I'm sitting on Freyja in Paradise Village, waiting to leave for the Marquesas on Shanti, a Catalina 42 owned by my friend, Emil. We've been taking care of last minute details, such as grocery shopping, buying jerry cans for on deck diesel storage, working to complete the process of getting our French Polynesia visas taken care of by the Puddle Jump agent in Papeete, enjoying last minute cheese burgers and icy cold pacifico's, and other odds and ends.
I've been preparing Freyja for her long sleep. My original plan was to be up in the Sea of Cortez all spring. When I flew home in early March I still wasn't sure that I was going with Emil instead, so I didn't really put her all the way to sleep. I just took off the head sail, changed the oil, ran the engine, battened down the hatches, checked the sun and dust covers, doubled up the dock lines, and sort of fiddled around. Still have to check the battery water level. She'll be off of dock power all summer, living off of her solar panels alone. All the electronics are disconnected, in case she is unlucky enough to take a lightening strike this monsoon season. Odds are she won't, but better safe than sorry. She, and all the other boats in Paradise Village, came through the tsunami intact, no damage in this marina. La Cruz marina suffered some broken docks.
We hope to leave on Monday or Tuesday. We have to finish our checking the boat out of the country and get our zarpe (however you spell that). Basically permission for the boat to leave the country, as well as closing out our own immigration/tourist visit visas. The offshore wind has been absent for the last week or so, but the forecasts seem to show it picking up a bit by Tuesday. The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ, or just The Zone) seems to be settling down, too. The pacific high is moving north, the jet stream is taking on its summer position, both of which will help make our winds more favorable, if averages give any guidance.
Our first stop will be Hiva Oa, about 3,000 miles away. 9 degrees south, about 139 degrees west. We'll then sight see, look for cheese burgers and cold beer, and gradually work our way another thousand miles or so west to Tahiti. Or at least thats the plan for now, we'll see how it goes.....
