We’ve passed yet another milestone on this voyage. The tropical awnings have been removed from the flying bridge and saloon, and the view is totally different. The sun load at low angles is pretty high, so we are making good use of our interior shades in the early AM and late afternoon. And the biggest news…the air conditioning is no longer on. We were even thinking about a blanket for the bunk last night. Tonight we’ll use one for sure.

We’re just 1920 miles from the barn as the crow flies. But we’ll probably cover another couple of hundred miles chasing weather. The chart above shows a waypoint around 32N and 143W, towards which we are aiming given the current scenario.

The weather situation is actually very complex, and the routing decisions not easy to make. The high is not weakening quite as fast as had been forecast, and the low, working itself up in intensity, is going to be a little later in arriving. The current long-range forecast is for the high to quickly rebuild at a northern position after the low passes. We could just head right for our destination, and probably get there more quickly than sailing the extra miles in search of more comfortable conditions. However, if we really work ourselves north, we then have to contend with the gale coming down from the northwest.

In a sailboat, there would be no choice but to head for the low and its gale, to get favorable winds. Wind Horse‘s ability to pick her way dead into the wind with a degree of comfort gives us more options. This also makes the decision process more difficult.

The surface analysis is above. We are at 27N and 153W. Barometric pressure of 1021 (and rising) ties to this analysis. The true wind at present is from the east, about 45 degrees off the bow, at 16 knots. We’ve averaged about 9.4 knots for the past 24 hours.

Although we have an array of sophisticated motion sensors, we have discovered a new standard for evening comfort. When watching a DVD, speed and wave angle have to be such that the DVD does not skip when we hit the bumps along our course. Last night we were watching a pair of movies from the $5 bin – Frantic and My Girl Friday – and we were forced to slow down to nine knots to keep the DVD player happy.

Our approach to dealing with the weather will continue to be modified as time goes by. There’s at least a 50/50 chance we’ll decide to head straight for our objective. But for now, our plan is to allow for the extra miles and look for more comfort.