December 4, 2007

Past Butaritari
At about 10:00 this morning we left behind the northernmost of the Kiribati atolls, Butaritari. Now the course lies just west of north, 170 miles to Mili Atoll in the Marshalls. We intend to round the west end of Mili, then run north about 70 miles to the pass between Majuro and Arno. The entrance to Majuro is on the north side, so we have to circle halfway around it to get into the lagoon. The wind held pretty well all last night, and although it backed to northwest, making us sail to windward, we averaged nearly 7 knots from 6 PM to 6 AM. After dawn, the wind strength increased, and soon we were going uncomfortably fast in the building waves. I was in the process of taking in the jib, to sail with just staysail and reefed main, when we stuck the bows into an odd bigger wave, and flooded the deck back to the cockpit. Well, the cabin top is clean now. We're still making quite good time, in bright sun with puffy clouds in the sky and flying fish flashing across the sea. The forecast is for the wind to clock down toward the east again, which would make things smoother for us. So, all looks good from here. Much better than the boat we spoke to this morning, who's trying to get into Pago Pago, Samoa, with damaged mast rigging, 20 hours worth of fuel left, and a tropical depression forming over him. Say a little prayer for David on S/V Friction. Ted