Day 5: Collision course

Day 5

Around 2 am the previous night the fickle wind picked up from the Northwest. Obviously, the direction I want to go! Along with the SW swell the sea was like a schoolboy band trying to march for the first time. Hands and legs with minds of their own. Nothing coordinated. This made life inside Osiyeza rather uncomfortable. Waves and swell from all directions.

An hour later the AIS alarm starts screaming for attention…a cargo ship has strayed into my safe zone, and it looked like this one was on track for the bullseye. I tried to call them over the radio, but I am sure they were all asleep or watching Netflix. Who does that?

It’s a helpless feeling trying to paddle out of a ships path in the dead of night and no matter how much effort you put in the bearing remained the same. Put simply – we were on a collision course.

We passed each other with enough room in the end.🤏
How much is enough room you ask? In this case more is better, but I’ll take not getting Osiyeza’s paint job scratched as a sign.

The magic black box, my AIS. Thanks Seaport Supply.

Feeling a bit worn out from the interaction with the bulk carrier and the messy sea pushing me the wrong direction so I decided to try my sea anchor for the first time. To be more accurate it’s a series drogue.

A conventional “sea anchor” is a marine parachute. A para-anchor. You set it in the water at the end of a long line attached the bow of the boat. The parachute fills with water, instead of air, and slows the boats downwind drift while keeping the front of the boat facing into the oncoming sea and wind.

A series drogue is many small cones attached to the long line at regular intervals. The area of all these cones is like the area of the parachute anchor but it has a few advantages. The main one being it has a lot smoother action on the boat. A single large Para-anchor tends to open and close from the pull of the boat and the stretch in the line making for quite a jerky action. The Series drogue spreads the load all along the line.

The deployment went as well as can be expected. And in 15 min I was in my bunk. I stayed like this for only two hours when the wind vanished. The drogue worked pleasingly well. Bringing it all back on board I may need another practice run but nothing got hooked around the keel or rudder so a job well done.

What’s a great way to start a new day on the ocean in a small ocean crossing Surfski?

Why Bacon and eggs of cause.! Freeze dried B&E!

I set up the spare cooker in the galley. When I say galley (kitchen) think a single piece of plywood 400mm x 15mm wide. Luxury.

Egg powder and water. Let it soak in the pot for a bit. Light the gas and in two ticks its cooked scrambled eggs. Same thing with FD cubed bacon only fry in a bit of olive oil.

The galley plank.

What’s next on the agenda.

I have a daily 08h00 Zulu schedule with Router Rob to get the low-down of mother nature’s plans and what the best path for Osiyeza is for the next while.

Flat and calm all day. So easy paddle West was what I did until….guess what direction she blows? Yip 🙊

At first with the ocean so calm and flat I got to see close hand all the creatures floating about. No trash spotted yet.

Portuguese men of War by the hundreds. Some with their blue stinger pulled tight to their underside as if the water was ice cold and others showing off with it dangling way below them. I guess those reasons might not be accurate but descriptively accurate. Maybe one is feeding and the other not?

The other jelly fish look like a small round plate with green/ blue frilly edges and many legs. Half a plate stands erect in the middle acting as it’s sail. It reminds me of a Gary Larson cartoon with the amoebas.

At midday when the sun is highest, I switch on the water maker. It’s one of the highest power consumers on board but with full sun the batteries stay at max capacity.

Not a cloud in the sky for most of the day. I need to be a bit more careful of the sun. Took a bit more than I needed today.

Two days before I left, I noticed a crack on my Garmin watch screen. Not much I could do to get it repaired so I super glued over the crack keep any water out. Today it started cycling through the menu screen without stopping. Besides being a nice watch, I use it to see my speed when paddling as there are no instruments outside. Bugger!

Just after midnight the SE wind arrived. Getting up to 15 knots but when day broke it settled around 11/12 knots. These winds strengths Osiyeza and I both love. Nose down and off we go. Even without my help Osiyeza enjoys keeping the averages high.

