May 13, 2012 Sunday
We have made landfall on the island of Hiva Oa in Taahuku Bay (09 deg 48' S ; 139 deh 02' W). This bay is the official anchoring spot for checking into French Polynesia at Atuona which is a 40 minute walk over the mountains. The other option is to take a taxi which most cruisers do. The entrance Hiva Oa is spectacular with very high mountains and precipitous cliffs and drop offs. The island is lush and green. Our first smell upon entering was fresh baked bread. We anchored at 1100 hrs in a well protected anchorage behind a small breakwater. Our voyage took 25 days with an average speed of 5.0 kts. There is nothing here so one has to go into Atuona for entry formalities, groceries and money. The scenery is absolutely fantastic and awe inspiring.!
The actual voyage had a distance of 3024 nm when tacking and course changes for the wind are brought into consideration. The rhumb line distance was 2950 nm. This was a long haul with periods of calm and light winds but mostly the South East Trade winds blowing from the ESE to E to ENE. During the evenings squalls form and generate wind and rain. Many of these produce gusts to 30 kts so we carried a single to double reef in the mainsail and reefed jib. The beginning of the voyage from Isabela Island brought us SE'ly winds and a favorable SW'ly setting current so we were able to sail on a broad reach and make good time. From April 18-24 we made good 858 nm in 148 hrs at 5.8 kts. It was the fastest time for the trip. After that we were becalmed and dropped all sails for about 8 hrs. When the wind came back it was in squalls and confused seas. Actually the seas were running about 8-10 ft in the main swell from the ESE with S'ly components and other swells colliding to make it feel like being in a washing machine. Not a comfortable motion but the Valiant 40 is a very buoyant dry boat.
The farther South we sailed the more E'ly the wind became so that we had to set up sail for running before the wind. This is usually done by sailing "Wing in Wing": the mainsail is boomed out on the leeward side and the jib is poled out on the windward side. It produces a fairly balanced sail plan and as long as there is enough wind to keep the mainsail pressed all is well. Problems arise with this set up when there are big swells (8-10 ft), confused seas and light winds. As the vessel dances around all wind is spilled out of the sail and it begins to flog and slate. It's hard on the sail and equipment and nerve wracking on the sailors. It the end we had to drop the mainsail because the flogging caused the base of the boom vang to be pulled off the mast. I was able to overcome this failure by rigging up a handy-billy and 6 part block and tackle but we nursed our use of it for the rest of the voyage. This left us with the headsail which I poled out either to port or starboard and managed to make 4.2 kts on average and 5.5 kts in squalls. It's not comfortable sailing with only a headsail and it causes the boat to roll around even more without the stabilizing influence of the mainsail. After this long voyage of sailing "wing in wing" I realize that Twin Headsails Poled Out" are the way to go when running before the wind. Two time circumnavigator Scott Kuhner and his wife Kitty on the S/V Tamure had pointed out that I needed Twin Jibs but it was too late in the undertaking to do anything about it before we left the States. When we get to New Zealand, it will be one of the first issues I address. On this voyage it would have been possible to set the spinnaker we have onboard but I didn't have the experience to do it. Although I know all the technical details to set it up, it's daunting to fly a big balloon sail in anything but light winds and settled weather. We had squalls at night and I would never carry a spinnaker under these conditions. That left me with daytime sailing and I didn't have the confidence to set it flying. In the end I sailed a modified "wing in wing" with the staysail to leeward and the jib poled out. Unfortunately, the staysail is too small for anything but heavy weather. It's a scrap of a sail and does very little pulling.
The voyage was long, uncomfortable and not the idyllic sail I thought it would be. The SE Trade Winds are not as constant as their NE counterpart. Wx conditions and winds blow at different strengths within a small area. I could be sailing with light wind and no squalls while another boat 60 nm South of me might have 15-20 kts of wind and heavy rain. All this produces a confused sea that knocks the boat around. After everything is said and done it was a good voyage: we didn't have any severe or heavy Wx. Our strongest winds and rain squalls were on the last day as we entered Hiva Oa.
The second piece of equipment to break during the voyage was the auxiliary alternator bracket. Fortunately, it was dispensable and I can have it re-welded in Nuku Hiva or points beyond.
