The Crossing 1st May to 7th May

The sea was uncomfortable. The waves were close together and the swell was coming across on a different angle turning our ride into a theme park nightmare. As darkness fell and the dark clouds loomed it all got a bit much for me. Darcy and Seisia had been great all day, watching DVD’s under the table and taking it easy. Darcy got a bit clammy at one stage but we have him a spoonful of Phenergen which soothed his tummy and made him better. They had gone to bed and I was still trying to put on a good show so I thought I’d get some fresh air. That was the first of my mistakes… suddenly I had an uncontrollable urge to hang over the side of the boat when I realized I didn’t have on my harness or tether strap so, still trying to act under control I asked Duncan to pass me my line. Now I know that he is getting hard of hearing but sometimes I think it’s selective, or he likes to play dumb. He had no idea of what I was talking about so I had no choice but to have a little puke in the corner of the cockpit. Better out than in I say… he suddenly got the message and rushed to my aid with a glass of water and a tissue. Good boy. So with a sheepish look on my face and my energy renewed I came back in pretending nothing had happened. Judging by the looks on Pete & Leachy’s face there was no doubt they knew exactly what had been going on! Early to bed for me!

The next few days were no better. The wind blew and the seas were lumpy. We were optimistic and towed a lure with no success. Darcy and Seisia played DVD’s back to back – they thought it was great! The best thing I did before we left was prepare lots of meals and freeze them. There was no way that we could cook from scratch. Even in a cat cups would slide off benches, saucepans off the stove. Duncan said it was one of the most uncomfortable seas he had ever sailed in. The mood was good and we were all in good spirits.

On the third day Darcy noticed that the top third of the HF radio antenna was unwinding itself from continuously turning in an anticlockwise circle (darn seas), and was just about to fall off. Great work Darcy. We slowed the boat and lay it down. A strip of duct tape and hey presto. Just like new.

The following day he again noticed a problem…. This time the antenna was lying over on a 45 angle! Again we turned into the wind, stalled the boat and this time the boys made a good job making sure the bolts were done up tight. Luckily the nut was still just sitting on the back step like we were in the marina not a 4mtr sea. That day turned out to be a bit of a disaster. After lunch I was making a cup of tea and the boys were all in the cabin when we heard a crack like thunder. I was the closest to the noise and looked out the window and immediately noticed that the daggerboard had fallen way down through the boat. We all raced out on deck to look over the side to see it snapped in half and hanging uselessly in the water. It was still attached by a rope so there was a danger of it smashing into the side of the hull, so again we turned into the wind. Some quick thinking by Leachy and Duncan soon turned my serrated kitchen knife, the boat hook and some more duct tape into a new tool to cut through the rope. Simple. Now to retrieve it! Luckily it just floated down the side of Catina to the back steps. Easy! Or so we thought… as Duncan and Leachy went to retrieve it we had a surge of swell that crushed Leachy’s hand and sent spikes of fiberglass into Duncan’s fingers. Yeouch! The boys pulled it into the cockpit and while we sat there hove to I played nurse to them both. Darren had a packet of frozen peas wrapped around his hand with a tea towel and after Duncan pulled the fiberglass out with his teeth and we were able to get near him we dressed him too. Soon after Petie appeared rubbing his eyes, slept through the whole thing!

One of the highlights of this trip was to be a stopover at Minerva reef. A round reef forming a lagoon in the middle of the ocean. There are two reefs actually. North and South Minerva. The Southern being a little less protected and famous for crayfishing on the deep side and the “men in grey suits” that frequent the area. Our plan was to stop over at the North Minerva Reef for a nights rest in preparation for the final 250nm to Tonga. On our approach that morning it was clear that we would not be stopping. The seas were up to 4 mtrs easy and the winds were increasing. Having a fast cat meant we were first to arrive and having never been there before we weren’t sure if it was a good idea to attempt going in. Just then our autopilot decided to have a senior moment so that was the final decision. We would keep sailing past and onto Tonga. We were all a little disappointed and tired as we had been counting down the last 150nm to our rest stop. Never mind… push on…

Later that day and we were all looking a little worse for wear. The boys were unshaven but they were still cheerful. We had been running the engines on and off to recharge the batteries. There was some problem with the amount of charge we were getting. Whether the meter was giving a false reading we are not sure. Anyway, Darcy was complaining about a strange smell and I suggested it might just be the toilet. Anyway, Pete and Leachy also smelt it and when Duncan went to investigate he found the Port Engine batteries smoking! This was the closest we have ever been to a complete disaster and a real life emergency. Duncan had said before we left that he was so confident with our boat’s seaworthiness that the only thing we would ever have to abandon ship for was a fire. We were probably only minutes away from that becoming a reality. Duncan and Darren slipped into action mode – turning off the port engine, pulling back mattresses and ventilating the room. There was quite a lot of fumes and no doubt poisonous gas coming from the batteries and how the two of them stayed down there is beyond me but they did what they had to and saved the boat. Pete was reassuring to Darcy and Seisia holding them safely in the cockpit while I did a quick whip around making sure our Grab Bag was in order. I also put together some winter clothes for the kids, some museli bars and water and a teddybear each just in case there was more to come. When Duncan and Darren came back up it was clear to see that they were not well. Darren then had his time in the cockpit and Duncan crashed out to sleep on some cushions on the floor in the main saloon. He slept for 12 hours straight. The fumes and the stress had taken their toll. That night I hardly slept. Pete and Darren and I took the watches. We held our course and slowed the boat down. What we needed right now was for our Captain to recover and have a good night’s sleep. Come daybreak he was feeling better and the boys were able to assess what had happened. We were all a little flat as Duncan and Darren read the Smart Regulator instruction Manual and configured all the wiring, making adjustments and checking all the battery cables.

The last 2 days into Tonga dragged on and on. The wind was on the nose, we were tired and we all needed a rest. It was like “ground hog day” over and over again and I will be first to admit we were all looking forward to the end of this trip. It certainly had been an adventure but not in the way we had imagined.