Panama to Galapagos Day 2

Day 2: Tuesday 2/5/2013

The highlight of the day was fishing!!!! We now have caught a total of 5 fish: 2 Bonito and 2 Skip Jack, both of which we do not like to eat so threw back, but the coup de grace was an 18-lb, 31” yellow fin TUNA…..can you say sushi, sashimi and seared tuna for dinner!!!!

Although Wayne, my new reel may need work, or rather the line….help!!!! Somehow this line got a huge mess at the head eye….I don’t know what from….a splice, knot??????……anyway, I did not notice at first, the reel would not wind even with the tension all the way down, acting like this was a fish stronger than the reel….oh boy, we got us a whale……so we dragged this fish for about 5-10 min and still no go……I finally noticed the mess at the head eye, got it cleared and then reeled in…..it was a bit rolly so Kathy did not want to go on the swim transom so we opened the port cockpit door, Kathy on her hands and knees (you got to love her….only for tuna otherwise it’s cut the dang lineJ))))) ……reaches out with the big net and viola, we got it in!!!!! (We have a gaff but in my condition that’s a no no!!!)

The weather stayed pretty benign. Winds and seas gradually calmed to <10 knots of wind and 2-3’ wind chop all from the NE. We have yet to feel and significant NW or SW swells. No rain, but it did get hot….well into the 80’s and 75%+ humidity……very hot in the sun!!!!

The Big Story is the favorable current……we still have it…..although it is slowing…..we have slowed to 8.1-8.6 kts SOG or a 0.5-1.2 kt favorable current. I’m pretty sure this will last only another 100 nm or so to about 3 deg N.

An event the first night I forgot to mention in Day 1:  John’s on watch….4:00am pitch black…..wait, I see a flashing white light…a strobe????…oh crap, that’s marking the end of a fisherman’s long line….oh crap, crap, crap…..I must not run over the long line….many are at the surface and could hang on the stabilizer fin or foul the prop….oh, crap which way to go……must try and see the 2^nd strobe marking the end of the other line…..crap again…can’t find it so choose….well, the 1^st strobe is off the starboard bow so let’s keep it to starboard….but wait, I had been tracking what I thought was a sailboat about 5 miles out off the port bow….what if that is the fisherman…..what to do…decision time….wait I think or was it my imagination I see the 2^nd strobe off the port side…ok….must keep 1^st strobe to port…..turn immediately 90 deg….ok, please be right…..in the meantime we are now beam to the 4-6’ waves….we get very rolly….things start to crash…..I’m sure Kathy will be tossed from her bed…..my water glass with maybe 2-3 sips left in it falls over….do you know how much water is 2-3 sips…..I mopped up water for a half hour…..sheesh…..anyway, since I’m writing this in humor….I guessed right….nothing got stuck or fouled…..ok, adrenaline rush…..no more coffee required 🙂

Nature: One of the sheer pleasures of passagemaking is at night seeing dolphin playing on the bow. Last night for about 10 minutes I watched a group of 4-5 playing…..they look like torpedoes as the plankton lights up their path…..it’s a jaw dropping sight to see!!!!!

And, of course, one of mariners’ favorites, seeing both the Southern Cross (south star) and the Big/Little Dipper (North Star) in the same sky……I broke out in Amazing Grace….juts wish I could sing like the song deserves!!!!

Wednesday 2/7 7:00 EST or 1200 UTC (46.5 hours):

Position: N 3 39 W 82 44

Traveled: 390 nm; 500 nm to go – almost half way; ETA still Saturday morning 2/9

Speed: Current speed is 8.3 SOG, avg SOG is 8.4 kts, boat speed is 7.0-7.3 kts @ 1400 rpm and favorable current is slowing but still 0.9 – 1.0  kts….

Oh, and one more thing…..it is very isolated out here…..we have not seen a boat since the strobe light incident….27 hours ago…ugh!!!! But we did talk w/Vern on Enchantment last night on the SSB…..they just left Panama and are 275 nm behind us!!!!