Bay of Biscay, 108NM S of St. Helen's Pool
When to leave is always the big dilemma when planning for a bigger ocean passage. I feel a nervous lump in my stomach every time. But when the engine is on and the anchor is up the lump disappears and instead I’m confident and happy. The decision has been made and what ever comes, Lille Ø can handle it.
This time our decision was to leave on Tuesday morning or if the windshift comes during daylight hours, the on Monday evening. With the rain came the expected windshift and we made the boat ready and left an hour before sunset. The large ocean swell greeted us when we emerged from behind the lighthouse island. We hoisted the main in 1st reef and started rounding the Isles of Scilly from the lee side.
In the pouring rain we cleared ourselves from the traffic separation scheme and took our course towards Spain. The night was pitch black. Occasionally you could see the stars and the milky way, but moon never showed itself. After what felt an eternal night, the dawn broke through and we finally could see what kind of swell are we dealing with.
The ride has been somewhat lumpy in the moderate sea state but we have both been sleeping well on our off watches. As we are settling to our second night with dinner in our bellies I can only feel joy that we can be on this journey together.
- Distance today: 108NM
- Total distance: 2641.8NM
- Dinner: chanterelle risotto
- Engine hours: 1.8
| Time |
Position |
Course |
Speed |
Log |
Weather |
Remarks |
| 02.08. 23:50 Z |
49°58'5"N
6°19'27"W
|
189°
|
0kt
|
5775NM
|
wind
10.9kt
304°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Swapped drinking water filter
|
| 04.08. 12:02 Z |
49°58'6"N
6°19'28"W
|
315°
|
0.3kt
|
5775NM
|
wind
13.8kt
221°
baro 1017 hPa
|
Started watermaker, 187ppm
|
| 04.08. 18:46 Z |
49°58'6"N
6°19'28"W
|
75°
|
0.5kt
|
5775NM
|
wind
16.5kt
193°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Stopped watermaker, 170ppm
|
| 05.08. 14:00 Z |
49°58'6"N
6°19'28"W
|
296°
|
0.4kt
|
5775NM
|
wind
20.1kt
197°
baro 1010 hPa
|
Installed crash pump electrics and pumped bilge empty
|
| 05.08. 18:54 Z |
49°58'5"N
6°19'27"W
|
239°
|
0kt
|
5775NM
|
wind
11.7kt
272°
baro 1009 hPa
|
Started main engine
|
| 05.08. 18:57 Z |
49°58'5"N
6°19'28"W
|
35°
|
0.2kt
|
5775NM
|
wind
12kt
268°
baro 1009 hPa
|
Anchor up, motoring
|
| 05.08. 19:00 Z |
49°58'5"N
6°19'28"W
|
258°
|
0.4kt
|
5775NM
|
wind
12.7kt
279°
baro 1009 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 05.08. 20:00 Z |
49°57'55"N
6°14'4"W
|
157°
|
7.3kt
|
5780NM
|
wind
14.1kt
231°
baro 1009 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 05.08. 20:28 Z |
49°55'13"N
6°14'32"W
|
226°
|
5.8kt
|
5782.9NM
|
wind
8.1kt
275°
sea state 4/10
clouds 8/8
visibility 5/10
baro 1007 hPa
|
Rounding the Scilly Isles.
|
| 05.08. 20:36 Z |
49°54'32"N
6°15'14"W
|
218°
|
6.2kt
|
5783.7NM
|
wind
11.2kt
279°
baro 1008 hPa
|
Autopilot activated
|
| 05.08. 20:43 Z |
49°54'5"N
6°15'56"W
|
227°
|
4.7kt
|
5784.4NM
|
wind
11.6kt
281°
baro 1008 hPa
|
Motor stopped, sailing with Main (1st reef), Staysail
|
| 05.08. 21:00 Z |
49°53'2"N
6°17'8"W
|
229°
|
4.3kt
|
5785.7NM
|
wind
10.7kt
273°
baro 1008 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 05.08. 21:24 Z |
49°51'51"N
6°18'34"W
|
220°
|
6.4kt
|
5787.2NM
|
wind
11.5kt
268°
baro 1007 hPa
|
Sails set: Main, Genoa 1
|
| 05.08. 21:28 Z |
49°51'35"N
6°18'55"W
|
215°
|
4.1kt
|
5787.5NM
|
wind
10.9kt
262°
baro 1007 hPa
|
PAN PAN Falmouth, Mr Dya cancel PAN PAN, engine failure 7stones light, now towed by lifeboat
|
| 05.08. 21:52 Z |
49°50'7"N
6°21'9"W
|
216°
|
4.6kt
|
5789.6NM
|
wind
12.5kt
294°
baro 1008 hPa
|
2kt current helping us along. Sadly also making the Atlantic swell quite steep, as we slam into it
|
| 05.08. 22:00 Z |
49°49'38"N
6°21'54"W
|
225°
|
6.7kt
|
