Northern Pacific 13 Feb 2012 4:00 a.m. 12N46 147W24

I’m back on the keyboard, evidence that the winds have calmed a bit, or maybe they just appear to be calmer as we slowly fall off. Every day we vear to port a bit, making a slightly more direct path to Hilo, putting the wind more and more to our back. As a result some of the kick has gone out of those angry wasp stings, and we’re not bucking around quite so much; the mare’s gait has more of a roll to it.

At night we’re under constant attack by flying fish. I’m ever more grateful for our Kiwi built hard dodger, but the fish do not seem to be dodging it. There are a couple of thuds or clangs per hour (depending on whether they hit metal or plexiglas). Each thwack or twang is followed by the rythmic death throws of the poor fish. In the morning we make the rounds of the deck to clear off the stiff bodies. They’ve made their way into the strangest spots, and if we don’t find them right away, within a few hours the stench leads us to their hiding places, although some will be difficult to fish out till we anchor. One made its way up under the dinghy and face-planted on the plexiglass hatch above the settee, where the kids sleep underway. Good morning sailors! At least the hatch wasn’t open. I think the birds are following ever closer because of our new aroma de poisson.

The arc of the sun, moon and planets is falling further and further behind us as we climb the latitude ladder north. Tonight, or rather early this morning, Polaris was faintly visible above the horizon, with the southern cross bright, but ever lower, in the south.

Today’s excitement was another popped clew -staysail this time, which is a little less critical than the forward jib. We put the storm sail up in it’s place, and Frank had a new clew, made of strapping, sewed on before nightfall (practice makes perfect), but it was too windy to put the sail back up. So we’ve lost some speed, not just from calmer winds. Still, we’re making steady progress forward. We should arrive in Hilo before the end of the week.

xoxomo