Day One is in the Books

1900 zulu
18 deg. 40.147 minutes North
107 deg. 59.085 minutes West
Wind 15 at 315 mag.
Sea conditions moderate
Water temp 84 degrees
Sky broken 80% cloud


At 1900 hours Zulu, or 1300 local time, Moonshadow has covered 188 miles for an average of 8 knots in the last 24 hours. All is well aboard, and we are quite happy with the conditions. The wind has been blowing a steady 15 knots, the seas are moderate, and we've been sailing along quite fast hitting 9-10 knots at times.

We motored in headwind for the first 30-40 minutes until the local wind in Banderas Bay veered enough to carry sails. This all happened a 1900 zulu so that's our time for recording daily positions. As soon as we hoisted sails and shut down the motor, Moonshadow responded like a horse finally released from her corral, leaping down the track for the Marquesas. Quite a thrill for Moonshadow and the crew.

We are expecting the next day or two will bring time to catch up on some sleep and wind moving aft. This first day, the wind has been 60-70 degrees from our bow which makes for fast sailing, but we are heeled over quite a bit which makes getting around on the boat a challenge.

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