5790.3NM
|
wind
11.6kt
294°
sea state 4/10
clouds 4/8
visibility 7/10
baro 1008 hPa
|
400NM to go says Orca. Getting to the NW corner of the south Scilly TSS
|
| 05.08. 23:00 Z |
49°46'0"N
6°28'23"W
|
227°
|
5.4kt
|
5795.9NM
|
wind
10kt
286°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 05.08. 23:33 Z |
49°44'23"N
6°31'35"W
|
228°
|
5.3kt
|
5798.5NM
|
wind
12kt
272°
sea state 4/10
clouds 1/8
visibility 7/10
baro 1011 hPa
|
Going feels a lot smoother with the swell on the beam instead of on the nose. Nice starry sky now
|
| 05.08. 23:54 Z |
49°42'53"N
6°33'25"W
|
219°
|
4.1kt
|
5800.4NM
|
wind
11.3kt
274°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Out of UK territorial waters
|
| 06.08. 0:00 Z |
49°42'32"N
6°33'48"W
|
200°
|
2.7kt
|
5800.8NM
|
wind
8.6kt
289°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 0:54 Z |
49°39'56"N
6°36'53"W
|
232°
|
3.6kt
|
5804.1NM
|
wind
10.3kt
284°
sea state 3/10
clouds 2/8
visibility 8/10
baro 1011 hPa
|
Dealing with slight nausea after your off watch is tricky when there is no clear horizon and your brain hasn't decided if it's the stars or the boat that should be moving.
|
| 06.08. 1:00 Z |
49°39'35"N
6°37'18"W
|
220°
|
3.2kt
|
5804.6NM
|
wind
11.2kt
265°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 2:00 Z |
49°36'15"N
6°40'41"W
|
209°
|
5.6kt
|
5808.6NM
|
wind
12.9kt
240°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 2:21 Z |
49°34'41"N
6°42'2"W
|
219°
|
5.1kt
|
5810.4NM
|
wind
18.2kt
272°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Sails set: Main, Genoa 1 (20% furled)
|
| 06.08. 2:28 Z |
49°34'23"N
6°42'15"W
|
218°
|
4.5kt
|
5810.7NM
|
wind
17kt
267°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Sails set: Main, Staysail
|
| 06.08. 3:00 Z |
49°32'23"N
6°43'31"W
|
186°
|
3.4kt
|
5812.9NM
|
wind
15.2kt
249°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 3:16 Z |
49°31'24"N
6°44'3"W
|
186°
|
3.5kt
|
5813.9NM
|
wind
13.4kt
269°
baro 1011 hPa
|
A proper big shooting star!
|
| 06.08. 3:25 Z |
49°30'55"N
6°44'17"W
|
208°
|
3.7kt
|
5814.4NM
|
wind
14.2kt
259°
sea state 3/10
clouds 3/8
visibility 8/10
baro 1011 hPa
|
Slowly I'm able to tell where the horizon goes in the east. Maybe the sun will rise also today.
|
| 06.08. 4:00 Z |
49°29'16"N
6°45'16"W
|
182°
|
2.3kt
|
5816.2NM
|
wind
14kt
287°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 5:00 Z |
49°25'36"N
6°47'19"W
|
198°
|
5.1kt
|
5820.1NM
|
wind
17.9kt
276°
baro 1011 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 6:00 Z |
49°21'35"N
6°49'16"W
|
185°
|
5.1kt
|
5824.3NM
|
wind
15.5kt
261°
sea state 4/10
clouds 2/8
visibility 8/10
baro 1011 hPa
|
Bergie on watch, Suski to bed
|
| 06.08. 7:00 Z |
49°17'49"N
6°50'29"W
|
194°
|
4.1kt
|
5828.2NM
|
wind
11.4kt
266°
baro 1012 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 7:28 Z |
49°16'16"N
6°50'45"W
|
195°
|
2.9kt
|
5829.8NM
|
wind
11.5kt
246°
baro 1012 hPa
|
Sails set: Main, Genoa 1
|
| 06.08. 8:00 Z |
49°14'0"N
6°51'10"W
|
184°
|
5.8kt
|
5832.1NM
|
wind
11.1kt
257°
baro 1012 hPa
|
About 100NM to go to the continental shelf
|
| 06.08. 8:44 Z |
49°10'3"N
6°52'9"W
|
194°
|
4.8kt
|
5836.1NM
|
wind
14.1kt
245°
baro 1012 hPa
|
Sails set: Main, Staysail
|
| 06.08. 9:00 Z |
49°8'39"N
6°52'35"W
|
201°
|
6kt
|
5837.5NM
|
wind
16kt
252°
baro 1012 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 10:00 Z |
49°3'9"N
6°54'47"W
|
200°
|
5.2kt
|
5843.2NM
|
wind
15.1kt
250°
baro 1013 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 10:11 Z |
49°2'6"N
6°55'11"W
|
187°
|
6.5kt
|
5844.3NM
|
wind
16.4kt
230°
sea state 4/10
clouds 7/8
visibility 8/10
baro 1013 hPa
|
Autopilot deactivated, windvane steering
|
| 06.08. 11:14 Z |
48°56'14"N
6°58'12"W
|
191°
|
5.7kt
|
5850.5NM
|
wind
17.5kt
241°
baro 1013 hPa
|
Splash splash splash, current against wind!
