Sunday, February 14, 2010

A year and 23000 Miles

Mhadei completed one year of service with the Navy on 12 Feb 10 completing almost 23000 Nm in her brief lifetime. Not too bad for a Yacht that is the first of her kind in the country. Had she been a Naval ship the crew would have been celebrating her anniversary, maybe cutting a cake etc. We celebrated doing some smooth and fast sailing eating up over 170 Nm in a day! Its been good sailing the past few days. Not always very smooth, with the winds regularly touching 30 kts, but fairly fast with sunny days and starry nights that you can sit out and enjoy as it is not that cold anymore. The swell is lesser than what we had been experiencing in the Pacific and that really helps. The forecast for the next few days is predicting winds over 20 kts with the inevitable gales thrown in. We are already at the edge of the "Roaring Forties" and getting pushed North with a strong South Westerly wind. Would like to remain here a little longer though, to take advantage of the good winds and avoid slowing down in the high pressure systems further North. Ending this with Valentine's day greetings from the middle of South Atlantic! Have a great day!

40 comments:

Dan said...

Dear Commander Donde

Thank you for the report. Sounds like you are having a great time of it.

So sorry to hear of the events in Pune today.

On a more uplifting note I saw the opening of the winter Olympics and India fielded a team, albeit only three three athletes, but they looked proud to be there representing India, waving the flag.

Keep up the great work.

Dan

Anonymous said...

Hi Dilip,
Glad to hear things are going well. You are making great time. Hope the weather stay good and nothing to rough.
Happy Valentine's Day.
Stay safe,
Joy
Ballarat.
Australia

Janell in Oklahoma,USA said...

Hello Dilip,

Congratulations on being at sea on Mhadei on her one year anniversary! You mentioned that the celebration of a naval ship's anniversary would possibly be celebrated with the cutting of a cake. Well, I have a feeling that you are more than happy to be celebrating Mhadei's anniversary doing exactly what you are doing --sailing her proudly along in the south Atlantic.

Sunny days and starry nights, smooth and fast sailing --what more could a sailor want!

Wishing you a Happy Valentine's Day!

Janell in Oklahoma, USA

SaltyDog said...

Commander Donde,

Congratulations to Mhadei. She is a thoroughbred. 170 nm is fantastic. O.K. you deserve every bit as much credit. What an outstanding team you make. It really is hard to beat sitting out on the deck at night on a starry night isn’t it. I sure hope you continue to have nice conditions, Dilip. Enjoy that nice weather and have fun.

From Seattle, WA, USA
SaltyDog

olseadog said...

Good going Dilip! 40deg S seems a good place to be at. Finally it is all about speed vs comfort,isn't it? But have a good time ! Hope you get some South Atlantic Island birds to keep you company on Valentine's Day, as some measure of compensation !

Unknown said...

Hi Dilip,

Can I say "Happy 1st Birthday" to Mhadei. Well done on being a fine vessel and keeping Dilip safe on his voyage. You make a great team.

Oh yes, and Happy Valentines Day to both of you. You both deserve a nice slice of chocolate cake, chocolate or something nice to celebrate all that you have both accomplished.

You are a fine sailor Dilip and I wish you a continued safe journey.

Keep safe and I send you and Mhadei warmest wishes. Jan Pace (Auckland, New Zealand)

Trudy said...

Hello Commander Donde,

Happy Valentine's Day to you too and happy Anniversary to Mhadei! Such a great yacht!
You are making great headway!
Congratulations! May this continue for a long while yet!
Keep well and safe,
Trudy, Austria/Australia

Anonymous said...

Hi Commander Donde,

You sound in good spirit's.The weather sound's to good to be true.

What will happen to Mhadei on your return. Will she stay a Navy asset.It would be good to see her on another adventure with yourself or new crew.What a great asset your country has.Stay safe.

A.M Qld Australia

Jony the Pony said...

Hi Admiral Didl,
happy birhtday,
keep up them dodgers,
Jony the Pony

Kissyfrott said...

Happy Birthday Mhadei, Happy Valentine's Day, Commander Dilip!

I understand Mhadei is your Valentine...
Not a bad choice! She is a beauty. What a yacht!
23,000 nm is about a worldround trip!

And spending your honeymoon with her in a sunny and windy South Atlantic, speeding and smiling, isn't exactly a punsihment, lol.

Enjoy your great journey, Commander!

P.S. And please don't worry about the cake: I discussed it with my wife, we shall celebrate for you and eat it; with our children's help, the job will be well done. ;-)))

Toni McLean said...

Wow, Dilip, you really are making great progress. She must sail so beautifully. You just might catch up to our Jesse at this rate - or even beat her past Cape of Good Hope. I guess no prizes for guessing who your valentine is - you and she make a great team!

Fair winds for you
Toni

Unknown said...

