Day 159 Goodbye Samoa

Whales in view
We departed Apia harbor on the island of Upolu, Samoa at 0930 behind Liahona and Panache (a single-hander from San Francisco) and headed West toward the larger island of Sava'i. As we passed North of Upolu, two pods of whales appeared behind Liahona. We saw spouts of eight whales and from the occasional backs we guessed they were humpbacks since humpback whales migrate here from Antarctica. As we rounded the Western end of Upolu we turned South onto a bearing of 180º that would aim us at Vava'u, Tonga.
The sailing weather was perfect with mild swells and wind from the Northeast so we could sail a "broad reach" (the wind coming from slightly behind us) which is Southern Star's most comfortable orientation.
Every now and then, we would hear radio reports from the two boats ahead of us. Even though we were in sight of each other for most of the day, each boat experienced slightly different wind and weather conditions. At one point, we encountered a squall that doused us with rain while the other boats were sailing in the sunshine. Such is the weather in the South Pacific.
By evening, the other boats had pulled ahead so they were out of sight and we were alone in the ocean. The moon was just a sliver above the Western horizon and set within an hour of sunset. With virtually no clouds and no ambient light, the Milky Way appeared as a bright stripe across the sky. Saturn shone brightly overhead and it was easy to pick out the red color of Antares and the constellation Scorpio of which it is a part. My birth constellation Sagittarius is also easy to see as it is right next to the tail of the scorpion. Also easily visible is the Southern Cross and the two stars, Hadar and Rigil Kentaurus, that point to the South Pole. From these it is also easy to locate the two bright stars Acturus and Spica. Knowing a few of the stars and constellations makes sailing under the dark sky feel a bit more like familiar surroundings.