Saturday, April 19, 2025
1° 31.1’ N, 171° 27.9’ W
We’ve just altered course 24° to port, now heading for Wallis Island—940 nautical miles to the southwest. We’re craving fresh French baguettes and pain au chocolat, and this little detour seemed like a worthwhile indulgence.
The new course adds about 40 miles to our trip, but it should also give us a better angle to handle a low-pressure system developing out of New Zealand.
I’ve recently heard that a number of people are trying to track our location, but aren’t including their email addresses—so they’re not getting notifications when we post updates. If you fill in your contact info, you’ll automatically receive an email when the next update goes out.
Don’t worry—we won’t bombard you with frequent messages. Our last update was five days ago.
As some of you know, we’ve had Starr for 25 years, and I’ve never been shy about making changes when I thought they were necessary or even just useful.
Back in 2000, after just one week of running the boat, I told Ed Hagemann (our naval architect) that Starr required too much rudder movement to maintain course in seas over one meter. Ed’s analysis confirmed that with the original single rudder—and Starr’s relatively shallow 6.5-foot draft—we were at risk of broaching in any 18-foot waves with a seven-second period or less.
As a former Cal 40 sailor, I knew what broaching meant, and I didn’t waste any time. We followed Ed’s recommendation and installed dual rudders. We went from 12 square feet of rudder surface to 24 square feet—much better control and peace of mind.
Years later, in 2013, I decided to enlarge the swim step to give my granddaughter more room to play. So, we cut off the stern and added three feet to the hull, plus six feet to the top deck.
Extending Starr’s swim step
But I’m especially proud of our most recent modification: I added an alternator to my rowing machine. We now generate enough additional power to improve our fuel efficiency by 15%, extending our cruising range to 4,600 nautical miles!
If you enjoyed this story, you might also enjoy “A Whale of a Tail/Tale” –
virginie connor
Posted at 23:21h, 21 AprilYou will love Wallis, everybody drive a french car !!! in a tiny island. and if u want to go to a restaurant, better have a reservation. Once in St Pierre de Miquelon, we got refused in 3 restaurant, because we did not have “une reservation” . We could not believe it at the end of the world !!! Ah AH !!!but may be Wallis will be more loose. snorkeling through the pass, was amazing.
long time ago. !! very impressive boat and crew ! safe arrival !!! love the blog
o
Posted at 17:25h, 23 AprilShowing good form there, Don! You will have earned your pain au chocolat when you get to Wallis 🙂
Sonja Nikel
Posted at 06:37h, 24 AprilShowing good form there Don! You will definitely have earned that pain au chocolat when you get to Wallis 😉
Lori Lloyd
Posted at 20:13h, 11 MayHaha, multi-tasking rowing and power generation, what fun and great motivation to exercise, another brilliant innovation Don! Sending warm aloha with continued admiration, Lori
Bill Arnemann
Posted at 17:33h, 12 MayLoved your description of Fiji, especially the Mamanucas, our favorite. Also now want more than ever to go to Wallis Island!
Mahalo nui, Bill
Michone Walker
Posted at 13:27h, 13 MayVery impressive, the rowing machine /alternator. How much time rowing produces how much extra power?
The tuna looked delicious.
Looking forward to hear about Wallis.
Joyce Whiteley
Posted at 03:46h, 16 MayPure genius to leverage workout energy to increase Starr’s nautical reach. Don, your heart thanks you!
I can’t wait to learn how good the pain au chocolat tasted.
Joyce