- 26 January 2009 at 13:58:20 GMT official time of passing the longitude of Cape Leeuwin and marks a quarter of the journey and the first of the 3 great capes (Cape Leeuwin, Cape Horn, Cape of Good Hope)
- Rudder replacement carried out successfully this morning, the operation only took just 30 minutes and they were on their way again – see the VIDEO of the change
- Trimaran Musandam currently skirting the high pressure system that is situated in the Great Australian Bight, expecting to be south of Tasmania on Saturday (31st January). Forecast is currently looking good for the cook straits
- Just over 400 miles ahead of the 80 day virtual pace boat. See the DASHBOARD for full boat data.
Charles Darbyshire at the helm
© Oman Sail
© Oman Sail
Update from onboard today
“24 hours ago we were sailing along with full mainsail and gennaker, waiting for the front to arrive. Eventually the wind started to shift, and when it was time we gybed and essentially headed directly to the front – in about 15 minutes we had furled the gennaker and put two reefs in the mainsail, and ended up with the solent sail to the staysail. it was gusting up to 30 knots, and we were fairly tight reaching. The temperature drop was dramatic, and quickly from sailing downwind in the sun in light thermals and short sleeves we were full wet weather gear and extra layers underneath. After around 45 minutes we were through the front the skies cleared and the wind settled a little… it was chilly though as everyone said it would be after the front passed, the wind was up and down and so we were reef in reef out reef in for a while, before eventually settling for much of the night with 2 reefs and solent, a combination that is a good compromise between ease of handling and power to get us going south quickly.
Right now it’s 18 degrees at the chart table and it’s nice to feel a bit of a nip in the air on deck, as darkness came so did a wide display of warm gear. Hoochie and I have long been a fan of SealSkinz waterproof/breathable socks and have expanded our range from them for this trip to included a waterproof beanie hat, and gloves. The gloves have not been needed yet but we both gave our beanies a run out and both love them.. warm and dry totally perfect when you get a wave over the head – which does happen on occasion. With the cooler temps also came the sleeping bags, having not been required for the first 1/4 (18 days) of this trip all of us decided tonight was the night. Hoochie Mohsin and I have new bags and it was a real treat to climb in – a little warm for this temperature but we all slept safe in the knowledge that when the time comes and the temperatures fall to single figures we’ll be warm in our sleep.
We have got the new rudder out of the back of the boat ready to take our chance to change it. We have made our weight pack to sink the rudder (it normally floats) out of spanners and other heavy tools, and are keeping our eye out for the right moment. We can’t decide if today is good or wait till later in the day, or even to wait till thursday when we have some lighter winds forecast – we’ll let you know when we decide of course.
For now we are on the right track sailing at 18 knots in 14 knots of wind… the sea has reduced a bit so is not so bumpy down below. Hooch last night was on a call to his old primary school – Year 6 Tadley Primary School – whilst being bumped and thrown around by the sea conditions all the while with waves one the deck just over his head. The telephone call went well, it’s great to share a bit of our adventure like that.
We crossed the 1/4 way point and our first cape last night Cape Leeuwin It could have been a time to have a bit of a celebration, but it was dark, rough, chilly, and 2 out of 5 of us were asleep…. I think the 1/2 way point will be a bigger moment for us… being ONLY a 1/4 of the way makes it feel like a long way to go still…. where as 1/2 way we will be heading back to Muscat, not away from it……
The next few days should be nice sailing again towards Tasmania and then heading north east up to the Cook Straight of New Zealand where we can expect to see a bit more wildlife and signs of human life once again, fishing boats perhaps, container ships, airplanes & vapor trails overhead, then sighting land again since leaving the rugged coastline of Muscat that first night – an interesting week ahead”.