22-Aug-2006 Noon Position

Niue to Tonga
South Pacific Ocean

• 22-Aug-2006
• 18°48.7000"S/171°58.3000"W
• 100nm last 24hrs
• 121nm from Nuie
• 115nm to Tonga
• 10-15 knots SE
• swells 3ft SE

Awwh... this is the type of day they write those sailing songs about. All the sails are up. The winds are nice and steady. We are cruising at a comfortable 5.5 knots and there's hardly any swell at all. Sorry Kelley. This time tomorrow we should be pulling into Tonga! There are a ton of great anchorages in the Vavau group. We are in for a real treat.

Note From Ron: The next day (Aug 23) the Sandpiper will pass over the Tonga Trench, one of the deepest spots on the planet at 35,702 feet. That is over 6.5 miles of water under their hull!