Saturday November 13, 2010 Day 16
17.00 N latitude, 61.47 W longitude
Catamaran Club Marina

Hello Everybody,

We arrived at the mouth of Falmouth Harbour at 2200 Saturday night. The wind was dropping as we turned the southeast corner of Antigua heading along the south shore to Falmouth, so we furled our sails and motored the last 6 miles. Our goal was to land at the Catamaran Marina so we could give the boat and equipment a good wash down Sunday morning. We used the dock space to spread things out, used dock water and set to work. We were incredibly efficient. We had the boat clean: inside, outside, jackets, fishing gear, sailing gear, cushions–everything. We got the boat fueled, Jake checked us into Antigua…all by 1:30. We were very pleased with ourselves because sometimes cleanup runs into the second day! After a quick lunch we moved the boat out to anchor and everyone had a swim. The boys took snorkels and fins and went off to the “nudie” beach while I swam a couple of laps around the boat. Once everyone was clean and cool we broke out the beers and the rum and had our second lasagna as a send-off meal for Peter V, who would leave the next morning (Monday) for home.

We have never seen Antigua look like this! There has been little or no wind since we arrived! And no rain, not even a sprinkle, rarely a cloud! It has been in the 90′s with only the lightest breath of air. We’ve depended on plenty of snorkeling and swimming to keep cool, plus fans and some air conditioning. And….there were no boats here. There were 2 sailboats at the ‘Cat Club’, Falmouth Harbour Marina was totally empty, Antigua Yacht Club had fewer than half a dozen boats and there were fewer than half a dozen boats at anchor. Everything is quiet. We have bumped into vendors who are normally running to appointments and they had time to chat! Most places have reduced hours. It’s quite amazing and wonderful! That has changed in the last 2 days, however. Sometime Thursday ‘Vesper’ arrived, followed Friday morning by ‘Mirabella V’ (the largest sloop in the world at the time she was built), and 3 or 4 boats today. We’re going to have to learn to share.

Our trip was fantastic! Probably the best ever. We think we had a maximum of 2 hours plus “a couple of sprinkles” of rain. The temperature was so moderate, with the lowest nighttime temperature 57, that only Leo wore a winter jacket, and he wore his only for one 4-hour watch. We had good winds most of the way to Bermuda, using only 69 gallons of fuel, and for the most part they were aft, so we flew along without much heel. We did have a really good roll going north of the Gulf Stream, but it was only troublesome when we tried to serve dinner. Somehow we managed to cross the Gulf Stream very quickly in a meander that swept us southeast toward Bermuda. As it turned out the window to leave Jamestown was very small. A boat that left a day ahead of us had strong headwinds for 2 days, resulting in a miserable trip. ‘Ticonderoga’ an antique wooden boat from Newport couldn’t leave on Thursday and had to hold in Newport for 2 weeks, probably leaving today. Herb told us to leave right behind the front, and that’s what we did–the fog had lifted, we had changed the alternator belts, so we quickly gobbled down the pizza and we were gone!

The trip from Bermuda south was perfect! We were so lucky that we could take advantage of another very small window, and that Herb was able to navigate us way east out of any weather. We had good wind at a great wind angle most of the way. Best of all we had constant sunny or starry skies! And not just Peter V, everyone! The fishing was good with 2 Marlin and 5 Mahi. We had a great group! Every one was a good competent sailor. Peter L is primarily a small boat sailor, so he was eager to practice steering in big wind and seas and in the dark. Leo is learning about navigation, so he navigated us into both Bermuda and Antigua in the dark.

Once we got here and on our anchor, we declared ourselves on vacation. Chris Adams stayed until Wednesday, so Jake, Chris and Pete L snorkeled and swam every day. Chris and Pete went ashore to the bars in the evening. After Chris left it was just Jake and Pete swimming. Last night Leo took Pete out with his friends for ‘goat water’, ‘fish water’ (from one of the Mahi we caught) and a night on the town. Pete couldn’t decide which he liked better, but thought both were excellent! Today Leo and Pete have helped us bring Avalanche back into the dock for a few days. We have a couple of maintenance issues: a watermaker tune up with the world’s best watermaker guy, a radar check up, and a professional look at Chris’s solder job on that hose. It’s just easier for those folks to come to the boat at the dock. (And in the current heat, with no wind, it’s easier on us to have the benefit of air conditioning!)

