| On Tuesday, June 1, we pushed off for Bermuda. We departed the Fort Pierce City Marina around 12:15 p.m., but unfortunately this time we went aground in the silt buildup at the marina channel entrance. There was a strong 5 to 6 knot current setting us onto the sandbar and we became stuck. Luckily a small outboard boat with a 75 hp motor came to our rescue. After almost 45 minutes and after much trying, the small boat was able to get us off. At 1:30 p.m. we passed the sea buoy at the entrance into the Fort Pierce Inlet and were officially on our way.
With just two foot seas and no swell, we enjoyed a great sail our first afternoon at sea, although we were having to sail more north than originally planned as the wind was out of the east and not southeast as stated in the weather reports. By evening the wind had come around more to the southeast, but now the Gulf Stream current was giving us a 3 to 4 knot northerly set. It was quite exciting at times to see our GPS log showing 8 to 9 knots, a �rare� speed for KUHELA. During the evening, we could see lightning at times over the Florida coast, and throughout the night we encountered a few squalls plus confused and lumpy seas caused from the Gulf Stream current. KUHELA wallowed in these conditions. However, by Wednesday morning KUHELA was once again gliding ever so smoothly through the water, just skimming the surface. Except for the lumpy and confused seas encountered Tuesday night, this passage ended up being a classic trade wind sail with almost perfect sailing conditions. It was one of the best sails we have ever had. Definitely more people would go to sea if all passages were like this one. The weather was beautiful the entire transit. Only for a few hours on Friday afternoon (besides the first night out) did we have some squalls. Also, to a mariner�s delight, we enjoyed a full moon for part of our passage. During this transit we noticed slightly cooler temperatures. We rarely encountered ship traffic. And, Jimmy Buffett music could often be heard playing from our boat stereo as we glided ever so peacefully through the water. Wednesday to midday Thursday we sailed a close reach (main, jib, staysail) with S to SSE winds 7-15 knots, 2 foot seas, no swell, and � to 1 knot favorable current. For 6 hours starting midday Thursday, we sailed a broad reach (main, drifter, and poled-out jib, wing on wing) with wind SW 5-7 knots and 3-4 foot seas. Only for a couple of hours on Wednesday evening and again on Thursday evening did we motorsail due to very light airs. From late Thursday evening to midday Monday (3� days in all) we never changed our sails as the wind came consistently from the SSE 10-16 knots. This entire period we sailed a close reach and had seas mostly 2 feet with little to no swell. Half the time we sailed with � to 1 knot favorable current; the rest of the time with little to no favorable current. With the wind just forward of the beam, the apparent wind also gave us an added lift. KUHELA was making fantastic time. Two of these days our total nautical miles traveled each day was around 150, a great run for our boat. This dream sail came to an end midday Monday when we lost most of our wind and had to start motoring. In the afternoon, some beautiful white-tailed tropic birds (also known as the Bermuda longtails) came out to greet us. These ocean birds used Bermuda�s shores as their nesting site from March to November. In the evening we could see the illumination of Bermuda off in the distance. |
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