Location 40° 41S, 100° 20W
Friday 11.02.2007

The Schooner Maggie B Noon Position on November 2nd was 40° 41S, 100° 20W. We are making great time, going 7.9 knots in a wind from the NW at 13-17. The sky just has a thin high overcast and there is a long SW’erly swell of perhaps four meters. The air is definitely chill and we all are living in our thermal underwear, under our other gear.

We have come 208 NM in the last 24 hours and 823 NM in the last four days. We have come 3719 from Rangiroa and have 1208 to go to Puerto Montt.

It looks as if this lovely sailing weather will continue for most of the way into Puerto Montt, with just a slight intermission for maybe 1/2 day on the 3-4 November when a small high will go over us. We may need to motor for a bit but then pick up a nice SW’erly. We could chase either south to 45S or north to 39S to keep the wind, but either way would take at least 1/2 day and we have plenty of fuel to motor through the calm winds straight for Puerto Montt. Anyway, that way we would make enough hot water for hot showers for all!

We’re now doing our homework on the arrival in Chile. The channel into Golfo de Ancud, Canal Chacao, between the mainland and Isla Chiloe 41° 47, 073° 40W, runs at up to 10 knots of tidal current. The channel is about 30 NM from Puerto Montt which is at the top of the Gulfo de Ancud, or four hours steaming/sailing from the channel. Since we will want to do it all in daylight, we’ll have to be very attentive to the timing of the flood.

We are all on crash courses to try to learn Spanish. We are accustomed to “Island Time” from French Polynesia, but it was still a surprise to get introduced to “Manana Time” from the Spanish course, where it is advertised as “Speak Spanish in a Week,” but it has four weeks of CD’s and workbooks.

Insurance is always an interesting issue. Our “Jackline” policy seems well suited to what we are doing and is carefully sculpted to fit the known dangers. We paid extra to be allowed to sail south of 50S, but it is limited to after November 30th. On inquiry, the insurance company will allow us to head south a week earlier, for an additional $450. Why $450? Because.

We have switched to GMT-7 time. This is particularly exciting to me because it is the same time zone as Chicago, my home (give or take DST). If we were coming east from Denver in a prairie schooner, we would be coming up on the longitude of Kearney, Nebraska.

All is well.