Ruth:

Hi,

Phew... I have 4 days off to recuperate from my 4 days of re-entry! Below is Dave's email from this morning:

"Hello, Thanks for the updates. Could be a fun weekend for you. Say Hi for me.(I'll be visiting friends & family of his) I think of all of them. Conditions are just a bit better today. The sea condition is more in tune with the wind condition instead of the extra confusion caused by a crossing wave pattern. Made good 137 miles yesterday. (Yay!) Past 1/3 about an hour ago.(Ditto yay!) That equals a 22 1/2 day pace. (Yay, yet again!) I am taking my vitamins and eating OK." (Anyone who has ever traveled with Dave on a boat is not too concerned about him eating enough!)  More later, Love Dave
Sounds good!
Later,

Ruth

5/31/2013

Hi,

Email from Dave this morning:

"Hello,  Doing 6k straight for Tatoosh ATT(At this time-GREAT!).  Still trailing an 18" long ball of heavy netting from the prop. (This bothers him a lot due to sailing performance) Transmission still stuck in forward - cannot get it out of gear.  Hope to make it to Neah Bay where I can dive on the prop again. (Better option than open ocean!) We can motor but only at about 2k. (Good for battery charging!) All in all, things are much better today with about 730 miles to Tatoosh.(Good!)  No additional new problems, but Rhino continues to get wetter inside and it is getting colder. (Not fun!) Hope all is well there.  Say hi to friends.  I am not sending out many other e-mails.  More later,  Love,  Dave"

That's if for now!

Later, Ruth

Sunday 6/2/13 AM

Hi;

Here is Dave's email from this morning:

"Hello,  Still 20k (knots) on the nose.  Pointed at Astoria instead of Tatoosh for the past 18 hours .  The best we can do at this time.  The motion makes every choir difficult.(I think he probably meant 'chore' but in some ways he is singing to the choir!) I am on knees and elbows just to tell you this.(So, appreciate the communication!)  It appears there is a High pressure cell (weather) camped near the entrance to the Straits of Juan De Fuca, challenging any sailboat to enter.  I wish I was more optimistic about the last 475 miles to Tatoosh (plus 6 to Neah Bay).  No new problems today though, although we notice that the sunbrella on the staysail is now tattered and torn along 90% of its length. (Owner will have a list of repairs to do!)  Had a nice contact with Me Too and Joshua on Sunquest this past evening on the SSB (Single Side Band radio).  It's great for us here to have the contact.(Nice!)  There is still 221 minutes on the Sat phone.  I will call, probably via cell phone, from Neah Bay.  More later,  Love Dave"

Well, they're closer than they were! I forgot to tell you guys that the day after Rhino captured its net there was a story on National Public Radio the next morning I heard while getting ready for work. It discussed the "Ghost Net" problem in the world's oceans and included an interview with a representative from an organization trying to address the problem...they also mentioned the Puget Sound area! So, it's not that unusual a happening but for this particular delivery it falls into the "what now?" category!

Later, Ruth

Hi,

Dave's email from this morning:

"Hello,  Super good news from Rhino.(Phew!)   I dove on the boat again yesterday and cleared all the remaining netting from the prop.(Good Job!)  Duke, working from the deck, did a great job in coordinating the effort. (Yay, Duke!) At about 11:30am we were once again able to sail and motor at normal speeds.(Wonderful!)  I was not in the water quite as long this time but still got the shivers, which take a long time to overcome.(Yup!)  Duke celebrated by making Popcorn.(That's a great treat out there!)  All is well now and we are motoring at 5.2k in a dead calm. (Nice!)  ETA:  Past Tatoosh Isl. on Thursday am,  Bellingham on Friday.  Home on Saturday.(Sounds good!)  Transportation from Bellingham will be decided later.  More later,  Love,  Dave"

Home stretch!