sy Timoneer

Noon Position  27deg 14N 66deg  44W

Course  -340 Degrees   Speed – 11 Knots        Day’s Run – 283  Miles

Weather – Sunny and calm

Wind  – 4  knots from   150 degrees

We had a great afternoon of motor sailing at 12-13 knots through until around midnight when the wind died and we  put away the main and genoa. Since then we have been motoring at 11knots in very pleasant conditions. It looks like we might have these conditions for another 24 hours before we get the breeze back.

We had a pod of Pilot Whales pass by us about 100m from the boat. They showed very little interest in us.

We have had the fishing lines out all morning but no luck yet.

JC

Noon Position 22 deg 48 N 64deg 56 W

Course  – 340 Degrees   Speed – 12   Knots        Day’s Run – 254  Miles

Weather –  Sunny with 1m swell from NE

Wind  -12   knots from  110  degrees

After dinner last night the wind built up and we put up the main, mizzen and genoa and were motor sailing at 12 knots quite happily until around 10pm  suddenly we had a horrible noise from the prop again. We feathered the prop and turned the engine off and sailed through the night at 10 knots.

The wind started to die this morning and we were struggling to sail at 8 knots so we took all the sails down and Andy and Manie jumped over the side and dived on the prop removing the rope cutter. Nothing like diving in 6000m of water! Now we are motor sailing in dying winds doing 12 knots.

The forecast is for very little wind for the next 2 days so we will be motoring and will have to have another go at fishing.

JC

Noon Position 18 deg 50N 63 deg 27 W

Course  -340  Degrees   Speed -10  Knots        Day’s Run – 56  Miles

Weather –   Sunny skies with 1-2m swell from the NE

Wind  -9  knots from 140 degrees

We had a slow trip from Antigua Sint Maarten after developing a vibration from the propeller just after dark. After fearing the worst we put up all the sails and sailed at 7-8 knots the 2nd half of the trip. In the morning on anchor the engineers dived on the prop and found that the rope cutter mounting had moved and the cutter was free to spin on the shaft and cause vibration. After about an hour of diving and adjusting it and checking the shaft bearings were fine we went for a sea trial and much to our relief all was good again. Meanwhile Jordi and Penny went to the shops to top up the fridges with  foods we could not get in Antigua.

We dropped Jonny ashore at 6am and headed to sea on a very still morning. Passing Anguilla, our Antigua wi-fi router burst into life so we slowed down to take advantage of the internet to get a weather forecast and check our emails. From now on all our communications with the outside world will be by very low bandwidth (SLOW) Iridium satellite phone.

The total distance for the trip from SXM to Newport is 1500nm. All going well we should be getting in to Newport Tuesday morning.

The fishing lines are out but we are struggling to keep the lures free from sargasso weed, which there has been an abundance of in the Caribbean this year. We had a visit from 3 dolphins that played on the bow wave for a few minutes before getting bored and swimming away.

More news at midday tomorrow.

All the best,

JC

Good morning,

We are motoring around Antigua from North Sound Marina to Falmouth Harbour at the moment. The paint job is complete and Timoneer is back together. We will be fuelling up this afternoon, doing a few emergency drills and then departing for Sint Maarten. It should take us around 10 hours to get there as we will be motoring with light winds from behind.

If all goes well with the sea trial we will leave Sint Maarten Tuesday afternoon for Newport, Rhode Island. This trip should take around 6 days. The long range weather forecast is for light winds until we are past Bermuda and then we should get a good sail for the last 2 days.

Bring on the fishing!

Cheers J

“JC” John Cornish

 Click on the image below to view the complete article from Yachting Matters & The Yacht Owner Issue 28:

‘Mrs G’ – Georgie Gosnell – 14th May 1930 to December 17th 2014

Mrs G

14th May 1930 to December 17th 2014

This is a very sad time for all of us. Mrs G, our hero and a sailing legend passed away on Wednesday night due to cancer. She will be sorely missed by all the “Timoneeros” and the yachting fraternity in general, where she was an icon and an example of how to enjoy life. She will never be forgotten. Sail on in Peace, Mrs G, we love you!

See http://www.anthonychapels.com/obituaries/Georgia-Gosnell/#!/Obituary

Noon Position  18 deg. 03 ’N. 058 deg. 44 ’ W.

Course  –     252 Degrees   Speed –   10.4 Knots        Day’s Run –     267 Miles

Weather –   Calm. Overcast

Wind  –    5  knots from  Variable

Our last full day at sea was very calm, almost total cloud cover and the little wind there was coming from the west or south-west.  It’s been quite unusual. We have seen little of the normal easterly trades on this passage. So, a big change from the last couple of days of wonderful, fast reaching.  Naturally, we took the opportunity to do a little fishing as it has not been possible since Saturday.  Mr Blue Marlin had the misfortune to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Manie was first to the rod at the stern and got himself a whole lot of work which he hadn’t bargained on!