100%cloud cover.
Batteries at 89%.
🎵I’m feeling good🎵
Temp water 23°C outside 28°C
Hours paddling: I am starting to loose track of hours paddled. They all blur into each other. Let say 10 hours. Mentioning hours I have crossed a Time Zone so am now 1hr behind South Africa.
Position:
S 32°10’51”
E014°16’07”
No of smiles changed: 9 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁
Please help me reach my target of R500k for Operation Smile SA. So far at 10% of target. Thank you to everyone who has donated.

Day 4: Poop Pirate

Day 4

The sea was calm all night and should be for the rest of the day or until the return of the trade winds which “Router Man” Robin tells me may only start late on Wednesday. I guess this is what happens when you announce a departure date and stick to it regardless. LOL

“Wednesday late brings SE at this stage. You won’t make much progress until then. Recommend down time until then, what progress you make today you will only lose tomorrow. Get your head around that and wait for the SE train to arrive, it’s on its way at last.”
He also tossed in a “HTFU” for good measure.

Right! Time to get my head around it…How should I take this news? Standing up? Actually, I took it lying down, literally.
If my efforts over the next day or so are going to be wasted why not take it easy and let the favourable wind and sea come to me? Much of today was a drift-a-thon but I got some precious time off. I had a good easy night. Paddled on and off as the mood took me. A lot fewer ships about which is good for sleep with the AIS alarm all quiet. Even got a 45 min uninterrupted sleep session in.

The highlight was watching “14 Peaks” on Netflix. Inspirational stuff. Would like to have watched it as a 14-part series. So much glossed over but what an incredible feat. (Yip downloaded a few before I left)

This morning after a nice cuppa java history on Osiyeza was made. I used the “BLACK” bucket for the first time. It’s amazing how an everyday event can be such a triumph out here.
PS the “RED” bucket is for washing up only – do not get these confused.

I put out the fishing line for something to do. Wonder if I am moving fast enough to entice a strike? No strike yet but it has brought about some entertainment. The birds get all excited for a second and consider an easy meal only to realise they have been duped.

Revenge was quick in making. One little bugger, without asking permission to come aboard, landed on the aft deck, and proceeded to poop over my solar panels. Osiyeza is a cunning craft however, and she simply bobbed this way that way and heeled over and let the next wave poop the aft deck which washed it clean. Saved me the perilous trip to the back on the slippery solar panel to clean up. Good girl!
FYI “poop deck” & “to be pooped by a wave” is a thing. Google it if you don’t believe me!

The Poop Pirate!

Still can’t find my second cell phone. Bizarre but not totally unbelievable. You see, my housekeeper is still absent. I use it to connect the Victron Venus GX monitor box which downloads the data to the cloud so my shore team can check for any issues that may be lurking in the data.

On another note, there is still an unpleasant pong hanging about in the cabin. Might need to wash those socks again.

On my ocean crossings before, to break up the shift systems, there would be a 2 hour “happy hour” with everyone on watch around sunset time. Each could have a beer, never two, and then dinner. It was a time to bond and discuss any personal issues to avoid bottling up problems. Osiyeza is as dry as the Sahara Desert when it comes to alcohol. In all other respects she pretty wet.

Sunset Happy Hour

So, my happy hour treat, while watching the sun go down, is a small slab of sugar free chocolate from CarbSmart and time for me to “clear the air” with my own thoughts.

Food consumed:
Coffee x 2
Banana smoothie with added milk & flaxseed powder
Pork sausage x 2 (before they go off)
Coconut Yogurt & nuts.
Handful of supplements from kale and turmeric to Vitamin D and Zinc.
30g dark chocolate bar.

Water temp: 21.6°C
Hours paddling: only 5 hours
Total distance moved 390km
Position:
S 32°27’21”
E015°06’52”

Day 3: Stinky Socks

Day 3

Today the sea has been flat with very little wind which is now coming from the North. Not going anywhere at much pace because my body is a little tired from the first two days of going insanely hard.

Had two thunderstorms pass me today, lots of thunder and even a little rain. I was surprised to spot a turtle during one of the thunderstorms.

Chatted via WhatsApp to Robin my weather routing guru. The forecast still says head West for another day or so before the system returns to a bit of normality. He is using an amazingly powerful App called Predictwind who have sponsored me their Pro Package for the trip. Good to have all the pros in my corner.

