Duration: 35.5 days
Whilst we anticipated the Atlantic crossing to be particularly challenging from a weather perspective, we anticipated the Pacific crossing to be just as challenging from a distance perspective. Panama City to the Marquesas is approximately 5,000 nautical miles. Our preparation centred around equipment checks, additional fuel, drinking water, and provisioning for four adults. The latter was particularly challenging as the dual Vitrifrigio freezers remained unusable.
As we reflect back on this leg of our adventure, we are reminded of the famous line from the Forest Gump movie, ‘Life is like a box of chocolates, you’re never sure what your going to get’. When we replace the word ‘life’ with ‘ocean sailing’ these words are so, so true.
On the 9th of October we departed Panama City on a beautiful clear day. We initially made our way south passing an array of tankers and cargo vessels anchored offshore waiting to transit the canal; to offload their cargo at the nearby port facilities, or perhaps waiting for a shipment before moving on. Of particular concern during the first few hours was the amount and type of debris floating in the sea and moving with the tide. Huge logs, tree branches and random pieces of wood, along with all sorts of domestic rubbish from cans and bottles to plastic spoons and containers. During this time at least one crew member was at the bow to notify Peter, at the helm, of what was coming, its position and ‘hit’ probability. As we sailed on beyond the Panama coastline and outlying islands, the assigned watch continued to keep a look out. Though we acknowledge the difficulty of doing so during nighttime watches. Day 2 and the debris of all shapes and sizes just kept coming, the floating logs were our main concern, fortunately there were no major dramas and we were able to manouvre so that most floated by, and those we missed went straight underneath, between the two hulls.
Day 2 there was also much excitement of a different kind, the blow of a passing whale about 500 metres off our starboard bow heading north. We were hoping it might breach but that wasn’t to be. Later that evening, around 2100 hours and on Peter’s watch, an unidentified object with a flashing strobe light (about 2 metres above the water line) moved at speed about ½ a nautical mile away on our starboard side. On discussing the incident the next day, given the speed, position and type of light we reckon it was most likely a submarine periscope but will never know for sure.
Day 7 and the first of what was to be a series of equipment challenges occurred. The water maker would not work and as such we could not replenish the water in the onboard tank. Peter tried a couple of quick fixes with no success and things got really serious really quickly. We had 280 litres of bottled drinking water onboard and the water tank was roughly ¾ full. Given these circumstances and our projected sail time to the Marquesas Peter made the call to alter course, divert to the Galapagos Islands and obtain additional water supplies. For more discussion about this ongoing issue and how we managed water usage for the remainder of this passage click here http://seagoddessadventures.com/warranty-woes-watermaker/
One of the standing jokes on board was that if something was going to happen on watch it would most likely happen on Sandra’s watch. A prime example was a visit by an unidentified ship at 0330 hours. Sandra saw it approaching at speed with flood lights blazing on its fore, starboard and port decks. It then slowed and drifted about two nautical miles off our starboard quarter. Sandra roused Peter from bed, and we both sat in the cockpit waiting to see what would happen. Given the equipment silhouettes we could see the ship was probably naval. Unlike the previous visit by a naval ship, this ship did not make radio contact with us and in turn we did not initiate any contact. We maintained our set course, our speed and made no changes to our sail plan. After about 15 minutes of tagging us, the vessel turned and headed off in a westerly direction. Bizarre! Our best guess is that they were checking us out and we checked out okay.
Day 10 saw us passing the first of the Galapagos Islands – flat brown and dry. I guess we were expecting something a bit ‘more’. Well we didn’t have to wait long because later that night, surrounded by heaps of tourist and fishing vessels we crossed the equator at 0018 hours (Day 11). The champagne, saved for this very occasion, was popped and we all enjoyed a glass. Such a special milestone for Sea Goddess, the two of us and our crew – truly unforgettable.
Celebrations over and we continued our journey to Puerto Ayora on Isla Santa Cruz, arriving at 1400 hours. Prior to our arrival Peter used VHF Channel 16 to alert port authorities to our emergency and arrival. (Entering Galapagos Island waters and/or mooring must be prearranged with and permission granted from island authorities. Be aware you will need to source a local agent to oversee this process. You can enter in emergency situations, such as ours, but even in these instances you will need to engage a local agent. Also note that in such emergencies your position will be watched and your time in Galapagian waters will be strictly limited i.e. you will be given a specific departure time).
In our case we arrived on a Saturday when relevant local authorities were not at work, however on weekends VHF channels are monitored by a local agent who contacted us via radio. We explained our situation and what 
we required i.e. to refill the boat’s water tank, purchase more drinking water and replenish perishable foods. We were directed to anchor in the bay of Puerto Ayora, surrounded by a Celebrity X cruise liner, Mary Ann a gorgeous ketch, and a number of other power and sailing vessels. A steady stream of water taxis zipped back and forth from the cruise liner to the taxi wharf. Shortly after our arrival we were joined on board by our agent Ronny Sanchez and a member of the Ecuadorian police force (officiating in lieu of a port authority officer). Ronny, who spoke fluent English, handled all documentary and processing requirements. Explaining to the police officer the nature of our emergency and our request for a short lay over.
