Fish 0 Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 Post from his tracker page Land ho! The precipitous coastline of Fiordland emerges out of the cloud. I can just see the narrow steep walled entrance of Milford Sound up ahead. In about an hour I should make the outlying point and leave behind the equally precipitous blue mountains that are rearing up under my stern. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rossd 16 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 PredictWind shows 30knots off shore but a large part of the weat coast at 15/20 on the coast or just off. Thats not likely I would have thought! Haven’t actually used it much so not to be taken so literally maybe? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fogg 427 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 Looks like he’s been able to hold a course for the entrance of a Milford Sound in a big quartering sea and beam apparent wind Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Romany 163 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 Good decision by the looks of it. Hope he sleeps well tonight - certainly deserves to. Are catabatic winds a probability in Milford under current circumstances? And how / what do u do to deal with them. Just watched a video taken in Charlotte sound - viscious looking event. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
B00B00 330 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 Looks like he is in, some good seamanship there. Well done, I would say its been a very tough few days. Dont think queen charlotte sounds would ever get cold enough for true catabatic winds? Milford sounds maybe. Will certainly be gusty. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
darkside 69 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 That's a good effort alright. I think there is a mooring in Deepwater Basin but there may be an out of work tourist boat tied up to it at the moment. Hopefully the fishing guys will help him out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Island Time 1,313 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 Well done! Would not have been a fun last few days. Tough time of year for a circumnav of NZ! Not sure about "true" catabatic winds in the sounds, but I've had the masthead of Island Time in the water on a mooring in ship cove from a big downdraft off the hills... Held us flat for a few seconds. No sail, just windage in the rig. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jon 412 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 He’s obviously in good spirits Single handed sailors seem always to be glass half full people Heres his latest blog The call of the kea Tue Sep 15 2020 Sitting on a mooring in Deepwater Basin. It is incredibly quiet and still. The only sound the burbling of my caveman TV ( the Dickinson diesel stove) and high up in the mist the call of a kea. I will be here for three or four days as the weather pattern is going to stay the same until a NW change later in the week. I will wait for my spare autopilot to arrive and repair some main sail slugs that broke right out of the track. There was an awful lot of sail flogging going on at times when the boat rounded up on the big waves. I am going to have a long hot shower, put some clean clothes on, eat a decent meal and toast my feet in front of the fire. As Ratty said to Mole: “There’s simply nothing half as much fun as messing around in boats”. 1 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DrWatson 382 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 Glad to see him safely in Milford. A tough few days and an unforgiving coast. Good work. Rest up and stay safe. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DrWatson 382 Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 2 minutes ago, Jon said: He’s obviously in good spirits Single handed sailors seem always to be glass half full people Heres his latest blog The call of the kea Tue Sep 15 2020 Sitting on a mooring in Deepwater Basin. It is incredibly quiet and still. The only sound the burbling of my caveman TV ( the Dickinson diesel stove) and high up in the mist the call of a kea. I will be here for three or four days as the weather pattern is going to stay the same until a NW change later in the week. I will wait for my spare autopilot to arrive and repair some main sail slugs that broke right out of the track. There was an awful lot of sail flogging going on at times when the boat rounded up on the big waves. I am going to have a long hot shower, put some clean clothes on, eat a decent meal and toast my feet in front of the fire. As Ratty said to Mole: “There’s simply nothing half as much fun as messing around in boats”. I think it’s well more than half full Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sail Rock 32 Posted September 16, 2020 Share Posted September 16, 2020 Heroic! Deserves my donation to the Trust. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AJ Oliver 155 Posted September 16, 2020 Share Posted September 16, 2020 Glad he made it in . . that forecast lee shore big wind looked really scary. Good on ya mate !! Just don't let that Kea eat yer boat ! Salute from the Sweetwater Seas Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fish 0 Posted September 16, 2020 Share Posted September 16, 2020 Takes balls to sail down there at this time of year. