Sailing Zataravideo
Into the Blue...(4000 miles to go)
14 May 2026 · 24 min · 186K views · Pacific Ocean
Boobies perch on catamaran railing at sunset
What this video covers
Zatara departs Panama on a 28-day, 4,000-mile passage to the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, the family's first Pacific crossing.▶ 0:02 The crew — Keith, Renee, Jack, Kate, and Remy — spent several days on multiple grocery runs, loading both refrigerators, two freezers, and every available locker with meat, frozen fruit, produce, eggs, and dry goods before departure.▶ 3:25 Both diesel tanks were topped off and additional jerry cans carried aboard because the weather window out of Panama required motoring from the start.▶ 2:40 By day five, 3,500 miles remained and a 1.5–2-knot adverse current — attributed to El Niño conditions not present on the two previous crossings — forced the boat 20 degrees off course and required running one engine continuously at 11 knots of true wind to hold 5 knots over ground.▶ 13:37 Tacking north or south was ruled out because stronger currents flank the Galapagos on both sides.▶ 16:09 The crew debated a Galapagos stop, estimated at $1,200 in fees, and decided to reassess fuel levels when they arrived in three days.▶ 16:49 A Coast Guard vessel approached, asked origin and destination questions, then departed.▶ 23:22 Remy runs the watermaker after every laundry session to keep tanks full.▶ 22:56 The practical lesson: El Niño currents in this corridor can force unexpected motoring even in a well-chosen weather window, and extra fuel capacity is essential.
More from Sailing Zatara
From Sailing Zatara — see the channel’s boat, crew, and every analysed video.