We provided Ronny with a range of documents including but not limited to boat registration/ certification, crew list, and crew passports as well as photocopies of these documents. Peter then showed the Officer the malfunctioning water maker and the tank meter which showed the current water level. Ronny took photographs of the equipment via his mobile phone. After much discussion between Ronny and Officer Ruiz, Ronny provide the following information to us:
- He would arrange 150 litres of drinking water to be delivered us by boat in about 1 ½ hours time;
- He would also bring officially stamped documentation to us at this time;
- We were granted permission to disembark and access facilities and amenities within the town, and
- We were required to up anchor and leave Puerto Ayora by 1730 hours.
Cost of these services:
- $125US agent fee,
- $75US for provision and delivery of water, and
- $50US for documentation processing fee.
From the initial radio call to liaising with the police officer, organising the delivery of water and processing of all required documentation Ronny was incredibly professional and helpful. If you are planning a trip to Galapagos Islands or like us get into difficulty, we can highly recommend his services. Ronny’s contact details are as follows: Ronny Sanchez, phone +593 96 961 8925, VHF Channel 74, or email info@viajeagalapagos.com
After completing the initial formalities Peter, Sandra and Patrick hailed a water taxi and rode the short distance to the taxi wharf (cost $1US per person/per trip). Gifford stayed on board in case the water arrived earlier than anticipated. Once on land we headed to a café/restaurant for a non-pasta non-rice based meal, while Patrick tracked down somewhere to shower. With our hunger sated we got some cash out from one of the two ATM’s located next to a small supermarket on the main street. Replenishing our food stocks was next, particularly fruit, vegetables, deli meats and bread. There wasn’t a great selection of fruit and vegetables on offer and quality was poor, so we picked what we could. As water rationing would still be in place we bought large packets of baby wipes for everyone to use in lieu of showering. Not ideal, but conserving water was critical. As we returned to Sea Goddess we noted that a boat with a large water tank was rafted up alongside, Ronny was also on board and overseeing the water transfer to the onboard tank and as many buckets and empty 5 litre bottles that we could find. We swapped places with Gifford so that he could have some shore time. At 1730 with everyone back onboard and vessel preparations completed we departed Puerto Ayora and headed west.
One of the major consequences of repeated equipment failures over the course of our journey has been the associated time delays, and as a result of this diversion to Galapagos Peter made the tough decision to bypass the Marquesas islands and head direct to Tahiti.
Winds continued to be fickle and sail management became critical to our progress. We even got the spinnaker out for the first time, but it was the Code 0 that time and time again did the heavy lifting. Over Day 12 and 13, we smashed our best sailing distances thus far. On Day 12 we covered 189 nautical miles and on Day 13 194 nautical miles. The Code 0 together with the mainsail, the latter to give us stability, was awesome. Winds were 15-17 knots at times with 1 metre seas and we peaked at 12 nautical miles per hour.
Day 18 and we continued to make good progress in a slight south westerly direction, then we turned southward towards Papeete in Tahiti. The south east trades were working in our favour again at 15–20 knots. Day 20 and another equipment failure strikes, this time the generator wouldn’t start. Peter completed a number of basic checks, with no joy. Yet another email was logged with The Multihull Group and Windcraft (the TMG warranty arm) regarding this new issue, in the meantime we ran the engines to charge onboard batteries. So to date we have a freezer not working, a water maker not working and now a generator not working. For more discussion about the generator issue click on the following link http://seagoddessadventures.com/warranty-woes-onan-generator/ .
It’s the 5th November and Day 28 of the Pacific crossing, and the last few days have been interesting. Firstly our route took us through a deep sea fishing zone, with buoys marking either fishing nets or lines on either side of our course. Most of these were marked/fitted with an Automated Identification System (AIS) transmitters so we could see them on our electronic chart and manouvre to avoid them. However a number of these buoys were not transmitting and we missed some by mere metres. It is amazing to think that even being surrounded by an ocean of water we miss an object by only such a short distance. During the day we kept careful lookout, but at night it was a case of just hoping we did not bump into any unidentified ones. Most of the fishing appears to be done by Chinese or Taiwanese vessels. We did spot a couple of ‘mother ships’ as we passed through. The fishing area we sailed through spanned approximately 500 nautical miles. Then the very next day we were literally ‘buzzed’ by a small jet. It passed us about 10 metres above sea level and was gone before we could identify it. We guess it was a patrol plane for the fishing zone, but once again we will never know. It also rained for the first time in a long time and boy did we make the most of it. Standing on the stern transom Sandra washed her hair and the guys soaped up for a quick wash. We also managed to catch some rainwater with some strategically placed buckets. Lastly on another positive note, we reached two significant distance milestones today, 10000 nautical miles since we left France and 4000 nautical miles since we left Panama. That is a very long way! Lots more sailing ahead, the most immediate being 820 nautical miles to Tahiti.
