Monday Midday LT/Tahiti time (Sun 2200 GMT) Seeing big clouds ahead mid-morning, I'd furled in a bit of the genoa in case of strong winds.
As we got closer, I realised there was a major rain shower off to starboard - heavy rain. Thinking to avoid it, I changed course to go well downwind of it - or so I thought. It turned out that the wind then backed a lot under the cloud and we were now simply sailing close to the new wind direction - and the rain very slowly passed ahead of us and off to port - in a W direction... We got very little of it. The wind had increased a lot but, although quite well heeled, we were doing fine - at an excellent speed of 6-7 kt!
We drew away from the cloud amd I went below, thinking we'd got away easily and had finished with the band of rain clouds... Although there was another off to starboard, I thought it would pass astern of us as we headed N.
.... It didn't! I heard heavy rain shortly afterwards and came up to investigate. Wind was increasing rapidly under a big rain cloud and we were heeled so well that the tor-rail (upstand on the seaward side of the decks) was in the water and the stanchions kept splashing in the sea above it... We were making well over 7kt, which was great, but I was feeling very uncomfortable!
I decided I needed to ease the mainsheeet to help stop some of the heeling ... and then, still heeling a lot, went on to take in the 2nd reef in the strong wind... There are times when you just have to get on with what needs to be done! A line got caught and I had to go forward to release it... All ended well and, by the time the rain cloud had almost passed over(!), the reef was in and we were more upright - but still making around 6.5kt.
The good thing about getting wet in the Tropics is that it really doesn't matter!
After that, we truly had finished with that band of rain clouds, although there is still a lot of lighter cloud around. As we moved on away from the clouds, the wind came back to its original ENE direction (veered from its NE-NNE direction under the clouds) and we got back on course.
Now we're making a very pleasant 5-6 kt, close-hauled under sunny but cloudy skies and pounding not too badly into a 2m swell. The second reef will stay in for the time being.

3pm A band of big clouds well ahead - will keep an eye on it as we get closer but probably a few hours away.
Full genoa now, with 2nd reef in main still. Bore away a little more off wind earlier - speed was down (better now) and also, coincidentally, means we can avoid a seamount otherwise on our path. Will take a short nap before we reach those clouds.

4:45pm Happy to find the big clouds around all seem to be light grey or white - no strong rain squalls imminent just now! Having a relaxed sail just now, making around 5.5kt.
Getting my evening meal ready: shrimps with sweetcorn... simple, tasty, quick and easy with no cooking needed. It's warm enough not to need a hot meal.

11pm Bright, full moon lighting up the sky and sea - a lovely night!
Wind a lot less than earlier - only making around 4-4.5kt. Should shake out the 2nd reef but that will have to wait for daylight now, so any squalls ahead can be seen.

Tuesday 7:30am LT/Tahiti time (Tues 1700 GMT) Wind stayed fairly light overnight, with lovely bright moonlight and just a few scattered clouds. Mainly gentle conditions although pounding into occasional bigger wave from ENE. Cabin temperature is 30C/86F so I'm making good use of the small fans dotted around to give a slight breeze where I am.
Decided to wait until after breakfast (pancakes!) before possibly shaking out the second reef since the likelihood of rain squalls developing over the day is quite high and we're making a fair speed just now - around 5kt. Speed was improved by falling off the wind a little - maybe the wind had backed slightly, resulting in being too close to it before.

We're 600 miles due W now of Hiva Oa, in the Marquesas, and passed within 50 miles E of the 6 mile long atoll of Karoraina, part of the Kiribati group of islands, soon after midnight. I hear it is uninhabited and a wild life refuge, full of seabirds. There are only a few very small islands on its coral reef and its maximum height is only 25m above sea level.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 286. We made 116 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 286 (by daily DMGs): 23,252 n.ml.

Distances (at 1700GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2422 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 475 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 1921 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/16 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 09-38.95S LONGITUDE: 149-10.06W
COURSE: 015T SPEED: 4.5kt
WIND_SPEED: 12kt WIND_DIR: ENE SWELL_DIR: ENE SWELL_HT: 2.0m SWELL_PER: 5s
CLOUDS: 40% BARO: 1011.7hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 30.0C SEA_TEMP: 36.0C
COMMENT: Pleasant sailing... a bit bumpy headed into short-period swel

Sunday 10:30am LT/Tahiti time (Sun 2030 GMT) We've slowed down a lot again - now making just under 4kt in E wind under 10kt. Good to be able to make a more E course in the veered wind - heading NNE now. Bright day with a lot of cloud, so occasionally wind gusts up - but not by much, nor for long. 2m swell from two different directions - ESE and ENE.

Midday Wind up nicely - making around 6kt. Keeping an eye on our angle of heel - might need to furl in genoa if becomes too much. Plenty of clouds around still.
Have been catching up with emails and sorting through a lot of damp paper notes - from knockdown - salt keeps the paper damp despite the warmth now.

9pm Having a great sail! Wind is a bit down from an hour or so ago so we're only making around 5kt now but we're still well on course - NNE. Moon is lighting up the cloud layer, making it seem like dull daytime - twilight.

Monday 1am LT/Tahiti Time (Mon 1100 GMT) Seems the wind has backed a little and eased further - had to come off the wind and we're only making around 3.2 kt on a course of 016T - can't quite make our previous course.
Moon is still high, lighting up the scene, with far fewer clouds around now.

6am Wind up a bit as dawn approaches - first light... Making 5.4kt now on 017T, close to the wind. Band of cloud ahead on horizon but mainly clear overhead just now. Bumpy - heading into swell.

8am Bright sunny day with plenty of scattered cloud around. Wind still from ENE, or slightly more to N, so not quite able to make NNE course without losing speed, so presently making 017T - not so far off NNE.

9am Big rain clouds ahead - a band of them, in fact... Will probably have to change course in backed wind until we're through them... Furled in some genoa in readiness for possible stronger wind - a squall, maybe. Making good speed.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 285. We made 117 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 285 (by daily DMGs): 23,136 n.ml.

Distances (at 1700GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2313 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 364 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 2019 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/15 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 11-29.30S LONGITUDE: 149-47.52W
COURSE: 003T SPEED: 6.0kkt
WIND_SPEED: 17kt WIND_DIR: NE SWELL_DIR: NE SWELL_HT: 2.0m CLOUDS: 80%
BARO: 1013hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 30.0C SEA_TEMP: 36.0C
COMMENT: Good speed and course to Equator. Band of rainclouds ahead.

Saturday 11am LT/Tahiti time (Sat 2100 GMT) Wind picked up nicely early in the morning - to 10kt or more from ENE - so we were making over 5kt with full sail. Lovely to be sailing well again, in fairly calm seas, since wind hadn't been up long enough for any swell to develop - as it surely will, over the day.

Our Noddy visitor didn't stay much longer after I'd spotted it resting comfortably in the pulpit seat. I didn't see it fly away and I hope it was well rested and survives OK.

10am With some big, gusty clouds around, we were heeling a lot in increased wind, so I put in 1st reef. As I was busy winching, I heard a sudden sound - a whale had surfaced for air close by! Smooth and dark grey/black, with a fairly small, very recurved, swept back, dorsal fin. Neither a grey nor a humpback... smaller than those... and certainly not an Orca.... Minke? Exciting to see it!

11:30am Wind up to 12-15kt at times. Seas are getting up also and, being on a close reach, we're pounding into the waves now which is slowing us down - speed was suddenly less than earlier.. I've taken us a little more off the wind to keep our speed up and wonder if wind has backed a little. Running the generator for a bit to charge batteries and brought my soup in the pressure cooker up to boiling point for a few minutes - don't want it going off with the heat and no refrigeration.

Feeling quite tired after only a little sleep overnight, so will check for squalls and get to sleep for an hour or so.

2:30pm Must have slept for two hours - feeling much better. Went up into cockpit to find the Noddy is resting there - must not be feeling too good to have come back on board. Tried giving it some water but doesn't seem interested - I suspect seabirds normally get their 'drinking water' via the fish they eat.

3:45pm Our speed was down a little so bore away (off the wind) a touch - wind must be slightly more to N of ENE so we're only making NNW at just under 4kt in 9-10kt of wind - as close-hauled as possible without losing too much speed. Our preferred course is NNE and we really don't want to get any more W than can be avoided. I'm always looking ahead and the NE Trades from about 10N on have to be negotiated up to and beyond the Hawaiian Islands so staying as far E as possible on the way up to the Equator is the aim.
Sky has fewer clouds around now and swell has built up more - we're heading into it, of course, since it comes from the wind direction.

10:45pm We've slowed down a lot - now making only 3.5-4kt in lighter wind. Bright moon high overhead.

Sunday 3:30am Near-full moon is getting low in W. We're still sailing slowly in wind of only 6-7kt ... Windgen is just about turning and we've only been making round 3kt, heading just W of due N, close to the wind. Have changed course slightly to come onto due N heading - wind is forecast to be light for several more hours but then should be veering more to E, and eventually ESE, as it strengthens to 15kt over the next two days - I hope that comes about! Swell has lain down in the light wind conditions so we're just rocking slightly from side to side - time for my bunk!

8am Sky mostly covered with broken cloud and wind is still down under 10kt, so same slow progress as overnight, at 4kt or under. Wind seems a bit gusty - came up and our speed increased for a brief time, making me a bit hopeful of a faster passage, but back down now. Direction seems to be more veered, to ESE, so able to change course to 022T/NNE - better.

