Noon Position: 17 10.0 S 146 11.2 E
Course: E Speed: 4 knots
Wind: SE, F3-4 - gentle to moderate breeze
Sea: slight Swell: SE, 0.5 meters
Weather: overcast, showers, warm
Day's run: 16 nm sailed, 3 nm made good

We had a reasonable night's rest at anchor off High Island and got up with the sun to get underway after breakfast. As I mentioned last night, I was concerned that the anchor might have fouled on a coral head which proved to be the case. I cranked the anchor chain in as far as I could until it was up and down, with Sylph snubbing the chain with nasty jerks as small waves picked her bow up and dropped it down again. Fortunately, much to my relief, a bit of judicious motoring back and forward broke the anchor free and we were underway.

It took a while to secure the anchor for sea - important when bashing to windward as Sylph ships a lot of water over the bow which ends up going down the chain pipe and into the bilge causing longer term corrosion problems. Securing the anchor involves disconnecting the chain from the anchor, lashing the anchor in place, then attaching the end of the chain to the chain pipe cover and ensuring the cover is firmly fitted over the chain pipe that leads to the cable locker.

Once the anchor was secure, we motored back into the lee of High Island where I hoisted the main with one reef and unrolled 80 percent of the jib, initially bearing away to the SW to round the western end of the island then coming hard onto the wind to continue bashing south. The upshot of all the above is that while we had an early start to the day we did not actually start sailing until 0820. Meanwhile, our neighbours for the night, Maya, had also gotten underway. I tried calling them on VHF to see what their plans were but got no reply, presumably because they were too busy setting sail.

You will notice looking at the figures at the start of today's post that up until noon, while we have sailed 16 miles, we have only made good three miles in the direction we wish to go. This seeming poor performance (apart from the fact that Sylph's performance to windward is indeed less than sparkling) is due to the fact that up until noon we have been sailing the non-favoured tack, almost at right angles to our desired southerly course. At 1230 we tacked and are now sailing the more favoured tack, much closer to our desired course, so these figures will improve as the day progresses.

As to our next destination, at this stage we continue to make for Mourilyan Harbour. It is now 23 miles away and at our current speed of four knots our ETA is midnight. Again I will see what the wind is doing and how I am feeling as to whether we pull into Mourilyan Harbour or continue sailing overnight.

All is well.