One of the things that might be of interest is what did we do all day? Well each of us had 2 x 4 hour watches which accounted for 8 hours each day. Our responsibilities during these watches included:
- Keeping a visual watch for any sea vessels and/or floating debris.
Not all recreational vessels have AIS installed, as such these vessels will not show up on electronic charts. Furthermore, fishing vessels have been known to switch off their AIS. Why? Not sure, perhaps to ‘hide’ their key fishing spots. In terms of floating debris, this could be anything from shipping containers to large logs.
- Ensuring we remain on course;
- Monitoring wind and sea conditions;
- Trimming and/or deploying sails;
- Responding to any alarms (Occasionally the autopilot would have a bit of a hissy fit and would require a reset), and
- Maintaining the Vessel Log on an hourly basis.
Handwritten, the Vessel Log allowed us to track our progress over time, and can also be used for insurance, warranty and legal purposes. Each day the date, last port, destination port and names of crew were noted on the relevant page. Each hour the following information was documented – our bearing; type of power i.e. sail, motor or motor/sail; wind direction and force; sea state, weather/visibility; distance travelled (in that hour), total distance travelled; position i.e. latitude and longitude; and engine hours if relevant. The Log also included a comments section where we noted any boat issues, repairs carried out, interesting bird and sea life, time of docking or departure and so on. Really a diary of events and a record of our voyage. I’m sure we will look back on this in future years and reminisce about the various stages and days of our adventure. Just an additional point, since returning to Australia we continue to maintain the Sea Goddess Log even for local coastal sailing.
Apart from ‘watches’ there were various ways and activities to pass the time. Journalling; electronic, card and board games; reading; chatting; watching pre-downloaded movies; listening to music; preparing meals; sunbathing; assisting with sail management and sleeping. Sandra chose to start a French language course via podcast, and we learnt a lot about the stars and constellations of the northern and southern hemispheres from one of our crew. It was all pretty chilled.
Day 34 and the challenges just keep coming. Our main halyard snapped and rather than sail on we decided take a detour and try to fix it. First task was to divert to an atoll next to Arutua where we could be on the leeward side of the atoll and sheltered as much as possible from the waves. Patrick, one of our brave crew volunteered to go up the mast, while we drifted in calmer waters. We couldn’t repair the halyard, so decided to try the topping lift as a halyard which worked fine for several hours only to snap and the mainsail collapsed at 0500, ugh another issue! Luckily no damage occurred to the mainsail or Sea Goddess. As an aside, while Patrick was up the mast he noticed that the Code 0 halyard was also significantly damaged due to chafing. As a result, we didn’t use the Code 0 going forward and we couldn’t use the mainsail for the remainder of the sail to Tahiti. So we put out the jib and motor sailed, expecting to arrive in Papeete during the early morning hours of Wednesday 13th November. We have created a separate blog related to the rigging issues we experienced throughout the trip, to read more http://seagoddessadventures.com/sea-goddess-rigging-failures/ .
Day 35 0500 ships time, 0100 Tahiti time and the island was on the horizon. We arrived just as it was getting light, a full moon was still up and lighting a gorgeous pathway across the rippling waves. It’s been 35.5 days at sea, a very long trip of over 5000 nautical miles or 9300km, with an average speed of 6.1 knots. Peter pre-booked a berth at Marina Taina, on the northwest side of the island. Access to the marina was via a channel from the main harbour which runs between the mainland and a reef. The channel also runs under the flight path to Papeete Airport and closely passes the end of the airport runway. As a result we had to contact Papeete Port Control and gain permission to approach and enter the channel, and contact Port Control again once we reached the end of the runway for permission to proceed to the marina.
Also note that marina options and berthing opportunities are extremely limited (both marinas in Tahiti are well utilised and booked out by locals). Anchorage was also available on the waters surrounding Marina Taina, if you choose this option be aware that there is a daily fee incurred for dinghy access and use of marina facilities by moored yachts. Also note that if you require boat repairs then Marina Taina is the best option, since Marina Papeete does not allow contractors to work in the marina. For us Marina Taina was the best option even though we could only secure a berth for two nights. During this time Peter and Sandra solely focused on ensuring all essential repairs were completed (we were successful with the generator and rigging, but not with the water maker).
One of the most disappointing parts of the journey thus far has been the flow on effect of equipment failures. For the most part this resulted in both of us being tied to the boat while we were in port. Rather than exploring the amazing places we visited, much of our time was spent chasing warranty issues, liaising with repair crews, waiting for repair crews and of course someone had to be onboard when they arrived. As with some other ports, there was really no opportunity to explore the island of Tahiti so unfortunately we can’t provide a description for you. However, we can provide a comprehensive review of Marina Taina and for this review please click here http://seagoddessadventures.com/france-to-australia-marina-taina/ .
Check out this guy on his outrigger who rode our wake as we left Tahiti. We did shout out that we were on our way to Australia, that gained us a smile!