Sad to report our bird visitor did not survive the night - so has been committed to the deep..... Anyone able to tell me which kind of Noddy this is? Looks so very similat t a Frigate bird - same very pointed, very long, 'elbowed' wings.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 284. We made 92 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 284 (by daily DMGs): 23,019 n.ml.

Distances (at 1700GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2206 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 258 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 2119 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/14 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 13-20.10S LONGITUDE: 150-27.88W
COURSE: 022T SPEED: 4.3kt
WIND_SPEED: 10kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: NE SWELL_HT: 2.0m SWELL_PER: 5s
CLOUDS: 95% BARO: 1015.2hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 30.0C SEA_TEMP: 35.0C
COMMENT: Wind a bit gusty under cloud. Making good course NNE.

Friday midday LT/Tahiti time (Fri 2200 GMT) The clear line of cloud that stretched ahead earlier this morning from the NW horizon to the SE - marking the convergence zone where opposing light winds meet and air rises to form cloud (see yesterday's photo) - has moved well off to starboard. It does seem it has crossed over ahead of us since we're now into light 5kt W wind instead of the NE wind of yesterday and overnight
We're now headed NNW at just over 2kt under just the genoa and I must finish the mainsail repairs quickly so it can be hoisted to add to our speed.
Sky cleared overhead a short while ago and cloud is now mainly around the convergence zone with almost clear sky to port.
Wind is supposed to back slowly to SE in time but will stay light, initially, as it does so.
At least now the outlook is good for getting N...!

1:30pm Wind has really died and we're struggling to make 1 kt! Wind is supposed to be filling in by tomorrow - but not now... Another slow day...

5:15pm Sky very cloudy now with just a few breaks. Wind from W at 3-4kt - so not much of it and drifting very slowly - still only at 1kt on average.. Checked in with Pacific Seafarers Net and now getting back on deck to finish mainsail repair. Not much more stitching needed so will be good to finish what I can, so it can be hoisted.
Needing plenty of water with cabin temperature at 32C. Sunset soon.

9pm Very calm and peaceful with scene lit by moonlight.
Have birds for company - a pair appeared at sunset as I was finishing sewing of mainsail. Think they are possibly a (White-headed?) Black Noddy? - not sure - maybe someone will be kind enough to ID them for me? I'm calling them a Noddy since they look to me rather like the Black Noddy that once previously visited 'Nereida' at sea - but happy to be sent a correct name since there are probably several types of Noddy
Still sailing very slowly - now heading NW at 1.5-2 kt in wind of still only 3-4kt.

Decided to try to get my hair under control before washing it. With little time normally spent on brushing, it had taken on a bit of a Raster look in places Took quite a time to untangle it gently but, surprisingly, managed not to have to cut hardly any away - just a couple of impossibly-tangled knots. Really looking forward to a shower and hair wash soon.

3:45am Moon has just set - a deep orange ball sinking into the calm sea.
Gybed the genoa - on starboard tack now, with 6-7kt wind from SE quadrant, trying to head N, rather than NW, if possible. Still moving very slowly...
Back to my bunk for more sleep...

7am Full sail - added full main to genoa in 7-8kt of wind from ENE - making 4.2kt course 013T. Not exactly the course or speed I'd prefer but not too bad and a lot better than last few days....
Bright sun is getting warm as it gets higher in an increasingly cloudless sky and our bird visitor is not showing any sign of wanting to fly away from the comfortable perch it found on the pulpit seat. Its wings are very long for its body size (remind me of a frigate bird) and its very small black feet are webbed, like a duck. Bill must be good for getting fish - long, slender and slightly curved.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 283. We made 33 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Wind up from dawn today helped speed for a few hours.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 283 (by daily DMGs): 22,927 n.ml.

Distances (at 1700GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2140 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 168 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 2210 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/13 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 14-52.17S LONGITUDE: 150-26.54W
COURSE: 015T SPEED: 5.2kt
WIND_SPEED: 10kt WIND_DIR: ENE SWELL_DIR: E SWELL_HT: 1.0m CLOUDS: 10%
BARO: 1012.8hPa TREND: 1 AIR_TEMP: 30.0C SEA_TEMP: 35.0C
COMMENT: Wind up around dawn - full sail now - no longer becalmed!

Day 282 Thurs-Fri 11-12 July 2019 GMT Totally stalled all day - no progress N or NE possible... although some wind with overnight rain gave small NW gain.

Thursday 10:30am LT/Tahiti time (Thurs 2030 GMT) Wind 6kt from NE again - just like this time yesterday but plenty of cloud around today - rain seen falling to starboard and a hint of it on the air here. Rocking gently in very little swell. After a short time drifting due N, we're now drifting NW.
Radio propagation not so good today and we're getting further away - was fine to Polynesia but not good enough to make contact both ways with Fiji - although I could hear them well enough, they could not make out what I was saying.

Another day effectively becalmed - will work on mainsail again - particularly on a repair made at Timaru, just in from the original leech repair - it needs strengthening with more stitching.

Midday Coffee!! Not had any for a long time and decided to use the French press insert in an insulated mug. Worked fairly well and was a good substitute for the out-of-action Bialetti/Italian coffee-maker that succumbed to corrosion a while back. (The steel version was lost a few years ago, unfortunately.) Aluminium and sea air do not mix well - guaranteed corrosion will occur sooner or later. Impossible to unscrew it despite Kroil and major efforts used.
Will be looking forward to fresh milk for my tea and coffee on landfall - this particular brand of dried milk (maybe all 100% dried milk?) is definitely not recommended - despite vacuum-packing! Should have checked it out before stocking up with it and should have bought a good 'creamer' made for coffee, instead. Just does not dissolve well and sometimes makes a paste at bottom of mug - yuck! UHT/long-life milk would have worked fine but I brought a lot less with me this time.

Swell is making boat roll around quite often - tie myself to the boom using my harness and that allows me to get on quite well with the sewing needed, despite being perched quite high up on coach-roof. Patched this particular area back together with sticky sail repair tape yesterday and now I'm sewing the edges at intervals, hoping to keep the patches from coming undone, as was happening to the original ones.
Finishing a (very!) late breakfast (brunch?) before going back on deck - very overcast now - won't need to cover up quite so much. Still a light NE wind - no use for heading N-NNE, as I'd like to. ...And we're not in the Doldrums yet!!

Back on deck - repair work won't get finished if I don't keep at it. Keeping legs/arms/feet covered to be safe from burning...

2:40pm Heard Superwind starting up, turning suddenly - N wind of 7kt, gusting to 10kt, we're drifting WSW . We're right in between two dark grey rainclouds - a little rain but not much, so far. Re-installed storm screen half, just in case... Waiting to continue work on mainsail, clearing up some more, down below...

3pm Completely calm now - rainclouds seem to have dissipated, although remnants are still close by and sun trying to get out.

11pm Managed to get quite a bit done on mainsail today in between showers, although very slow progress with stitching, especially when the fair-sized swell made us really roll around at times.... Was good to strap myself into the boom for some of the work - helped a lot.
Heavy rain just now but no sails up to take advantage of the wind it brought - thinking of unfurling the genoa to try to do just that, although wind usually dies once the rain stops.

Need to get away from this calm patch - if we can't, we could be trapped here for several more days..

Midnight Rain stopped a short while ago but wind still around 10kt from NNE-NE - so full genoa was unfurled and we're now underway - sailing...! Not very fast and main yet to be hoisted (wasn't expecting to hoist it since still being repaired). Headed NW at around 4kt, trying to escape this calm patch, if at all possible. We'll see how well that plan works out...
To sleep now - might have a disturbed night...

4:30am So very difficult to sail close to the wind, especially at night, without a display showing wind direction. The genoa luffed up and then we went around in light wind. I thought maybe we were now in wind from SSW, as in a forecast for our position that I'd seen earlier, instead of NE, so tried gybing around onto port tack... All to no avail... After some time, we're back pretty well on same course, on starboard tack, as before - but slightly more to W - off the wind more, possibly... Now making 295T, instead of the hoped-for 335T which is clearly too close to the present wind which must be roughly NNE, or maybe it has backed slightly, and gone more to N.
Back to my bunk for more sleep... Another couple of hours to sunrise.... Lots of bright stars and a little cloud around, but no moon.

7:20am Bright sunlight now. Wind has now shifted to SW but query, very light - blades of Superwind (wind generator) are not turning at all. Gybed the sail and we're trying to make NNW but difficult holding course in such a light wind.

8am Wind has dropped to 4-5kt - seems we're back to drifting in little wind again. AP cannot hold a course when our speed is under 1kt so we're drifting around in light SW wind. Genoa was not filling, so furled it in and must see to mainsail repair... Need still to stitch in a few places at edges of sail repair tape that was stuck in place yesterday, so it can be hoisted later to help our speed next time we get underway.

Clear line of cloud ahead from NW horizon to SE - convergence zone where opposing light winds meet and air rises to form cloud - see photo. It's supposed to be drifting SE and, at some point in time over next two days (I hope!), we'll end up on its other side and get SE wind finally - to make our getaway N. On reflection, maybe we just crossed over...?

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 282. We made just 25 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. More than 16ml overnight in wind after rain helped DMG - drifted in almost no wind rest of day

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 282 (by daily DMGs): 22,894 n.ml.

Distances (at 1700GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2125 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 135 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 2242 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/12 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 15-23.80S LONGITUDE: 150-15.19W
COURSE: 115T SPEED: 0.7kt
WIND_SPEED: 4kt WIND_DIR: NW SWELL_DIR: NE SWELL_HT: 2.0m CLOUDS: 90%
BARO: 1013.5hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 30.0C SEA_TEMP: 34.0C
COMMENT: Drifting again after sailing NW under genoa o'night, in wind after rain. Convergence line of cloud just ahead.

