Location 33° 02S, 158° 51W
Tuesday 12:00, 07.24.2007

The Schooner Maggie B was at 33° 02S, 158° 51Wat noon on 24 July. We are headed for our turn point at 32S, 155W at hull speed, 10 knots. The weather continues favor us, as predicted, and we have a nice, steady 25 knot Southerly to drive us along. The wind is slowly backing to keep us on a lovely beam reach as we make our gradual turn for the Islands. It is now overcast again with occasional light rain showers, presumably signaling the outer reaches of this next front. The swell has steadied down to 7-10 meters from the SW, with one meter Southerly wind waves on top. Maggie B is riding comfortably with only occasional dollops of spray and occasional lurches. We are still getting occasional 13-14 knot surfs.

We did 219 NM in the last 24 hours, and 1023 NM in the last five days.

We have come 1431 NM from Opua and have 1054 to go to Tahiti. We are currently anticipating stopping at Raivavai in the Australs, which is about 830 NM from our current position. Besides being well-spoken-of by many sailors, it will also give a chance to sit out what may be a big NE’erly coming in the end of the week.

The bird life around us continues to amaze. Sometimes there are perhaps 100 close by, and you think that they should have an air traffic controller to keep order, and then the skies are empty. Today’s crew included a juvenile Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) and an adult Black-Browed (D. melanophris). Excitement was provided by several Broad-Billed Prions (Pachyptila vittata), which can even out-fly our numerous Pintado Petrels, which is saying something. The prions common name is Whale Birds, and the albatrosses, Mollymawks.

Theresa delighted us today by making lovely whole-wheat bread from a recipe from my father’s cook, Roberta Robinson. It was absolutely delicious, especially spread with NZ Manuka honey. We got the honey when we drove around the north of the Northern Island to see the Lord of the Forest (a huge Kauri tree, see the photo on the web). The honey came from a crossroad called Waiotemarama, which probably isn’t on many maps. We never met the beekeeper as it was just out on a shelf, with an Honor Box nearby. NZ$15 for a kilo! From another grower (and Honor Box, but with the cash out so you could make change!) we bought a huge pile of avocados, NZ$4 for four kilos.

Everyone on board knows when we hit 10 knots with the centerboard down. The centerboard sets up a deep, strong hum just above the threshold of hearing, rather like the sound of someone blowing across the top of a very big jug. Having the centerboard down significantly helps our stability in the more complex wave patterns.

All is well.