Wind Horse was hove to in the lee of the Big Island (Hawaii) off Kailua-Kona at 0800, three days and 22 hours after departing Fanning. Average speed for the passage was just a hair over 10.5 knots.

After checking fuel prices here, and on Oahu, we were surprised to find no difference, so we made arrangements to top up at Honokahau for just under US$3.00/gallon.

Customs formalities were quickly taken care of while fueling, and some locals gave Linda a ride to the supermarket. She came back loaded with fresh fruit (including green grapes!) and veggies.

As the trades are moderate – and we are not happy leaving the boat anchored out in the roadstead – we are continuing to Honolulu, an overnight passage. The Hawaii Yacht Club has room for us on their guest dock, so we’ll be doing the tourist thing for a few days in the big city.

A quick look at the GFS long-range forecast indicates we will be hanging out for at least a week, waiting for the Pacific high to relax and/or drop south.

We are happy to report that we put in almost exactly the amount of fuel that our digital fuel flow meter says we consumed.

We covered just under 2400 miles since leaving Pago Pago in American Samoa. Eighty-five percent of this has been upwind, of which half has been with the wind dead on the bow, with the balance at 30 to 45 degrees off. True wind speeds have averaged 15 knots, seas 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.8m), and average boat speed is just on 10.4 knots. Our fuel burn for this period has been 7.27 gallons (27.5 liters) per hour. This includes rough water hull drag, prop losses due to water flow turbulence, induced drag from the large stabilizers, and windage. Our air conditioning has been running 100% of the time, as have the stabilizer hydraulics. We figure these two items take about 1.2 US gallons (4.3 liters) per hour of the total fuel consumed.

With a real world number for an upwind passage now in our hands, we have to say we are pleasantly surprised at how efficient this boat is in adverse wind and waves. She is more efficient (not to mention comfortable) than we would have thought possible in these conditions.