SAA II Delivery - Day 23 / 29 April 2012

Hello All

We were treated to quite the steak night last night and were only short of a nice glass of merlot, but that left for another time.

This morning we woke up to the best weather we had this voyage and the sea looked more like a lake with only a long south westerly swell giving away its true colours. We decided to use this weather to stop for a short while and respool the top layer of the CTD winch wire by deploying the Mock-Up CTD we have onboard. This also gave the guys a good chance to familiarise themselves with the equipment. We also opened and tested the moonpool hatches while we were stopped. It is days like this that one wants to test and deploy all the boats and equipment that you can since there are not many such days especially in the southern oceans where we would normally find ourselves.

We are still making very good speed and are well on schedule for our intended arrival in Cape Town on the morning of the 3rd of May 2012.

Have a relaxing Sunday and see you next week.

SAA II Delivery - Day 22 / 28 April 2012

Hello All

Yesterday afternoon went rather eventless and we took some time to appreciate the Freedom's day celebration, even though at sea most days feel the same and only diffirentiated by what is on the menu, which brings us to tonight....last steak night before Cape Town...Whooww!

This morning we had an amazing occasion to celebrate. Today it is the 50th Birthday of our onboard ETO (Electro Technical Officer) and it was rightly celebrated with a large cake and coffee for all in the mess room. A "A3" size birhtday card was sigend by all, after all it is a really big birthday and it is nice to share it with Vince Kruger here onboard the S.A. Agulhas II on her maiden voyage. I am sure that another celebration will be on the cards once he is home with friends and loved ones.

We are now abeam to the West of Walvisbay by 290 Nautical Miles and this morning edged our course a bit more in towards the coast. We are having a stunning day out at sea with the South Easter now a mere gentle breeze.

Well, I do hope that you are all standing around a Saturday afternoon "braai" with a cold one in hand waiting in anticipation for the rugby to kick off.

All the best.

SAA II Delivery - Day 22 / 27 April 2012

Hello All

We made good progress at our reduced settings and are now sort of half way between the Kunene and Walsvisbay quite far offshore, but closing daily.

The skies today are more overcast than usual and rain was threatening but never came through. The barometric pressure has been constantly high though at around 1015, so maybe that explains it. The South easter we have been facing the last view days remained through the last 24 hours and we wonder when that will finally change.

I believe Cape Town has been getting some rain, winter is coming then.

Well, enjoy your day of Freedom.

All the best.

SAA II Delivery - Day 20 / 26 April 2012

Hello All

The swell period increased yesterday and we had the long even swells of the South Atlantic that we are used to. The vessel rode them out nicely so we were gently moving to the motion of the ocean.

Last night, for the first time since we left, we went UMS (Unmanned) in the engine room without any alarms during the night, quite an accomplishment, well done to the guys down below.

We are still unpacking spare parts and bits and pieces and have now started with giving the inside of the accommodation a shine after spending all the good weather days mostly outside washing, cleaning and securing.

We are now 420 miles to the west of the Kunene river mouth, the northern boarder between Namibia and Angola and edging closer to the home land on a course of 140°T.

Enjoy the rest of your day and see you soon!

SAAII Delivery - Day 19 / 25 April 2012

Hello All

Yesterday afternoon we used the extra time we have in hand to run the engines in different configurations and at different combinator settings to note the power changes for future reference. We managed to bring her down to run on two propellers on only one generator, but later found that it was not good for the shaft bearings since the jacking pumps then have to run continuously. There are still some ways around that which we will investigate in time. At least we have many options, as they say many ways to skin a cat :-)

Early this morning before sunrise we crossed over to the "right" side of the Greenwich meridian and were glad to see the sun rise at a more respectable time shortly after eight and it will probably also set tonight at a more reasonable time.

We have slowed our progress down a bit to keep within our arrival schedule.

Have a splendid mid week.

SAA II Delivery - Day 18 / 24 April 2012

Hello All

Another day on the big blue ocean for us, with no other vessel's in sight, quite blissful.

Yesterday afternoon the ocean surface was strangely rippling with sea life. We had shoals of fish breaking the surface, flying fish and flocks of birds all over, probably feeding off the fish.

The adverse current released its grip last night and our speed attested to that.

Today we have a clear, almost cloudless day with the predominant South Easter somewhat moderated from what it was yesterday.

The daily ambient and sea water temperatures are falling now by a degree to a degree and a half as we move further south.

Have a good day.

SAA II Delivery - Day 17 / 23 April 2012

Hello All

We have similar condition to what we had yesterday with a moderate head wind and an adverse current slowing us down slightly but we still managed over 13 knots for the day. We had one vessel on the radar yesterday and that was all in the way of traffic.

