WHEN THE HALYARD SKIES OFFSHORE...WHAT DO YOU DO?
WHEN THE HALYARD SKIES OFFSHORE...WHAT DO YOU DO?
On every passage there are sail changes and shifts that go smoothly or even better than expected...and then there are the surprises. Some surprises are more or less demanding than others. Our most recent surprise underway gave Captain Mike the opportunity to go up the mast in the middle of the ocean under clear blue skies over gentle 2 meter seas.
His thought was, "I'd rather see what it's like now under these conditions in case I have to consider going up the mast in anything else."
Here's what happened:
Last week, we sailed from the Marquesas to the Tuamotus. Conditions were excellent; we decided to go dead downwind and fly our Main and Jib wing and wing. We poled out the jib, adjusted our course, set the main, and put a preventer on it. The boat felt rock solid sliding down waves and sailing at 9-10 knots.
The wind slacked, we shook out the reef and sailed for maybe 5 more minutes before we heard a "floosh" sound and SURPRISE our mainsail lay a limp pile on the boom.
After minimal discussion, Mike went up the mast to retrieve the halyard. He used his ascenders on one of our spinnaker halyards and we backed it up with our second headsail halyard. At the second spreaders we swapped and he was raised the rest of the way on the headsail halyard and the spinnaker halyard was his backup. Now with all these halyards, where is the backup main halyard? THAT and a backup mizzen halyard are now on our list. Had we had a backup main halyard we could have waited to ascend the mast on anchor instead of underway. Hindsight is indeed 20:20!
Once down with the skied halyard, we found that the shackle had opened, the main twisted out, and bent the shackle arms open. We fixed that, reattached the halyard to the sail, raised the main.
Mike's Take-away:
"It was about what I expected. The hardest thing was staying on the mast. I would definitely not want to go up in anything more than that without more in place to make it easier...like maybe some mast steps or a better climbing set-up."
SV WHIRLWIND Mike, Maurisa, Russell, & Josea - Alajuela 48
THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR ADVENTURES UNDERWAY
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POSSE PERK: Free aid to navigation 150 Gb OpenCPN satellite charts (mac/pc/android)
POSSE PERK: 🗺️ Free aid to navigation
150 Gb OpenCPN satellite charts (mac/pc/android)
PLUS vetted tracks to safe anchorages
Open CPN is a chartplotter navigation software that allows mariners to upload multiple charts and satellites images that can be overlayed on one another to confirm what one sees (or does not see) with the chart. It is a huge departure from the days of early explorers that navigated by compass, distant accounts, clouds, and stars. Open CPN takes navigating to a whole different level filled with information. Ocean Posse members have access to relavent Open CPN Charts and Files that aid navigation and keep vessels and crews safer on the water. SV Whirlwind used Open CPN above to navigate an entrance through a passage in a reef into an atoll.
They went from this:
To This:
Ocean Posse members have access to Open CPN Charts, tracks, and How to Seminars
STAY SAFE AND NAVIGATE WITH CONFIDENCE
*IMPORTANT OpenCPN Version 5.10.0 was released August 10, 2024*
5.10.0 is a service/maintenance version to 5.8.4.
OpenCPN 5.10.0 series contains some new features and improvements "under the hood". Many of these changes make OpenCPN work even better.
.
Among them are:
- Grib plugin adds direct GRIB file download capability from multiple online resources.
- Enhanced native NMEA2000 network interface capability from numerous third party gateway devices.
- Update core wxWidgets support to wx3.25.
- Full support for Flatpak on virtually all linux distributions, for both x86 and Arm64 architectures.
- Native support for generic Debian linux distributions, particularly plugin system.
- Improved OpenGL graphics support and performance on all platforms.
- Incorporated extensive user feedback to resolve various UI flaws and functional errors.
- Improved embedded User Manual, mirroring evolving online Wiki presentation.
- Improved reliability and stability across all platforms.
