Bad luck often happens in 3s

We are closing in on our arrival to the Island of Hiva Oa, Marquesas, French Polynesia.  In preparation I am tasked with registering on multiple websites for the various French authorities.  As my French is extremely limited, google translate has been a life saver to help figure out what forms are needed and what documentation will be required (proof of outbound flight, health insurance, travel insurance, boat insurance, boat documentation, passports, biosecurity questionnaires, etc).  It is a slow process.   Thankfully the World ARC rally team & our French Polynesia agent advises, but much of the paperwork has to be submitted by the boat owner directly.  In July 2024, the Marquesas was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site, so it seems there are newer restrictions on boat traffic and monitoring activity in/around the islands. Our fingers are crossed that it will be easy since we've done all the prep work!  

Wing on wing configuration with pole on Starboard side holding the Jib out. Good for stronger down winds.

We’ve done a lot of sail changes this week.  Our final approach to the Marquesas happens to be directly downwind.  Sailboats don’t usually sail directly upwind or directly downwind.  Normally, we would run with what is called a wing-on-wing configuration with the main sail on one side of the boat and the headsail on the other with a pole holding it out away from the boat like the boom.  Or we would hoist one light air sail on one side and a poled-out jib on the other.  Either of these would enable us to go pretty much downwind.  However, as it goes, we had some serious chafing issues with our spare halyards (the lines that you use to pull the sails up/down).  One even disintegrated inside the mast, creating a mess of red polyester shreds everywhere.  We are currently unable to inspect the situation and what is causing the chafing because that particular line was the one we used to go up the mast – and we are on a rocking and rolling ocean (of course, the problem is at the top not the bottom!)  So, now, we are down from 3 to only ONE workable spare.  This severely limits which sails we can put up.  After trying at least 6 different configurations we’ve landed on running with just our asymmetrical spinnaker (also called a gennaker or cruising spinnaker) and leveraging the main boom to hold it out far enough so it catches the maximum amount of wind from behind. We gybed (switched the side of the boat that the sail was on 4 times yesterday).  Each time takes about 60 minutes and involves moving about 10 different controls from one side of the boat to the other.  It is less than optimal, but I guess we have nothing better to do.  We try not to do this maneauver in the dark, but again, we did that twice too.  We are hoping to be more planful today – Dan said we will change it if needed tomorrow.  We will see if we can hold out that long!  The farther our zig zag – the longer it takes to get to our destination.   We spent a few days considering options for replacing (and having more spares) for our halyards and other critical lines.  We’ve ordered those and will have them sent via air freight to Nuka Hiva – where we will be in about a week. 

Bad luck. Chafed spare halyard, wear and tear after 4 days of using the Code 0 sail. More research required in the Marquesas to understand what caused the chafing.

We also discovered a leak in our watermaker pump.  It had been working without issues since Dan did major service on it back in 2023.   With the leak, we can still make water, but sea water sprays all over the interior of our aft lazarette making a mess of a normally ‘dry’ space.  We have plenty of drinking water on board (300 gallons) and the tanks were totally full when we discovered the problem so it wasn’t a panic – but again less than optimal.  Dan spent a day doing research and sourcing the necessary replacement parts and we were able to overnight these to our crew that will join us next week.  We are thankful it broke this week and not next!  

A yellow fin tuna, the perfect size--was a great break from fixing things. We measured it for the 'unofficial' Fish & Dish competition. Most total centimeters fish caught & best prepared dish from the fish.

In our experience and as superstitious sailors will agree, bad things happen 3 things at a time.  So we were waiting for the next proverbial shoe to drop.  Two days ago, Dan noticed that one of our refrigeration compartments was continually shutting off.  Dan spent 2 days with his head in a small compartment trying to troubleshoot.  To no avail, he determined that a replacement compressor and controller would be needed to replaced.  Again, not sure why the refrigerator decided to stop working this week, but I guess that is just how it goes.  Sometimes things break and you never know when.   Fortunately, the refrigerator is mostly empty at this point with only condiments…and cheese.  We put the cheese in the freezer for now—I’d rather have frozen cheese then no cheese!  Priorities!  On the bright side – we’ll save power from having it turned off for the next 2 weeks.  The refrigerators are original to the boat (over 15 years old) so I guess they lasted longer than many household versions and we should just be appreciative.  Right?  At this point, Dan has found the spare parts to repair this too and they will be included in the box with all the new rigging. 

Sushi! Delicious!

Now that the bad things are out of the way....We’ve settled into the rhythm of life on the sea.  Waking up for night watches are easier.  We know where to sit on the boat at what time of day to maximize shade and breeze to stay cool.  We notice the prevalence of new shore birds after several days in the ‘middle’ seeing nothing.  Our off-hours consist of the regular chores like laundry, dishes, paying the bills and keeping things cleaned up.  We listen to books on Audible (Typee & Mutiny on the Bounty) or podcasts (Outlaw Ocean) to pass the time. 

Laundry day. We hang things inside to prevent them from instantly covered in salt crystals

We’ve truly enjoyed the companionship of the other WorldARC boats and look forward to the 2x daily updates at ~9 am and ~6 pm.  Boat crew share pictures of the meals they’ve made for dinner, the books they’ve been reading, the wildlife they’ve seen, fish they’ve caught and generally encourage others with humor and virtual  .  When boats run into issues there is a parts and maintenance chat group to request help if needed.  On this leg, early-on there was one boat that had an issue with their prop shaft sheering a bolt.  Another boat stood by and waited with them for almost 24 hours to ensure they were ok before they continued their journey.  Yesterday, we saw the boat AEgle, as it passed by on the horizon.  It was great to talk to them on the VHF.  We hadn’t seen another boat for 12 or so days.  It was the highlight of the day.

Our next blog will be from French Polynesia, where we will unlearn our ocean rhythms and re-adjust to cruising island life.  Onward…

Our current downwind set up. Nicely sailing into the sunset (with shade) every night.