Another 10 days to go before seeing the blue mountain or in seaman's terms...only one more steak night!

This morning we made some time for a safety drill for all.

Have a good start to the week

SAA II Delivery - Day 16 / 22 April 2012

Hello All

Today opened clear, but the South Easterly wind is building. The adverse current we experienced slacked off a bit, but increased again shortly before lunch. This current knocked our average speed back by about 1.5 knots over the preceding 24 hours. We are still well ahead of schedule and have some buffer time if the weather came up.

Our ETA for Cape Town pilot station is 08:00LT on the 3rd of May 2012.

SAA II Delivery - Day 15 / 21 April 2012

Hello All

Yesterday was a very awkward day onboard with all the polliwogs very nervous for the initiation day.

There nervea proved to be justified when King Neptune's Royal Party visited the vessel today and gave the first time equator crossing sailors a proper initiation into the order of the deep. I must admit each one of them deserve credit for their brave efforts and endurance. Attached is a photo of King Neptune and his Royal Party and a group photo of all the sailors that were initiated.

We are in the doldrums and the vessel is sailing along quietly with no sea to talk of really and a gentle swell from ahead. We are now spotting more and more sea life with the flying fish, whales, dolphins, sharks and the odd

We have been picking up quite a strong adverse current since this morning after tea which is slowing our progress by 2 knots.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

All the best

SAA II Delivery - Day 14 / 20 April 2012

Hello All

Sjoe! the water temp shot up to 28°C with the outside temperature following....we do not mind.

Yesterday we saw many flying fish scattering over the water surface as we disturbed their ways. Today we have complete overcast skies and had a cloud break a short while ago. Finally that "free" wash we were hoping for.

We had word that Neptune will visit the vessel tomorrow to convert the "polliwogs" to "shellbacks" as we make our way over the 0 degree latitude line. Needless to say there are several worrying faces around.

Keep well and all the best

SAA II Delivery - Day 13 / 19 April 2012

Hello All

The humidity is increasing as we close the tropical zones, a nice change for some.

We maintained a good speed, but are faced with a SE'ly current that reduced our distance over the ground. We are slightly ahead of schedule, which is a good thing, since we might end up with a couple of days worth of adverse head weather once we are further south.

Yesterday we spotted a pod of whales in the distance, but were not close enough to identify them.

We were hoping to get a couple of rain showers to take the vessel for a "free" wash, but had no luck yet.

All the best.

SAA II Delivery - Day 12 / 18 April 2012

Hello All

How lucky are we to have this following weather all this way. We will probably get it al back once in the southern hemisphere, plus interest! Lets hope it will be smooth sailing. Attached is a photo from the CCTV system looking astern over the helideck and the wake of the vessel.

The cadets were introduced to "soogie" (ships term for soapy water to wash down) today and I am sure they will have some aching muscles after. It is such a repetitive task that has to be done regularly to get rid of all the salt deposits left behind from the sea spray. We are making almost 40 tons of fresh water per day and only really using around 10, so there are plenty to spare for washing down the vessel.

We are heading due south now and our next course alteration will point us directly in the direction of Cape Town... :-), at last.

The working atmosphere onboard is exciting and I would imagine somewhat like an ants nest. Most of the senior Officers onboard this vessel has sailed for many years on the old vessel and are fully aware what needs to be done to get everything in place. It is nice to know that we have so much depth in our team that we could run two Antarctic Supply vessels both at sea at the same time!

Enjoy the rest of your mid week.

SAA II Delivery - Day 11 17 April 2012

Hello All

We went a bit further offshore yesterday and almost feel deserted out here now with no traffic on the radar or AIS, maybe not a bad things for these parts.

We had to slow down during the morning hours to change converters due to some alarms, but this was quickly cleared up and we continued within a short while. The sea remains following all the way and even at our reduced setting we are managing more than 14 knots with the wind pushing us along. The current that has been against us the past 2 days has also now disappeared. It is quite confusing for us in the morning, since it only becomes light between 8 and 9. This is because we decided to remain on SA time. We are altering due south now and will be altering straight for SA when we hit the 10°N latitude at which point our days would start to normalise as we head east again. The time is flying by with our busy days and every day we are a step closer to home.

Other than some sea birds we have not seen much in way of sea animals. There has been 3 racing pigeons that hitched a ride for 2 days, but they are also gone now, probably only sat on deck to have a rest.

Good luck and enjoy the rest of your week

SAA II Delivery - Day 10 16 April 2012

Hello All

We could just wave at the pretty lights of the Canary Islands as we passed by through the VTS, perhaps one day we will be able to visit its shores rather than its surrounding waters.