I am feeling much better and no more sea sickness. I fixed my water maker again and been making drinking water at midday when I have maximum sunlight on the solar panels. I am making about 4.5L of water per hour, very pleased its working again for now. I have only drunk 6L today so definitely need to drink more.

Food consumed:
Coffee x1
Nuts and Freeze-dried yogurt
Tablespoon ButterNut Macadamia/pecan
Carb Smart Chocolate bar x 1
Forever Fresh Moroccan Chicken

I could not work out why the cabin was starting to smell until I found the culprit, the waterproof socks that I had worn wet inside neoprene socks for two days. Eeeek! Even the little car freshener swinging next to the fan was outperformed by the socks. The socks were washed quickly before they had a chance to attack me in my sleep. I have not changed out of my Marino leggings and waterproof pants, sleep in them too. They are next on the laundry list.

Mentioning sleep, not a lot of that at the moment, nothing longer than 30min at a time so far. Now you know why I needed that nonstop Breede paddle to see if I can manage with little sleep. Seems I can 🙃

I am getting used to the cramped quarters and starting to work out my routine and where everything is kept. Now I just need to find where I put my spare cell phone. I used it yesterday!

Water temp 20.6°C and 25°C inside
Total distance covered: 333km
Hours paddling: 13
Position:
S 32°41’13”
E015°30’25”
No of smiles changed: 8

dehydrated food

Day 2: Blowing Chunks

Day 2:

I am so chuffed at the design and build of Osiyeza. Once the momentum gets going, she seems to go faster and faster, especially when angling across the ocean swells. The first night was a downwind rollercoaster with surges over 10km/hr and super high averages. My “Weather Router Robin” says keep going West…

I’ve had a few minor challenges. Ran the water maker today but after only a few litres it started sucking in air bubbles. Made 4L in 2 hours but will need to make 12L from tomorrow.

I spent some time sealing off a loose fitting. Unfortunately, with my head below my legs on this bucking bronco I ended up blowing chunks for the first time this century! On a positive note, I think the water maker is back in action.

So far all I have managed to put inside me is a handful of nuts, a pork sausage, water and a cup of coffee. After emptying my stomach, I felt a lot better and about an hour later I had my first real meal, a chicken curry. So far so good and it was delicious.

I have an autopilot that I connect when I need to take a rest inside. It is connected to the rudder via a push pull cable. On the test run a few weeks ago the unit I used started to make a terrible noise. I took it to the agents, and they replaced a drive belt.

I have two units and last night I decided to use the new one. After a short time, it too started making the same noise! I switched to the old one and thankfully it seems to be OK.

Had my first wash. More like a sponge rub. Glad to have done it and feel a bit better. The feet however were not appealing after two days in “Waterproof socks” and booties. Nasty!

Still lots of shipping and AIS alarms going off. I wonder if they can actually see me from their ship’s bridges.

Sea Life: First sighting of flying fish and had a few Sunfish flop by. Black Browed Mollymawks cruising the swells and giving this curious craft a fly by and several Southern Giant Petrels and Portuguese men of war swimming alongside.

Total miles covered: 132nm or 244km
Hours paddling: 14hrs
Position:
S 33°00’59”
E016°10’32”

Helping to change lives, one smile at a time. I am raising funds for Operation Smile SA, for every R5500 a child receives a life changing operation and a new smile.
No of new smiles: 6
😀😀😀😀😀😀
DONATE HERE

Ocean X: Departure and day 1

What a send off. Thank you to everyone who came out to see Richard depart on this epic journey. Richard was escourted out by the paddling community as he heads West towards Brazil.

 

Day 1:

Started off with easy flat paddling conditions tying to get West.
SW wind picked up making the sea choppy and a side on wind. Sea gradually increased in size and the Southerly started to blow. Progress improved but started getting the occasional wave over the side.
As night fell sea and wind now SE increased.
Mostly good currents helping my progress.
Planned not to have a big paddle day on day 1 but that never worked out having done 141km on in first 24 hours.
Did lots of night time paddling to easy the sea sick feeling being down below.
Quite a busy night for traffic. AIS alarm going off every other hour.
Osiyesa goes so well through the water and her speeds is amazing.
This morning I am shattered. Every muscle aches from the constant rolling.
The swell got quite big and the peaks where crumbling all around. The wave would crumble 3 or 4 times before losing its energy. At night it sounds like a freight train rushing towards you. At least the moon was bright but that also meant you could see them coming and there is little one can do to avoid them.
Had a mini knock down during the night when one of these freight trains ran over me and Osiyeza.