Quite a pronounced swell, so very rolly at times. Almost no wind and sea is very glassy-looking, with very smooth, big ripples.
Main has been lowered ready for repair - head of sail is looking rather sorry with several other holes/tears seen - all in need of dealing with and will keep me busy all day, I think.

Wednesday 1:30pm LT/Tahiti time (Wed 2330 GMT) Wind 5-6kt from NE - just died away to nothing again... Hot under clear blue sky. Protected by long cotton trousers, cotton socks, long-sleeved top plus floppy hat, sunscreen and sunglasses - everything is covered except for lower part of my face and my hands - and back of those have sunscreen also!

Came back down for water and to cut fabric for 'tabling'. Have been patching up the mainsail in different places so far today - lots needing attention - tears and holes... Slow progress.

Have taped up along the leech tear on both sides to hold the torn edges of sail cloth together - now need to sew the tabling into place - over both sides and around the leech edge. Often quite rolly still so not a quick and easy job to carry out.

2.25pm No wind - wind generator blades are still. Tabling measured and cut... edges heat sealed... Need to get on deck to sew in place - using double-sided narrow, sticky tape to help hold in position while sewing.

5:25pm Down below to radio for a very quick PacSeaNet check-in and drink of water.
Mainsail repair of leech tear nearly finished - must get back up on deck while there's still daylight - sun is getting low!

6:45pm So very peaceful out here, with no sound at all except occasionally from sea. Feels amazing. Finished sewing 'tabling' material around leech of head of mainsail to repair tear there. Had to use a headlamp - ran out of daylight after a lovely sunset with almost no cloud. Was trying to sew as much as possible while there was still light, so missed taking the sunset photo I'd intended. If tomorrow brings same very light wind from NE, I can do some more sewing - of patches I've added to places elsewhere on the sail - far better with stitching reinforcing the sticky-backed sail repair tape used.

Checked the weather - looks as though light NE wind will continue tomorrow - so further repairs and other jobs likely to be dealt with.

Seeing NE wind of around 8kt just now - unbelievably, that is a headwind for sailing NNE. No point in getting underway since can't make a course anywhere near the direction I'd like to go - possible choices would be ESE or NW, neither of which is attractive.

Thursday 3:30am Very dark night - no moon - with pleny of stars and just a little cloud. Drifting W at 0.5kt - so must be slight E wind? Peaceful. Wind generator blades hardly turning so wind under 6-7kt. AIS scfeen showing Huahine to be lying about 95 miles to SE. Papeete, on Tahiti, is about 115 miles due S. Feeling thirsty - water, then back for more sleep... Rocking gently in swell.

7:25am Light cloud layer overhead and covering most of sky, but edge is not far away - to S and W. Rocking gently in very little swell and almost no wind. What little wind there is seems to be only 3kt from E. Interestingly, our drift has now changed for the last mile to due N, rather than averaging due W since yesterday.
Another day becalmed - will work on mainsail again - a repair made at Timaru, just in from the original leech repair, needs srengthening with more stitching - looking very unhappy.

Had a very deep sleep - I was very tired after very little sleep the night before and then up before dawn to get on with work.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 281. We made just 10 n.ml. DMG, drifting all day, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 281 (by daily DMGs): 22,869 n.ml.

Distances (at 1700GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2131 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 117 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 2260 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/11 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 15-37.16S LONGITUDE: 149-53.22W
COURSE: 310T SPEED: 0.9kt
WIND_SPEED: 6kt WIND_DIR: NE SWELL_DIR: SE SWELL_HT: 1.8m CLOUDS: 60%
BARO: 1015.7hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 30.0C SEA_TEMP: 34.0C
COMMENT: Drifting still - 10 ml over y'day. More work on mainsail

Day 280 Tues-Wed 9-10 July 2019 GMT Light wind becomes even lighter overnight - drifting around in no wind by sunrise.

Tuesday 10am LT/Tahiti time (Tues 2000 GMT) Was excellent when we finally got away from the Tahiti wind shadow around midnight, heading N and making well over 6kt in 19kt wind from ESE, with full genoa and one reef in main... It's been a time since enjoying sailing so well in relatively calm seas!

Shook out first reef in light wind earlier - wind is down to 6-7kt from ESE now, so we're only making 3.6 kt. Feeling very warm - cabin temp just hit 30C and seawater temp is 35C. Sunny day with just 10% fluffy white clouds around. Seems we're expecting light wind conditions for a couple of days more so I'll be able to continue clearing up down below and getting on with a few small jobs - including quite a backlog of emails waiting to be replied to.

Still managing to make contact on the Fiji area South Pacific Net - getting further away and better at end of Net than at beginning - propagation improves over even that short time. Have had to give up on contact with NZ/Aus on 40m/7MHz in the mornings, although still managing occasionally on the 20m Tony's Net. Evening contacts are far better - especially to N.America, with Aus/NZ also working well then on 40m.

Warm enough on deck now for a possible deck shower - looking forward to that! Running generator and watermaker in readiness.

4pm A lovely relaxing day with bright sun, a few clouds and a 2m SE swell - all very gentle and I feel as though I'm on holiday! Time to clear up slowly, re-organize things, dry out damp clothing, check on food, .... Lots of breathing space!

Have full sail out so can't go any faster than the wind permits - which, at 6-7kt from SE just now, isn't very fast - around 3kt. I can hear the soothing gurgling of the water on the hull as it passes by.

Just took down one half of my storm screen - gives more air flow to down below and can quickly be put back if needed.

Also dug out two big vacuum-packed beach towels and a few other small towels/face flannels for use in these hot conditions. Use a beach towel on my bunk when it gets hot and need the small flannels when leaning on paper (logbook etc) when I'm hot and sticky - lean on them on top of the page instead, so keeps paper of logbook pages dry.

5am Wednesday (Wed 1500 GMT) Glassy smooth sea surface with stars reflecting in it - Orion upside down, as usual, his head getting low in E sky.

Turned off the autopilot and furled in the genoa - less wear on it than if left to flap around and flog in the 2-3kt of wind and rolling around in the swell.

Back to my bunk for more sleep - will lower mainsail in daylight, if this wind, or lack of it, continues after dawn, as I expect it will. Seems possible that the mainsail repair will be seen to in the morning...

6am Dawn beginning to break - first light - sunrise not too far away... Increasing orange light in the E sky reflected in the deep rippled blue of the ocean...

6:45am Sunrise a short while ago - sky has very few clouds so I'll need to cover up for deck work. Quite a pronounced swell, so rather rolly - at times very much so... Almost no wind and sea very glassy-looking although plenty of big ripples.

Main has been lowered ready for repair - head of sail looking rather sorry with several other holes/tears seen - all in need of dealing with. This will be a busy day.

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 280. We made just 43 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Very light wind a lot of the time, resulting in a lot of drifting at 1-2kt.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 280 (by daily DMGs): 22,859 n.ml.

Distances (at 1700GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2138 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 114 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 2264 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/07/10 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 15-38.63S LONGITUDE: 149-42.32W

COURSE: 294T SPEED: 0.9kt

WIND_SPEED: 2kt WIND_DIR: E SWELL_DIR: E SWELL_HT: 1.8m CLOUDS: 10%

BARO: 1015.9hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 30.0C SEA_TEMP: 34.0C

COMMENT: Drifting in SE 2kt. Mainsail lowered for repair today.

Monday 3pm LT/Tahiti time (Tues 0100 GMT) Warm and humid but sun mostly hidden under cloud coming off Moorea, so not too much danger of getting burnt while working on deck.

Suddenly noticed quite a large flying fish behind the steering wheel that must have flown on board overnight - bit enough to eat but now rather dried up.
Have repaired a couple of small tears on mainsail where access was easy since where stowed on boom near cockpit; re-did lashing at top of pole holding down, and stopping from turning, the antenna and radar mount; with difficulty, due to corrosion of parts, changed over propane tanks for galley cooker supply (two attempts, since flow stopped very soon after finally managed to connect up first tank, so maybe it was empty); stowed spinnaker pole. ...All the time, keeping us safe from drifting onto the reef not so far away to W.

Also prepared for sail repair - now ready to lower mainsail for access to head of sail where problem lies. We seem to be sailing/drifting NW-N now in a light SSE wind that has not long kicked in, so I'm feeling fairly confident we won't get any closer to the reef - still under 4 miles away to E - not far but drift is in a good direction to stay clear.

3:20pm Rain! Just what I didn't want since I was just about to stick sail repair tape over leech tear in mainsail before covering it all with some fabric 'tabling' using some burgundy-coloured material used normally for the UV-strip on the furling sails. Feeling pretty frustrated with today's events - was taken in direction of reef in virtually no wind and so have spent a lot of time trying to keep us away from it. We frequently ended up going around in a circle with such light wind and so I often had to jumo to the wheel, trying to get us to head SW or W when that looked like the only safe option - but all at very little speed since wind has been so very light, as well as it being highly shifty. I steered to anywhere we could actually hold a course for a time, so long as it took us away from the reef direction!

3:35pm 10-14kt of E wind under rain cloud - so we're making 3kt NNE. Having to keep watch for other boats - sailing yachts and small fishing vessels - several around.

5:30pm Wind died to 4-7kt with seas from E at 1.5m. Probably still in lee of Moorea and also of Tahiti. Sun setting soon, so decided to get underway since not able to do sail repair today - another day...

Feeling tired and hungry so will get a meal while still some daylight and hope to get to sleep early tonight - except need to keep an eye out for local traffic - a lot between the islands - a mix of ferries, fishing vessels and sailing yachts.

