SQUALL CATCHER
Position: 16D22.978S 170D14.374W
250 nautical miles left to sail to Vavau in Tonga
Tuesday, August 23 - The weather continues to be very rough and the South Pacific looks like the inside of a washing machine in the spin cycle. Ian and I had a busy night on watch avoiding squalls and reefing the sails when the winds became too strong. The odd big wave has also hit us side on during the night and the only thing you can do is brace yourself for the corresponding roll. Yesterday we spent the day pretty much horizontal in the cockpit reading books. Although we are not doing a lot of work the journey has been physically demanding. We could push Faraway harder and arrive in Tonga late tomorrow afternoon but we have decided to take it easy in these difficult conditions and arrive in one piece! We will arrive at the northern end of the Vavau chain around 3am on Friday morning (Tonga time). Once sheltered from the heavy south easterly swell we will slowly motor through the island group arriving at Neifu anchorage just after sunrise. Ian has volunteered to cook French toast this morning so I'm looking forward to that and I admire his bravery in the galley.
You are providing a geography lesson on the South Pacific - exotic places I have heard about but didn't know where they were. Now we all know - Carry on Sailing!
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