Day 23: LAND HO!

April 22 (Monday):

I had the morning watch today and it was magical to see the bright moon light my way then set directly in front of me, then the light slowly return behind me as the sun rose.  Also, my little red-footed friend stretched her wings and flew off around 8am.

The kids hoisted our French Polynesia courtesy flag up!

Lunch of tuna poke today, dinner of coconut lentils.

Tomorrow should be the big day – LAND HO!  We will be arriving in Hiva Oa, Marquesas, French Polynesia.  Our plan is to stay in French Polynesia for the full 3 months allowed, with 1 month in the Marquesas, 1 month in the Tuamotus, and 1 month in the Society Islands.  We’ll have some shorter passages between the island groups.  Then we’ll head to the Cook Islands, either Samoa or Nuie, Tonga, then drop down to New Zealand by Christmas.  I’ll be going back to every 1-2 week blog entries of our adventures.

Total miles over the last 24 hours:     104.7 nm

Average speed in last 24 hours:     4.3nm

Total miles of trip so far:      2,820 nm

April 23 (Tuesday), 2024:  LAND HO!

Light winds and motoring to get to Hiva Oa before dark, ideally in the afternoon.  First spotted the vague outline of an island rising from the ocean 28.4 nm away; Chris got the honor and exclaiming “Land Ho!” to the sleeping crew who came out into the cockpit. 

Peach brunch crisp in the cockpit, island slowly growing bigger.  Excitement growing as the steep volcanic island continued to grow out of the ocean, bright greens interspersed with craggy black cliffs.  We turned into Atuona on Hiva Oa, anchor set.  Words cannot express how this feels, still sinking in.

To revisit, at the beginning we asked:  When do you think we’ll make landfall at Hiva Oa, Marquesas?  The winner from our crew is Calder with a guess of April 23 at 11:00am, only 4 hours off from arrival time.

SV Terikah:  Pacific Ocean Crossing from Mexico to Marquesas – Just the Stats

• Total distance: 2,873 nm
• Total time in hours: 562:09 hours (23 ½ days)
• Average speed: 5.1 kts
• Max speed: 13.7 kts
• Percent of time in beam on seas: 75%
• Percent of nights that “sucked”: 13% (notable for squalls, lightening, waves, bad sea state in dark)
• Number of beers drunk: 0
• Alcohol consumed on passage:  3 bottles white wine, 1 bottle champagne, and 4 shots of rum (including Neptune)
• Number of degrees port side crew cabin above ambient air temperature: 5-10 C (estimated by port side crew, could not open their hatches due to above-noted beam on seas)
• Number of dolphin pods: 3
• Percent of days flat calm seas: 4%
• Percent of days that no one felt “a bit” seasick:  15%
• Percent of crew hit in head by flying fish:  20%
• Percent of crew having a flying fish in their bed:  40%
• Percent of crew having a flying fish in their bathroom:  40%
• Number of waves crashed into the cockpit: 1
• Number of waves that went into the bathroom: 1 (portside)
• Number of waves into the galley: 3
• Number of hairs on ground: uncountable, like stars in the night sky
• Number of sun showers taken:  5 per crew member averaged (using 1 gallon/shower on average)
• Number of time Pitch Perfect movies watched (don’t judge) by first watch shift: too embarrassing to report, close to number of hairs
• Number of fish caught and kept:  1 wahoo and 3 tuna (released small mahi, 2 bonito, 2 sharks)
• Number of lures lost: 2 (including the legendary cedar plug)
• Biggest seas:  15 feet (5 meters) steep, 6-7 seconds apart
• Biggest wind gust: 33 kts
• Number of time washed sheets: 0
• Percent of crew who saw the total solar eclipse in the path of totality:  100%
• Length of granola/breakfast bars cumulatively eaten: 44 feet (the length of the boat)
• Number of gooseneck barnacles that got a free ride to the Marquesas: 50 billion
• Location, date, and time Equator crossed:  April 14 (Sunday) at longitude W123 46’ around 2am
• Percent of days fresh produce: 100%
• Loads of laundry done: 1
• Percent of sheets that feel damp, sticky, and salty:  100%
• Percent of boat that is damp, sticky, and salty:  100%
• Percent of crew that is damp, sticky, and salty: 100%
• Percent of time barefoot: 100%
• Percent confidence to speak French after daily Duo:  1%
• Percent of crew who would do this passage again:  40% (though never say never)
• Percent of crew happy to have had this unique life experience:  100%