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Location: 34° 20 S, 22° 14 E
Saturday 12:00, 10.07.2006
At noon today, Schooner Maggie B was at 34° 20 S, 22° 14 E. Last night Hannah and I saw one of the most magnificent sights imaginable. We were on the 1800-2200 watch (we have doubled up watches, 4 on, 4 off, for this difficult section of the coast). The full moon had recently risen and the path of the moonlight was bright silver against the deep black of the ocean. One of us had just commented about the beauty of the light when a huge humpback whale breached three times in succession right in the path of the moonlight about 300 yards away. My heart almost stopped. It then came right alongside to breathe once or twice before taking off. It was astounding.
At noon the wind was 125 degrees at 10-12 and we are motorsailing towards Knysna. The barometer is dropping rapidly and a full NW’erly gale is forecast for the Table Bay to Cape Argulas area behind us, with seas above five meters. Our area should get less, but it is still a fair blow coming. Knysna is very interesting. The British Navy has long described it as the most difficult harbor entrance in the world. If the swells are up much, waves break across the entrance. We are going to take it very safe and only enter if it is recommended by Knysna Control, which has an active Sea Rescue Station on the Headland. We will be fine otherwise running down the coast ahead of the NW’er, though we will have to stay tight inshore to keep out of the Argulas current (one to four knots SW bound). The SW gales are the dangerous ones that produce the huge waves.
Yesterday was also lovely when we were smoking along at hull speed and we had porpoise playing in our wake as well as the bow, jumping full out of the water in twos and threes. Also, as we came around Cape Argulas, it was fascinating to watch the 10 foot SW swells from the South Atlantic meet the 10 foot Easterly swells from the South Indian Ocean. Sometimes they proved that 2+2=6.
Last night and early this morning it was foggy and cold — more like Maine than my concept of South Africa. It burned off by ten, but we were quite chilled.
Saturday night in Knysna? 50/50 chance.
All is well.