Arctic Solo Sail

Having been blown off course through the night I arrived off the coast of Newfoundland 23 miles south of the latitude I left the Quebec shore side on. See what I mean about Latitude 50⁰ not wanting to let me go. But by noon thirty, Newfoundland time, I reached Port Saunders. It was ever thing you would expect from a Newfoundland fishing village, lighthouse at the entrance, lobster pots on the docks and some wonderful, helpful, English speaking people and free moorage at the boat launch.

It was there that I met NaDine and Rob Hinks running the boat yard. After talking about the CAP’N LEM, they both caught the Arcticsolosail vision, and then just couldn’t do enough to help me. After work, they took me grocery shopping, to get propane, and to get odds and ends for the boat. Afterwards Rob gave me the VIP tour of the most wonderful little town of Port au Choix, including a trip out to Pointe Riche Lighthouse. I loved his stories of local and family history in and around the area. Then, we found an even deeper common ground than boats… video games! What fun we had matching games we’d both played and the “ya gotta play…” games.

What a welcome night’s sleep after a 60 mile crossing in the dark of last night?

My GPS position at 1211 on July 22, 2009 was Lat. 50⁰ 22’ 34’’N ~ Long. 059⁰ 09’ 51”W (remember to retard the longitude for my course and speed at the time of noon 090T @ 5kts

I hope at lease a few of you had fun with the numbers. I’m sure it was Greek to most but thanks for letting me have some fun. I’ve always enjoyed celistual navigation but wouldn’t want to be relying on it solely on this trip. Yes chart plotters and GPS and AIS and radar and caluclators have all made a mental weakling out of me, but I still like to take the sextant out for a spin.

To those who have sent e-mail asking questions about the trip, I’m sorry I can’t respond directly so here are some questions and my answer.

Barb asks: Will the radar pickup icebergs?

Yes, if they are large. Small burgybits will most likely not show up. I’ll hove to at night in ice areas rather than risk an out and out collision.

Roger asks: What do I do about replenishing food onboard?

I have a well stocked pantry of canned goods, soups, sardines, chili, etc. I have lots of crackers, peanut butter, beef jerky, dried fruit and vitamins. When I can and as long as I can I buy my food from local stores. People have been so wonderful to give me rides.

To find your latitude at noon from the sun, take the height observed subtract it from 90⁰ then subtract the declination of the sun at the moment it reached its highest arc in the sky and subtract it if it is a north declination or add it if it is a south declination. By determining when local apparent noon occurred, then the longitude becomes the GHA (Greenwich Hour Angle) of the sun corrected for minutes and seconds. These numbers and the corrections for the height of eye, refraction, upper or lower limb shot, etc., are found in the Nautical Almanac.

2000 moored in Port Saunders Newfoundland

Lat. 50 38′ 45.8″N  Lon 057 16′ 18.9″W

Will change engine oil tomorrow and wind willing get underway toward Labrador.

Have full fuel, propane and food stores.

I was out of the sight of land for a while today so I took the noon sight.  You can reduce the numbers down and determine my position at noon if you know the math.  I’ tell you this, it was within a mile and half of the GPS position which is pretty good for celestial navigation.

My DR Latitude were 50⁰ N and 60⁰ W

I shot the lower limb of the sun at the following times and altitudes

11h 59m 49s​59⁰ 32.8’

12h 00m 49​59⁰ 33.7’

12h 01m 40s​59⁰ 33.7’

12h 02m 20s​59⁰ 33.2’

12h 04m 47s​59⁰ 32.9’

I called local apparent noon to be 12h 01m 00s

Meridian passage of the sun was at 12h 06m

The sun’s declination at 1600Z was N20⁰ 09.3’  the d correction was 0.5 for 1 minute = 0.0

The sextant index correction was +1.4’  the dip correction was -1.0’

My course was 090⁰T at 5kts

If you know the math you can find my position at 1201 on 7/22/09

And did you know a total eclipse of the sun occurred today?

Tomorrow I will publish the GPS posit I wrote down

Another fitful night of waking, watching, dosing has brought us to Cape Whittle. This is important because I can now turn Northeast and head toward the Strait of Belle Isle and the open ocean. But 50⁰ North is a jealous latitude and has held the CAP’T LEM close to the line for the last 290 miles. A Northeast wind and dense fog conspire to see escape to the north is difficult at best. My hope was the day star could bring the stout and steady west wind of yesterday as it warms the land over Newfoundland but no, it only brought a stronger Nor’easter and more fog.