9pm Waxing crescent moon high up. A few clouds but mainly a starry sky. Struggling to keep course in just 7-9 kt of ESE wind - in lee of Tahiti and Moorea still. Enjoyed hot beef stew with green beans and sweetcorn - now to bunk - very tired after disturbed sleep last night and up very early this morning.

Tuesday 12:40am (Tues 1040 GMT) We're well out of the Tahiti wind shadow (lee) now - headig N and making well over 6kt in 19kt wind from ESE, with full genoa and one reef in main... Sailing very well.... lovely!

8am Bright blue sky with 9kt E wind, making 4.3 kt just E of N (004T). Speed down in lighter wind after excellent overnight sail - need to shake out first reef before breakfast. Checked in to Polynesia Magellan Net (PolyMagNet) - good to chat to cruisers in and around French Polynesia.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 279. We made 72 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Not too bad - made good speed once underway, especially after midnight, after stopped near Moorea all day for jobs needed.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 279 (by daily DMGs): 22,816 n.ml.

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2105 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 71 n.ml. to S; Honolulu: 2306 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/09 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 16-21.93S LONGITUDE: 149-43.01W
COURSE: 000T SPEED: 4.5kt
WIND_SPEED: 10kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: ESE SWELL_HT: 1.8m CLOUDS: 10%
BARO: 1015.2hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 29.0C SEA_TEMP: 34.0C
COMMENT: Wind getting light - SOG down.Full sail. Bright sun. Calm sailing!

Sunday 11am LT (Sun 2100 GMT) A lot of cloud around still but sun getting out well - cabin temperature is now 27C/80F. Seas still big - but they're expected to die down slowly over today and tomorrow, with the lighter wind. Still getting decks washed by occasional tumbling wave.
Changed course slightly a short while ago - to 011T, to head a bit closer to Moorea in case there's a possibility of making use of its lee for mainsail repair (leech torn near the head, above repaired sections which are looking fine, so far). That depends on timing, since can't easily do the work in darkness (nor in any fair-sized swell) and expect to pass by the island near to, or just before, dawn tomorrow.
About to run generator - really only to run water-maker which runs on 12V and so runs off batteries, but I prefer not to run down the batteries if I can avoid it.
Looking forward to more sleep soon...

5:30pm Sun is getting close to sunset - bright but hazy deep yellow glare of sun behind low cloud in W. Seas are a little less than previously - nearer 3.5m/11ft than the 4-4.5m/14ft of yesterday - and they're not so rough, so a little bit easier to move around now.
Got really busy in galley earlier - eventually finished clearing everything left over from last few rough days. Got going on preparing a meal - and then suddenly remembered - no propane coming to galley burners just now - need to change propane tanks over for gas to supply line to galley - so hurried change of plan... Ended with quick and easy shrimps with mayonnaise, having had to throw overboard a can of tuna I'd opened but quickly realised was no good - so I fed the fishes!
Had a good nap and have just changed into shorts and T-shirt - Yay!! I'm definitely feeling warm now and often turn on the small fan over the chart table - nice to get a slight breeze there with cabin at nearly 28C/82F.

8pm The HF/SSB radio is so good for making contact with people! Tonight I was delighted to be able to chat to friends from two different boats - one of which I'd not seen for 3 years or more but suddenly heard their boat name mentioned by someone else - so we ended up making contact. Another friend sent greetings from California via a boat on a cruisers' Net I'm checking into daily just now, having heard I was here. All would have been impossible without the radio on board - no satphone could have possibly enabled those three unexpected contacts! I'm also chatting daily to amateur radio friends... Am I lonely? Not at all!

10pm Cloud has mostly cleared away to give bright stars everywhere... The moon is shining brightly over the sea - its path of silver light leading to Nereida across the waves.
I've been trying to slow us down while heading more towards Moorea - a contradiction since either we can slow down but not get as close or we can go faster to stand more chance of making our upwind course and getting closer in - difficult both to slow down and still sail close to the wind to a point just NW of Moorea... So I'm not very optimistic that my plan to repair the mainsail leech tear in the lee of Moorea and Tahiti will work out - 50/50 chance at best, maybe. I'll know better come dawn - not just from our position then but also from seeing both the sea state and also the wind direction and strength.
If the sail can't be repaired now, it will have to wait for another time when the wind will have died down along with the seas - in or close to the Doldrums/ITCZ perhaps? That's some distance away.
Time to sleep with alarm set...

11:30pm Really being thrown around by seas - wind has died down a bit but seas take a lot longer...

Monday 6:15am LT/Tahiti time (Mon 1615 GMT) First light before sunrise. We're stopped 9ml SW of NW corner of Moorea and just over 10 ml due W of S end of the island. Wind 4-5kt from ESE - not enough to keep sailing on course... About to furl in genoa and lower mainsail to try to repair tear(s) - sunrise shortly - will cover up my legs and arms from the sun...

6:40am Sunrise over Moorea to E... Drifting and going around in circles with wheel lashed, looking over sail - a couple of more small tears seen on sail stowed on boom near cockpit - easy access to patch them but sail damp at present.

7am Wind has got up again - 8-10kt from ESE. Unfurled genoa and have just got underway again in direction of point well NW of Moorea, hoping for less swell and less wind, so a better lee than here - not very good so far, with quite a good swell running, making it very rolly. Making around 3kt. Fingers crossed...

8:30am Wind didn't last long - died again and we're drifting a bit too close towards to the reef for comfort while only 3-4 ml off. Can't possibly get on with work until I'm sure we're clear of the reef... Creeping at under 1 kt so will take a time...
Maybe I can begin to get other, smaller jobs done in the meantime.
Just not feeling at all comfortable although I think we'll clear it OK if our course stays the same - but just a bit too close for comfort... keep thinking: what if our course while drifting 'not under command' changes more towards the E...?
Can see small fishing boats on AIS outside the reef - mostly moving very little while they fish. A lot of hazy, thin cloud spreading out from Moorea's interior and high mountains but fairly bright. Warm and humid.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 278. We made 96 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Slow for several hours this morning.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 278 (by daily DMGs): 22,744 n.ml.

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 2047 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 23 n.ml. to E; Honolulu: 2372 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/08 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 17-32.60S LONGITUDE: 149-59.36W
COURSE: 030T SPEED: 1.5kt
WIND_SPEED: 5kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: ESE SWELL_HT: 1.5m CLOUDS: 50%
BARO: 1015.6hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 28.0C SEA_TEMP: 33.0C
COMMENT: Drifting W of NW pt of Moorea, 4 ml off.

Saturday 1pm LT (Sat 2300 GMT) Bright sunny day with seas and winds still well up. I'm hoping we don't get the 30kt winds forecast earlier today and they stay instead to the E of here, over the Tuamotus, not reaching here. There's a Low forming there with heavy rain and winds from all different directions, depending on where exactly the centre is in relation to the person looking.

About to have some pancakes - another 'Tropics' celebration! Then maybe short 'catch up' sleep.

4pm The pancakes were just great! Not too much Nutella this time and a fair amount of raspberry sauce worked really well - not too rich, not too sweet, but very tasty. It got a bit difficult cooking them heeled over so very often - wave interval is down to every 6 seconds and the faces are very steep so we're really rolling about a lot. So eventually, I furled in a small amount more of the genoa to make the cooking easier. It was nice to be doing 6kt or more, in 25-27kt wind, but we're still making over 5 kt - in less wind, in fact - a lull?

Just as I was finishing cooking the last pancake, I realised the gas had gone out... The propane supply to the galley had run out and the tank needs changing - another job added to the list for when it calms down a bit. In the meantime, I've plenty of canned food that doesn't need cooking - good for warm climates, in fact!

8pm Finished a short while ago with several evening radio Nets - the airwaves get busy with darkness falling and radio propagation changing!

Will have a meal, get some sleep and then come up on 7163 just after midnight tonight - and then get back to sleep...

Sunday 2.45am Missed te 7163 sched - just too tired to make it. Wind has gusted up to 25-30kt - raining... seas big and rough. Wind must have backed more towards ENE so we're having trouble making our course - too close to wind now so came off wind 5 degrees - better, although still a bit close. Making just over 5kt, slightly E of N. Hopefully, we'll get back on course after rain squall passes.. Oops! A big wave crashes over noisily and we lurch and heel over to port as water washes over everywhere on deck...

Nothing more to be done - back to my bunk...

4:15am Dark still. Wind has dropped to under 20kt, and our speed with it, after gusting in showers to near 30kt. We're struggling to keep a course just E of N at around 4kt in what looks to be a backed wind in the showers. Not getting a lot of sleep tonight... Needing to keep checking and making adjustments to avoid luffing up (getting too close to the wind).

8:15am Bright daylight. Wind must have veered just enough so at a better angle now, from ESE again, and we're making our course without a problem - in fact, changed course slightly to 011T to head closer to Moorea in case a possibility of making use of its lee for a mainsail repair - depends on timing, since can't work in darkness too easily! A lot of cloud around now but sun getting out well. Seas still big - hoping they'll die down over today, as wind eases.

Looking forward to more sleep soon...

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 277. We made 112 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 277 (by daily DMGs): 22,648 n.ml.

