Saturday, May 1, 2010

Cruising in the Trade Winds


We crossed the beautiful island of Mauritius on the morning of 27 Apr. Passing less than 5 Nm from the Island, it was really tempting to stop by and meet up with friends from the last visit less than a year back. Last year on 09 Jun I had sailed out of Port Louis, Mauritius for Mhadei's last trial before the circumnavigation and my first solo sail and here we were back to the same place from the other side of the world! In a way this completed the Circumnavigation though we still need to get back home 2000 Nm away!

The elusive SE trade winds finally showed up after crossing the Tropic of Capricorn and since then Mhadei has been cruising along at a clip heading straight for Mumbai. This blissful state may last for a day or two before we hit the frustrating Doldrums and start playing cat & mouse with the shifty and light winds. North of the Equator the wind seems to have slowly started shifting West as the SW Monsoon season approaches. Hoping that it will set in by the time we cross the equator in a weeks time for a nice downwind leg home.

The tropics are making their presence felt in more than one way with the temperature inside the boat remaining above 30 C almost all the time which makes life a bit uncomfortable. So a lot of time specially at night is spent sitting out enjoying the cool breeze under a clear moonlit sky!






27 comments:

Swati said...

Lovely Pics. What a perfect moon!! Enjoy!!

hp said...

हाय Dilip & Mahdei,

A dream cruise really! Enjoy.

नमस्कार!

Kissyfrott said...

Hi Commander Dilip!
Nice cruise, lucky man!! Did you see the storms that Jessica is fighting on around Tasmania? A good thing for you (or anyone) , not having to sail in that area...
Thank you for the beautiful photographs.
Hoping the doldrums won't be too teasing for you!

Anonymous said...

 
Thanks for the update.  Keep your fingers crossed for Jesse's and Abby's safety.

Best,

H.

Amsterdam
Netherlands
 

Anonymous said...

Great photos.
Good winds for you.
Richard (QLD) Aus

Unknown said...

Beautifull pics as u get close home... :)

Have a pleasant sail!!!

Anonymous said...

Hi Dilip,s

Glad to hear all is going well. Great photo's. Enjoy the last leg of your adventure.
Keep safe,
Joy
Ballarat
Australia

Anonymous said...

Hi Dilip,

Lovely photo's. Who took the one from above? I can understand that you spend the night outdoors. The moonlight, stars and the breeze must be nice.
I came home from KohLanta, Thailand in April, and I loved to be on the beach in the eveings too.
Enjoy it out there.
Regards,
Ingrid, Tyreso, Sweden

Jules GC said...

Hello Commander, It won't be long before you are home - and planning your next voyage, no doubt! We have enjoyed your calm and informative posts as well as the brilliant photographs. Thank you.

Toni McLean said...

Hi Dilip,
Nice to hear from you again,and thanks for the great pics. Your yacht looks so lovely under sail.

I imagine Mauritius is very beautiful so it really must have been tempting to stop, but Mumbai beckons! 2000 nm, sounds such a short distance compared with what's behind you.

Hope the trade winds stay with you to help keep you moving and cool.

Best wishes
Toni

SaltyDog said...

Commander Donde,

It’s good to hear from you. The photo of Mhadei is suitable for framing. Very nice. Essentially, you have made a complete lap, but yes, you must bring Mhadei home. If we don’t hear from you for too long, we might suspect that you made a u-turn and went back to Mauritius. Enjoy the nice sailing conditions while you have them. Take care and enjoy yourself, Dilip.

From Seattle, WA, USA
SaltyDog

Clair said...

Dilip, wonderful pictures! If you are writing a book, have you come up with a title yet? You know WE will have LOTS of suggestions for you!!! In the meantime, people can pre-order a copy of True Spirit: Jessica Watson's story.
According to Hachette, you can pre-order this title now from any bookstore. If you have difficulty ordering this title please refer the bookstore to the ISBN. This will help the store locate the book. The ISBN is 9780733624971.
Bookstores (or individuals) can order the book from http://www.hachette.com.au/PDF/orderforms/Orion_aug10_OF.pdf
Also check your library at: http://tinyurl.com/truespiritatlibrary

pracs said...

Hello,

Just visited Goa last Week, The birth place of Mhadei. Couldn't stop remembering every moment that i spent with you, Mhadei and Ratnakar while working on the film SAGAR PARIKRAMA..........


