Pacific on Merrimac

Day 28 Hawaii to Japan: Land Ho

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 06:32:00 +0200

Our first Japanese island (Okinoshima) in sight

Well, it’s Sunday again and we finally have land in sight. Tomorrow at exactly twelve o’clock we’re expected at Hiroshima Kanon Marina. They’ve even told us which berth we’ll have. Japan is different, and we’re going to find out just how different!

Day 20 Hawaii to Japan: Talks with the agent

Sat, 04 Jul 2026 09:48:59 +0200

Well well, time flies. Tomorrow we’ll have been under way for three weeks already! Although we did lose a day crossing the date line: in Hawaii, coffee time (or drinks time) came around a good 12 hours after it did in the Netherlands. Now we get there 9 hours earlier! I’m writing this on Saturday afternoon, five to five, and in the Netherlands it’s only 17 - 9 = 8 o’clock in the morning.

Day 14 Hawaii to Japan

Sat, 27 Jun 2026 21:54:57 +0200

There’s actually nothing to report. We take turns cooking, we stand our watches, and the days slip by at a tremendous pace. Stop paying attention for a moment in the morning and it’s lunchtime already. Then fruit at 3 o’clock (that doesn’t always work out). Drinks at five, dinner at half past six. And at eight the watches start again.

Hawaii - Japan Day 5: Burger Night

Fri, 19 Jun 2026 06:54:34 +0200

Tonight we start our 5th night of watches, and we’re having something tasty for dinner. Hence the title of this little piece.

But first, let’s rewind to Honolulu. You of course deserve to know how it all ended there. We had a busy time with Maarten on board, did more shopping and visited two nice museums.

Honolulu and Oahu

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 09:52:57 +0200

So, now that I’ve written the frustration about the bureaucracy out of my system, here’s a “cosy” update again. We’re moored between a boat made of driftwood and a 50-year-old little ship with an enormous history, which someone is now “looking after” and therefore living on with his girlfriend and cat. Almost the entire pontoon is like that; it’s a floating trailer park. Lured by the low berthing fees, it’s full of old sea dogs and freeloaders, plus young folk. Even a lady with a small child. All very friendly and perfectly OK, but not your usual marina “vibe”. We’ve already had lunch with our neighbour Damian, and as neighbours go he’s a great guy.

Ala Wai Harbor and the DOBOR

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:30:13 +0200

Once we’d arrived, clearing in was a piece of cake. When you arrive in Hawaii by boat you have to do three things: report to Customs & Border Protection (CBP), get an agricultural declaration and, of course, check in with the harbour master. Contrary to what I’d expected, the CBP procedure was no problem at all, and the last one very much was.

Day 28 Panama to Hawaii

Wed, 10 Jun 2026 10:21:50 +0200

I’m typing this exactly one week after we arrived in Honolulu. More on that in a later post. First, the last week at sea. And we can keep that fairly short: more of the same.

Contrary to the forecast, we kept good wind right up to the harbour entrance. The whole time it was between 16 and 22 knots.

Day 23 Panama to Hawaii

Fri, 29 May 2026 02:21:25 +0200

Today, a guest writer…

When people think of the Pacific Ocean, they picture gently lapping wavelets on an almost soporific swell, with lovely temperatures and gorgeous sunsets. That certainly happens, but for us, apart from the odd moment, that was already a week ago. After that sudden wind shift and the rain that came with it, the wind has steadily built to around 20 knots, roughly Force 5. It’s coming from the northeast, which is perfect: we’re heading west, so the wind is well aft of the beam. We’ve hardly seen the sun since, and every now and then we get a bit of rain. All in all, not exactly Piña Colada weather. Even the temperature has dropped from above 30 to the mid-20s Celsius. That, on the other hand, is not considered unpleasant on board.

Day 19 Panama to Hawaii

Sun, 24 May 2026 18:57:46 +0200

Clipperton is already a distant memory, so time for an update on how things are going. The plan was that after Clipperton we’d just be sailing in steady northeast trade winds, but reality is (was) a bit more stubborn. Below is the track since then.

Day 14: Clipperton Island

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:32:11 +0200

A few years ago, when I first started looking into the route we’re now sailing, I came across Clipperton Island. The only atoll in the eastern Pacific, and uninhabited. Well, zero people and 200,000 birds. Plus an awful lot of local crabs. Then Damaris and Rudolf gave us a little book about hard-to-reach islands that featured Clipperton, and after that my interest in this French island was well and truly piqued.

Day 12 Panama to Hawaii

Sat, 16 May 2026 21:22:42 +0200

Wow, another 6 days have flown by! And of course you’re all dying to know what we’ve been up to. That’s actually easy to sum up:

We slept
We ate
We sailed for 5 days goose-winged in very light following winds (the Dutch call this “melkmeisje”, milkmaid)
Since yesterday the Yanmar has been rumbling away again. Since this morning with the Code 0 up as well. That gives us an extra 0.5 to 1 knot of speed.
We have another 2 days of motorsailing to go.

For those with stamina, here’s the long version…

Day 6 Panama to Hawaii

Sun, 10 May 2026 20:03:21 +0200

Goodbye, Panama!

Today is Sunday 10 May. Since we set off on Tuesday 6 May, this is already our 6th day at sea. Around 14:00 we’ll have been underway for 5x24 hours, and until yesterday afternoon we motored the whole way. The Yanmar just drones away the hours without a hitch. Since we wanted to keep fuel in reserve, and the wind further on wasn’t going to arrive any sooner anyway, we were in no hurry. At 1500-1600 rpm and 5 to 6 knots we made steady progress.

A man, a plan, a canal, Panama!

Sun, 20 Nov 2022 21:42:40 +0100

Panama. In the Netherlands it’s really only known for the canal, bananas, the palindrome above and its role as a tax haven. So what should you actually picture?

Arnold already got a first impression in Dec 2020, when he suddenly found himself spending 3 days in a “5-star” hotel in Panama City, with a very busy but not particularly orderly world outside. The city is full of huge skyscrapers, quite a few of which look very impressive. But at street level it’s a typical second-world jumble.

Have you heard the one about the couple who tried to leave Panama?

Fri, 11 Nov 2022 17:04:37 +0100

Well, they did set off, but they had to turn back. Hotel Panama: you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.

As I type this we’re on a shared local minibus to Panama City to check back in again and pick up a car. Deafening music, a stop every 2 km, a genuine local experience!

Off to the Galapagos

Wed, 09 Nov 2022 15:41:37 +0100

The final preparations are under way. Navigation set up, tanks full, 16 wheelbarrows of food loaded aboard. Boat scrubbed, meals cooked, awning stowed, liferaft ready for use.

As usual on this passage, the wind looks to be right on the nose, but at least it isn’t blowing too hard, so we’re hoping to make it in a little over a week.

Iridium on Carrousel now up and running

Sun, 06 Nov 2022 15:16:51 +0100

Right, you can now follow us online! When we leave, hopefully Monday afternoon or Tuesday, you can track us at: https://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/Carrousel/

Fingers crossed it actually happens, because yesterday Rudolf discovered a small coolant leak on the engine, so the Australian mechanic is coming over this afternoon to take a look.

Off on a voyage with Carrousel

Thu, 03 Nov 2022 16:02:25 +0100

Marion and I have been in touch with Damaris and Rudolf for years. They live in Harlingen too, and crossed the Atlantic a year ahead of us. Very handy, then, to learn from them how things work in countries across the ocean.