Sea Life:
Lots of whales close to Cape Town. Seen plenty of seals, dolphins and have my own stowaway fish.
This morning there are more birds gliding along the swells. Will try to ID them later.
Position:
S 33°20’37.1″
E 017°02’31.9′

fersyndicate

Osiyeza gets a makeover

With 3 weeks until I prepare to find my departure weather window, Osiyeza finally got the makeover she deserved!

Local Cape Town designer and artist Quasiem Gamiet aka “Fersyndicate” spent a day giving Osiyeza her new skin.

The collaboration took 6 hours to create this eye catching and original design, influenced by South African street culture and graffiti.

 fersyndicate

Check out this 18 second time-lapse video of the creative process.

Thank you Fersyndicate, LOVE IT!

Follow him on @fersyndicate

dehydrated food

Food for thought

“You must be nuts” is a common response after mentioning crossing the Southern Atlantic Ocean in a kayak.

But there is some truth to it.

To kayak hour after hour across the Atlantic Ocean I need to keep myself fueled correctly. The challenge is to take enough food for 90 days on a small kayak without refrigeration and keeping it as light as possible. Freeze dried and dehydrated foods are some of the best methods to achieve this and I have started my own “test kitchen.”

May be an image of foodMay be an image of food

Check out this video of me rehydrating a test meal that I made a few weeks ago. Durban curry with chicken, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and a dash of MCT powdered oil. Delicious!

I will consume 80% of my calories in the form of healthy fats. I will consume mainly dehydrated freeze dried food with minimal carbohydrates.
As a fat adapted athlete I will get all my energy from healthy fats like Olive oil, nut butter and raw nuts and keeping my body in a state of Ketosis (fat burning). Carbsmart have been amazing in helping me eat healthy meals with low carbs to maintain my keto diet.
NUTS will be a big part of the fuel to get me to the other side.
ButtaNutt Spreads were so generous when they heard about my adventure they sent me a huge hamper of their goodies. From Nut milks to nut butter in jars and squeeze packs. We decided that the squeeze packs would generate a sticky mess over 3 month (no plastic over board) so I have opted to decant the 1kg glass jars into smaller lighter plastic containers. Oh boy this stuff is AMAZING! The energy bang for the weight is off the charts and with the different flavors I will never tire of it.
The one downside of a ketogenic diet on a three month ocean crossing is you can’t dehydrate or freeze dry fat so liquid is the best option.
To help maintain the 80% and use “fat” (ketones) as fuel I will consume about 5 tablespoons of oil each day.

That’s about 6L for the crossing.

May be an image of text that says 'Medium PURE MCT OIL UNFLAVOURED Triglycerídes (MCTs) (ketogenic) source eneray preferentially o delivenng protelns metabolis carbohydrato 2 Litre THERU BANTING SPAR THENTIC South African OLIVE OIL Carb smart. EXTRA VIRGIN COLD PRESSED Absolutely THE HEALTHOF ST2020 JUSTFR FOR Nut HIGHOMEGA MONOUNSATURATED SUNFLOWER OIL MACADAMIA OIL HIGH VITAMIN PALEOT BANTING Natural Extra Virain'
Keeping the correct hydration levels while I paddle hour after hour without cover from the elements will be essential. Revive Daily Electrolytes are Sugar-Free and Calorie-Free daily hydration formulas.
May be an image of one or more people and indoor
How in the world will I keep my food fresh for 90 days on a small kayak in the middle of the ocean without refrigeration?
More to be revealed soon.
popular mechanics

Popular Mechanics

So stoked to be featured in one of my favorite magazines. Six full pages in Popular Mechanics 😊🤘
Thank you to the editor Mark Samuel who joined me for a photoshoot for the magazine and did an amazing write up on my next adventure.
Grab your copy now.
seaport supply

