In the North Pacific Ocean, north of the trade wind belt is a varying collection of high pressure areas with light and variable - sometimes non-existent - winds. North of that, an endless series of low pressure cells and attendant frontal systems march from west to east across the ocean. These are typically accompanied by rain and gale, sometimes storm, force winds.
The trick, after the banging and crashing of the northbound trade wind passage stopped, has been to find a path that threads the perfect winds between the calms of the high to the south and the very unpleasant conditions near the centers of the lows to our north - all moving daily.
The lows and fronts pass every two to three days until we get close to the coast where a vaguely stationary summertime high blocks the storms and sends them out of our way off to the northeast. The southern reaches of the first of the lows passed us last night with ten minutes of torrential rain and with the wind suddenly veering and ramping up to thirty knots. One hundred miles to the north of us, the winds would have reached a very unpleasant fifty knots! Mercifully, it is all behind us now as we reach northeastward at over seven knots in perfect sailing conditions. We are now shaping a course to avoid the worst of the next blow in a couple of days.
Ah, but beyond all that there is another navigational gate to pass through: That semi permanent summer high off the mainland coast often leads to strong and sometimes gale north-westerlies and northerlies over the last few hundred miles of our route. We must get up to the latitude of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, roughly 48 north, well off the coast to avoid struggling against wind and current at the end of our passage.
But enough of challenges! It is great finally to be making swift progress under sunny skies after the off-course struggle against the trade winds of our first four days.
1650 miles to go to sheltered water at Cape Flattery.
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At 2018-05-16 19:31 (utc) our position was 33°25.92'N 156°46.72'W
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