Engine: 1185.6 Hrs. Log 8894.6 NM. The wind was 10 to 15 knots from the South East. The swell to 4 metres.
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| Good Bye Cape Town |
Time: 12.00L UTC+2.0
Lat: 33 36.22 S
Lon: 018 17.66 E
COG: 0 Deg M, SOG 5.5 knots
Winds: 10 to 15 Kts S, Swell to 4 meters .
Engine: 1186.3 Hrs
Distance covered since departing Cape Town 20.3 Miles.
It was so good to be sailing again.
Everything appears to be working onboard. The skipper felt a little queasy with the previous days brunch threatening to make a reappearance.
Cold!
1730 - Spoke to Andrew on Peri Peri Net.
1830 - Abeam Saldanha Bay.
Winds 20 to 25 Kts SE. Swell 4 to 5 metres. Rolling along at 5 to 6 knots.
10-03-13 – Sunday
Noon
Time: 12.00L UTC+2.0
Lat: 31 36.81 S
Lon: 017 03.94 E
COG: 0 Deg M, SOG 5.5 knots
Winds: 10 to 15 Kts SE, Swell to 4 meters .
Engine: 1186.3 Hrs
Distance covered since noon yesterday 134 Miles.
Cold, clear skies good visibility. Rolling along at 5 to 6 knots.
11-03-13 – Monday
0600 Winds dropped 10 -12 Kts SE
SOG dropped to 3 kts. In counter current south of Orange River.
Started engine.
COG 350 Deg M, SOG 4 Kts.
1020 Winds 10 - 12 kts SW - turned off engine.
Noon
Time: 12.00L UTC+2.0
Lat: 29 45.35 S
Lon: 016 03.64 E
COG:330 Deg M, SOG 4.5 knots
Winds: 10 to 12 Kts SW, Swell to 4 meters .
Engine: 1191.4 Hrs
Distance covered since noon yesterday 123 Miles.
Pushing against a half knot counter current.
Getting warmer.
1700 Wind 5 - 8 Kts SW
Tried to fly Asymmetrical Big Bertha - SOG 3 Kts.
The seas were a little too lumpy to fly Big Bertha. Started engine.
Visibility around was 3 miles. The AIS indicated a ship approaching Sadiqi's position. The large container ship was not visible until it was 3 miles away.
12-03-13 – Tuesday
0230 Winds 10 -12 Kts SW
Thick Fog - wet and eerie. Turned off the engine.
Sailing SOG 4 to 5 kts. Radar on and guard zones activated. It would appear most South African fishing boats have AIS transponders, understandable given the occurrence of fog on this coast due to the frigid Benguela current.
Noon
Time: 12.00L UTC+2.0
Lat: 28 23.52 S
Lon: 014 35.91 E
COG: 10 Deg M, SOG 5 knots
Winds: 10 to 15 Kts S, Swell to 2 meters .
Engine: 1203.8 Hrs
Distance covered since noon yesterday 112 Miles.
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| Rolling along |
2300 Winds 18 - 23 Kts. Swell 3.5 m.
GPS chart plotter loosing fixes and resetting periodically - not sure why. Maybe, it or the batteries are feeling the cold like the skipper. Water Temperature between 13 and 16 degrees C. A lot of inane chatting and noises on VHF channel 16 at night.
13-03-13 – Wednesday
0630 45 miles due west of Luderitz. The plan had been to stop at Luderitz. Skipper decided to stay longer at Walvis Bay instead and hopefully do some exploring.
Wind 18 - 23 Kts SSE
COG 5 Deg M, SOC 5.5 Kts.
Cold and damp!
1000 Winds 8 - 12 Kts S.
Started engine to charge batteries.
1030 Winds 12 - 18 Kts SW. Stopped engine.
Noon
Time: 12.00L UTC+2.0
Lat: 26 13.99 S
Lon: 014 04.52 E
COG: 350 Deg M, SOG 5.5 knots
Winds: 12 to 15 Kts S. Swell to 2.5 meters .
Engine: 1205.4 Hrs
Distance covered since noon yesterday 132.5 Miles.
It was a another moonless, bitterly cold and damp night.
Winds varied between 18 and 23 knots from the south or south east.
The GPS plotter did not think much of the cold and damp as it continued to loose it's satellite fixes and reset.
14-03-13 – Thursday
It was a bright sunny morning with very little wind. I felt better for it and it would appear so to did the GPS Plotter which worked happily.
Noon
Time: 12.00L UTC+2.0
Lat: 24 12.81 S
Lon: 013 51.76 E
COG: 30 Deg M, SOG 3.5 knots
Winds: not much - 5 Kts E. Swell to 2 meters .
Engine: 1207.5 Hrs
Distance covered since noon yesterday 122 Miles.
Engine running.
By evening after the Peri Peri Radio net sched the winds picked up and Sadiqi was sailing with just a partially furled main, doing 4 to 5 knots.
Most of the time Sadiqi had been sailing about 40 to 50 miles off the coast. The skippers thinking was that it was better to be where the big ships were steaming with AIS transponders as opposed to the fishing boats with no AIS, or with AIS receivers only like Sadiqi. This assumed of course that all ships over 300 tonnes had AIS transponders. There were a good number of fishing boats plying the waters off the coast. Most of them without AIS transponders. It was very nerve wracking on closing the coast near Walvis Bay in the fog knowing the fishing boats were there and not being able to see them. Most small fishing boats are made of wood or fibreglass, which is difficult to see on radar.
15-03-13 – Friday
By around 0800 hours Sadiqi was motoring in flat waters and thick fog within a mile of Pelican Point. I thought that I may catch a glimpse of Namibia at that distance. This was not to be. The first glimpse was of a forlorn North Cardinal buoy. Fur Seals gambolled about in Sadiqi's wake.
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| North Cardinal Buoy and Bell |
Winds: 0 to 2 knots SW.
Engine: 1207.5 Hrs
Distance covered since noon yesterday 90 Miles.
Roxy the new Rocna anchor was christened and commissioned.
On shutting down the engine I noticed diesel was leaking from around the lift pump and injector pump.
I saw yacht "Fagel Bla" from Finland in the anchorage. I had met Olli and Merja in Hout Bay. There was an abundance of bird life around the bay - Flamingos, Pelicans, Cormorants (flying arseholes), gulls etc.
The skipper hauled out the inflatable dingy and outboard, neither of which had been used in nearly 6 months - last time in Mozambique. The dingy floated and the outboard started, both conveyed the skipper to the yacht club. After a much needed shower the skipper went in search for officialdom to do the required entry documentation.
It was a lengthy walk to the town. I was very pleasantly surprised and how clean, neat and tidy Walvis Bay town was. The passport was stamped with a minimum of hassle.
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| Flamingos |
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