It can be downloaded at https://opencpn.org/OpenCPN/info/downloadopencpn.html
Marquesas named UNESCO World Heritage Site
Marquesas named
UNESCO World Heritage Site
According to the World Heritage Convention, The Marquesan Islands were recently named a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its "exceptional testimony to the territorial occupation of the Marquesas archipelago by a human civilization that arrived by sea around the year 1000 CE and developed on these isolated islands between the 10th and the 19th centuries. It is also a hotspot of biodiversity that combines irreplaceable and exceptionally well conserved marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Marked by sharp ridges, impressive peaks and cliffs rising abruptly above the ocean, the landscapes of the archipelago are unparalleled in these tropical latitudes. The archipelago is a major centre of endemism, home to rare and diverse flora, a diversity of emblematic marine species, and one of the most diverse seabird assemblages in the South Pacific. Virtually free from human exploitation, Marquesan waters are among the world’s last marine wilderness areas. The property also includes archaeological sites ranging from monumental dry-stone structures to lithic sculptures and engravings." https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1707
The ancient Marquesan anthropomorphic sculptures or tiki have received wide attention since they were first noted in 1595. Oral stories of their significance are difficult to come by as many have been lost. The Marquesan language has been all but lost to French in the islands although, presently there are many people trying to study it, use it, and keep it alive. Beginning in 1980's, there have been academic efforts to trace the history of Marquesan language, spirituality, and stone structures. Stylistically the Marquesan stone tiki followed certain social rules with similar characteristics to tattoos and material objects.
SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE HUMPBACK WHALES MOVE TO THEIR BREEDING GROUNDS
SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE HUMPBACK WHALES
MOVE TO THEIR BREEDING GROUNDS
It is the austral winter in the Southern Hemisphere right now which means that the Southern Hemisphere humpback whale populations have moved from their feeding grounds along the Antarctic coast to their more northerly breeding grounds. In the South Pacific, that means that humpbacks can be seen and heard in their low latitude breeding grounds where they will mate and calve. Humpback Whales breed around oceanic islands, offshore seamounts, and reef systems.
Where to find Southern Hemisphere Humpback whales this time of year:
- Oceania in the South Pacific islands of French Polynesia, Samoa, Vanuatu, Fiji, Niue, Cook Islands, New Caledonia, Tonga, and Norfolk Island.
- The Pacific coasts of Central and South America as far north as northern Costa Rica to Ecuador including the Galapagos, and the Pacific Panamanian Islands.
- The Atlantic coastal waters off Brazil around 23 (degrees) S
- Southwestern and Southeastern Africa
- Northwestern and Northeastern Australia
According to Mark Carwardine’s HANDBOOK OF WHALES, DOLPHINS, AND PORPOISES OF THE WORLD: “Humpbacks that feed in widely separated regions in the summer gather together and mix in the same breeding grounds (increasing the chances of finding each other and promoting genetic diversity).” Like sea turtles there is a strong loyalty to natal breeding grounds. Mother -Calf pairs generally stay close to one another and prefer shallower water. They may or may not have another whale with them. Other groups of whales are usually made up of a female whale and a dominant ‘escort’ and perhaps other hopeful ‘escort - contenders’.
The demonstrative behaviors of humpback whales make are very distinct. Both males and females of all ages breech, dive, tail waggle and smack, and flipper wave and slap. They can be seen doing this on their own or in larger groups. Both males and females can vocalize for communications and the Singing Humpbacks are usually lone males. Their songs can travel great distances (tens of Kilometers) in the ocean to be heard underwater and through the hull of vessels. The songs are shared among large groups of whales and evolve. They have been described as everything from haunting to beautiful.
Up until the mid-1950’s the humpback whale as a species was depleted by 95% in the whaling days and today, their biggest threat is entanglement in fishing gear. Other threats include noise pollution, ship strikes, oil and gas development, and coastal habitat disturbance/destruction. Thankfully, global humpback whale populations have recovered significantly with the ending of commercial whaling and despite current threats this majestic whale is thriving.
