230PM. At anchor in Waimea Bay 21-38.5N 158-03.9W.
It was a great relief to finally get away on this trip. For some reason the planning phase and anticipation was more difficult for me than previous voyages, including those to the South Pacific. Perhaps it was due to the fact that Moku pe'a hasn't been on a long journey since 2014, and I'm out of practice on being in charge of preparations for this kind of adventure. My fear is that it is old age creeping up, and I don't like it.
In any case we are on our way! Michael and David both flew in on Thursday. David went to his apartment in Waikiki and Michael came to stay at the brewery. Michael, Lori and I provisioned on Friday and then we all went to Waikiki for a lovely dinner with David and his wife Josephine at the Outrigger Canoe Club. We brought David home with us last night. Kara walked over to the house this morning, and Lori prepared an excellent pre-voyage breakfast for the crew.
Moku pe'a got underway at 9AM, with a single reef in the main and full jib. We sailed out the Kaneohe Bay Sampan Channel and turned left to head for Kahuku. The wind increased, as expected, and by the time we got abeam of the Polynesian Cultural Center we had two reefs in the mainsail and a single reefed jib.
It was a bit bumpy rounding Kahuku, but we jybed without incident, screamed down past Sunset Beach, and entered Waimea accompanied by a school of spinner dolphin.
The hook went down at 2PM over a sandy spot at the east end of the bay, and we are now happily enjoying this peaceful anchorage. The rest of the crew is swimming around the boat as I write this.
Lori will be here about 430PM and swim out to the boat for a visit before she ferries Kara home. Michael, David, and I plan to pull the hook and depart for Kauai just before sunset. The distance to Hanalei Bay is about ninety miles, more than Moku pe'a can sail in daylight hours. An overnight sail is necessary to ensure we arrive there when the sun is high in the sky.
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