boy howdy is the rain comin' down, blankets and sheets of it i tell you.

i'm tucked away working on some web things (big changes coming round here!) and thinking positive thoughts for tomorrow's rescheduled plan of a haulout. if this silly company organizing the job is able to come up with one single reason more why it can't happen tomorrow they're going to win the contest for most creative geniuses of all time. because every excuse in the book has already been used. "island-time" lamentations are kind of getting old, you know?

anyways, i'm moored here at the base of Mother Mountain, amidst a number of tiny villages filled with lovely people. life is full of things like sweet fruits from the open air market, late afternoon swims, and chats with kids who love their outrigger canoes and homemade slingshots. i'm learning some pidgin english, and making plans for the future.

last weekend, i met a man on the wharf who spoke softly and told me of his island just around the bend. he said i should walk one hour in the direction of the volcano and i would find a footbridge that would take me across the water to his land. so that is what i did.

when i arrived at the outer edge of the village two girls came rushing out to ask where i'd come from. everyone always seems very incredulous to find i've traveled alone so they instructed that henceforth they would accompany me. together we spent the afternoon walking the island and then later hiking back through that black ash desert in search of some local hot springs. everywhere we went people rushed out to say hello, throngs of kids joining the ranks as we paraded along. there was a lot of laughing and fresh air and sunshine - those simple pleasures of another day well spent.

more soon, my friends. xo.

the short of it is that for well over two weeks now i wake to the same thing every morning: a glass flat ocean, nary a puff of wind in sight. i remember writing an email to someone weeks ago saying i had 570 miles to madang. at this moment 440 of those still remain. needless to say, this is completely crazy.... and it shows no signs of changing. yesterday i got an email saying that i was sitting in a wind-hole roughly the size of texas. sort of sobering when you think of it that way. anyways, im now going to head up into another port here in papua new guinea, rabaul/kokopo, about 160 miles NNW of me at the moment. i can make slightly better progress northwards so that push makes more sense. i suppose im going to try to do a quick haul there and see if i can get the prop shaft/engine situation sorted so i can press on. madang is really where i want to be but it's also kind of exciting to detour to some other islands. anyways, that's the update. it's nice out here but day after day of getting no closer to my destination is really getting old. people to meet, places to see, lets get on with it, eh?

hope everyone's well. i'll write you again when i get in. xo.

in animal news: a plump blue-billed seabird was perched on the mizzen spreaders last night as the boat was rolling in the slop - poor little dummy must've been snoozin' hard because he came crashing straight down as if raining from the sky. clipped the corner of the solar panel on his descent too - it was quite the cartoon-ish mess of ricochets. but now he's back for more - guess he likes me.

everyone think good wind vibes for me. nearly time for some champagne...

emily

happy new yeeearrrrr!!!!!

Man, it's a slow one out here. The season's been swapping over so all my Easterly and South-Easterlies are turning into westeriles and nor-westerlies. Which as if that weren't annoying enough, when they're not blowing the wrong direction they're generally not blowing at all - guess they need a rest after all that transformation exhaustion. Anyways, not really a shocker, was just hoping to beat the season in is all. Ah well, we'll get there eventually. For anyone watching the tracker, the boat's not broken - we're really just moving that slow...

On the upside I've had some really amazing wildlife out here the last few days. Christmas day brought possibly my favorite gang of dolphins ever. It was a flat calm and they played around the boat for hours, coming literally within inches of letting me touch them. There was one that seemed to be a leader of sorts and for awhile it was as though we got some sort of interaction happening. I'd shout a big hello and clap over my heads and the little dude would come up and slap his fin on the water - I shit you not, this is some legit FREE WILLY stuff. I've had other dolphins do that before, seemingly in response to whatever wacko noises I was making at the time but this is the first guy that seemed to replicate the action everytime. Pretty wild. Also, there's this school of little tiny fish that have been traveling with the boat - presumably as protection from larger predatory fish. There's been so much calm out here Ive spent many hours slouched over the toerail watching them dart around and feed. Anyways, when the dolphins came by the other day I was hanging with my feet in the water and all the little fish came and hid round my ankles....what adorable little wimps they are! Anyways, having a good time still but of course it'd sure be nice to get in soon. Fingers crossed my LPG gas can hold another week or so...cold BBQ beans just aren't as fun....

Alright dudes, catch ya later. Make some good new years resolutions!

xoxo.

On the move again now, some nice wind has filled in just in time for Christmas. I suppose today's technically Christmas proper out here for me although, honestly, it's getting hard keeping the days straight. I've got some brownie-baking action in store for this afternoon - which sounds small but is actually insanely exciting given how dull the food situation gets after the 30 day mark...

Okay, hope everyone has the cheeriest of holidays! Merry Christmas!!!!!

Emily

Been a tense couple of days out here as there was a large tropical low developing over me. It's looks like it's going to turn into a proper cyclone today but the good news is it's now projected to track south and away from me. Been sitting more or less in the same spot of Guandalcanal the last day or so as all the wind seems to have been sucked away. The sunrises have been really bizarre, lots of deep pinks and reds, the clouds thick and ominous looking. Hoping to get moving properly here again soon as the further I make north the less likely I'll be to catch another system. If i can get some normal wind back should be in somewhere right around new years.

All for now, back to it out here -

Emily

It's been a wet couple of days out here. At the moment, I'm just waking from a mid-morning nap as yesterday wore the hell out of me with a constant onslaught of squalls. But those little temper tantrums of wind and rain have been quite useful, giving us some extra gas, ticking the miles a bit faster.

As the sun came up this morning, I could see the first view of San Cristobol island rising up through the fog of clouds. We're now passing just ten miles south of the large land mass and are enjoying the site of some new birds and the occasional wafting smells of soil and its fruit. Sighting land is always an exciting thing after so many days of an unchanging horizon - it's a nice reminder that all the splashing, bashing, rocking, and rolling have actually transported us somewhere. And even though these particular islands aren't yet our final destination, the rocky coastline is already beginning to work its magic, planting little seeds of excitement, telltales of all the adventure that lie ahead.

Okay back to miniature holiday preparations out here - the lighting of pumpkin-spiced aromatic candles, the displaying of red and green candied treats - a few small things to make home not seem so far away. Hope this finds you all happy and healthy, enjoying the season with family and friends!

Bye for now!

Emily

Thanks to everyone who pitched in on the fundraiser - we finally made it across the finish line! Now back to regularly scheduled blogging -ha!

Just over a thousand miles left on this run, should be in there to Madang right around New Years. Prepping my Christmas albums and other little nice-ities for the upcoming holiday at sea. Hope everyone shoreside is enjoying the cheer and goodwill of the season!

Thanks again, everyone!