slow trip

We're taking the slow trip to Tonga. I guess the law of averages makes it not too surprising that after our last two rollicking passages, we were due for a slow one. Our first 36 hours out of Palmerston were light on wind and heavy on a head current. We motored for a few hours overnight at a walloping speed of 3 knots. I had really hoped to go straight to Tonga and not stop at Nuie. I'm ready to just stay put for a while without a passage looming before me. However, circumstances dictate otherwise. Tonga resides on the other side of the International Dateline, so because of our slow progress, we wouldn't arrive until Friday afternoon. Being the civilized country that it is, customs and immigration close from 4 p.m. Fri, until Monday morning. Visitors are not allowed off their boats until cleared in, so if we arrive too late on Friday, we're stuck on board for 2 more days. We might as well spend 2 days putting a Nuie stamp in our passports and exploring a bit.

The wind has picked up today, albeit straight from behind. Pete is happy to be flying the new spinnaker and even brave enough to leave it up over night. We've doing a respectable 5.5 knots now, so hope to make landfall in the daylight tomorrow. Mooring buoys are available in Nuie so at least a night entry won't be too tough. Two catamarans are slowly pulling ahead of us and can help us in if needed. It's always good to arrive just after a friend who can figure out the lay of the land.

The sea looks like the color of blue laundry soap with white bubbles. The swell has varied between virtually nothing and up to 12 feet. The rolling of the boat drives us crazy when the seas get big, so we're enjoying the calm moments. I find it difficult to sleep when my face keeps getting crammed into the pillow. I wake up with my ears feeling rug burned and have to turn over. I sort of prop myself in with pillows to support my back. It's a bit reminiscent of sleeping during the last trimester of pregnancy, sore back and all.

No squalls on the horizon, so hopefully it'll be a quiet night. Kellie