Sailing upwind in 25-30 knots: reefing choices and arriving in an anchorage

The passage to Tahiti turned out to be rough, with 25 to 30 knots of wind hard on the nose. Lauren Landers Sailing had barely any sail area out for the whole trip and admits it would have been more comfortable with the main deployed, but she chose not to bother. She describes it as the longest 12-mile sail she thinks she has ever done. Conditions calmed noticeably about a mile and a half from the destination as the anchorage provided protection from the swell, though she expected it to remain rough at least for the first night.