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mcp 36 Posted September 16, 2020 Share Posted September 16, 2020 Nice timing sneaking into Milford Sound before the weather peaked! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rossd 16 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Hes into it again. A begger for punishment. 65 miles to DoubtfulSound by 1800 so should be all good. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jon 412 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 He’s in Deas Cove. Spreading my wings Mon Sep 21 2020 Smoking along just past George Sound with 25 knots of wind dead astern. I am sailing goosewinged - with mainsail out one side and the genoa set out on a pole on the other side. With this much wind pushing me along I am making good progress and should reach Thompson Sound by 1800. It’s a bit of a wild ride. The sea has built and I lurch and roll along with the occasional surf on the bigger waves. I can see I am going to have fun getting the pole off the genoa when the time comes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Romany 163 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 The more I follow this the greater the feeling that it would be poor form not to donate. This guy really is risking life and limb. I wonder what it must be like to live in a country that values and funds the protection of its heritage? 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jon 412 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Next update OMG! and other words Mon Sep 21 2020 I am not one to normally use this rather overworked acronym but in this case it really fits the bill. I am right now in Deas Cove, Thompson Sound, tied up to a large mussel float mooring. I am consoling myself with a mug of tea and a large slice of my sister’s ultimate fruit cake, baked to a secret recipe but reputed to contain an entire bottle of brandy . I need it. I got here an hour ago - two hours ahead of my ETA. Remember I mentioned the pole? Well things were going swimmingly as I surfed down the coast, passing Sound after Sound at high speed. There were in fact five. About three miles out from my destination of Thompson Sound the quick release shackle on the pole topping lift decided to release quickly. All hell broke loose. The pole dropped into the sea, only restrained by the foreguy as the genoa flogged madly and the topping lift swung in ever increasing arcs as we rolled until it wrapped itself around the top of the genoa.I frantically furled the genoa while yelling,“Don’t break, don’t break!” to the pole. Just as I got the genoa under control and prepare to race up to the foredeck the pole broke - or at least the parrot beak at the mast attachment snapped off. I retrieved the pole and lashed it to the rail and set about catching the wildly swinging topping lift. This took considerable time as the boat pitched and rolled through the rough sea but eventually I snagged it with the boat hook and led it round and round the Genoa till it was back in its rightful place. I made it back to the cockpit and promptly threw up. Feeling better I steered into the welcoming entrance of Thompson Sound. The wind however had other ideas. Funneled by the high peaks on either side it increased exponentially. Soon it was blowing well over 50knts and the sea was being ripped up into sheets of spray. I was doing 8 knots under a triple reefed main and could barely keep control.It was sailing on a knife edge; we were dead downwind with no margin for error. If a gust backwinded the main, the preventer would stop a crash gybe, but I would lose control and potentially blow the sail or worse. I barely made the point that led into this harbour - passing the rocks at the end with twenty metres to spare. In the lee of the point was a tiny patch of calm. I swung up into it and dropped the main, running quickly forward to lash it down and then dashing back to reverse us away from the rocks, only meters ahead. In the howling wind and rain it took me four attempts to get a line through the buoy and secure us for the night before I could collapse exhausted through the hatch. The wind is screaming through the rigging and it is supposed to get up even more. The heater is lit and the patient pending Ultimate Wind Deflector is doing its job. It’s good to be here. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fogg 427 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Holy cow this is turning into a true adventure story in real-time. He should write a book afterwards (I’d buy it). I’m also with the others here who now feel this guy has more than earned a donation to the trust. Anyone know how to do that? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Priscilla II 450 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 20 minutes ago, Aleana said: Holy cow this is turning into a true adventure story in real-time. He should write a book afterwards (I’d buy it). I’m also with the others here who now feel this guy has more than earned a donation to the trust. Anyone know how to do that? https://givealittle.co.nz/donate/cause/cavatinas-solo-circumnavigation-of-nz Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.