|
| 06.08. 12:00 Z |
48°52'13"N
7°0'38"W
|
203°
|
5.2kt
|
5854.8NM
|
wind
20.9kt
256°
baro 1013 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 12:02 Z |
48°52'4"N
7°0'45"W
|
213°
|
5.1kt
|
5855NM
|
wind
19.8kt
240°
sea state 4/10
clouds 2/8
visibility 8/10
baro 1013 hPa
|
Bergie to bed, Suski on watch.
|
| 06.08. 13:00 Z |
48°46'56"N
7°2'19"W
|
175°
|
5.9kt
|
5860.3NM
|
wind
15.8kt
247°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 13:56 Z |
48°42'15"N
7°2'53"W
|
174°
|
5.7kt
|
5865NM
|
wind
18.9kt
241°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Front ratchet for Isosaari had slipped. Re-attached it. Now soaking wet. It is splashy in the bow.
|
| 06.08. 14:00 Z |
48°41'58"N
7°3'1"W
|
211°
|
4.1kt
|
5865.3NM
|
wind
20.4kt
233°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 15:00 Z |
48°38'7"N
7°4'59"W
|
218°
|
4.6kt
|
5869.4NM
|
wind
17.5kt
252°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 16:00 Z |
48°34'17"N
7°5'52"W
|
185°
|
4.8kt
|
5873.3NM
|
wind
16.3kt
242°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 17:00 Z |
48°29'57"N
7°6'29"W
|
203°
|
4.8kt
|
5877.7NM
|
wind
19.4kt
270°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 18:00 Z |
48°25'20"N
7°7'54"W
|
195°
|
4.1kt
|
5882.5NM
|
wind
15.6kt
250°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Bergie on watch
|
| 06.08. 18:07 Z |
48°24'49"N
7°8'12"W
|
198°
|
4.5kt
|
5883NM
|
wind
20.7kt
284°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Bilge alarm, pumped bilge. Salty, but can come from deck too
|
| 06.08. 18:39 Z |
48°22'20"N
7°8'54"W
|
189°
|
5.2kt
|
5885.6NM
|
wind
15.9kt
244°
baro 1014 hPa
|
Starlink took 1h to connect, but did its job
|
| 06.08. 18:58 Z |
48°20'31"N
7°9'7"W
|
203°
|
5.5kt
|
5887.5NM
|
wind
16.5kt
253°
baro 1014 hPa
|
A dolphin swam by, but looks like just one
|
| 06.08. 19:00 Z |
48°20'19"N
7°9'10"W
|
201°
|
5.8kt
|
5887.7NM
|
wind
16.7kt
252°
sea state 4/10
clouds 4/8
visibility 8/10
baro 1014 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 20:00 Z |
48°14'36"N
7°9'40"W
|
184°
|
5.9kt
|
5893.4NM
|
wind
17.1kt
254°
baro 1015 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 20:28 Z |
48°11'43"N
7°10'5"W
|
190°
|
6.3kt
|
5896.3NM
|
wind
16kt
251°
baro 1015 hPa
|
300NM to go. Now we're more south than Brest. Sea feels slightly mellower now
|
| 06.08. 20:58 Z |
48°8'33"N
7°10'37"W
|
183°
|
7kt
|
5899.5NM
|
wind
18.6kt
267°
baro 1016 hPa
|
Sails set: Main (1st reef), Staysail. I dont like the look of the cloud approaching us.
|
| 06.08. 21:00 Z |
48°8'20"N
7°10'35"W
|
171°
|
5.7kt
|
5899.8NM
|
wind
15.2kt
240°
baro 1016 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 22:00 Z |
48°1'57"N
7°10'4"W
|
182°
|
7.5kt
|
5906.2NM
|
wind
18.2kt
242°
baro 1016 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|
| 06.08. 23:00 Z |
47°56'14"N
7°10'18"W
|
187°
|
5.8kt
|
5911.9NM
|
wind
13.4kt
260°
baro 1016 hPa
|
Hourly position log
|