http://www.garage-schuller.com/elementannoyedphiliphill/

Sailing for home

Sailing home in gentle conditions. Sailing can't get much nicer than this. Arriving back in Kaneohe Bay is looking pretty nice too.

Return Trip Complete

I sailed back to Kaneohe on Monday arriving at 6 pm after 35 hours of sailing in near perfect conditions. I picked really nice weather for the return with 10-15 knot wind and clear skies. It nearly worked out perfect. The only glitch was the wind turned to the east half way to Oahu which put the winds directly on the nose and significantly increases the distance required to sail. So with some hesitation I fired up the engine on the 2nd day to assist the performance. So I cut about 5 hours off the enroute time and getting before dark. All in all a good passage with really pretty weather. I will get a couple of new pictures on here when I download them from the camera. Tom on Wind Warrior sailed along with me, so it was fun to see him out there. He stayed in visual contact through out until the end after I started motoring. He sailed the entire trip in diminishing winds arriving at 10 pm very tired. We both recieved a nice "welcome back" at the dock.

Departure day approaches

All good things must end so I am preparing for the trip back to Kaneohe. It is 115 miles east, but of course you can't sail east since that is where the wind is blowing from. So I sail about 55 miles NNE and then tack to the southeast and hopefully I have sailed far enough north or the wind gives me a break by backing a little to the NE so I can make Kaneohe on that tack. The forecast is for 10 knot east wind and 3 foot seas, so it should be relatively comfortable. I hope to arrive before dark on the second day. I spent an hour today cleaning the bottom of the boat so it will be nice a smooth for the sail. When I get home I will immediately be planning our after race activities scheduled for the 4th of July. It should be a fun race navigating outside the by and having to tack within the channel boundaries. Afterwards will be the barbeque at the clubhouse and awards. We should have 10 boats so I expect spirited sailing and tough competition.

There goes the neighborhood

This beautiful sailing yacht came in from the mainland. They are enroute to Juneau, making a stop here to play a little golf. Her name is "Janice of Wyoming", an unusual name for sure. It is registered in the Cayman Islands. It must be at least 150 feet in length. It is just an extraordinary boat.

Thinking of Sailing

This a picture from the sail to Kauai, sailing wing on wing dead downwind with the jib poled out. Seas were very pleasant. It won't be that way when I sail back to weather.

Another Sunset

Each day flows into the next and now I am already thinking of the sail home. Looking for favorable weather for this typically rough windward passage is the key to a enjoyable sail. Next Monday or Tuesday may work. Hopefully the long term forecast will hold. Meanwhile I will enjoy my last week in Hanalei. I haven't kayaked very much so I would like to do more of that. I am getting into some interesting books that keeps me busy. So with good weather I will soon be leaving but as we know sailing does not work well with schedules.