We are off today

We have checked the forecast, and everything is good for a departure today.

We just need a quick run to the shops to buy a stack of fresh food then we cast off our lines and head for the USA.

Yesterday was fun, it turned out we had to go to Wakayama City to clear out, they were very helpful, but it was still a 3 hour trip to their office by train, and yesterday the tail of the typhoon passed over bringing massive amounts of rain, Kathy was soaked through, as was her now defunct laptop. We were dismayed to see all the trains back delayed by 1 to 2 hours, but pleased when ours turned up just 15 mins late, however it wasn’t ours, it was one from a few hours earlier, also delayed. I asked and was told by a passenger it went to Kushimoto, but it only went half way, so we were left in a station 100 miles from the boat in torrential rain with all trains cancelled. Eventually Japan Rail (JR) provided a bus that got us back around 21:30 so it was a long day, just to get a stamp on a bit of paper. Still it was less painful than checking in.

We plan to leave before 12:00 in order to get far enough offshore to have passed the main shipping lanes and be clear of the fishing nets, we will be heading east to seek out the Kurisho current, this is like the gulf stream, unfortunately, it has taken a u turn just here, but by going east I hope to connect with it soon, it will sweep us up to the NE and across towards the Aleutians for a week or so.  The forecasts are excellent now, we might be becalmed a little in a few days time, but I don’t trust the forecast that far ahead, but the general theme of the highs and low pressure is working out well for us.

So I am off now to get 100 eggs, I wonder how many I will break in the bicycle basket, answer on a postcard to, bedraggled and hungry, somewhere near Seattle, USA.

PS I will try to get into the routine of a small post each day on the sat phone, but our position should be available from the link above or here

Paul Collister