Ruby Slippers

ever since we started this crossing.  We are being punished for our choices now.

After we left the Ha’apai Group, we motored for about 200 miles.  The winds were almost non-existent.  There is one stop between Tonga and New Zealand: Minerva Reef.  It is just a coral berm around a 2-mile circle of water out in the middle of the ocean.  Just like the reefs in the Tuamotus, there is one opening, and once you are inside, even though you see the waves on the outside, you feel no movement at all.  We decided we didn’t want to miss seeing Minerva Reef – we had heard that the diving inside was spectacular, except for all the sharks. 

We spent two lovely days at Minerva – snorkeling, fishing, and getting ready for the rest of the trip.  There were 6 boats total inside the reef, so we invited everyone over for some music and food.  There were 17 people on Ruby Slippers, and it didn’t seem very crowded!  The musicians and fans were in the cockpit, and another group was downstairs visiting.  The kids were in the V-berth, coloring.  There was a lot of weather talk, and deciding when to leave Minerva for New Zealand.  We left the next morning, still with very light air.  It picked up later that evening and we made good time through the night.

We have been watching the weather closely, and have been exchanging information with the other cruisers out here.

 There has been a weather “development” down near the Bay of Islands, exactly where we are going.  It seems that within a couple of days from now, on Nov 11^th or 12^th, there will be 60 knots of wind exactly where we are going!  It built up very quickly, and has caught many people unprepared and in the wrong spot in the ocean.  Had we not made all the stops we did, we would be in New Zealand, tucked into our already-reserved slip before the storm hit.  So now, we have some decisions to make, and we better make the right ones. 

We simply can’t go fast enough to get in before the storm, so we have chosen to wait it out where we are, and hope that it blows itself out rather quickly.  Right now, we are “hove to”, which means we are just being pushed along by the current.  We are moving at about 1.5 knots, and it is a bouncy, jerky ride.  We have shut the autopilot off, locked the steering wheel down, and plan to be here all night.  We will still need to be on watch, to look out for other boats.  We will download some more weather info tomorrow, and see what the storm is doing.  We may just have to stay in one place for a couple of days, then move toward New Zealand.  There are some boats that are farther south than we are, that will not have the option of waiting out the storm.  Other boats have turned around and are trying to go back north to get as far away from the storm as possible.

The boat feels like a small cork in a big ocean.  The movement is constant, but not consistent.  Sometimes it jerks side to side, sometimes up and down, and, for extra fun, there are times when it agitates like a washing machine.  Since the wind is switching direction and building, the boat is heeling in a different direction about every 15 minutes or so. Molly and Jessie seem to take it all in stride; we’ve never hurt them before, so I guess they figure we are going to keep them safe now.  Jim is worrying and can’t sleep; I am just praying and writing updates.  We all cope differently, I guess.  Each day brings new weather information – often confusing, and opposite of what we have already heard. 

We’ll keep you posted. ~ Jeanna

This entry was posted on Friday, November 9th, 2007 at 12:30 pm and is filed under Journal Entry. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.