorning the facades & interesting small-paned windows, & modern French buildings & houses with many resort hotels.

Life is precious - make the most of it!