Blog

20th October 2011

Conny van Rietschoten nomination

It’s a pity that I can’t write everything because there are people who can figure out where I am by looking at the weatherconditions I have.. […]
12th October 2011

All is well onboard

everything good with me… Laura
9th October 2011

Storing my blog

It is OK with Gup and me. From now on I regularly will let you know how it is going. So I wrote already, my blogs […]
6th October 2011

Danger of tracking

Because the danger of tracing me by information of my blogs , from now my actual blogs will appear some time later. Sorry, but this is […]
5th October 2011

Am I in a wash-machine?!

It seems that the wind was waiting for me to fall asleep… ‘Yep, she’s almost asleep, in just a moment…’ And then the wind fades and […]
4th October 2011

Squalls, wind, no wind – no sleep..

Flap clang, flap clang… Huh? I jumped out of bed, the boat was upright in the water, bobbing wildly up and down the steep waves. The […]
3rd October 2011

Fleet of shabby fishing boats..

When I woke up the sun was already shining brightly in the sky. I didn’t have much chance to sleep last night as I went by […]
2nd October 2011

Hungry again :D

I really hope that the wind keeps on blowing constantly and that it will shift to a better direction sometime because we are still sailing on […]
1st October 2011

Yay found wind! :D

Finally I have WIND – Hurrah! For sure it could be coming from a better direction but at least we have wind and Guppy is going […]
30th September 2011

Well, there was some wind for the night at least..

The wind kept blowing all night, and for a moment it looked like it wanted to shift to a better direction. I was hopeful that ‘Gup’ […]
29th September 2011

Ships & Oil rigs

Beep – Beep – Beep… My alarm system keeps waking me up all the time usually because of nearby ships, but not this time. I went […]
28th September 2011

Another hot day..

I stretch myself in the cockpit having been chased out by the sun-heated air inside the cabin. I still have no wind and the small engine […]
27th September 2011

The sea is like a mirror

Well finally the wind has completely left me.. so I started the small engine and for the first time since we left Darwin, Guppy’s nose is […]
26th September 2011

There we go, 6000nm of ocean in front of us

After a good night sleep I set sail at dawn and watched Darwin slowly vanish in my wake until there was nothing but water left to […]
23rd September 2011

All alone again

To start with I want to thank each and everyone of you who wished me a happy birthday on the telephone, or by SMS and e-mails […]
21st September 2011

A new year of my life with new adventures

After eating so many cakes and donuts yesterday I had to spend today resting my bellie and just recovering. It is not everyday that I have […]
20th September 2011

16th Birthday! :)

18th September 2011

When buses don’t drive…or you miss them.

After having solved all the known maintenance problems, I went looking for the still undiscovered ones and found that one of the backstays was a little […]
16th September 2011

Finding Volvo filters..

I was in a good mood when I started replacing both my engines oil filters while my father was trying to solve a problem with the […]
14th September 2011

Dutch Solar Car

Today I was invited to take a look at the Netherlands’ solar powered car that will compete in the famous 3000 kilometres [1865 land miles] World […]
13th September 2011

Alternative way of hauling out Guppy

It is 4 AM when the alarm clock resonates in my ears and it is cold 18° C [64,4° F]! outside. We hoist anchor and I […]
11th September 2011

The Season is changing

Gradually the cruisers are departing from Fannie Bay. Henk and Sogno d’Oro have set sail two days ago for Cocos Keeling Islands or Christmas Island. Myself […]
10th September 2011

Spring clean ( or something like it)

After I did my presentation at the Darwin Yacht Club I had a big surprise when the Carbon Club announced that it will sponsor the repair […]
9th September 2011

Presentation at the Darwin Sailing Club

Yesterday evening I did a presentation here at the Darwin Sailing Club. First I gave it to a group of children, and then I did it […]
8th September 2011

Dad Arrived

It has already been two weeks or so since I am in Darwin, and my father has just arrived here to join me… I could not […]
5th September 2011

Few Photo’s of the last weeks

   
4th September 2011

More boatwork – Rudder Shaft getting more stuck

I have been very busy for the past days …and it looks like it will be like this for some time.I have problems with the rudder […]
3rd September 2011

Little Laura in Australia 16 years ago

31st August 2011

Giving Guppy some much needed tlc

The days just fly by and I haven’t had time to be bored, not even for one second. There is plenty of work to do on […]
29th August 2011

My laser sunk..

