Yesterday’s festivities went off without a hitch. The sarong/lava lava/pareau fashion show was well executed; the crew now knows how to properly tie their sarongs to prevent a rather embarrassing moment. We were entertained by our ukulele orchestra and their new hit “The Cruise Ship the Picton Castle” song, danced on the hatch to the traditional South Pacific music and ate popcorn until the sun went down.
A gorgeous Monday morning at sea today and the ship’s work commences. The bottle screws on the port main mast and foremast are receiving some tender loving care. They are being rust busted, primed, and new seizings have been added to replace old ones. Six-year-old Dawson is taking advantage of the lovely weather by spending his morning with his toys on the hatch and cooling off in a kiddie pool, otherwise known as a fish tote. He took a brief break from his dinosaurs to assist Brittni on helm, until the call of “fish on!” echoed through the ship, stealing everyone’s attention to the aloha deck. Colin reeled in the wahoo and Johnny-Boy grabbed it with the gaff. This particular fish is on the small size for wahoo but still has plenty of meat. Colin states that Mondays are lucky, as last week Monday was the day we caught two fish at the same time!
This week the daymen departments have some new hands assisting them. Johnny-Boy is under the guidance of rigger Abbey, Tyler remains in the engine room with chief engineer Deyan and his assistant Kevin. Lastly and rather excitingly, Stephanie will be found in the galley assisting cook Donald. Donald has been a one-man show for many voyages, this being his third world voyage, enjoying the comforts of having the galley to himself. This week he has opened his galley dutch door and is happy to be receiving the help.
It’s going to be a great week on board. Shipmates are settling into life back at sea, the deck is running like a well-oiled clock and best of all there are smiles on all faces. Soon we will be entering the Torres Strait, which will mark our halfway point from Vanuatu to Bali. For now, we’re enjoying the steady rolling swells, hot sun and cool breeze.
From: Vanuatu
Towards: Bali
Date: Monday, November 5, 2018
Noon Position: 13°09.5′ S x 146°58′ E
Course + Speed: NW by N + 5.4 kts
Wind direction + Force: ESE + 3-4
Swell Height + Direction: 2m + SE
Weather: Hot, sunny
Day’s Run: 124.3 nm
Passage Log: 129.0 nm
Distance to Port: 300 nm to Cape York
Voyage: 11602.0 nm
Sails Set: All square sails, inner jib, main t’gallant stays’l, main topmast stays’l, mizzen topmast stays’l