The traffic in the area remained very light and with the continuous following seas we are making very good head way. We have picked up a gentle roll as the swell has built over the couple of days of steady winds, but it is nothing really and one should only remember that the coffee cup could slide of the table :-).

The skies remain clear as the rise in barometric pressure has steadied out now. We are estimated to cross the equator into the Southern Hemisphere by Friday or latest Saturday, where I am sure King Neptune and his Queen would pay a visit to the vessel to meet with those that have not yet crossed the sacred line by sea.

Attached is a photo of one of the trainee navigating officers, Mr Wilsnach plotting the vessels position on the chart.

We wish you a good start to the week. 

SAA II Delivery - Day 9 15 April 2012

Hello All

We are starting to feel the effects of the lower latitudes and are slowly thawing out. The temperatures for both air and sea are shooting up as we make our way south. The wind remains moderate and following with the barometer rising steadily.

We will make land fall of the Canary Islands later this afternoon as we pass them relatively closely on our track. We are still meeting some north bound vessels. We are planning to route a little further offshore after the islands staying clear of any known piracy areas.

Otherwise all is well onboard and we have had a very good voyage this far with a nice bunch of people. We are all getting excited now to see the blue mountain and our families.

Have a relaxing Sunday afternoon.

All the best. 

SAA II Delivery - Day 8 14 April 2012

Hello All

Well it is Saturday and to be honest I do not have much to report today. Onboard it is as any other day and we are all still frantically sorting and packing, while trying to implement systems onboard that will make life easier in the  long run.

We are experiencing quite a strong WNW'ly wind of around 35 knots and a swell of about 3 meters slightly forward of the beam. Needless to say we are rolling slightly more and the non skid table covering has made its appearance, but it is nothing really and we are quite comfortable. We still have to see how she would behave in proper storm, but for now we will give her the time off since she will be seeing plenty of that in the next 30 years!

Again we have made very good progress and averaged around 14.5 knots. So while the going is good we are making hay while the sun shines as they say.

Enjoy your weekend and all thumbs up for the Stormers to beat the Crusaders today!!

SAA II Deilvery - Day 7 13 April 2012

Hello All

Is it already a week since we have left, sjoe it has gone by so quickly!!

We are now sailing almost due south with our heading at 195°T as we round the Portugese west coast. Our next hurdle would be the crossing traffic in and out of Gibraltar, but after the Dover Straits and the English channel it will probably seem less exciting. We made good progress yesterday and averaged 14.5 knots with the currents and following winds pushing us along. Perhaps the vessel knows her destination and is like a horse back to the stables....:-)

It is amasing how much paper work is required to seaworthy a vessel of this nature. It is still a mountain we are climbing at the moment to have it all organised and settled. We are lucky to have this couple of weeks during the delivery voyage to do exactly that. The cadets are also shown the basics of housekeeping by the Chief Officer, Bosun and the Chief Steward. They are all keen youngsters, which makes training them so much easier. The past view nights provided clear skies for them to practise their azimuths and the rising and setting sun has been good for an amplitude. Some had to shake off the rust to get these calculations right.

It feels like a normal passage now that there is more than 3km of water below us.

Even though it is Friday the 13th, we have had a good day so far and are glad to face in the right direction.

I am attaching two photographs. One is of the Great Belts bridge we passed under with a clearance of 65 meters, bridge to waterline. The other is of the pilot boat that came alongside shortly after passing underneath the bridge.

Have a good start to the weekend.

SAA II Delivery - Day 6 12 April 2012

Hello All

Finally we reached open ocean yesterday afternoon and we are experiencing the so familiar motion of the ocean, which is quite different to  the choppy seas of the gulf of Bothnia and the North Sea. The vessel has a gentle roll to the long north westerly swell reminding us what it is like to be at sea.

We continued to make good speed all through last night and today as the moderate winds kept on the quarter. Other than a couple of fisherman the traffic through the English channel was quite manageable and it was like going for a Sunday afternoon drive with everyone taking it easy and following the rules and their lanes.

I have attached two images. The photo of the wind farms  is from the south of Denmark shortly after we picked up the first pilot and the photo of the nice sunset was taken last night.

The to do lists are growing daily as we make the vessel our own and everyone on board is giving that little extra to get everything organised, I commend them.

The outside and sea water temperatures are rising rapidly and even though it is only at 11°C it feels like summer to the ones that has just experienced a harsh finish winter.

All the best.

SAA II delivery - Day 5 11 April 2012

Hello All

It was quite an exciting preceding 24 hours with us really taking the vessel through her paces to make sure all her functionalities are working without any glitches while still having the Converteam engineers on board to assist us in clearing up any issues. At one stage yesterday afternoon we were cruising at 18 knots while testing the full sea going mode and ice modes. The weather cleared up nicely so today we had quite an easy transfer of the Converteam engineers to the pilot boat at Cherbourg. We were even lucky enough to engage the dynamic positioning mode while we waited for the pilot boat for a short while to test if that is working well, which it was.

