|
1730 Saturday, September 2, 2023
The northerly winds of yesterday held through the night, rushing Tazzarin westward towards Halifax. However, things have changed.
First, while I was on watch last night, sailing at 7 knots, the roller furling line on the jib suddenly parted! The jib had been double-reefed, making it quite small. With a sudden whoosh followed by a loud bang, the jib unrolled to full size. There was no quick way to again furl it. I headed down wind while David went to the bow and tied the two segments of the line together. We removed the line from all the fairlead blocks and led it directly aft. We were then able to furl all but two feet of the sail, leaving a tiny triangle of cloth at the bow. We opted to wait until daylight to finish sorting it out. It now can be used; but, only with the two reefs in it.
Regretfully, today has brought a return of gusty southwest to west winds, dead ahead. There is a "strong wind warning" for this section of ocean. Now, we have a double reefed main and are motor sailing, only making about 3.5 knots in the direction we want to go. The boat is lunging and bouncing in the seas. The conditions are supposed to persist through tomorrow. Monday is supposed to be light winds followed by two more days of helpful northeasterlies. For now, it is frustrating and tiring. We may try to reach Canso Harbor on the east end of Nova Scotia and wait for better weather. Right now, Canso is 70 miles away and will take us 22 hours.
We have had one friendly visitor during David's watch this afternoon - a juvenile herring gull. The bird keeps hovering around us and has landed on board several times. Maybe he wants to get into a harbor, too. (Photos below.)
Bill
| 
