Safe but exhausted in St Helen’s, Tasmania, tonight… I motored in dead calm all day on Thursday. There was still a good 3 metre south-easterly swell with a long period – a bit like driving over long rolling hills – but basically it was pretty boring. My main concern was running out of diesel!

Calm Seas in Bass Strait

Then, half an hour before sunset, someone turned on 20 knots of nor-easter. Having been caught out with over-enthusiasm at sunset before, I decided to reef the main immediately – a decision I was very grateful for as the night wore on.

After a long night, with Sunny Spells constantly surfing in a big cross sea (1.5m sea kicked up by the breeze on top of a 2.5m south-easterly swell) dawn found me 30 miles east of Flinders Island. The pain was not over yet as the wind was shifting to the west and I had to gybe unless I wanted to go on to Antarctica…

The gybe was not too bad – the main had two tucks in and I just waited for a break in the breeze. The poled-out headsail was a pain, so I rolled it away first. Once the main was gybed and set out to starboard I first re-run the preventer to keep the boom in check and then re-set the pole to port. Then I had to re-run the headsail sheets as the working sheet had to be led through the lifelines to avoid chafe. Once the pole was set again, I rolled out about 75% of the headsail.

To the foredeck and back three times on a bucking, rolling boat while trying to not get the tether/jacklines tangled with the sheets, kicker, brace, preventer all snaking across the decks…

Through all of this I was kept company by hundreds of albatross, soaring and swooping over the churned-up sea.

Albatross over Bass Strait

The breeze soon died and left me with no power and a confused sea state. The engine came on and I motored for St Helens.