Rain. Lots of rain. Monsoonal rain. But no wind as yet. Forecasters have steadily been downgrading the likely wind strength PRIDE is likely to experience while sheltered in Summerside, Prince Edward Island.

What was a possibility of 50 knots forecast all they way back to when PRIDE was sailing past the north side of the Gaspe Peninsula on Thursday has dropped to maybe 30 knots. But that does not mean there is the same kind of reduction of strength on the Atlantic Coast of Nova Scotia. They will still experience more than 50 knot winds as Hurricane Bill runs more or less parallel to the coast from Cape Sable in the west passed Cape Breton Island to the east. The closest distance to PRIDE that Bill will have as it goes by is around 110 nautical miles. The farthest 50 knot winds reach from Bill’s center is forecast to be 40 miles at the time it passes by PRIDE. So it makes sense that with PRIDE being so much further away from Bill’s center than 40 miles, we would experience substantially less wind strength than 50 knots.

So we sit tight and keep an eye on things. We have had some heavy rain this morning…the wind that is due will not be here till after lunch and maybe not till mid afternoon and last into late evening before reducing. This morning I am holding forth to the crew on what I know about hurricanes and how they move.

Cheers,
Jan C. Miles, Captain aboard Pride of Baltimore II