MEET THE FLEET: SV GARGOYLE
MEET THE FLEET: SV GARGOYLE
Kevin & Carla
From the moment Kevin and Carla departed Vancouver BC on May 31, 2019, their first “real” goal was to be in Barra de Navidad in time for the 2019 Panama Posse kickoff meeting at the end of November. That first five months and 4,000 + NM set the tone for the crew of SV Gargoyle, a 2011 Beneteau Oceanis 50. Kevin, Carla, along with their two cats, Sam and Dean, have been sailing proudly under a Posse banner of one flavor or another ever since.
2020 highlights included being locked down in Puesta del Sol, Nicaragua with a number of other posse members. Once they were allowed to leave, Gargoyle beat upwind for nine days to the Galapagos to be one of the first yachts post-COVID to be allowed into these magical islands. After two months in paradise with the islands to themselves, it was time to head East for their first Panama Canal transit and a planned May 2021 Atlantic transit. Insert the Omnicom variant into the story and with Portugal telling them they wouldn’t be allowed into the Azores; they made a 180 degree turn back to Panama for canal transit number two. The decision was now to go the other way to the Med, via the Pacific!
Departing from Marina Papagayo in March 2022 with Dietmar wishing us fair winds from the dock, Gargoyle made a 30-day passage to Nuku Hiva, followed by a season cruising French Polynesia and Fiji. Spending cyclone season in New Zealand, they experienced not one but two cyclones. Leary of the Red Sea they decided to ship Gargoyle with Posse Partner Sevenstar Yacht Transport from Auckland to Cork Ireland in May 2023.
After Gargoyle made her 3rd Panama Canal transit, albeit without her crew, what followed was a magical summer in Ireland and Scotland before a late summer run to Spain, Portugal and then the Med. A winter in Tunisia followed by this season’s cruising in Malta, Sicily, Italy, up to Venice, Greece and now where they sit anchored off Bodrum, Turkey. 24 countries, 40,000NM and yes, Sam and Dean are still rocking it with their human crew.
Follow us on....
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sv_gargoyle/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/svgargoyle50
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOihVJ744XS4CoB71HixcFw/
Kevin and Carla are always available as well for a call or email exchange with their fellow cruisers. sailinggargoyle@gmail.com
SV GARGOYLE 🇨🇦 Kevin & Carla - Beneteau Oceanis 50
THANK YOU KEVIN & CARLA FOR BEING A PART OF THE POSSE FOR SO MANY YEARS!
BOCAS DEL TORO BEACH CLEAN UP
BOCAS DEL TORO BEACH CLEAN UP
Report from Maison de Sante:
We had a nice group of Posse boats and local residents here in Bocas Del Toro, Panama who came out this morning for clean up on Red Frog beach. Many pounds of plastic garbage was collected 😊. The strangest items collected included a bicycle mud flap, a scuba purge valve, and a diaper🤢. Some people had to leave early so not everyone is pictured. Stay tuned for a future date where we can ALL participate in beach clean up wherever you are located!
SY BISOU 🇦🇺 Robin and Tad - Fountaine Pajot 44′ & SY MAISON DE SANTÉ 🇺🇸 Nicole & Keenan - Cal 46'
THANK YOU FOR BEING STEWARDS OF OUR ENVIRONMENT!
MUST SEE: LEVUKA, FIJI
MUST SEE: LEVUKA, FIJI 
THE ORIGINAL GUNKHOLES OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC
Levuka is a town on the eastern coast of the Fijian Island of Ovalau. Up until 1877, it was the capital of Fiji. Currently, this strangely haunted town has a population of about 5,000. It is the economic hub of the largest of 24 settlements on the Island. Levuka was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in June 2013, in recognition of the port town's exceptional testimony to the late colonial port towns in the Pacific Ocean.
