After a very fast first day, then the clew failure we had a very slow second day with light winds and several stops (fore reaching) to lash and secure the main below the 1st reef. Once that was all sorted out, the wind filled from the east and we've had 20-29kts of true wind roughly on the beam. We also have 2.5m seas on the beam so there is a lot of boat motion and flying salt water as we charge forward. We're gotten one good squall rinse, but we were coated in salt again within a couple of hours. We're hoping for a few fresh water rinses in the ITCZ.
We've had two reefs and the staysail for the last 24hrs. We're a little underpowered at the low end, but just fine when the breeze is over 21kts. The wind is ramping up and down very quickly, sometimes we'll have 10 minutes of 18-20, then 10 minutes of 24-26. We're not racing and are short handed so we don't attempt to make constant sail changes to optimize our speed. Overall we've averaged 184 miles / day for the last 4 1/2 days, and that includes a few hours spent stopped while we secured the main and sorted out a problem with a reefing line. So we're making good time and at this pace we'll be in Hawaii next Tuesday the 28th.
The wind generator loves the big breeze and this would be no fun without the hard dodger. It's nice to be sitting on watch, have a big wave smack the boat and then hear and see the water run across the deck, splatter over the windows and rain down on the top of the dodger while not fearing that we'll get doused as well.
The sky has been mostly clear the last two nights with a spectacular array of stars. The waxing moon is climbing a little each night and kept me company last night for a few hours after sunset, reflecting off the waves and white caps.