There were pretty strong winds blowing as the regatta took place and right from the start I already had trouble keeping the boat upright. Even though […]
28th August 2011

Laser Regatta

Now that I am well rested, I could go over all I wanted to do yesterday and it went a whole lot better. In no time […]
26th August 2011

Photo’s Vanuatu – Darwin

The Genua with a little whole A few seconds later the little hole has become huge! Passing the last Islands in the Torres Strait Bird presents… […]
25th August 2011

Arrived in Darwin and still didn’t get to sleep!

I haven’t had a chance to go to sleep yet and I feel like a whole lifetime of experiences has passed me by since I arrived […]
24th August 2011

The Gulf Van Diemen

Unfortunately, I did not not sleep much last night… The wind had increased to almost 30 knots So I had to take down the mizzen sail […]
23rd August 2011

Still not a lot of sleep

Bam, splash, congratulations..!I know you can turn my life onboard upside down, but could you calm down a little? WHAM!… No go! The waves have grown […]
22nd August 2011

Chased by fishing boat?!!

Sitting in the cockpit near the entrance to the cabin I was monitoring the fishing ship that had been sailing for half a day 2 nautical […]
21st August 2011

So much to do!

Even after a good sleep last night I still feel tired but surely better. There is still heavy ship traffic around and six monsters have already […]
20th August 2011

The Genua is lost..

Guppy and I rushed through Torres Strait at 7,5 knots! There were reefs everywhere but I could hardly see anything because it was getting dark. But […]
19th August 2011

Surrounded by ships & reefs

I am really surrounded by reefs, most of which I can’t see… Guppy is now sailing very close to the wind and there are buckets of […]
18th August 2011

Almost in the Torres Strait

The wind is back and Guppy is galloping over the sea at a good 7 knots. There are only 50 nautical miles to go to the […]
17th August 2011

Why isn’t it getting light?!

After a very quiet night daylight did not show up for work this morning… That is because of pitch-black clouds hanging over Guppy. The mega-squall I […]
16th August 2011

Building waves

Today the waves are higher and they are still coming from two different directions! Guppy is like a rocking horse gone wild and I, well I’m […]
15th August 2011

Bird presents

Waves are still coming across from the side but Guppy just merrily cuts straight through them at 7 knots [13 kilometres or 8 land miles an […]
14th August 2011

Neptune took my book!

Strong winds still blowing at an angle from side astern and I am still not sure if I should pole the Genoa out on the windward […]
13th August 2011

Wind & squalls!

Finally after five days of bobbing, the wind is back! Yesterday evening the threatening squalls that I could see all day on the western horizon, suddenly […]
12th August 2011

Sometimes it’s all about: Patience

Bobbing and flapping… 2 knots, 2,5 knots and back to 2 knots speed… There is still no wind but the sky has turned a bit cloudier […]
11th August 2011

Getting closer to the Torres Strait

Wind is getting a little better. Last night I had to run the engine for a few hours but during the day we ran under sail […]
10th August 2011

Fighting with sails & other boat dramas

Still only little or no wind… Today I ran a lot to wrestle with the sails, put the pole on the Genoa rolling it in and […]
9th August 2011

Not a lot of wind..

There is very little wind. I am trying to sail a bit further with every puff there is but the speed does not get over 3,5 […]
8th August 2011

Clearing out, duty free – it’s not so simple..