Seaport Supply

What happens when a sponsor becomes more than just a sponsor?
This is the story of Seaport Supply and Graeme Taylor.
Graeme was one of the very first to get excited about my #OceanX project and has helped to open many doors.
They continuously come up with solutions that has made the fitting out of Osiyeza a lot less stressful.
If you ever need any marine boating supplies then look no further. The knowledge and service that the staff give is first class.
NAVIGATION
My primary navigation system is the Garmin Echomap plus 62CV.
It is linked to the Automatic Identification System (AIS) and VHF radio. This enables the plotter to calculate if Osiyeza is on a possible collision course with another vessel (assuming the other vessel also has an AIS) and will sound an alarm if there is danger.
AIS
The Automatic Identification System transmits Osiyeza’s details including speed, direction and GPS position so that other ships are aware my position. It also receives other ships information and calculates the risk of collision.
The information is displayed on the chart plotter. There are a number of web sites dedicated to tracking ships at sea. Fascinating to see how many vessels there are at sea.
Garmin AIS 800 sponsored by Seaport Supply
Thank you Graeme and the guys at Seaport Supply for your continued support of my crazy ideas and adventure.

Power systems – batteries etc

You will pick up a recurring theme – that every piece of equipment I take must be super reliable and every system must have redundancy built in. 

All my electronic equipment: Plotter, VHF radio, AIS, Autohelm, lighting and most importantly the watermaker all depend on a reliable power source. With this in mind it was an easy choice to go with Victron Energy as my power solution.

The solar panels are connected to a solar controller before they are able to charge the batteries. The front and aft panels each have their own charge controllers.

  • Solar controller/charger

Victron SmartSolar MPPT 100/20  0.7kg

 

The controller constantly monitors the voltage and current output of the solar panels. The Maximum Power Point Tracking(MPPT) technology intelligently maximises the energy-harvest to achieve a full charge in the shortest possible time. The advantage of a MPPT controller is most noticeable when the sky is partially clouded and light intensity is constantly changing which are the conditions for much of my route. The SmartSolar charge controller will even operate with a battery voltage as low as 0 Volts, provided the cells are not damaged.

Another bonus is the built-in Bluetooth. I can pair it with my smartphone for real time data. I have also connected them to a Victron GX module. See more info on the GX below.

The solar charge controllers are then connected to the batteries via a waterproof 30amp circuit breaker.

  • Batteries:

Victron Lithium SuperPack 12,8V 100Ah 1280Wh 15kg 

The batteries are simple plug and play and I have two connected in parallel. They have an internal switch that will disconnect the battery in case of over discharge, over charge or high temperature. I have sealed the housing to improve the IP43 (waterproof) rating.

The most important features of the lithium versus lead-acid batteries are:

  • Weight saving of more than 50%
  • They can be discharged below 85% without any issues
  • The charge rate is much faster
  • They do not need to be fully charged. In fact service life even slightly improves in case of partial charge instead of a full charge. 

The batteries are then connected to a battery monitor and then a  waterproof 30amp circuit breaker before connecting to the switch board where the power is distributed to the various circuits. 

  • Battery Monitor:

Victron Smartshunt 500A/50mV

The SmartShunt is an all in one battery monitor, only without a display. My smartphone acts as the display when needed via the built-in Bluetooth which allows me to read out all monitored battery parameters, like state of charge, time to go, historical information and much more. The SmartShunt is a good alternative for a battery monitor with a display, especially for systems where battery monitoring is needed but less wiring and clutter is wanted. The Smart Shunt is also connected to the Victron GX module. 

  • The Venus GX:

This is the communication center of my installation. It allows me to talk to all Victron components in the system and ensure they are working in harmony. Monitoring of live data, and changing settings can be performed using my smartphone and my shore team will be able to monitor and adjust values remotely from any place in the world via the Victron Remote Management Portal.

How cool! 

Huge thanks to Bruce Robinson from Powersol for his advice, ongoing support, assistance and sponsorship along with the support from Andre Du Rand of Victron Energy.