Bound for...Siberia?

Time: 2021/07/05 01:15:03
Latitude: 28-11.96N
Longitude: 162-26.15W
Speed: 5.4
Course: 321T
Wind_Speed: 27
Wind_Dir: NE
Air_Temp: 26C
Wave_Ht: 2M
Wave_Dir: NE
Comment: Wind and waves are forcing us further west than we'd like, but we can make that up once we are out of the tradewinds. Watching the Pacific High and hoping it provides a gap for us to head N as forecast.


So Part 2 of this passage is proving to be about the same as Part 1. Big seas and a strong NE wind that we are fighting to work our way north. The end result as usual for Maple and her crew, we are sailing NW and it appears Siberia is our next port of call. I guess either way we need to install a heater. A couple of days before we left Honolulu while D was fixing yet more random stuff that was spontaneously calling it quits, Ella said "It feels like Maple is telling us we should not go to Alaska." It really does feel that way, but regardless here we are. We will get there eventually even if Maple is rebelling against leaving the tropics.

One of the emails we received yesterday was from friends who have been at sea for the last month and a half since leaving the Marshall Islands bound for BC. Their current air temperature is 6C!?!? Even their dog is stealing blankets from the kids to stay warm. At the start of my 6pm watch yesterday, I was wearing my full foul weather gear with a sweater underneath my jacket, and I was still a little chilly. Any guesses on what the thermometer claims was the temperature?! (For the record, I think the thermometer is wrong...and clearly does not factor in the wind chill!) The air temp was 26C!!! Yes, 26C and I was still chilly. I am not really comprehending how I am going to manage 20 degrees cooler. Tell me again why are we returning to the Great White North?! Further to call me to question our plans, is we received another email from friends who are seriously contemplating buying property in Fiji. Gah...we clearly did not explore all possible future plans when setting a course for north.

Oh well, I am sure one day in the distant, distant future, we will look back on this trip with fond memories of frequent unintended saltwater showers, mopping out the swimming pool that keeps trying to form under the cockpit table (Yes, we are still on that darn starboard tack!) and the constant lumpy seas. For our first 72 hours, we have been averaging around 125nm a day, so at least we are knocking off the miles even if it gets us to Siberia.