At opening time this morning I was already standing in front of the Customs Office door and after running from one place to another I was […]
7th August 2011

Cleaning the underwater hull

On our last leg Guppy became slower due to marine growth on her hull below the waterline so I dived into the water to give Gup’s […]
6th August 2011

Preparations for the next voyage

During my time here in Vanuatu I have met many local people including a nice family who has been living here for many years. They asked […]
5th August 2011

Trying to find internet

The wind was whistling in the rigging when I awoke and it was cold – just 22° C [71,6° F]. Here at anchorage the yachts are […]
3rd August 2011

12 string guitar

Back at the beach party I saw a really beautiful music instrument, it is like a twelve strings guitar… A boy was playing it and I […]
1st August 2011

Clearing in always an adventure

Today started with a bright sunshine. I give a call to the customs office on vhf early in the morning and since I had catched lots […]
1st August 2011

photo’s Fiji – Vanuatu trip

31st July 2011

Arrived in Vanuatu

After my night at sea sailing through squalls and thunderstorms I thought that I would have a very good sleep the following night when I took […]
30th July 2011

Squalls, lightning blegh!

Unlike yesterday, I did not sleep much last night. We were hit by heavy squalls with some thunderstorms that made for a mega-spectacular show. At one […]
29th July 2011

Chatting on the SSB and reading books

I enjoyed a very good sleep last night, the radar alarm did not go off once, not even the device that detects ships at more than […]
28th July 2011

Rollin, Rollin

Once again the wind has weakened and is blowing directly from behind. As a result Guppy is heavily rolling back and forth and everything that was […]
27th July 2011

On route to Vanuatu

After a somewhat longer than expected stop in Fiji, Guppy and I are back at sea. Back home I studied the weather charts and they showed […]
26th July 2011

Adventure’s on the Alvei

I am back from my adventure aboard the three mast schooner ‘Alvei’, and it was super! Sadly there was just a little wind so we could […]
25th July 2011

photo’s of my adventure’s on the Alvei

22nd July 2011

Invited to sail on the Alvei

My life is really full of surprises .. As of tomorrow and for a few days I won’t have much opportunity to send in a new […]
21st July 2011

Crazy bus rides & a New SSB radio :)

Icom America has sent me a brand new SSB radio directly to Fiji. It came in yesterday afternoon, and with some help from Henk of the […]
20th July 2011

Fiji then and now Picture’s

Fiji Market The market still looks exactly the same as when I was there 14 years ago.   Mum and me on the Fiji Market. Me […]
19th July 2011

Pancakes for Sogno d’Oro

Since my arrival in Fiji I have done lots and I have met many new people. As I was inflating my dingy people form a closer […]
17th July 2011

Nightly arrival into Suva

Guppy and I have come through unscathed from the reefs, and around midnight we dropped anchor off the city of Suva, Fiji – then I enjoyed […]
16th July 2011

A minefield of reefs, atolls and Islands

Yesterday Guppy and I sailed between the first islands, atolls and reefs. I was really surprised to see a mountain rising out of the water where […]
15th July 2011

Johoo, I will get a new SSB radio from ICOM

After calm winds for the past several hours there is now a good sidewind blowing so ‘Gup’ and I are heading for the atolls at 6,5 […]
14th July 2011

On our way again

Guppy and I are en Route again. At first the wind seemed to cooperate but later in the day it weakened and now it is blowing […]
13th July 2011

Preparations to continue to Fiji & some photo’s

Today I am setting sail heading for the Fiji Islands. Yesterday I made all the last preparations. There was a mega-pile of laundry waiting for me… […]
12th July 2011

Paperwork..Sigh

There was no wind at all last night and mosquitoes came en masse to visit. So at 3 AM I was awake and I just couldn’t […]
11th July 2011

Engine Maintenance

Thank you very much for all the e-mails and advices about my SSB radio. I was given a small handheld transmitter by another sailor, so if […]
10th July 2011

Can’t fix the SSB :(

With Henk we tried to reanimate my ICOM 700 Pro SSB radio. He has exactly the same, and as a test we installed it in place […]
9th July 2011

My SSB radio died :(

I kept busy all day mostly doing small things aboard, like cleaning the boat again, inflating the dinghy and with one mega-task…Lately my SSB radio was […]
8th July 2011