Congratulations to Mhadei and to her Commander!
Happy St Valentine's Day.
Godspeed
Margie
Queensland

ben said...

Hello Dilip,

what a fitting way to celebrate Madhei's anniversary. She is clipping along nicely. Maybe treat her to some WD40, I'm sure she'll respond to that too. I can understand you reluctance to go further north considering your current speeds, but I guess it's a toss-up...speed or safety. A no brainer for me tho..."head north without delay!" lol

Nice to see you're experiencing better sailing conditions. A welcomed relief for sure, just hope those gales don't affect you too much. Maybe that push north is an omen, hmmm.

Btw, prior to following you sailor guys/gals, I imagined a 'broad reach' being someone throwing up profusely over the side of the boat...ha ha. Thanks to you guys and the 'in the know' bloggers for the explanations.

Sincerely hope you continue to have favourable conditions Dilip as you push on toward Good Hope.

Ben (Qld)

Cat Harbour said...

You are doing great, Dilip. You are almost flying across the ocean. At this rate, you might even catch Jesse by the time you reach the Cape of Good Hope. She seems to be almost becalmed in that high pressure area to the northeast of you. Take advantage of your winds but stay safe.
Best wishes the rest of the way home.

Rex Gibbons
St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada

hp said...

हाय Dilip & Mahdei,

शादी की सालगिरह मुबारक!

नमस्कार!

hezakiah299 said...

02-14-10 @ 09:23
Hi Dilip,
It’s nice that you are aboard Mhadie on Valentines day and celebrate her anniversary, that means you get a double serving of the chocolate cake, watch the sugar….lol…
Congratulations to the both of you, 23,000 miles together, through good and bad conditions. Great team.
Good luck to the both of you, take care Dilip and sail true.

Your in my prayers.
Michael(75)from Kingwood, WV (USA)

Lalit Attri said...

Hi Cdr. Dilip

Happy B'day to Mhadei.
Happy valentine's day aboard your great love Mhadei. Spending Mhadei's b'day under starry skies, probably with a glass of wine would be one fine experience.
It must be a welcome sight of Southern cross, blessing Mhadei and crew on 1st anniversary.

It will be even better the day you are back sighting Great Bear.

I have taken advantage of riding storms blowing from behind in north pacific, on a bobbing, empty 160,000 tonner. I can't help but wonder how you stomach it aboard Mhadei.

True blooded sailor.

Wishing Mhadei and crew fair winds and seas.

Godspeed

Lalit / Chandigarh






Falklands marker is already looking way back and Cape Town one looking closer and closer.

Anonymous said...

Hi Dilip,

Hope you get to see this right today. Couple of lines only to wish you and your better half a ... HAPPY VALENTINE's! See your greetings e-card at http://bit.ly/dfjrtB

COMMS NOTEs: The email address posted is disposable and will be gone automatically in a week. The card itself is viewable online for about a month, I think, not sure. After that, in turn, I will delete this bit.ly link.

Best,

H.

Amsterdam
Netherlands

RainCityBob said...

Congratulations Skipper & Mhadei. I had a piece of carror cake and a cup of coffee for breakfast to celebrate your anniversary.

I have enjoyed your blog, and following you on your journey. I especially enjoyed seeing the picture of you with friends in the Falklands. You remind me of my identical twin brother, Madhu, who was born about 12 years after me, to a different mother, on a different continent. But we're twins, none-the-less.

I don't believe a day has passed that I haven't told someone about your adventure.

Stay strong, stay smart.

Unknown said...

My wishes to the birthday baby!!
Happy valentine to you sir!!

Cheers!!!!!!

Lesley Holt Carew said...

Congratulations on celebrating your one year anniversary Mhadi! What a wonderful way to spend Valentines day gazing up at the stars... enjoy the moment!

take care, Lesley...Townsville Australia

Susan said...

Cdr. Dilip,
Wishing you a Happy Valentine's Day and a Happy Birthday to Mhadei... I hope it's the most excellent day. I will raise a cup of chai to you both! You are lucky to have each other! Again...Bhangra time!

Good to hear of the great progress you've made, though even when it's less nm, you still get a great experience... can't get much better than that!

Safe Sailoing,
Susan in rainy Oregon

JJ said...

Safe travels Dilip and Mhadei.

JJ

Evie from Bendigo said...

Hello Dilip
Congratulation on your one year anniversary you should be very proud of your boat she is handling the seas well.

Happy valentine's day

I wish you fair winds and good sailing
Cheers
Evie from Bendigo

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on your success so far. Now why don't you catch Jessica and round the next cape together? That would make a great pic.

Odd that the word verification for me to enter this comment is the same as your last name with the 'o' and 'e' swapping places.

Good luck from INDIAna, USA!

pracs said...

Hey Dilip,
Firstly sorry for not writing back to you; was busy in my project. Congrats to you and Ratnakar for making Mhadei and Sagar Parikrama a remarkable project.

