Tramonto is roughly 1,011 miles to the northeast of Hiva Oa, our first landfall. Today is the fourteenth day which we have followed the sun's westerly path across the sea. At our current pace we should make landfall within the next seven or eight days. Over the last 96 hours we have been sailing along in unusually light trade winds due to the breakdown of the high pressure system over South America. It has been a bit frustrating but at least we are still making more than 100 miles a day, the worst part is listening to the sails slam around as Tramonto bounces around in the waves. It has been a great passage overall so far.

Leaving Panama I was definitely concerned about what I would do with myself for such a long period of time in a 31-foot space. This hasn't been an issue whatsoever. I keep constantly busy reading, doing boat chores, or navigating. During the last three days I have spent considerable time practicing celestial navigation. This easily eats up a few hours and challenges me. Herman Melville described this area as the area " Where the dawn comes on like thunder". It is very true -- the sun is either up or down and there is very little twilight here. So, I usually start the morning with my coffee in one hand and the sextant in the other. I've found that the lower the sun’s altitude, the easier the math is when working the shot out later. My navigation has been really accurate; this morning I was only 2 miles off of the GPS position. The first morning I got the sextant out I thought that I had discovered a 145-mile error in the GPS system and was getting ready to e-mail the White House. However, after several hours, I realized that during the night we had crossed time zones that threw my calculations a bit off. After redoing the shot using the correct time, I determined the GPS system was fine. We are still sailing within visual range of Avalon. Although their boat is lighter and has better light air performance they have chosen to stay with us. It has been great having them here. Generally, we have no problem thinking of things to talk about or celebrate. Our halfway party consisted of a bit of rum for all and the firing of some old flares. Tonight we are planning to celebrate the 999 mile mark, and who knows what that will consist of?