Eventually, he got the fish alongside the boat!!! What a beauty!

And after a bit of grappling from the side boarding ladder ….

We got the hook dislodged and watched him swim off a little dazed to fight another day.  Such a beautiful fish!!

The rest of the afternoon was uneventful, apart from a small yellow jack, which we also released.

Dusk fell, the lines came in and we motored through the darkest night arriving in Falmouth Harbour at 0500.  Anchor down and a couple of hours sleep. We have breakfasted and are now moving to Timoneer’s customary berth in English Harbour. Another great crossing with a happy crew.

Thank you all!

Peter

Noon Position   19deg. 13’N. 054 deg. 24’ W.

Course  –    252 Degrees   Speed –   12.3 Knots        Day’s Run –  277  Miles

Weather –   Cloudy with occasional sunny intervals.  74 degrees

Wind  –   12-14 knots from  SSE

Yesterday afternoon’s perfect sailing conditions continued until about 5 o’clock when the wind began to ease and the forecast was showing only light breezes during the night.  It was obvious that if we were going to avoid another night of frustration, then we had to get the propeller out of its feathered position.

We furled the genoa, dropped the main and mizzen, stopping the boat and holding her head to the wind with the bow-thruster.  Riccardo and I donned the scuba gear and descended to grapple with the blades.  We could see that they had gone past the correct position and we grabbed one each and tried to turn them as the boat was rising and falling slowly in the swell. It took a couple of attempts to move them past the critical point where the usual hydraulic function took over again and we had succeeded.

Riccardo took a “selfie” showing the blades in the correct ‘neutral’ position in the background!

Happy days. We motor-sailed through the night with genoa and mizzen in another star-filled night augmented with meteors from the Geminid shower which is happening this week.

The sailing has been fantastic today as well with the rare (for this area) southerly winds giving us more fast reaching. Less than 500 miles now to English Harbour.

Greetings,

Peter and crew

Noon Position  20 deg. 35’ N. 049 deg. 48’  W.

Course  –   252 Degrees   Speed –  11.3  Knots        Day’s Run –  224 Miles

Weather –   Warm, sunny, scattered clouds

Wind  –  13.2 knots from    SSE

Yesterday we had the best sailing of the trip so far.  Close 4-sail reaching in flat water, perfect wind angles and speeds up to 14 knots. Usually, in this area of the Atlantic the easterly trades are blowing which means somewhat tedious sailing with the wind astern and not enough pressure to drive the yacht at a decent pace, (combined with a lot of rolling!)   We have been lucky to hook onto the back of a ridge of low pressure which has produced these southerly winds currently giving us the perfect scenario. Hour after hour of glorious fast sailing, on the rhumb line. 76 miles in 6 hours is a nice average speed for a 270 ton Grande Dame!

However, everything in life has a price!  When the wind started dropping at dusk last night and we wanted to use the engine for motor-sailing, we found we were unable to get the propeller out of its ‘feathered’ position. This is the position it goes to which minimises the drag when sailing. It seems it had just gone one degree past the optimum point and it refused to budge. We were unable to use the engine and spent a very frustrating night dealing with the random showers which develop after dark.  Apart from producing rain these mini squalls roam about disturbing the wind force and direction. On minute you can be trying to coax the yacht along in 5 knots of breeze when suddenly you are hit by a 25 knot gust from a wing angle 40 or 50 degrees different to the one you have been sailing in.  Genoa and staysail were furled and unfurled several times during the night as we struggled, especially in the super light conditions to keep some forward progress.  The worst hour was between 2300 and midnight when we did just one mile towards our goal!

The log at 0600 this morning reads, “Becalmed!”  At 0700, “Very frustrating sailing!”  But daylight broke, the sun rose and the showers evaporated, and by 0800 we were doing a steady 11 knots again. By noon everyone had forgotten the trials of the night!

That’s sailing.

Aye aye,

Peter and crew

Noon Position   21 deg. 26’ N. 046 deg. 03’  W

Course  –  251 Degrees   Speed –   14 Knots        Day’s Run –   285 Miles

Weather –   Sunny with scattered cloud

Wind  –    20 knots from   SE

Quite a mixed 24 hours. Yesterday afternoon we were motoring in 5-6 knots of wind in a glorious sunshine, smooth seas. Small maintenance jobs happening on deck and below. James had been wanting to stop the engine to do an oil check, so we did and took the opportunity for a swim in waters 2 miles deep.

After that the adrenalin-charged engineers did a full service and test of the potato gun.  It’s in perfect working order.

A beautiful evening motor-sailing was followed by a star-filled night until early dawn when some showers and squalls developed, making the wind so variable we put the genoa away for a while.  At 0700 the clouds started to clear and we managed to get a few star sights for Jonny to calculate.

By 0800 we were under full sail only (engine off at last) and charging towards Antigua at 14 knots.

All best,

Peter