I have to mention something that was totally funny, totally appropriate, that I neglected to describe at the time. When we were looking for the leak at midnight Peter and Jake found it. Picture those two with broad shoulders crammed into a bilge space looking at the leak…..And Chris Adams said: “If you two would get out of the way, I could have this fixed in no time.” I don’t think I’ve ever seen Jake and Peter move so fast! Chris had it fixed in record time!

All the best from the greatly diminished crew of Avalanche, with promises of photos tomorrow!

November 6, 2010 Day 9
17 20 N latitude 61 37 W longitude

Hello Everybody,

At this point in the trip, less than 60 miles from Antigua and flying along under blue skies, bright sunshine and 15-20 knots of breeze, I would like to fill you in on what we really did. We’re now ready to tell the whole truth. As we approached Bermuda our information was that there were 3 storms brewing and Herb was very concerned about how strong they would become and where they would go. His immediate, conservative and excellent advice was to go into Bermuda and stay there until there was firm information about those storms. When Herb is concerned about our safety, given the weather conditions he is seeing, we listen. After all, he’s our expert. So, as I wrote on Sunday night, it was our plan to take an enforced vacation in Bermuda.

Overnight, as we approached Bermuda, we got some internet weather information that made it look as if a quick departure from Bermuda might be justified. However, before we made that decision, we really wanted to talk the weather and departure options over with Herb, but the timing for that wasn’t great: we think that his schedule includes a walk in the morning followed by about 3 hours of study going over his weather sources and preparing his forecasts. It didn’t seem appropriate to bother him during that period with a phone call, so we began trying to gather information on our own from the usual sources: Bermuda radio, NOAA weather, internet weather sites, even info from a fellow Jamestowner, who happened to be at the dock. It looked to Jake and Peter and me as if we could get out ahead of the strong winds and avoid headwinds, and also stay clear of Tomas, if we left Bermuda immediately.

This was our strategy: We would leave Bermuda immediately heading southeast with a goal of 192-208 miles a day (that’s SOG of 8-8.5), using any combination of sails and engine. This would put us east of Tomas and all of the feeder bands associated with Tomas. Speed and direction were of utmost importance. Instead of making our course straight to Antigua we would ‘banana’ out to the east. IF Tomas followed its predicted course we would sail in favorable winds (NE,E, ESE at 15-25 under clear skies with little or no convection activity), while Tomas and the associated wind bands would be to our west. The risk, of course, was that Tomas would not follow his predicted course. If Tomas turned northeast or east or increased speed we might be in his path. For that reason, from the beginning we all agreed that if Herb saw changes in Tomas that warranted it, we would return to Bermuda.

The next step was communicating with Herb and getting his approval of our plan, without that we would scrap the plan and vacation in Bermuda. We couldn’t just leave and spring our plan on Herb at 1600 on the net when a.) he wouldn’t be prepared with necessary information for a detailed response and b.) other boats would be listening, who might not be ready for an immediate departure, but would want to leave anyway. So Jake emailed him with our proposal for his opinion. This is our 26th trip with Herb and over the years we have developed a bond of trust. Herb knows our boat, sail configuration, fuel capacity and average speed. He knows how far we can get in 24 hours. Herb also knows that if he tells us to turn back we will do it. (We did in 1999 when Hurricane Lenny was a threat.) In his reply Herb reiterated that our plan could be risky, but was most concerned about ESE and S winds of 25-30 knots, which would be uncomfortable on Thursday and Friday as we approached Antigua. So with Herb’s endorsement (or lack of prohibition) we were off, secure in the knowledge that he would be watching for weather trouble for us and guiding us into the best conditions. Unfortunately, however, with our departure we put Herb in a difficult position. We could hear boats listening to Herb at 1600 learn that Avalanche had left Bermuda. We heard Herb advise them all to stay put. Some wanted to try our strategy, but Herb had to explain that conditions had already changed, the opportunity was gone. (Herb, we apologize for putting you in that position.)

