Location: 35° 37 S, 116° 39 E
Wednesday 12:00, 03.07.2007

At noon on March 7th, the Schooner Maggie B was at 35° 37 S, 116° 22 E We were making 6.7 knots more or less straight for the SW corner of Tasmania. We have gone 291 NM since Fremantle and have 1443 until Davie Sound. At this speed we will be there in about nine days.

The skies are clear and the temperature is perfect for t-shirt and shorts, though the bright sun can burn quickly. We had a lovely lunch in the cockpit — shrimp in garlic and a big mixed salad with fresh avocado and tomatoes. We are cleaning the Fremantle dirt off and finishing all the 1000 little rigging jobs.

The moon is three days after full and gives us a lovely moonrise just as Venus is setting in the West. Jupiter is climbing into Scorpio and gives the midnight watch a perfect “steering star.”

Being back at sea is great on our feet. We all are barefoot most of the time and our feet spread out somewhat. Getting squished back into shoes ashore (Hannah even has high heels!) is, literally, a pain.

We have been puzzling over the mystery of what happens to the Big Ships during the day. At night they seem to be all around us — perhaps a dozen within ten miles last night. During the day we keep just as good a watch but there are no ships. Perhaps they hide underwater during the day like in Pirates of the Caribbean II?

We are very tuned into a front developing to the West of us. We are just beginning to see the barometer fall and some faint high clouds. The GRIB files call for winds of up to 55 knots, developing once it is past us as the front concentrates its low in the middle of the Bight. We will stay clear of that area, probably by running off to the South. Commander’s Advice is going to be carefully attended.

All is well.