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1965 n.ml. to SW; Papeete, Tahiti: 104 n.ml. to NNE; Honolulu: 2455 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/07/07 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 19-04.24S LONGITUDE: 150-29.52W

COURSE: 009T SPEED: 5.0kt

WIND_SPEED:19kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: E SWELL_HT: 4.0m CLOUDS: 80%

BARO: 1016.1hPa TREND: 1 AIR_TEMP: 26.4C SEA_TEMP: 32.1C

COMMENT: Seas still big but wind eased a bit. Course change now to 011T

Day 276 Fri-Sat 5-6 July 2019 GMT Tropic of Capricorn crossed - we're in the Tropics - but big, rough seas and strong Maramu wind continue.

Friday 8am LT (1800 GMT) Took a couple of photos in quick succession, and a video, of the big , impressively rough seas that keep picking us up and throwing us about as they come onto our beam.

3pm Every so often, it has calmed down a bit and I wonder if I should unfurl some more genoa - but then it soon gusts up again to near 30kt and I realise that would be a bad idea.

During a short lull in the wind, I got out some nice snacks to celebrate reaching the Tropics - crab pate on crackers, black Kalamata olives and (Saltspring!) feta cheese. All enjoyed seated safely on the leeward settee/bunk ...while the sky clouded over and it rained after a morning of bright sunshine. It's been rough now for so many days, I've lost count... and seas are set to continue tossing us around at just over 4m for another two days at least, with E-SE wind of 25-30 kt, as well.

The best, safest place to be is on or in my bunk - moving around the heeled, ever-lurching boat in these very big,rough seas is difficult, so kept to a minimum.

We passed Rurutu 15 miles off at mid-morning in bright sun and very big seas that regularly broke over the decks and washed over the hard top. I tried to avoid crossing directly over a seamount that was exactly in our path to the SE of the island because they usually generate rough seas in any bad weather - so maybe the seas were that much bigger around there, despite our detour.

We're now on our way towards Tahiti and Moorea - 2-3 days away.

About to have a short nap before Pacific Seafarers Net check-in at 0310Z (5:10pm LT)

Sunset Soon after dark, just caught a glimpse of the setting crescent moon as it peeked out from behind low cloud in the W.
Was thinking, yet again, about unfurling the genoa some more - but then the wind gusted up, so changed my mind... It's been really gusty today - and not obviously due to clouds passing overhead.

Finally discarded the last fleece tops! Even felt warm enough this evening to switch on a small fan at the chart table to cool down a touch. We're in the Tropics for sure now, with sea temperature well up and nearing 30C/86F - a lot higher than air temperature.

11pm It's just possible that the wind might be lessening. Boat speed has been down a lot this evening, although wind has still been gusting up to near 30kt from time to time. Tempted to unfurl just a small amount more genoa. (Later - wind well up again with rain - glad I didn't!)
Have had a nice celebratory evening - relaxed to music, with a ready-prepared meal plus a tiny amount of red wine and some chocolate afterward. Also enjoyed chatting to quite a few different people on ham radio (Canada, Australia, New Zealand and USA) and cruiser Nets in Fiji and French Polynesia.

Really pleased with the main batteries - not only are they now accepting plenty of charge when I run the diesel generator (which I've not needed to do for three days now) but also, with Superwind wind generator's big input in present strong wind, voltage is regularly over 13V - excellent!

Saturday 5am LT (1500 GMT) Wind is still up around 24kt or more, and we're making 4-5 kt under a dark sky - no moon to light up the scene just now. Bouncing around with occasional wave breaking onto starboard side deck - a lot of noise and a lurch to port...

6:45am Daylight - just before sunrise with quite a lot of cloud around, some of it a thin layer. Seas are impressively big at over 4m - a lot of them at 4-5 seconds interval with a few at 8 seconds interval. Most seem to be coming from E, with some smaller ones from ESE-SE, so making for rough seas, moving us around a lot and still occasionally washing the decks as one catches our beam. Wind is from E - still mainly at well over 20kt, gusting to over 25kt. We're heading just E of N (009T) so rather heading into the seas and apparent wind, which slows us down. Sea temperature has risen to just over 30C/86F and cabin/air temp is 23C.

7:15am Sun has got out from behind low clouds. Seas have frequent large foam patches on their surface from where a crest was tumbling and breaking a little - nothing too threatening. Pressure has been slowly dropping over recent days and has now reached 1018hPa - well down on the high of last week.
Unfurled more genoa - finally! Wind is around 20kt mostly and speed has been nearer 4kt than 5kt - now making 4.5kt. If wind stays down will shake out the third reef but will check latest weather forecast first.
Was pleased to see the main halyard is not caught around a mast step, as I thought yesterday - either I was mistaken or it freed itself. Either way, it's good news and a big relief.

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 276. We made 111 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 276 (by daily DMGs): 22,536 n.ml.

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1887 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 202 n.ml. to NNE; Honolulu: 2562 n.ml. to NNW

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/06 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 20-53.56S LONGITUDE: 150-46.28W
COURSE: 009T SPEED: 5.3kt
WIND_SPEED: 24kt WIND_DIR: E SWELL_DIR: E SWELL_HT: 4.2m CLOUDS: 80%
BARO: 1018.9hPa TREND: 0 AIR_TEMP: 24.7C SEA_TEMP: 30.2C
COMMENT: Seas still impressively big and rough. Sunny despite cloud.

Thursday 11:15am LT (Thursday 2115 GMT) Ship's clock now changed two hours forward to Tahiti time from New Zealand time, so our local time (LT) is now ten hours behind GMT/UTC, instead of twelve hours ahead, and we're back into Thursday 4th July - a repeated day! Glad to have been keeping a regular note of GMT time/date - avoids confusion.

Bright, sunny day with plenty of cloud around. Wind has been up a little since sunrise and it got pretty rough again - being well tossed around, just as this time yesterday.

12:30pm Feeling quite tired so going to lie down for a short sleep, having spent quite a time checking weather and our likely course over next week or so, insofaras made possible by forecast winds.

Made another course change - to 016T, towards Iles Australes, passing Rurutu tomorrow, and then on to pass just W of Tahiti and Moorea early next week. Original plan was to pass E of Tahiti but E winds forecast when getting closer make that likely to be untenable, so I'm playing safe by passing W instead, giving a better wind angle and avoiding the problem of possibly getting too close to a lee shore.

3pm Pleasant sailing conditions in bright sunshine with small white clouds scattered around. Swell not too often wetting side decks and gusts occurring less often but wind still well up at 22-25kt, so making good speed, although always heeled over.

10pm Keep thinking I should let out some of the genoa I furled in around sunset, ready for overnight - but then see wind still well up around 24kt so think better of it.

11:25pm Unfurled the headsail (genoa) a small amount more - our speed kept dropping enough that our course suffered. With just a little more boat speed, easier to keep to a course... To my bunk, with alarm set to check on our course - we're approaching the Austral atolls so I need to keep a good eye on where we're headed.

Friday 5am LT (Fri 1500 GMT) Dark night with sky a mix of mainly hazy stars with some cloud, no moon visible. Going well... adjusted our course to come slightly more off the wind - presently from ESE at 20-23kt.

Two tiny specs of red show on the AIS 'night mode' screen where Rurutu and Tubuai lie in relation to us - one is 36ml to NNW, the other is 90 ml to ESE. On course now for a waypoint well off Moorea - several days away still.

7:30am Bright, sunny day with plenty of white cloud around and seas still tossing us around quite often. Heeling to 25 kt, gusting 29kt, ESE wind.

8am Passing small atoll of Rurutu but it's too low and far away to see it.

Decided to take in 3rd reef, with wind gusting to 30kt again - but halyard caught on a mast step near top as sail was dropped... Will need to head up and release halyard more to sort it out - but waiting until finished diverting past a seamount upwind just now - sea depth changes rapidly nearby from well over 6,000m to just 600m in a few miles. With already rough seas, it's likely to become even rougher close to the underwater peak - probably another old volcano.

9am Just realised .... we've officially passed into the Tropics - now being well N of the Tropic of Capricorn since our latitude is now 22d 40'S. Must celebrate that today - party time... if it calms down a bit! With weather forecast showing these conditions not improving until Sunday at earliest, might have to postpone the party for a time but enjoying party snacks of 'special foods' can still go ahead and was delighted to open some mango juice to have with my breakfast this morning - highly appropriate!

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 9 a.m. LT = Tahiti time) - end of Day 275. We made 120 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. A better day's run again... nice to see!

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 275 (by daily DMGs):22,425 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1801 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 310 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 90 n.ml. to ESE; Rurutu (Iles Australes):21 n.ml. to NE.

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/07/05 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 22-44.49S LONGITUDE: 151-02.48W

COURSE: 352T SPEED: 5.2kt

WIND_SPEED: 23kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: ESE SWELL_HT: 4.0m CLOUDS: 40%

BARO: 1022.8hPa TREND: 0 AIR_TEMP: 23.0C SEA_TEMP: 28.0C

COMMENT: Diverted to avoid seamount - back on 016T soon

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY to my US friends!

Thursday 9am NZT (Wed 2100 GMT) The wind was up in a gust to over 20kt but we're now creeping along in wind that has died down to 8-10kt, waiting for it to come back up. Today's forecast is a repeat of the last few days - SE-ESE at 20-25kt - so we're getting yet another 'cloud effect' in the present mainly cloudy conditions, it seems. Very frustrating - we're either under-canvassed in the lulls or just about coping OK in the gusts. Would be really nice to get more consistent winds to give better daily DMGs. Feeling the boat accelerate again as i write this, as we come into another gust and heel to the increase in wind...

Sunset and sunrise are getting increasingly early in the NZT (New Zealand Time) that I've kept to for some time now but it's very convenient being exactly 12hrs different from GMT and nice to be a day ahead! The next time change coming up is to Tahiti (French Polynesia) Time and will mean a 2hr change (to GMT-10hr) and 'losing' a day.