Within 2 hours of our departure from Bermuda we realized we had a glitch: namely our insurance policy requires us to be “north of Savannah, GA from June 1 to November 1 inclusive”. As we wrote earlier, that meant we couldn’t turn south of east until midnight or 14 hours after our departure. It also meant we had to figure out what the lat/lon of Savannah is. For a small issue it became a big puzzle. Namely, we didn’t want to waste fuel barreling further east than we needed to go, but we didn’t want to waste 12 hours at less than top speed. The final decision was to sail fast, conserve fuel. That’s when we poled out the yankee to sail wing & wing. In the end we needed all that easting and took more after the midnight turn. Being east of 60 degrees
longitude kept us in the 18-22 knot wind range, which was very comfortable.

If you would like to read exactly how we laid out our plan, this paragraph gives the details of where we figured we could be in relation to where Tomas was predicted to be. It is easiest to read if you have a chart in front of you, and bear in mind all lat/lon is approximate. Bermuda is located at approximately 32 N latitude, 65 W longitude. On Monday Tomas was a tropical storm 1128 south of Bermuda, heading WSW at 12k. The prediction was that Tomas would go W to about 74 degrees W longitude until Wednesday before it turned N. At that longitude Tomas would be about 500 west of Bermuda and still 1000 miles south. If we left Bermuda Monday heading SE, at 8.5 knots SOG we could be just over 400 miles southeast of Bermuda on Wednesday, or 500 miles east and 600 miles north of Tomas. The same prediction had Tomas further north at about 17 N latitude and 74 W longitude on Thursday. Making 8.5 SOG we would be at 24 N latitude, 59 W longitude or 520 miles east and 420 miles north of Tomas. And on Saturday as he became a category 1 hurricane Tomas would be at the Turks and Caicos (23 N lat, 73 W lon), while we would be at 18 N latitude, 61 W longitude or 660 miles east and 300 miles south of Tomas AND less than 12 hours from Antigua. The further forecast was that Tomas might hit Bermuda the following week.

Now that we are 13 miles off Barbuda and have almost accomplished our objective, we would like to pay tribute to Herb for his confidence in us and his hard work on our behalf. We couldn’t have made our great escape if we hadn’t had Herb closely watching our position and the changing weather conditions. We really appreciate having had him on board once again.

We had another early fish at 0700 this morning, Peter V reeled in a small Mahi that Leo will use for ‘fish water’, a West Indian favorite that includes the fish steaks, potatoes, and broth made from the fish head, plus lots of seasonings. And as we were eating our lunch, we had yet another Mahi, this one reeled in by Peter L on Jake’s side, and one more small Mahi also reeled in by Pete L on Jake’s side. So the final fishing contest score is Jake 5, Peter V 2, fish 3. We caught 1 Blue Marlin, 1 White Marlin, and 5 Mahi. As most of you know Jake and Peter V are merely team captains, who select a side of the boat and put out their own gear. Anyone who grabs the rod reels in the fish, but it counts on the side of the boat. As it happens Leo and Chris are easily as intense, committed and expert fishermen as Jake and Peter L. (Chris sat on his boat in a nor’easter last summer with a line over as the wind whistled and boats dragged by, catching scup.) I don’t think Peter L has the experience of the others, but he was certainly eager! And took considerable teasing because all the Mahis he reeled in were small. Leo and Peter Lwere on Jake’s team and Chris stood with Peter V.

We are now due in about midnight or 0100 Sunday. The computer’s optomistic ETA of 1900 has come and gone.

All the best from the crew of Avalanche, watching as the lights of Antigua get larger on the horizon, eager to get there!

PS We have lots of photos and movies to post on the web site, so please check every day or two for our final update with statistics and anything else we think of, plus the photos, and (perhaps) the bio of Pete Largess.

