This was a relatively uneventful two day passage. We went 271 miles in 50 hours for an average speed of 5.42 knots. Unfortunately, we sailed only 3 ½ hours – 7% of the time. We motorsailed 93%.
This is a civilized passage
Our first day had light winds and calm seas. Conditions were so calm that we had a civilized dinner sitting at the cockpit table – a rarity underway. It remained calm through the night.
Our second day was still pleasant, but we needed to slow down a bit so that we would not arrive until daylight. During our second night, wind and sea conditions improved, and we started sailing around 0430. We had 14 knots on our beam, and Passage normally flies with these winds. But we had to hold her back to avoid arriving too early. There was some unkind irony in having our best sailing winds of the passage and having to rein her in.
Nita’s second watch that night was a memorable experience. There was a full moon, the seas were still smooth, and Passage was straining at the bit on a beam reach. We have not had many of these moments in the Med.
Our winds increased to 20 and the seas got a bit bumpy as we neared the coast and headed for Porto Colom. We were looking forward to Spain!