Position:09 degrees, 19 minutes South; 140 degrees, 17 minutes West

Back at sea

We’re back at sea on a three and a half day run to Raroia in the Tuamotu chain of islands. Wilson’s got the steering under control and we doing 5.5-6.5 knots with 14-18 knots wind and a 20% furled jib. We’re taking our time because when we get to the island, really it’s an atoll which means a “hollow” island surrounded by reef, we have to wait for a favorable tide to go through the pass into the lagoon inside the reef. We left today at 1630 and we’re looking for a 3 ½ day passage getting us there in the very early hours. We’ll then be able to wait around outside until it looks safe to enter. The guides say to enter at slack water after the ebb, so when we figure out when the ebb is, we’ll do the calculations. I think it’s sometime around noon but we’re working to confirm that.

It’s an absolutely gorgeous night of sailing. Not only is the wind moderate but it’s about 75 degrees F so shorts and a tee-shirt are all that are needed to stay warm. The waves are about 5 feet and quartering so they are rolling us a fair amount, but we were getting tired of rolling in the anchorage and going nowhere for it.

That’s about it for tonight. This starts “leg six” and the Tuamotus are a whole different experience. Folks who are ahead of us say (on the shortwave radio) that they don’t want to leave. Just sand, some palm trees, no people and snorkeling among the reefs. Sounds nice. Can’t wait.