But, of course, all the wishing in the world cannot change one breath of wind. I’ll just deal with it by climbing out of “Golfe du Saint-Laurent” like a toddler climbs stairs one tack at a time. My job as captain of THE CAPTAIN is to be ready, just be ready. Wind does change.

The fog that came with the wind only sharpens my hunger to see the horizon. I passed two ships at less than three miles, big ships by the size of the radar return, but saw nor heard either one. When I step below I can’t stay for long or the need to look out borders on obsession. The radar, the chart plotter, the AIS all tell me, nothing there, but still the need to see… I want to see that nothing is there. I can only imagine the horror the fog brought to sailors of old.

So I stand in the companion way on the lower rung my head just clearing the hatch cover in such a way that were you the mast looking back you would only see from my nose up. I clasp the hatch combing with both hands, fingers and thumb as though peering over a fence. “Killroy was here!” should be scrawled just below.

By 1500, I’ve had enough of stair climbing and sheet white fog, so I make my way to another anchorage below an abandon lighthouse at Lat 50⁰ 18’ 11.2”W ~ Long. 059⁰ 39’ 43.9”W having traveled 230 nm from Anticosti Island. I’ll sleep the whole night through…unless the wind changes or the anchor drags or the boat rocks…

Another night underway waking up, getting up, looking around, resetting the alarm. All is ok as long as I’m making less than 4 knots. In the clear night, I can see 4 times that far and I’m the only light not on shore. CAP’T LEM made 24 miles this way before the dawn broke bringing with it wind speed I don’t want to sleep through. This morning, it’s the wind I’ve been waiting for.

First, it’s 6 knots we jump to, then 8, then 10 and I don’t want to sail 10 knots downwind in a building sea. I much prefer a steady 6, so it’s out to douse the headsail and shorten the main. I let the CAP’T LEM go into irons to relieve the pressure on the main as I bring it in one roll of the boom at a time. It makes me glad I practiced sailing her out of irons back on the lake now that the seas have built 6 to 8 feet.

Oh, but it’s from the right direction! It’s from the west and I want to go east and there is nothing ahead for a hundred miles but water so I press on. By noon the waves are taller the me standing upright in the cockpit and coming faster than my 8 knots. The course I’ve set takes the wind a few points on the port quarter. The boom is down tight and the traveler is secured. I stay ever mindful of a jibe. My motorcycle helmet is kept at the ready should I need to go out on deck to deal with a wild boom, but for now she’s tame.

The waves come up behind and lift the stern. The speed accelerates. It rolls under amidships where it crest in a fizz like a shook-up soda pop, then drops the stern and raises the bow giving the vessel a hobbyhorse ride. And they do it over and over and over. It’s just what waves do.

It looks as though the wind will turn on me one more time before I’m free and clear to head north along the coast of Labrador. But for now I am making glorious head way with beautiful clear skies over all.

My position at 2000 on the 20^th of July is Lat. 50° 05’ 04’’N ~ Lon. 061° 00’ 17” W. I’m sailing 6.6 kts under a reefed main alone in a 20 knot wind. The sun has set. It’s going to be along night.

The sun is setting on “Detroit de Jacques Cartier”, The Strait of Jacques Cartier. The CAP’N LEM sailed with the changing wind after weathering a southeaster in Port Menier on Anticosti Island. There is still a high wind watch but it is from the right direction to push us along or way.

We sailed through a pod of minke whale ten or twelve strong. It must have been a feeding ground because there were dolphins there too.

The weather tonight looks fine to sail on through the night. At 2000 the CAP’N LEM’s position was Lat. 50° 08’ 26’’N ~ Lon. 064° 08’ 27”W. I’m glad to have the numbers back above 50°.

I’ve broke the autopilot again. I have to go onto the stern to raise and lower the motor, and while I was back there I slipped just enough to fall against the disengaged autopilot and broke the pivot pin lose. Nothing a generous helping of epoxy could fix. “She ain’t purdy, but she’s a workin’.” Such is life on a solo sail.

To all who have e-mailed me, thank you so much! I’m sorry but I can’t answer them now. I can only receive them. I do read them all.