Prepared

11 October 2013

This time we were prepared for the change of weather. This afternoon we felt a little bit weird, with double reefed rigging under quite good circumstances. But when the change came we were every happy. I wrote earlier that temperatures dropped. The coast guard informed everyone of `damaging winds from the south, gusting up to 100 kmph’.
That was a sign for us to take down the mizzen and the schooner sail. With topsail, main sail and foresail we gybed, this time controlled. Soon after our change of course we had wind from the south of about 35 knots. Because of the wind from the south and the swell from the northeast we have been rolling a lot during the night. We often had the deck filled with water. In the early morning the wind decreased and we set the schooner sail and mizzen again. The waves are still high and we are sailing doing about 7 knots towards New Zealand. The sun just came through the clouds and besides the waves it is not bad at all.