LAT|33|35.59|N
LON|21|18.38|W
VIA Telnet:
Summary
Day 4 of many Canary Islands to Santa Maria, Azores
Total miles sailed: (Tue-Wed) 12 noon-12 noon 106nm (284nm to go – we passed halfway at 18:00 yesterday)
Current position: Roughly halfway between Madeira and Santa Maria, heading 321deg, speed: 5.5 knots. Sea state: 1.3m
Passage notes:
Day four.
The squalls kept coming through yesterday afternoon and overnight. We kept to a slow SOG between the squalls just so that we could get some sleep rather than being slung around when the next squall hit. As I was starting my second watch around 4am, there were a few breaks in the cloud where some starlight broke through. We haven’t seen the moon at all. Against the lighter grey of the starlit sky, I could see the outline of something black to the east of us. It had a menacing air, although that could just have been my sleep starved brain combined with an over-active imagination. As it enveloped us, it felt like we were sailing into a dark tunnel. The winds whipped up and we bounced along under barely any genny and 2 reefs in the main. After almost an hour the rain came and I knew it would soon be over.
That was the worst of the overnight squalls and since dawn we haven’t had any more. But the sky is still wall-to-wall grey.
The sea has reduced from 2m to a much more pleasant 1.3m. Emerald doesn’t have much heel at the moment, so moving around isn’t too tricky.
Dinner:
Chilli again from the freezer. It’s the second time we’ve had it on this passage, but I could eat chilli every night, so no complaints from me!
Things that Broke:
Again, nothing broke.
Wildlife spotted:
Only the very occasional solitary shearwater. Colin found a dead flying fish on deck which was returned to the sea.
Other Things Spotted:
A very distant ship, the first since Saturday night when we were passing Tenerife.
Pidge update:
Colin checked the dinghy today and Pidge has definitely gone. It has however, left us some ‘gifts’ in its wake. So much for gratitude! 😀