We're presently approaching French Polynesia so tomorrow I'll make the change - we'll be repeating 4th July!! It's one good reason to keep track of Nereida's date in GMT - that way it's clear what the date/time is, so there's no confusion.

3:30pm NZT Sun has just set - not much cloud around except on horizons now and it has been less rough today - feels more comfortable but still have to be careful moving around with the 4m/13ft swell.

5pm Wind up - gusting to 26kt, with possibility of gusting higher - so furled in some genoa to reduce excessive heeling.

A beautiful night - sky is so full of bright stars without the moon to dim them. Spent a time gazing around, listening to the noise of the wind in the rigging and then enjoying the night sky some more before retreating to the relative calm of the cabin. Surprising how much quieter it is down below, even with the hatch open to the cockpit - the storm screen clearly cuts down the noise a lot.

There's a lot of motion from the swell which does its usual job of tossing us around a lot in these increased conditions. Heading into the wind and seas, or being on a beam reach, resulting in beam seas, makes such a big difference compared with running downwind, which would feel quite pleasant by comparison.

Just got hit by a wave which broke over the coachroof and on to the port side deck - the result of big beam seas.... Glad I wasn't in the cockpit just then!

11:30pm Had a good radio session starting at 1030Z on 7163kHz with Jim, WB2REM, and other radio friends either directly over the HF rdio or partly using a cellphone 'patch' to Jim's remote. Lots of 'Happy Holidays!" exchanged.

Sky is dark and full of bright stars - no moon in sight.

Unfurled a bit more genoa - wind seems to be 20kt, maybe just under.

Friday 6am NZT (Thurs 1800 GMT) Wind up a little since sunrise - pretty rough again - being well tossed around. Made a course change last night - to around 030T now. Headed towards Iles Australes, just over a day away - good news since it means we should pass them in good daylight. Not sure I'll be close enough to see anything - they're small, low-lying atolls.

About to change ship's clock from New Zealand time to Tahiti time - 2hrs forward and one day back - so this change of local time puts us back into Fourth July a second time!!

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 7 a.m. NZT) - end of Day 274. We made 111 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Better!

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 274 (by daily DMGs):22,305 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1707 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 431 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 140 n.ml. to NE; Rurutu (Iles Australes):129 n.ml. to NNE.

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/07/04 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 24-39.84S LONGITUDE: 151-39.80W

COURSE: 031T SPEED: 5.5kt

WIND_SPEED: 23kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: ESE SWELL_HT: 4.0m CLOUDS: 30%

BARO: 1025hPa TREND: 0 AIR_TEMP: 21.0C SEA_TEMP: 28.0C

COMMENT: Wind gusted up at sunrise; being tossed around more than overnight

HAPPY JULY FOURTH to my US friends!

from

Jeanne (VE0JS/KC2IOV) on board "Nereida"

Wednesday 2:30pm NZT (Tues 0230GMT) I felt very fortunate to be able to see most of the major part of the solar eclipse this morning - there was cloud around the sun but, especially close to sunrise, I was able to see a good amount of the sun in darkness - at 5:45am NZT, over 2/3 was covered (top down) and, by 6:30am NZT, the lower right hand portion of the sun was obscured - just under 1/4. Then the sun disappeared behind a long line of grey cloud.

I was about to write about the small white fluffy clouds seen around midday and how nice it was not to have any rain clouds in sight ... and here we are back in a band of rain clouds... Wind is gusting up to 30kt, as it seems to do every time under the clouds (and often away from them) and seas are consistently 4m/13ft and really close together. At just a 5-6 second interval, they get very steep-faced and toss us around so we heel over a lot as we go up and down on them. None of which is made any better by beating into the strong wind and seas, trying to make a NE course in the ESE wind. The Maramu wind is making itself felt and will be around for a few more days yet. If the forecast is correct, conditions might have eased a little in 4 days' time.

Was lovely to catch sight of a pair of birds flying very close together, keeping pace with each other exactly as they wheeled around astern of Nereida - a courtship ritual?

Every so often, the sky clears to a deep clear blue with a bright sun and I really feel we're getting closer to the Tropics... The Tropic of Capricorn is not too far off now - about two and a half days away, near Tubuai, the first of the Austral group of islands. Sea temperature has risen to 25.8C/78F and the air is consistently over 20C/68F now. Pressure is very high, at 1030hPa.

3:30pm Sun is almost ready to set. Seas and wind are well up - 25kt with 30kt gusts - and we're heeled over... then there'll be another lull - down to 20kt. It gets very difficult to move around and function normally when the seas are so rough like this so much of the time.

Thursday 2:15am NZT (Wed 1415GMT) Speed had dropped well down so, with no big clouds around to cause the drop in speed, unfurled a fair amount of genoa to try to speed us up. Had also tried to adjust our course before that, being well downwind of our planned course, but seems we were actually heading fairly close to the wind already so that didn't work - wind has clearly backed a little more so we're now headed closer to Rurutu than to Tubuai. Might have to furl in the genoa again if wind picks up but it seems to have dropped to below 20kt just now.

Southern Cross 'pointers' are low astern, off to starboard, and stars are strewn across the sky - very little cloud to be seen. I spent some time enjoying the night scene in the gentler conditions Back to my bunk....

6am It's very nice to chat daily with cruisers in Polynesia and Fiji/Tonga on their daily radio Nets. They're mostly in places I've cruised to previously so it's good to hear them - brings back happy memories of my time spent where they are now!

6:40am NZT The wind just got up to 25kt (a cloud was close by), after being just under 20kt for a time, so we were suddenly speeding along and heeled over - but the extra genoa I unfurled overnight was not a problem, I was relieved to see. But now, wind has died right down and we're creeping along at 2.5kt, waiting for it to come back up - forecast is for winds of 20-25kt today so what we're experiencing is yet another 'cloud effect', it seems. Very frustrating - we're either under-canvassed in the lulls or just about coping OK in the gusts - resulting in a low daily DMG. Would be really nice to get a more consistent wind so as to get in better daily distances made good.

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 7 a.m. NZT) - end of Day 273. We made 82 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Yet another slow day with occasional strong gusts....

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 273 (by daily DMGs):22,194 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1603 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 536 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 246 n.ml. to NE; Rurutu (Iles Australes):232 n.ml. to NNE.

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/07/03 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 26-07.63S LONGITUDE: 152-54.15W

COURSE: 040T SPEED: 4.3kt

WIND_SPEED: 22kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: ESE SWELL_HT: 4.0m CLOUDS: 80%

BARO: 1028.6hPa TREND: 1 AIR_TEMP: 21.0C SEA_TEMP: 26.0C

COMMENT: Gusty, cloudy day again... Expect wind to 25kt for next few days still

Tuesday 10am NZT (Mon 2200GMT) Finished with morning radio Nets a short time ago - making good contact now with Fiji, Tonga and French Polynesia but getting more difficult to make contact with NZ/Aus Nets.

Sailing close to the wind, as we are, means that we're heeled almost all the time and often pounding into the seas. It's not a very comfortable or fast point of sail! I'm making good use of the hinged steel restraint beside the chart table seat that gives an arm rest there and stops me from falling onto the floor as we heel over!

Seas are quite rough now - swell is coming more from ESE with a shorter interval and with a good-sized wind chop on top. Apparent wind is around 20kt - much more and we'll need to take in another reef...

A lot of cloud around, often quite large, so gusty conditions again, making boat speed vary quite a bit in addition to effect of swell.

Weather forecast is showing this increased wind will hold over next few days - 20-25kt is expected, with bigger swell for a couple of days at least.

I've changed course slightly to come off the wind a touch more - should help with both speed and heeling.

12:30pm After a long time making good speed in strong wind, we've slowed right down again - there's a big cloud close by and it's killed our wind...

2pm We were soon sailing at speed again and very well heeled over. Seeing the wind get up to over 24kt quite often, and with a new weather forecast giving a large area of 30kt winds very close by, I decided it was time for another reef - so we now have the 2nd reef in and we're heeling a lot less ... and I'm feeling a lot more comfortable, as well.

Two birds seen while I was reefing - a dark petrel (Parkinson's?) and another, quite large, with white underbody.

5pm I thought the wind had eased quite a bit but it's actually still 24kt or just under - being well reefed down and the wind being less than 30kt seems to make all the difference. We're making a reasonable speed without being heeled over so much that moving from one side of the cabin to the other feels like climbing Everest with the added danger of being thrown to the opposite side of the cabin with some force. It's dark now and some stars can be seen through the open hatch in between a few clouds. The wind generator (Superwind) is putting around 10A net gain into the batteries (as well as keeping the instruments and AP running)

Seems this strong SE wind, typically in July, is called a 'Maramu' in Polynesia and is caused at this time of year by a big, settled High pressure area to the S - just as we have now. It often blows for up to two weeks and can be very strong - 30kt or more - as I'm seeing!

It's been nice to be able to leave the sliding companionway hatch open most of the time without the worry of cold air coming down into the cabin to cool it down. Even though the occasional wave washes over the fore deck in rough seas and onto the hard top, the hatch area is protected and gets none of that water - except a little from the damaged window which usually drains into the cockpit without getting down below. Only in heavy rain has some water got down below from around the edge of that window and that was some time ago - heavy rain like that does not seem to occur very often.

Wednesday 4:30am NZT (Tues 1630GMT) First hint of light in the sky - dawn beginning. Low cloud on E horizon, mainly clear overhead. Wind up to 30kt - rough conditions as the seas catch us and toss us around - a bit too heeled over at times, despite being well reefed down!

