We’re underway and glad to be at sea. Pago Pago has improved since the last time we were there (1977), and it is certainly a good place to get cheap diesel and supplies. But even the fact that we found a tool store, hardware store, and auto parts store a short walk from the dinghy dock could not overcome the noise and occasional odor associated with the tuna packing plant. Not sure we will ever open a can of tuna again…

The first leg of this passage home is a little over 1,200 nautical miles. Odds are we will stop at Fanning, even if just for a few hours to give the engine room a good check. It is supposed to be a lovely spot, and if the weather doesn’t look right for a run to the center of the North Pacific high, we might hang out for a while.

The photo above speaks volumes about how far we’ve fallen in our cruising routine. Gone are the days of a thermos full of hot or cold beverage, to be drunk during the occasional calm spells. Now we use an espresso machine to make lattes. This morning, as usual, Steve has his with soy milk while Linda still uses the real thing, which comes from cows.

Of course all of this is taking place in an air conditioned interior – which is rather nice as there is enough water on deck to require hatches to be closed. Humidity is in the 50% range, while the saloon temperature is kept at 78F/25C.

The wind is just a bit north of east at 18 knots, and we’re heading 030 true, so the waves have been on the bow quarter. They are not large – just 3 to 6 feet (0.9 to 1.8m), but we’d be happier if they were aft of the beam.

It took 20 minutes of patience to catch the photo above. The fact that we hit one of these waves two or three times an hour is what forces the hatches to stay dogged tight. Otherwise, it is inevitable that salt water would find its way below, which is to be avoided at all costs.

Talk about changes. How can we possibly say anything negative about the sea state when we are way more comfortable than if we were reaching along aboard Beowulf or Sundeer. However, we’ve now grown accustomed to the new level of comfort, and so our tolerance for motion is dropping.

First the espresso machine, and now we’re becoming wave wimps.

We’re also hoping the weather will wimp out. A section of the Eastern and Central Pacific surface analysis is shown above. Lots of tropical action right now. In theory, a week from now, when we are ready to cross this area, that energy will have dissipated. If not, we might be in Fanning for a while.

At present we’ve got 1030 nautical miles to go to Fanning. We’re averaging ten knots over the bottom (losing a knot to current). If the breeze goes aft and/or lightens tomorrow, as is forecast, we’ll pick up the pace a bit. We’d like to arrive at the pass around early afternoon, so the sun is behind us for good visibility, which means we need to average 10.3 knots from here.