Arrived in Tonga – Vavau & some Pictures from the crossing

I am moored in Tonga. Last night I tried to sail very slowly, but I still was too fast even after replacing the Genoa by the […]
7th July 2011

35nm to go

There is a pretty wind blowing again, but at this time I don’t really want it. Guppy is now going too fast! I have 35 nautical […]
6th July 2011

A meeting on open ocean

After many hours on a close course that felt like being on a rocking horse the winds slowly faded. Guppy made good progress and from going […]
5th July 2011

Using Duct tape as anti chafe is NOT a good idea..

The wind keeps merrilly fooling around… Last night it shifted to the North, which was great. So this meant that I just had to unrig the […]
4th July 2011

Changed my mind & course

Gup and I have decided not to stop in Niue but to go directly to Tonga. Via SSB radio all the sailors who have been to […]
3rd July 2011

Wind! Yay

I had planned my route to sail close to Palmerston Atoll [Southern Cook Islands], so that maybe I could see it … But sadly it was […]
2nd July 2011

When there’s no wind at least I have an SSB radio

Yeah – wind blowing since yesterday. But it kept playing games on Guppy so I was busy all day adjusting the sails and correcting course. At […]
1st July 2011

Fight with the Code 0 & a squall

Finally some winds… And they are here for awhile. Early this morning there was some light wind but by the time I had all the sails […]
30th June 2011

What a bilge pump alarm and cockroaches have in common.

I feel much better today, so things are going in the right direction. But I can’t say it is the same with the wind although I […]
29th June 2011

Having a cold while sailing isn’t fun..

My sore throat feels better, but I can’t remember ever suffering from such a strong cold! Also I did not know that it was possible to […]
28th June 2011

Yes!, overtook the yacht :)

The wind is still weak and blowing straight from behind but all in all, I am on the right course and the sails are not flapping […]
27th June 2011

Next destination: Niue

I am on my way to Niue Island. The wind and waves looked pretty inviting at the start but as it usually is, I was kind […]
26th June 2011

All ready to set sail again

Everything is back in its place, the MiniCat, the dinghy, my bike is onboard and I cleared things inside Guppy’s cabin so that not everything will […]
25th June 2011

Traditional Dancing festival

Last night after storing some fruits I went to the dance festival with the yacht club owner. It was pretty cold and still pretty windy- for […]
24th June 2011

Boat cores

This morning I refilled the diesel tank that of course was almost empty from running the engine during my last windless crossing. Since I had to […]
23rd June 2011

Safed my laptop with my toe – ouch!

Actually I had planned to set sail again when I was told by the people here that there will be a big traditional dancing festival on […]
22nd June 2011

Minicat Sailing :)

This morning I felt much better after a good long sleep, but not yet in top shape. Still with some nice wind up I could not […]
21st June 2011

Plans change, went hiking instead

As often happens my plans for the day ended up to nothing. I posponed my second bicycle tour around the island because early this morning American […]
20th June 2011

Biked around the island

For morning exercise I cycled all around the island very early this morning. This went a lot easier than I expected because the main road that […]
19th June 2011

Deep Anchor grounds

After a calm night at the mooring-buoy, today I went exploring the island. I cycled to several bays on my bike and I did some shopping […]
18th June 2011

Arrived in Bora Bora

After a windless crossing of 30 hours I arrived in Bora Bora. As it often is with atoll islands, I first had to sail around the […]
17th June 2011

There’s more Islands to explore

Although there was not much wind, I had the travel-jitters again so I decided to head for the Leeward Islands. Too bad this means I have […]
16th June 2011

Boat BBQ

I was actually planning to sail to the Huahine atoll but the ocean is just flat as a mirror! And the weather forecast for the coming […]
15th June 2011

Feeding Stingrays & fixing my mainsail on a megayacht

I was up late this morning because last night I tried to upload pictures to the website for several hours, unfortunately without any success! I was […]