Year Three

Fatu Hiva was the ideal landfall after our long passage. The only problem was that it was raining cats and dogs for 3 days after our arrival. It really didn't bother us, we wanted to hang out and just rest up anyway. The scenery was so spectacular. There were palms on the shore and steep sided mountains coming right down into the water with the sound of
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June 3, 2004
After covering 420 miles in 48 hours we find ourselves trying to reduce Freebird's speed. We must time our arrival with the slack tide at the pass into the lagoon at the atoll, Kauehi. This was a speed record for Freebird. We approached the pass with some apprehension. These passes are known for their fast currents and
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With another 200 mile day behind us we site the island of Tahiti on the horizon. We again smell the jungle foliage of a high tropical island. As we draw closer the buildings of the city of Papeete become defined. We enter the pass into the lagoon surrounding the island and follow the navigational markers to the anchorage several miles further inside.
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Sunday August 29th, 2004
After a thankfully uneventful 4 hour crossing we arrived at the marina on Raiatea to haul out Freebird to make repairs. Denis from the yacht "Babalona" and Don and Gwen from the yacht "TacklessII" are waiting at the dock. They are concerned about Freebrird's damage and helped us maneuver Freebird into a slip. There is
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Aitutaki, Cook Islands Saturday October, 2nd, 2004
We are negotiating the very narrow and shallow pass to the village of Aratanga on the island of Aitutaki. The depth sounder is reading under 6 feet. The water is so clear we can't believe that we are clearing the coral below our keels. Finally we are in the protection of the calm waters of the
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October 13th 2004
After a three and a half day passage we have arrived in Niue. There is really no protected harbor here. But the lee side of the island is calm and gives protection from normal winds from the South and East. Niue is an independent country in close affiliation with New Zealand. It was hit directly by a category 5 cyclone last January.
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October 21st , 2004
Our 28 hour sail to Vava'u Tonga was a mixed bag. We had perfect spinnaker conditions in the afternoon followed by squalls and 30 knots of wind in the night. By 0600 we had the islands visible on the horizon. We were both feeling a little queasy but the sight of land made us feel better. Soon we were gliding smoothly in the
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Log 20: Galapagos Islands	March 14, 2004 We are finally underway for the Galapagos Islands. We have been sailing now for four days and expect to arrive in the Islands in the next three days. This is our longest voyage so far. You might notice that we have changed destinations. We came to the realization that there was not enough time to see Ecuador and the Galapagos before we need to depart for the South Pacific. We've sailed far off shore after leaving see more...
Log 21: Crossing Galapagos to Marquesas	April 20, 2004 Sailing ~ the fine art of getting wet and becoming ill while slowly going nowhere at great expense, as defined by Moon Handbooks on the South Pacific. I read this one long night while on watch. From my own personal experience this maybe is not far from the truth. However, both Dave & I have slightly different perspectives on sailing. He has a see more...
Log 22: Marquesas	Fatu Hiva was the ideal landfall after our long passage. The only problem was that it was raining cats and dogs for 3 days after our arrival. It really didn't bother us, we wanted to hang out and just rest up anyway. The scenery was so spectacular. There were palms on the shore and steep sided mountains coming right down into the water with the sound of see more...
Log 23: Tuamotus	June 3, 2004 After covering 420 miles in 48 hours we find ourselves trying to reduce Freebird's speed. We must time our arrival with the slack tide at the pass into the lagoon at the atoll, Kauehi. This was a speed record for Freebird. We approached the pass with some apprehension. These passes are known for their fast currents and see more...
Log 24: Tahiti	With another 200 mile day behind us we site the island of Tahiti on the horizon. We again smell the jungle foliage of a high tropical island. As we draw closer the buildings of the city of Papeete become defined. We enter the pass into the lagoon surrounding the island and follow the navigational markers to the anchorage several miles further inside. see more...
Log 25: Raiatea, Bora Bora	Sunday August 29th, 2004 After a thankfully uneventful 4 hour crossing we arrived at the marina on Raiatea to haul out Freebird to make repairs. Denis from the yacht "Babalona" and Don and Gwen from the yacht "TacklessII" are waiting at the dock. They are concerned about Freebrird's damage and helped us maneuver Freebird into a slip. There is see more...
Log 26: Cook Islands, Aitutaki	Aitutaki, Cook Islands Saturday October, 2nd, 2004 We are negotiating the very narrow and shallow pass to the village of Aratanga on the island of Aitutaki. The depth sounder is reading under 6 feet. The water is so clear we can't believe that we are clearing the coral below our keels. Finally we are in the protection of the calm waters of the see more...
Log 27: Niue Island	October 13th 2004 After a three and a half day passage we have arrived in Niue. There is really no protected harbor here. But the lee side of the island is calm and gives protection from normal winds from the South and East. Niue is an independent country in close affiliation with New Zealand. It was hit directly by a category 5 cyclone last January. see more...
Log 28: Tonga	October 21st , 2004 Our 28 hour sail to Vava'u Tonga was a mixed bag. We had perfect spinnaker conditions in the afternoon followed by squalls and 30 knots of wind in the night. By 0600 we had the islands visible on the horizon. We were both feeling a little queasy but the sight of land made us feel better. Soon we were gliding smoothly in the see more...
Log 29: New Zealand	November 15th, 2004 After an easy 30 hour sail, we arrived at Minerva reef. This is a strange place. There is NO land to be seen here. The reef is a circle of coral on top of an extinct submerged volcano. It is awash at low tide and almost undetectable at high tide. What a strange feeling to be at anchor in the middle of the ocean with no land in see more...