Hove to on the High Seas

Upon departing Ensenada for the second time on a sunny Saturday morning with fair winds, our logbook shows this entry...

"07:00 - Weather report shows a gale expected in San Diego Sun night - Monday so we are heading out ASAP to avoid weather. Hopefully we will stay ahead of it and catch a nice NW wind all the way down the coast."

Well, so much for hoping anyway. By noon we had 15 knots of wind and were making 6.5 knots on a heading of 175 degrees. Sailing was great and everything was going just as planned. We were making good speed and had no need for fuel, so we decided to skip Turtle Bay. Later we would regret that decision.

We enjoyed a salmon dinner Saturday night and soon after sunset the wind picked up and we furled the Genoa and Staysail. The new furling line for the main jammed because it seems to be slightly smaller in diameter than the old one, so Chris and I had to unwind it all and re-thread the line as the wind continued to climb. Sorted out, we reefed the main and sailed through the night ahead of the storm as the swell gradually increased. Chris manned the helm all night to keep the rolling seas on our stern. By Sunday morning we found ourselves in 30 knots of wind and 15 to 20 ft swells. Still, this was not so bad. since the wind and waves were behind us. We were making good headway and the boat handled like a Thoroughbred race horse. The main was double reefed and our speed was under control, but by afternoon it became apparent that the storm was moving much faster than predicted and we would soon be in the middle of it when it was supposed to be farther north of us.

A few hours later the swells continued to mount and breaking waves appeared when the wind speed topped 35 knots with gusts to 40+ knots. We had 1/4 of the mainsail out as a storm sail for stability and  we were concerned about the breaking waves, even though our Iverson's dodger was doing an exemplary job of keeping us dry and safe in the cockpit. But down below it was almost impossible to move about with all the rolling. Even things well secured were jarred loose and we lost two containers, one flour, one sugar, on the floor of the galley. No sooner did I have that cleaned up, when the coffee pot decided to go flying and there was another mess to deal with. The cats stayed on the bed and seemed to fare well, but it was obviously time to put our storm tactics into practice and heave to.

From the log book...
"16:00 - Hove to for the first time on Sirena. It works! In 35 knots of wind we turned to port during a slight lull in the swell and pointed the bow NE about 50 degrees off the wind. Main reefed and wheel lashed hard to port with shock cords. Lowered the centerboard and really could feel the stability with the added lower center of gravity. Some small waves breaking on bow, but we are pretty much standing still and drifting in our own slick of smooth water. Amazing."

The storm raged on all night and into the next day. During the night I made radio calls periodically to be sure any targets that we saw on AIS could see us and avoid us since our maneuverability was limited. I spoke with the crew on watch of the Norwegian Jewel and the Carnival Miracle, both ships bound for Cabo San Lucas as we were. They wished us well and steered clear of our location.

By dawn the storm was still going, but we were better rested and prepared to wait it out as long as needed. We had plenty of "sea room" - space between us and the shore to drift while hove to.

By midmorning the winds had died down to the 30 knot range and the seas were calming with no more breaking waves so we turned back on course and headed for Bahia Santa Maria. We anticipated arriving after dark, but the bay entrance is miles wide and unobstructed, so we sailed in and anchored that night, enjoying the peaceful calm of the protected anchorage!

Bahia Santa Maria

Cats resting after the storm