November 5, 2010 Day 8
20 28 N latitude 60 40 W longitude

Hello Everybody,

We’re 220 miles from Antigua, and the computer is showing an ETA of 1900 Saturday. We’re just hoping that we’ll keep enough speed to hit the fishing grounds around Barbuda while it’s still light. (Barbuda, the other large island in the country of Antigua & Barbuda, is 30 miles north of Antigua.) We’ve continued with great wind, 20-25 knots, for almost 48 hours now. It’s gone east, but not southeast as was predicted, so we still have a comfortable ride reaching with main, yankee and staysail. We’ve had consistent SOG’s of 8 or 8.5, and just now are over 9! Today we made 196 miles.

We have had dinner, it’s dark with clear skies and lots of stars (and it isn’t even Peter V,s watch). Jake and Leo are on watch complaining about how hot it is (it’s 81) and they have the breeze in their faces. Chris is on deck enjoying the breeze, the evening, the music and company. Peter L is resting until his 2000-2400 watch, and Peter V is asleep. I guess you could compare it to sitting on your porch on a summer evening. Jake has just turned on the air conditioning below where it is 86. That will make sleeping much more comfortable.

We were awakened this morning by a change in the boat’s motion: fish on. Chris and Leo had a Blue Marlin this time. They were alone on watch at about 0700 when he struck. Chris reeled him in and Leo hopped down to the back deck to bring him to the boat and bill him until we decided to release him. No one else was up, so we don’t have a photo, but Leo says it was about 30 pounds, slightly larger than the White Marlin. That makes the score Jake 3, Peter V 1, fish 3. We didn’t have another strike all day. But that isn’t surprising considering our speed.

We had another great day. Mostly blue skies, with an occasional passing cloud. The autopilot did most of the driving today while the crew tweaked sail trim as the wind direction crept forward. Today everyone pulled out reading material: Peter L is really enjoying a Ted Turner biography, Chris is reading a book of stories of pirates off the coast of R.I., Jake is reading Yachting World, Leo has a copy of Reader’s Digest going, Peter V is reading a book of odd information called DO DOLPHINS EVER SLEEP?, and I’m reading a trashy novel by Nora Roberts. The biggest key here is that every selection is something that can be put down immediately if something needs attention. Otherwise it’s been another ordinary day in paradise bathing and napping, eating (even ice cream for dessert), sailing and sunning, reading and relaxing.

All the best from the crew of Avalanche, looking forward to fishing off Barbuda, seeing the lights of Antigua on the horizon, making landfall, and enjoying a rum!

November 4, 2010 Day 7
23 24 N latitude 59 51 W longitude

Hello Everybody,

We have had another beautiful day in paradise. More blue skies, stars at night, water temp 81 degrees, air temp in the low 80′s. We’ve had great wind for sailing ever since last night–18 or 19 knots overnight and this morning, building now to around 25. We’ve had almost constant SOG’s over 8, most of them 8.5. It looks as if we made 189 miles today! And with that kind of mileage under sail our fuel worries disappear. We have traveled 1313 miles since we left Jamestown and have just 400.5 miles to Antigua. The computer tells us that if we can continue to fly along at this pace we will get there around 8 pm on Saturday night. However, the computer doesn’t know that this wind is predicted to become lighter on Saturday. Using that information, the crew is thinking that the ETA will be sometime in the overnight hours between Saturday dinner and Sunday morning.

Peter L practiced steering in the seas today. Everybody bathed on the back deck and no one looked around for little projects to keep them busy. Everyone is still pretty tired from the lost sleep due to the stop in Bermuda, so the guys were all trying to nap. We didn’t have any hits on the fishing lines, probably because we’re going so fast. If the computer is correct about our arrival, we will sail past Barbuda, where the sea floor comes from 3,000′ up to 300′ or so, in the daylight when we can fish–maybe even slow down to fish. We don’t fish at night, so if it’s already dark as we pass Barbuda, we’ll miss that fine fishing opportunity.

