Apia Harbor, Western Samoa 13 49.702S 171 45.862W

As the first light of dawn kissed the horizon, we glided into Apia, Samoa, just as we had envisioned. Our journey began at 3 PM, the previous day, from American Samoa, navigating 85 nautical miles under the cloak of night. In this life, simplicity is an illusion; every step demands its own laborious effort.

In preparation for our imminent departure from American Samoa, we meticulously tested all systems on our beloved Tartaruga, which had been stationary for over two months. Naturally, issues arose. We had a part fabricated for our steering system and installed it just hours before setting sail. Our starboard motor refused to start, seemingly due to a battery issue. Despite purchasing new batteries after a lightning strike, we still struggled to keep this one charged. We had to remove the battery and charge it on the genset for a few hours, which resolved the problem.

As if that wasn’t enough, our Automatic Identification System (AIS) and radio began to randomly power down. Initially, I suspected it was a heat issue, as the battery charger was located directly beneath it. However, further troubleshooting revealed a small short in a splicing terminal I had installed months earlier. Once we replaced it, the system stayed on. What a relief! We were finally ready to embark on our journey.

The departure from the harbor was slow. After spending two months in very dirty water, the bottom and propellers of Tartaruga were full of growth, making it hard to produce any speed. Plus, the tide and swell were coming straight at us. So, for the first several miles, we had to motor. Eventually, we turned to starboard, and the wind and swell were behind us. Tami and I set the jib in 20 knots of wind and powered off the motors. We sailed the rest of the way, right to the entrance of Apia. Apart from 10-foot swells at an 8-second period (making for a bumpy ride), our trip was uneventful—just how we like them. A new island, a new country, a new process, and new excitement awaited us.