Captain's Log
V19/16 Fremantle (WA) to Esperance (WA)
12 March 2016

Day 6 – back to sea

Hi All,

We sailed from Albany this morning and the good news was the building SW winds. Initially at 5-10 knots then 10-15 knots. On clearing Albany we immediatly set our square sails and commenced some downwind sailing (without the engines) – yeah. We made pleasant progress throughout the day and the Crew were in great spirits. In addition to the morning routine we did some more rope races and had a lesson in “rules of the road”. I must admit to never really understanding why “they” called it that but it conveys what is intended – rules about what to do when we come across another ship or when there are navigational markers to proceed around. Salty (Paul the watch officer), our man of piratitude and stories of the sea enthralled us with more of his experiences and explanations of sea terms. We did some demonstrational tacks where the Youth Crew got to stand at the bridge and see the overall process of manoeuvering (tacking and wearing) the Ship. We settled into the late afternoon and within minutes we could feel the increased coolness and stiffness in the breeze. We shortened sail as the sky darkened with foreboding clouds. A moment later the cold front hit with 30 knot winds and a relatively quick increase in the sea state. We are still making 8 knots with shortened sail, which is a nice speed to get us close to Esperance late tomorrow where the Youth Crew want to explore some of the islands and bays. We have a few tasks for the Youth Crew to do there as well so it sounds like the basis for a plan. Expecting the cold front to pass in the very early hours of tomorrow morning and conditions to ease slowly thereafter. Overnight we will be doing an activity called “apples and onions” – no, not cooking but an opportunity for us to explore our positives and not so positives. We will also keep our watches making sure the navigation, helming and rounds make us ship shape as we roll with the large swell. Not as uncomfortable as it was the first few days because we are running with the wind. Barely a sign of sea sickness now – oh how we grow! Probably in for a patchy sleep though. Anyhoo, until tomorrow from the unforgiving Southern Ocean near Bremer Bay on the southern coast of WA, stay well.

Dave J (Yak)
Voyage Captain

Latitude/Longitude:

34 Deg 44 Min South / 119 Deg 18 Min East

Conditions:

Was sunny but partially cloudy with a building SW wind of 15-20 knots and a building SW swell but nonethless a glorious day ... then a predicted cold front came upon us this evening. Weather now is (very) overcast, a strong 25-30 knot wind from the west south west and a larger 3-3.5m swell from the SW. Sea has also incresed markedly with the increased wind. Temp 18C.