Between now and Sunday morning the crew plans to make the most of these ideal sailing conditions, getting their last opportunity at the end of what has been a fine trip.

All the best from the crew of avalanche.

November 3, 2010 Day 6
26 40 N latitude 60 06 W longitude

Hello Everybody,

The fishing contest score now stands at Jake 2, Peter V 1, fish 3! We’ve had a rather busy afternoon. First a gorgeous White Marlin on Jake & Leo’s side: reeled in, brought to the boat, subdued by his bill on the back deck and brought aboard by Leo! The rest of us watched amazed and took photos. Leo has had lots of experience with bill fish and did not want to lose this one. The blue color is absolutely stunning, photos don’t do it justice; and the bill, big blue eyes and long dorsal fin are just majestic. After a brief debate we decided to keep him and have him for dinner tomorrow night. Judging against the size of the cleaning board he was about 50″ long and anywhere between 20 and 50 pounds, depending on whom I ask. When the other lines were reeled in we found one had had its hook and leader bitten off–score one for the fish. A couple of hours later Peter V caught a small Mahi on his side. And once again, when the other lines were reeled in one had had its hook and leader bitten off–score one more for the fish. The plan is fish sandwiches Thursday and Friday and fish fillets for dinner Thursday. If they keep catching at this rate we’ll have to put some of the fish in the freezer!

The only problem with all this catching is that it crowds out the bathers. Both Peter V and Jake had been planning their baths and naps for right after lunch. Jake was napping and Peter headed for the back deck when the Marlin struck. After Chris cleaned the fish and Peter V prepped the meat, Peter V headed to the bathing platform again, successfully this time; followed by Jake, who had to break the rules and bathe on watch because he had run out of time. Although he got his bath, the second fish kept Peter from his nap.

Yesterday I mentioned that crew duties include repairing anything that needs attention, usually at some inconvenient time. Well, last night Jake convened a spontaneous meeting of the entire crew at midnight for just such a purpose. As he made his midnight log entry he noticed that the bilge pump had run for 44 seconds during the previous 2 hours. (Usually it runs about 8 seconds every 6-12 hours) That was cause for an investigation. As Jake and Peter V (who was relieving Jake) and Peter L lifted floorboards Chris and Leo woke up and joined the search for a small leak. I got up to protect our living environment with dropcloths. Eventually they found the leak in the last place they looked. We had a couple of pinholes in a metal hose creating a very small leak. Chris soldered the holes, the leak stopped, and we’re back to about 8 seconds of pumping every 6-12 hours. The entire evolution took just over an hour. By 0115 only the watch was still up. What a team. Are we good or what?

Today, aside from the excitement of catching fish, we had a rather dull day: lots of sun, temps in the low 80′s, motoring with the mainsail strapped amidships. Once everyone had bathed and eaten and dealt with fish, these 5 avid sailors didn’t know what to do. Before we furled it up, Chris and Peter L noticed that the tell tales on the yankee were stuck and not flying freely, so they decided to replace them. They got out the rigging box & the sail repair kit and found new tell tales. Peter L put the climbing harness on and Chris winched him up the forestay to install the new telltales. Okay, that took 45 minutes, now what? It turns out Peter L had never learned to whip or splice, so Chris (a rigger by profession) pulled out the box of rope bits and taught him both skills. Now all our odd lines are nicely whipped–no more frayed ends. Peter V, meanwhile, was wondering about the results of the elections, so he tried to find the appropriate SSB channel for news (unsuccessfully, unfortunately).

Right now the guys are much happier. We’ve just had about 20 knots of wind come in so we turned off the engine, rolled out 2 jibs, and eased out the mainsail. The two Petes are on watch together enjoying the breeze and the stars (Somehow Peter V always has clear starry nights.) while they tweak the trim of the sails to wring every ounce of speed out of the boat. They are in their element again. They just recorded a SOG of 9.8! Today we made 194 miles and have only 610 to Antigua!

All the best from the crew of Avalanche, hoping to keep the crew happy tweaking sails tomorrow and catching fish, bathing and napping!