Hey once you are done with round the world sailing i wana read your book on your experiences along with descriptive photographs, you are a wonderful writer.

Hey belated birthday to Mhadei, so i had triple celebration-12,13,, &14 feb)

put some of your and mhadei's current pics on the blog if you can

take care

Kath, Qld said...

Hi Dilip,
happy to hear that you are safe & well,
think of you often.

SUBIR said...

Hi Dilip,
1. Good news is always welcome. A few more days and you will be in Cape Town. Then some R&R and then Mumbai beckons. Wow!
2. Belated Happy First Anniversary. Just missed it - I guess since I missed the delivery ceremony this date didn't stick. On your return we should find a way to celebrate it with the usual spirit(pun intended)
3. Yes, I too happened to see the Winter Olympics ceremony and noted with delight our Indian contingent. Nice of Dan to have noticed this.
4. Take Care.
Regards,
Subir.

DS Pathania said...

Sir.
Belated wishes for ship's (yatch) Anniversary.I know u r missing the cake cutting ceremony but once u r back home with history made there will be lot of celebrations to compensate for these lonely hard times. And yes there is an article in 'Quaterdeck 2010' by Lt Cdr Abhilash Tomy on Mhadei's voyage to Maritius titled 'A voyage to the land of dodos'.It has ur and mhadei picture also an intersting reading.
Good luck. on chart/picture posted by u, i can already sight the african coast...

Workerbev said...

Good Evening Cdr (Beverly here in Tasmania). I'm really happy to hear that you are having some good runs with the weather. 'Bout time don't you think? How much longer before you hit the Cape of GOOD HOPE? Any idea? You are stopping there aren't you? Geez, it seems like you just left the Falklands and now it's time to stop again. Hmmm, I think I would give this last stop a miss - of course, you probably can't because of all the ceremonies that will have been planned. But then after Cape of GODD HOPE (just love that name) it is straight home to Mumbai isn't it? How far from the Cape to Home? Any thoughts.

Well, the old eyes are closing so I reckon I'll just let them...Remember God is with you right there on the Mhadei just waiting for you to talk to Him whenever you need to. And His Legions of Angels are surrounding you and Mhadei and safely guiding you and guarding you to the Cape. Take very good care of yourself, stay clipped on, and always stay in the moment! Cheers, Beverly & Andrew Penney, Tasmania

BEGIN AGAIN IN 2010!!

P.S. My cat (Pudi) is laying here beside my pillow "snoring". That is probably why I'm feeling so sleepy. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!! LOL Beverly

Jonathan Castelino said...

Hi Dilip,

A very Happy Birthday to Mhadei and congratulations to you as well.

170 nm ! Thats outstanding !

Good luck Cmdr, and fair winds.

Jonathan
Melbourne

Jony the Pony said...

Hi Admiral Didl,
once back home there will be lots of cake cutting!
keep up them dodgers,
Jony the Pony

Anonymous said...

G'day Dilip,

Keep a good watch out for Pink Ladies lurking not too far ahead of you.

It would be a treat if you caught sight of each other.

Unknown said...

Hi Dilip,

Great to see the Destination 4 flag moving closer to your track by the day. Great going. Have not been sighting your icon on the chat list for some time. Anyway keep the blog updated and Happy Anniversary - she really is sturdy.

Samir

ashok patwardhan said...

dear daryavardi,you are reaching yr goal real fast and happy greetings for completing one full year of Mhadei. wishing you all the best and every one here is waiting to wave the flag for you. keep up this great work. with lots of love and ashirvad. ashok/jayshree patwardhan.

SUBIR said...

Hi,

Just chanced on this from Coleridge's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner about the Doldrums.

"All in a hot and copper sky,
The bloody Sun, at noon,
Right up above the mast did stand,
No bigger than the Moon.

Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, nor breath nor motion;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean."

Brought back memories of school. Will have to brush up, considering that my daughter will be reading these in a few years!

Regards,
Subir.

Jony the Pony said...

Hi Admiral Didl,
Someone in a previous post mentioned something about it: is it true that you are going to coach an indian girl to break the record of youngest non-stop singlehanded circumnavigation?
Let us know! We are certainly keen to keep a blog-eye on her too!
Keep up them dodgers,
Jony the Pony

Anonymous said...

Hi Commander Donde!

Congratulations for such a great year! 170nm a day seems to be a perfect gift from Mhadei to you!

Have a safe trip back home and belated happy valentine!

Marina from Turin

Anonymous said...

Hi Dilip! Super fantastic job!!Welcome to harhour! Rest well and we hope you continue to get fair winds and calm seas on your homeward bound leg!! Looking forward to your return!! Keep up the Josh! We are Proud of you! god Bless and take care!!

Nirmal Arora said...

We are proud of you!! congratulations..Wishing u all the best.
Dr. Patwardhan