It is amazing how strong the tidal stream can get in the English channel and at the pilot boarding point I estimated we had around two knots flow, that is quite something.

The trainee officers on board is really getting good experience while we are traversing these more traffic dense areas and I hope they remember what they are learning here now.

The ship has been running well and other than a couple of leaks and a electronic device here or there we have not had any mayor problems....touch wood.

I hope that Neptune will grant us easy passage through the notorious bay of Biscay when we finally make our way more south.

All the best.

SAA II Delivery - Day 4 10 April 2012

Hello All

Today the heads winds and sea gave the vessel a good beating as the front passed the North Sea. We were knocked back slightly on speed and one could feel that she was digging into the short, steep sea the wind had built up. The front came through this morning and the weather is subsiding now.

The guys in the galley is really doing and amazing job of keeping us well fed even after hours when we are busy till late at night one is still able to pick up something from the "black pan"....happiness is!

We are scheduled to arrive at the 7 mile off port limits at Cherbough around 15:00LT tomorrow to disembark the 3 Converteam ETO's and then we can finally head for the English Channel, which I would expect would be like an ants nest with crossing ferries and the like.

All the best.

SAA II Delivery - Day 3 09 Aprim 2012

Hello All

We made the pilot boarding station at Gedser South Denmark early and they were willing to assist us with a pilot on arrival. The first pilot boarded the vessel shortly before four in the afternoon yesterday and requested max sea speed.

We managed good speed through the belt with good sailing conditions and clear visibility. Even though there were quite a bit of traffic it did not seem congested and we had plenty of room to move.

Crossing under the Great Belts bridge was the highlight of the night, with a anxcious feeling taking you over the moment you pass under the bridge and everyone ducking there heads. There were at least 20 meters to spare, but it still does not feel as if there is that much space available. We then changed out the first pilot for the second one shortly after the bridge. The last pilot boarded at around 3 in the morning and the Great Belt pilotage was completed this morning when we dropped the last pilot at around tea time.

We are making good way on our passage, but the weather is predicted to increase from the South East during the course of the night. We are scheduled to arrive at a point 7NM to the north of Cherbourgh at 15:00 LT on 11 April to disembark the 3 Converteam engineers at their home country.

I hope that everyone will have a good start to what will be a short week ahead.

All the best.

SAA II Delivery - Day 2 07 April 2012

Hello All

The winds kept their gale force strength through most of the day and night yesterday, luckily it was following. This morning however the wind back to the NW, but calmed down considerably. We were planning to only pick up the pilot at day break tomorrow, but they tracked us and saw that we would be early and asked if we would want immediate pilot boarding. We considered the benefits and agreed to that. I was hoping to pass under the bridge at Halsskov.... We will have 2 pilots on board from 16:00 on wards for the next 24 hours  to guide us through the great belts.

On board we are all still packing away and neatening up, but there is still lots to do. We do however feel somewhat relieved now that the rush is over and we can take a deep breath. It is nice to again have a Sunday that actually feels like a Sunday, since the last couple of weekends in the yard kept us running throughout the week.

I hope that you all are enjoying a nice Sunday lunch with your families.

All the best.

SAA II Delivery - 06 April 2012

Hello All

Sjoe, what a day!

The vessel departed rom Rauma as scheduled at midday Friday the 6th of April 2012. The morning yesterday started a bit grim with a northerly snow squall blowing over the vessel while she laid alongside the quay in Ruama for the last couple of hours. We had to tighten the moorings a bit to keep her alongside. Luckily the weather cleared towards sailing time and we could depart with good visibility ahead.

I felt quite sorry for the the pilot to disembark the vessel onto his small pilot boat which was really bobbing up and down in the bit of seaway that the northerly winds pushed up during the night. I hope he made it back to the port OK.

Our first 24 hours onboard the vessel was as expected extremely busy and we took to the early hours of the morning to get the vessel properly secured and all the spares, stores and equipment packed away. This task will continue during the course of the voyage.

We are taking it slow at first to let everything run in and settle, but needless to say that at the current speed of 10 knots with mostly follwing seas the engines are just ticking over.

I must admit that it is nice to back at sea for a change as we were land lubbers during the building process. We are expected to pick up the great belts pilot on the morning of the 9th. Tonight we will retard our clocks to come into line with South African time and will then remain on that time for the remainder of the voyage.

From a happy sailor and his crew I wish you all a Happy Easter.