The modern town of Levuka was founded around 1820 by European settlers and traders as the first modern town in the Fiji Islands. Levuka quickly became an important port and trading post in the Pacific. A disparate band of settlers made up Levuka's population- traders, missionaries, shipwrights, speculators, vagabonds, and even respectable businessmen. Much of Levuka’s unique heritage is in its wooden architecture (highly vulnerable to fire).
The South Pacific's first Masonic Lodge was built in 1913 and housed the Freemasons that were established in Levuka by Alexander Barrack in 1875. There is much controversy about the Masonic fraternity in Fiji. The dominant traditional Christian faiths consider the Masons to be devil-worshippers. The Masonic Lodge was burned down in the 2000 Fiji coup d'etat. The Lodge contained priceless historical artifacts and records of Levuka's history dating back to 1875. The arsonists have yet to be identified and prosecuted.
GOOD NAUTICAL: BAIE MARQUISIENNE
GOOD NAUTICAL: BAIE MARQUISIENNE
Nuku Hiva, Marquesas
8°54.8555'S, 140°13.4389'W
Baie Marquesienne is on the western facing side of the island of Nuku Hiva. The Trade Winds generally blow from the East or SE; the swell is similar so this anchorage is generally in the lee of the island making the anchorage very calm and surprisingly dry. Since the water is calm, the clarity is pretty good too and there is a nice spot to snorkel on the N side of the anchorage. I saw sharks, dolphins, and lots of very colorful fish among large boulders and small bits of coral here and there. The bay is surrounded by rocky hillsides that appear to be dry with patches of green vegetation where wild goats roam and bleat all day long. A valley winds up into a steep canyon.
The head of the bay is a rather steep too so landing is not really an option. We have four people onboard and were fortunate to have two that wanted to stay onboard and two that wanted to explore. So, we got dropped off on the beach, brought a radio, some water, and headed off into the wild. There is no marked trail to follow but there are waterways (some dry, some running, some rushing) that we followed up and up and up...until we could not go up any more. As we travelled up the valley we found an oasis and a waterfall, wild pigs and goats, many different flowering trees and plenty of shade to stay cool.
https://goodnautical.com/french-polynesia/anchorage/anse-uea-bai-marquisienne
SURFING IN POLYNESIA PAST TO PRESENT
SURFING IN POLYNESIA PAST TO PRESENT
with help from Russell Descheemaeker age 14
Polynesia covers a vast stretch of Pacific Ocean Islands that has a longstanding history of distinctly self-sufficient island people who spoke their own unique language that had a rich seafaring life in common. What is known as modern day surfing once went by many different names from “Hōrue” (Tahitian for gliding on the waves) to heʻe nalu (Hawaiian for wave sliding). While the word for the activity varied by dialect, early water sliding and gliding dates as far back as the 12th century in Polynesia. Many believe that this water activity had religious significance and was seen as an important part of ancient Polynesian life and culture before making tis way to Hawaii where it developed and grew substantially. Formally, surfing was recorded by Joseph Banks aboard the Endeavour during the first journey of the famous Captain James Cook in Tahiti 1769.
Joseph banks wrote in Captain Cook's journal
...their chief [sic] amusement was carried on by the stern of an old canoe, with this before them they swam out as far as the outermost breach, then one or two would get into it and opposing the blunt end to the breaking wave were hurried in with incredible swiftness. Sometimes they were carried almost ashore...”
In Tahiti and Samoa, surfing was a popular activity that was often used as part of warriors' training. Said warriors would often be seen by early Europeans paddling to surf breaks spending many hours bravely paddling head-on into large surf and riding waves. Canoes often went with surfing parties and the men would often swap between canoeing and paddling boards.