Waiting for your arrival..........

take care buddy,miss you both

DS Pathania said...

sir,
few weeks left before you are home and then you will surely miss the seas and the blissful solitude of oceans.Preparations are on to receive you at Mumbai with great pomp and show. u r a hero.Good Luck and enjoy whatever is left of your historic journey.

Diptish Vartak said...

Hello Dilip,

Hope this home stretch will be very comfortable since you have already sailed this path last year. Enjoy the beautiful weather and starry nights and prepare for a hero's welcome back in Mumbai !

Diptish Vartak
Philadelphia, USA

Janell in Oklahoma,USA said...

I've always enjoyed your blogs and look forward to a few more before you get back to Mumbai. You tell us a lot in a very soothing way....you have made your circumnavigation sound much too easy! :) Every one out here knows that you have worked hard and through some very trying times. You certainly deserve the hero's welcome that awaits you when you arrive back home.

All the best to you,
Janell in Oklahoma,USA

Evie from Bendigo said...

Hello Dilip,
Glad to hear from you, and thankyou so much for the fantastic photos. Hope the good weather stays with you for a while. I am glad you will be welcomed back home in Mumbai with alot of fanfare it is well deserved. Take care and keep safe.
Cheers
Evie Neilson From Bendigo

pracs said...

Hope the Indian media awakes before the arrival of our hero.

i hope it wont be like a bygone story- Commander Donde's Mission should be Remembered, Referred and registered for long term Historic records.

We citizens value what you are doing hope our media does the same.............

Lanna said...

Thanks for the pics Dilip, and the update. Still watching you and looking forward to your triumphant return home.

ben said...

Hello Dilip,

great to see you're well into the final leg of your journey. Let's hope the trade winds continue as long as possible before the dreaded doldrums set in. I guess the upside is, once thru the doldrums it's pretty much 'home and hosed' from there, as we say.

Good to see you taking advantage of nature's own air-conditioning up on deck at night too Dilip. sounds like the perfect way to keep cool.

Take care out there.

Ben (Qld)

Prabir said...

Great to hear from you again and closer home. All the best on your last leg. Lovely pics too.

Unknown said...

Dilip,the pics are great.Good luck for the last few days.

Anonymous said...

Great pictures. Abby Sunderlands hope of sailing non-stop around the world has come to an end. I told her didn't what you enjoyed the most, sailing or the ports of call. Following your blogs I do believe you enjoy the stops. Now she can also stop and see Jessica. There's a great teenage party in the making. Your almost home so good winds to you. Bob in Tucson AZ USA

Boby said...

The second and the third picture are same it's Port louis Mauritius night and day cool

Unknown said...

Both pics are different. I have lived in Mauritius for a few years.

Murali "MG" Gopalan said...

Dilip? Indian Navy Solo Circumnavigation

Thanks heaps for pointing me to the Tarini FB page. Lol, that simple. And no offense taken.

Thinking through and plotting alternate courses with goodwill stops made more sense to me than an endurance sail. Way off the mark, my course plotting, speed average etc., with wind and current data abstracted. Concur after reading the FB page, why it was so way off the mark.

ShipAhoy3 - the Fremantle to Lyttleton leg probably will be a cut better than ShipAhoy2 which was pure speculation, with scanty data and my leisure sailing experience, with the exception of crewing in a HK-Subic race, in what was then the Corum South China race.|

Your own adventure, certainly is epic.

Murali "MG" Gopalan said...

Dilip? Indian Navy Solo Circumnavigation

Way off the mark indeed.

Thanks heaps for pointing me to the Tarini FB page. Lol, that simple. And no offense taken.

Thinking through and plotting alternate courses with goodwill stops made more sense to me than an endurance sail. Way off the mark, my course plotting, speed average etc., with wind and current data abstracted. Concur after reading the FB page, why it was so way off the mark.

ShipAhoy3 - the Fremantle to Lyttleton post probably will be a cut better than ShipAhoy2 which was pure speculation, with scanty data and my leisure sailing experience, an exception of crewing in a HK-Subic race, in what was then the Corum South China race makes me nothing more than a rank amateur.|

Your own adventure, certainly is epic, and your mentorship invaluable for the Tarinians.