Over The Line

Over The Line has a special meaning to most San Diegans stemming from the beach boozing, name calling, slow motion ball game played in bikinis on hot summer sand. For the crew of Rutea though, Over The Line has taken on a whole new meaning as we slipped from 00.00.000 North to 00.00.001 South yesterday afternoon! After the perfect equatorial sail- that being 15 knots of wind on the beam, smooth, aqua seas of less than 2 feet under a cloudless, royal blue sky with a horizon that felt endless Rutea entered a hemisphere new to her and her crew- the Southern Ocean! There was too much wind to celebrate with a dip in the ocean so we made due by taking showers in home made, fresh equatorial water, toasting Neptune and Poseidon (and each other)with rum and mango juice drinks and eating real party hors d hors! We ventured out on deck and paid homage to Neptune again by offering up the last of our very best Sailor Jerry rum and throwing in the bottle as well! Neal paid a beautiful tribute to our now passed friend Jeff Abbey (who was a Merchant Marine) by committing his S.D. Harbor Patrol hat to Neptune and promising to always honor his memory. Corie sprinkled tea leaves honoring ALL and then it was time for the photo ops.

We are on day 16 of our crossing to the S. Pacific. It is a challenging task to take on by all means- even with all of our modern conveniences like auto pilots and chart plotters. We are still at Mother Nature's mercy and there are very few things we can accurately predict, much less control. It's really hard for me to imagine how people used to make this crossing without any of these modern electronics or ways to stay in touch with those they left behind on land. I think of us as being pretty brave and courageous with a fair amount of stamina, but they must have been over the line!

Shipboard life continues to be fairly smooth. We are now on a port tack, however, at a 15 degree heel, so that makes everything we try to do a little more difficult and trying to stay upright is definitely a challenge. It even makes sleeping harder as we try to figure out which end up is more comfortable! We also have a whole new set of creaks and groans to get used to and have settle in to consciousness.

Now the new moon is waxing. It's 18 percent tonight will cast a beautiful moonglade on the water after dark until it sets about 22:19. Although already present, once the moon disappears the stars will be ever so brilliant and we will be privy to the southern constallations as well as the rising of Saturn. This moon will be great company all the way to Hiva Oa as we sail a new line, over the line.

R of Rutea
01.46.2 SOUTH
131.50.9 W
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At 4/6/2011 1:45 AM (utc) Rutea's position was 00°13.20'S 131°01.48'W

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