5am Pink edges to many of the grey clouds around. Hoping they don't stop me from seeing the eclipse when the sun appears - hopefully, in between them soon.

Dark petrel seen flying nearby - caught a glimpse of its bill - definitely a light colour.

5:15am Wind has eased - now down a little to 25kt but seas still very rough and we're well heeled. Holding on tightly to stay safe in the companionway - too rough to be watching from the cockpit. Sun seen well between clouds ahead. I'm wearing dark sunglasses and squinting with almost closed eyes - can clearly see top of sun is dark - over 2/3rds is obscured - makes sun into a thick crescent shape, lying on its back. Edges of clouds prove useful for sighting the eclipse, reducing sun's glare but clouds generally are getting in the way.

6:30am Obscured portion of the sun has moved down to right-hand corner - just under 1/4 is dark now.

6:50am A long low line of grey cloud is about to get in the way of further sightings - sun disappears behind the cloud - end of eclipse for me, but not bad - saw a lot, despite clouds, and very lucky to be in the right place at this time - very few others will see it until it gets to Chile for a brief glimpse of it, just before their sunset today.

____________________________________________________

A note from Allen, ZL1AYH, about the eclipse around 1800GMT on 2nd July (see photo of map posted previously showing path of eclipse): Note image added by Web Team

" It will reach Chile but at sunset and the totality is shorter. In fact the Astronomers there are rather excited as it is the first time a total eclipse has ever passed over the (newer) largest telescopes in the world."

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 7 a.m. NZT) - end of Day 272. We made 105 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 272 (by daily DMGs):22,112 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1525 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 615 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 327 n.ml. to NE

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/07/02 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 27-12.04S LONGITUDE: 153-50.90W

COURSE: 047T SPEED: 4.5kt

WIND_SPEED: 25kt WIND_DIR: ESE SWELL_DIR: ESE SWELL_HT: 4.0m CLOUDS: 25%

BARO: 1030hPa TREND: 1 AIR_TEMP: 20.0C SEA_TEMP: 25.0C

COMMENT: Solar eclipse - 70% obscured. Strong wind/rough seas - Maramu

-----

At 02/07/2019 19:00 (utc) our position was 27°12.04'S 153°50.90'W

HAPPY CANADA DAY! ....Monday 1st July

Monday 8am NZT (Sun 2000GMT) Hope my Canadian friends are having a good long weekend holiday!
It's mainly bright and sunny now, but with quite a few big clouds around, giving the usual gusts under them, with lulls in between, so our speed is up and down - varying a lot - the story of the last few days. Presently heeled a lot under one of them, making around 5.4kt (actually seeing result of swell - up to 6.4kt or more on a wave and then down to 4.2kt on its backside)

2:40pm Wind died right down again - to just 8kt, in a very light shower, with a big cloud overhead and off to port - but back up again now, so making rather better speed on a close reach. Not seeing any birds today - will look out around sunset when, if they're around, that's when they'll usually be seen. Posting a photo of bird I probably saw yesterday - Parkinson's Petrel - from the excellent, beautifully illustrated, bird book - 'Albatrosses, Petrels and Shearwaters of the World' by Derek Onley and Paul Scofield.
Pancakes for Canada Day today...

4pm Wow .... Nutella and raspberry sauce made for a very rich combination on those pancakes...!
No birds seen... but a faint rainbow seen before sunset, as sun was getting low.

5:30pm Drifting around in circles yet again....! Very frustrating...! Wind just died.

5:50pm Finally back on course at 3.5-4kt, moving in a straight line - great!

8pm Wind down to SE 8kt ... this will be a slow night....

9pm More going around in circles - several times - impossible to stop it in such light wind giving almost no boat speed, once genoa starts flapping and then gets backed, along with mainsail... round we go... Grrr!!!

Tuesday 4am NZT (Mon 1600GMT) Well before dawn and a good wind at present so a fair speed being made under a mainly clear, starry sky.

6:45am Bright sunshine. Clear overhead, some cloud on horizon - lined up along the wind direction - as in Trades. Sailing close to wind, so heeled all the time and often pounding into the seas - not a very comfortable or fast point of sail!
Also, being on starboard tack means I'm being leaned inboard from the chart table seat - I'm making good use of the hinged steel restraint that gives an arm rest there and stops me from falling off the seat and onto the floor!
Boat speed is still varying up and down quite a bit both with swell and as wind changes. Hopefully, it will be up more than down today.
____________________________________________________

A note from Allen, ZL1AYH, about the eclipse around 1800GMT on 2nd July (see photo of map posted yesterday showing path of ecipse):
" It will reach Chile but at sunset and the totality is shorter. In fact the Astronomers there are rather excited as it is the first time a total eclipse has ever passed over the (newer) largest telescopes in the world."

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 7 a.m. NZT) - end of Day 271. We made 82 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Going round in circles in little wind doesn't make for a good DMG!

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 271 (by daily DMGs):22,007 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1423 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 713 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 430 n.ml. to NE

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/07/01 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 28-24.37S LONGITUDE: 155-16.79W
COURSE: 055T SPEED: 5.2kt
WIND_SPEED: 12kt WIND_DIR: SE SWELL_DIR: SE SWELL_HT: 2.5m CLOUDS: 10%
BARO: 1027.6hPa TREND: 0 AIR_TEMP: 20.0C SEA_TEMP: 25.0C

HAPPY CANADA DAY! ....Monday 1st July

Sunday 8:30am NZT (Sat 2030GMT) The Cape petrel I saw an hour ago together with an all-dark bird is no longer in sight now. It was definitely attracted to 'Nereida' and kept circling around before settling for a rest in the water nearby. Further N than I'd expect to see one but they are seen as far N as 25S (we're about 30S now). Also not seeing now the other bird seen yesterday also - solitary, all-dark, slim-winged, mainly gliding with only occasional flaps of wings - that was also circling around not so very far away early today.
Choice of ID for that bird seems to be between Flesh-footed or Short tailed Shearwater or Parkinson's Petrel... Similar in size and all three are all-dark birds but without clear view of bill and feet, not possible to distinguish between them. Most likely, from distribution notes and slim wings, to be a Parkinson's Petrel.

The cloud cover seems quite thin, although there is an area of dark grey cloud off to port which looks more like a rain cloud. Wind is lighter and so we've slowed down - it's not looking as though we'll be getting today the same gusty conditions under big clouds that we've had over the past few days. Forecast is for light wind over today.
Quite a big southerly swell is very noticeable, at 4m every 8-9 seconds, and then there's a small surface wind chop on top of that.

Midday 8kt of SE wind under bright but mainly cloudy sky ... slow! About to have a nap - have cooked beans for soup and will complete making it later. On reflection, realise I got to sleep late last night - not enough ... so time to make up for that.

3:35pm 12 kt of S wind and sun getting quite low already in a mainly clear sky with few clouds. Cabin temperature 22.6C/70F and sea temperature well over 24C/75F - getting warmer!

8pm Wind keeps dying - we went round in a circle just before - no wind = no steerage... Just managed to gybe around and get back on course... but sails keep flapping as wind disappears.

10.45pm - Galloping along at speed now.... in wind under a rain cloud, well heeled and noisy...

11:45pm Wind died away completely after another rain squall - went around in a circle again... Now almost back on track, but not quite - difficult keeping course when no wind to give speed - drifting NE at 2-3kt, waiting for the wind to fill back in... Speed dropping...
Seems this is the pattern for tonight... Slow, slow, quick, quick, slow....
Must get to sleep, if I can....

Monday 6am NZT (Sun 1800GMT) Bright sunny day with a few clouds around - still gusty under them, with lulls in between, since the clouds around are still big... Low DMG as a result :( Still seeing big region of wind from SE quadrant ahead for next few days - all the way to Polynesia - excellent!
____________________________________________________

A note from Allen, ZL1AYH, about the eclipse around 1800GMT on 2nd July (see photo of map here showing path):
" It will reach Chile but at sunset and the totality is shorter. In fact the Astronomers there are rather excited as it is the first time a total eclipse has ever passed over the (newer) largest telescopes in the world."

*****************************************************
While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!
***************************************************

1900GMT (= 7 a.m. NZT) - end of Day 270. We made 91 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. A slow day yesterday - lots of light wind in between gusts under clouds.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 270 (by daily DMGs):21,925 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1344 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 789 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 512 n.ml. to NE

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):
TIME: 2019/06/30 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 29-16.17S LONGITUDE: 156-27.75W
COURSE: 055T SPEED: 5.5kt
WIND_SPEED: 15kt WIND_DIR: SSE SWELL_DIR: SSE SWELL_HT: 3.0m CLOUDS: 30%
BARO: 1024.5hPa TREND: 2 AIR_TEMP: 20.0C SEA_TEMP: 24.0C
COMMENT: Gusts under clouds still, but not too many clouds. Sunny day.

Saturday 8am NZT (Friday 2000GMT) Bright sunny day with quite a few large clouds around - so might be in for another gusty day. Swell still a good 3.5m/12ft from S, so plenty of motion but not too bad.

Finishing my breakfast cereal with nuts, seeds and dried fruit, with a glass of pineapple juice on the side (along with vitamins C and D), having posted my daily reports.

1:30pm Sky has a lot of cloud cover now and we're often rushing along at speed, heeled over on a close reach. Wind, from SE, is around 15kt, but much more in gusts - varies a lot under the clouds in strength and a little in direction. Sun is often getting out.