In the late 1700's missionary’s spread the word of God through Polynesia. Much native culture, language, and spirituality was suppressed as a direct result of contact with early missionaries. (Side Note: The Shark God by Charles Montgomery is an interesting story tracing the history of missionaries in Polynesia) Wave sliding was deemed a form of Devil worship and was thereby among the suppressed native activities. However, the sport was so widespread across the Pacific Ocean that it was not fully stamped it out. In Hawai'i, surfing had become ingrained into the very fabric of Hawaii'an religion and culture that it managed to withstand many tests through time, conflict, and diseases brought by early Europeans. Some estimates speculate that the native population of the Hawaiian islands was about 800,000 people before European germ contact dessimated the native population to 40,000. There were surfers among the survivors and the sport continued to entertain, interest, and connect people to the water. In 1890, a man named Duke Paoa Kahinu Mokoe Hulikohola Kahanamoku was born. In his lifetime, he changed the sport, restoring its popularity and fanfare. Duke was a two time gold mettle Olympic swimmer and he loved the water. His love was contagious.
Duke died at the age of 77 on January 22, 1968. The sport continued to grow and his memory and influence live on. Fast forward to the present and surfing is enjoyed by enthusiasts both recreationally as a relaxed water activity and by olympic athletes as a modern and extreme sport.
France is currently hosting the 2024 Surfing Olympics on the South side of the island of Tahiti, an island in western French Polynesia. The world famous blue barrel wave called Teahupo'u was so big on Thursday July 29, that the surfing games are on hold until Saturday, Aug 3rd.
A very interesting graphic and description of the wave and how it is uniquely formed by off the mountainous reef fringed reef is here:
https://www.reuters.com/graphics/OLYMPICS-2024/SURFING/akpeoxnyopr/
MEET THE FLEET: SV WINDSONG - Erick & Jenny
MEET THE FLEET: SV WINDSONG
Erick & Jenny
It was a lifelong dream of mine to sail my own boat to beautiful remote places in search of perfect, empty surf breaks, enjoying fishing and other adventures along the way. Around 2007, after my first few years of office work after college, I decided to chase the dream and see if I could make it a reality. Having no prior experience, I took a few sailing lessons to see if it was something I would enjoy and was immediately hooked. Instead of taking a sensible route towards boat ownership, I dove headfirst into buying a derelict project boat and spent the next 10 years fully rebuilding Windsong, a 1975 Downeaster 38 Cutter, into a practically brand new (yet still old) boat. Having little to no relevant skills, I had to learn everything as I went, which in the end gave me a great set of knowledge and experience concerning the ins and outs of the boat.
Once Windsong was as complete as she could be in late 2019, my partner Jenny and I got married, and within a month we moved aboard and set sail for our honeymoon. Leaving from our home port, St. Augustine, FL, and bounced our way down the Florida intercoastal waterway to get a feel for life on the move and at anchor. We started our journey with our senior boxer dog, Koda, who took to cruising life with great happiness as she was able to spend all day, every day with us. After a month or so of Florida coastal cruising, we crossed over to the Bahamas and island hopped for the next few months until Covid shut most of the country down. We sailed back to the US and spent the next summer between South Carolina and Florida. Unfortunately, Koda was not long for the world at this time, so she was put to rest. While it was a devastating moment for us, it did free us up to sail greater distances. We went back to the Bahamas and spent a full season sailing from the Abacos all the way down to Great Inagua. From there we crossed directly to Panama on our first long passage across the Caribbean Sea.
We spent almost two years in Panama, mostly in Bocas Del Toro on the Caribbean side. With great surfing, protected anchorages, affordable living, and fantastic people; it was hard to not stay forever. However, we decided our sailing days were not done, and wanted to cross the Pacific and experience the remote South Pacific tropics. We geared the boat up a bit more, and once all was ready, we first crossed the Panama Canal and set sail to the Galapagos. We applied for and received a 1-year visa for French Polynesia, so after 24 days at sea from the Galapagos we arrived in the Marquesas and then took our time going through the French Polynesian islands, savoring each bit along the way. One year later, we set sail from French Polynesia and with some stops along the way we are now in Fiji, where we will spend the rest of the 2024 cruising season. We do not know where the winds will take us next, but we are looking forward to exploring these lovely islands for as long as they captivate us.
SV WINDSONG 
Erick & Jenny - Downeaster Cutter 38′