Actually saw two birds just now, as I trimmed the sails - possibly petrels, seemed to be all-dark, swooping around on slim, fixed wings. Hadn't seen any earlier today and put that down to lighter wind and maybe getting closer to tropical waters. Certainly, the water colour, when the sun was shining, was hinting at the lovely deep turquoise blue of the tourist brochures. We're presently well-heeled in the stronger wind under a cloud, so I'm sitting on the port (leeward) bunk - but on a cushion with a sheet of plastic below it, protecting it (and me!) from the settee which is still very damp from the knockdown. Cabin temperature is 21C, so air is not warm enough yet to dry much out.

Have spent a time clearing up a bit but can't do much with a lot of clothing and bedding which are still very damp from seawater - or from the sea air, which has almost the same effect.

Finished the lentil soup I made the evening before last, so now soaking some small white and larger pink beans ready for a thick, hearty meal-in-one soup. Will probably add a little barley together with chopped tomatoes & green beans, along with either chicken, ham or beef - I'll see what takes my fancy at the time.

Think I'll get some pancake mix ready for later - so easy to cook and very enjoyable although the maple syrup is finished - but maybe I'll use some honey instead, with a little of the raspberry sauce from Hobart. Think that's really meant for dribbling over ice cream - but there's none of that within quite a few hundred miles of here. I reckon some Nutella would work quite well as a chocolate flavour on the pancakes and might work very well with the raspberry sauce also.

It's really great that, for once, the weather is playing ball! The big, deep 1040hPa High over New Zealand, slowly drifting E, is giving this big area of settled SE wind that we're benefitting from. As we move NE, wind will slowly become more ESE, then E - at which point we'll be heading N towards Tahiti in strong SE Trades and then on towards Hawaii, crossing the Equator and the ITCZ (Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone - or Doldrums) which is usually somewhere around 8N, on the way.

7:45pm Had a very enjoyable ham radio session on 7160 - lots of contacts with New Zealand and Australia. Batteries kept well up by wind generator (Superwind) so no power problem nowadays.

Was told by Al, ZL1AYH, that there will be a solar eclipse along my path around 1800GMT on Tuesday 2nd July ... Must look out for that on Wed morning (NZT) - hope it's not too cloudy! That's just past sunrise for my position near here.... Will check on path it will be taking - at best, I'll see a good partial eclipse, not totality.

9:30pm Wind keeps dying down a lot more than coming up under a cloud - not so many clouds now, perhaps? Means we've slowed down a lot.

Have had some useful suggestions by email on use of spinnaker halyard as topping lift and ways to avoid chafe... looking into them!

Sunday 6am (Sat 1800GMT) Sun rose a short while ago and is shining brightly through one of the few gaps in the light grey cloud that's covering most of the sky.

We've been at slow speed most of the night - wind now is only 9-10kt and we're making up and down around 4.4kt - slow progress just now...

Running generator for an hour, along with water-maker, and charging computer and iPhone - regular early morning events.

Pancake mix is waiting to be cooked for breakfast - didn't get around to frying in last night's rough seas - calmer now.

Speed has dropped again while I've been writing - to around a mere 3.7kt - we shan't be breaking any distance records for today's DMG!

Just had a note from Allen, ZL1AYH, about the eclipse on 2nd July:

" It will reach Chile but at sunset and the totality is shorter. In fact the Astronomers there are rather excited as it is the first time a total eclipse has ever passed over the largest telescopes in the world."

7am Lovely to see a Cape petrel attracted to 'Nereida' - kept circling around and then settled in water nearby. The other bird seen yesterday - solitary, all-dark, slim-winged, mainly gliding with only occasional flaps of wings - was also circling around, not so very far away. Shearwater? Petrel? Must check in my bird book...

I was on deck, checking direction of wind and swell, using ship's compass - one reason I keep a note of current Magnetic Variation all the time in my ship's logbook- presently standing at 18E, so 18 degrees needs to be added to compass readings to give True directions. (I can never understand why anyone even thinks of quoting a Magnetic course to others a distance away.... Only time it would be appropriate is to give a 'course to steer' to a helmsperson at the wheel, watching the ship's compass. )

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 7 a.m. NZT) - end of Day 269. We made 109 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 269 (by daily DMGs):21,834 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1254 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 869 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 601 n.ml. to NE

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/06/29 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 30-06.08S LONGITUDE: 157-54.63W

COURSE: 055T SPEED: 4.4kt

WIND_SPEED: 13kt WIND_DIR: S

SWELL_DIR: S SWELL_HT: 4.0m SWELL_PER: 9s CLOUDS: 95%

BARO: 1024.9hPa TREND: 0 AIR_TEMP: 20.0C SEA_TEMP: 24.0C

COMMENT: Dull, grey day with good-sized S swell and wind chop on top.

Friday 8:45am NZT (Thurs 2045GMT) Wind has just picked up and we're now galloping along at around 6kt. Looks as though this could be a gusty day with spurts of speed and lulls in between. Sky has lots of large, light grey clouds, with sun getting out between them, and several light showers can be seen falling not so far away - there's even a faint rainbow in the distance, well astern. Cabin temperature just got up to 20C/68F but it feels cool - not discarding all my fleeces just yet.

Albatross and a few other birds are soaring around nearby.

Have been chatting twice daily to cruisers in the Fiji area on S.Pacific Cruisers net - they're all hunkering down for a big 'blow' expected in two days' time - several moved anchorage to be protected from the expected wind (and seas) direction - up to 50kt gusts forecast this morning for Sunday. I'm also in contact with a Net in French Polynesia. Means I can keep in touch with cruising friends down this way - lovely to have a long chat with friends last seen in Mexico a year or more ago, before they started on their Pacific crossing.

SSB/HF radio on board cruising boats is, to my mind, an essential, both for safety reasons and for communication. The Nets provide a useful way for a group of people to share information on events/places in the area and help each other dealing with equipment problems, as well as sharing weather info and, most importantly, warnings of dangers. Not something that can be done via a one-to-one personal telephone/satellite connection.

Most of the day was a repeat of this morning's strong wind in a prolonged gust, speeding along and heeling well to port under a cloud, possibly bringing some light rain, with the time in between gusts spent struggling to make way in light wind .. until the next acceleration was felt starting up, as we came under the influence of another big, grey cloud. All in quite a big S swell which had us rolling around a lot, very often.

8:30pm Just had to adjust our course to 070T (from 060T) and ease the mainsheet - wind has dropped and veered far more to S, from SSE-SE over most of the day, so sails were nearly backed a few times before I got on deck to sort things out.

Dark night with no moon and only very hazy stars seen. Still some thin clouds around but not so many large ones as earlier during the day, so mainly just ambling along at low speed - around 3-4kt only.

Saturday 3:30am NZT (Fri 1530 GMT) Sailing well in wind from SSE-SE, so adjusted heading to get back on rhumb-line course to 25S 150W - just SSW of Tubuai, in the Iles Australs of French Polynesia. We were making 5.8kt when adjusted course, but now wind is down again, so speed has dropped to around 5.3kt. Swell clearly well up, judging from SOG which varies a lot depending on whether we're being taken along by a wave or slowed down, as we drop down on the back of a wave.

Mainly clear sky, with stars of Southern Cross 'pointers' clear astern and bright crescent moon high up, almost dead ahead, behind the sails.

Checked for, and replied to, emails - back to my bunk ....

6:45am Bright sunny day with a few clouds around - maybe 20%. Swell still a good 3.5m/12ft from S, so plenty of motion but not too bad.

Having my breakfast cereal with nuts, seeds and dried fruit, with a glass of pineapple juice on the side (along with vitamins C and D), while I get reports ready for posting after 1900z.

*****************************************************

While sailing around the world, I'm trying to raise funds to help support the superb life-saving work done by the RNLI (Lifeboats) in Britain each and every day of the year, regardless how bad the weather. In fact, the worse it is, the more likely they are out there, helping someone in distress - whether a swimmer, surfer, small boat or big ship, night or day, summer or winter. They are all volunteers with normal day-jobs who respond immediately to a call and it is a charity - no government funding - so they rely on our help to fund their intensive training and maintain their equipment.

It would be great if you would take a moment to click on the Lifeboats link here (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jeanne-Socrates2), if you'd like to show your support for my efforts at sailing solo, nonstop, unassisted around the globe, trying to set a World Record as the oldest person to do so, by donating something towards the great work the RNLI do every day. If a lot of people put in even a small amount, it all adds up... Thanks a lot! If you can help, it will be very much appreciated. Let's see if we can reach my target!

***************************************************

1900GMT (= 7 a.m. NZT) - end of Day 268. We made 118 n.ml. DMG, measured in a straight line between the two 1900GMT positions. Disappointing - I'd hoped for better but we too often slowed down a lot in between the frequent strong gusts.

Total distance covered from Victoria, B.C., to end of Day 268 (by daily DMGs):21,725 n.ml

Distances (at 1900GMT): East Cape, N.Z.: 1145 n.ml. to SW; Tahiti: 973 n.ml. to NNE; Tubuai (Iles Australes): 712 n.ml. to NE

Position, as posted to www.Winlink.org and www.Shiptrak.org (using my US callsign KC2IOV):

TIME: 2019/06/28 19:00GMT LATITUDE: 31-05.85S LONGITUDE: 159-41.21W

COURSE: 056T SPEED: 5.3kt

WIND_SPEED: 16kt WIND_DIR: SSE SWELL_DIR: S SWELL_HT: 3.5m CLOUDS: 20%

BARO: 1025.3hPa TREND: 1 AIR_TEMP: 20.0C SEA_TEMP: 23.0C

COMMENT: Not too many clouds around so maybe less gusty today?