Once one is at sea and after a few days a certain routine falls into place. At the moment we run a watch system from 9.00pm until 9.00 am and we have agreed that the skipper (me that is - I think) does two watches the 9.00 pm to midnight - so I can set the boat up for a night sail without the intention to do any sail changes in the hours of darkness - then George does midnight to 3.00 am [so that he has a few hours sleep before hauling in the morning fish catch from 7.30am - Vicky does the 3.00 am to 6.00am so she meets us all at odd hours in the night! Finally I do 6.00am until 9.00am so I set the boat up for day sailing with more power and sail.

Fishing - I laugh the lure at about sunrise at 6.45am and we get a fish on at about 9.00am each morning - we have had 2 mornings so far on this crossing and both times we have caught a fish and both times it has escaped. Probably because we (in other words I who takes the blues each time) have been to slow at slowing the boat down - removing sails. But we have a lot of sails Main, Mizzen and poled out Yankee.

The we curse and make plans to improve technique - we will catch a fish before Niue.

Damn another one got away and took 200 meters of line and the lure! Where the hell did that go?

Dad and George sympathise with each other. Must have been huge that one!

 Big Ocean rollers are difficult to photograph effectively but some of these are huge ad tower over Carango but each time she just rises up and the roller passes underneath.

We realise now that there is no boat within 600 miles of us. Except one evening we were over ten by a tanker heading for Port Vila in Vanuatu. To put this in perspective 600 miles is about 4 days and nights sailing - what of we sprung a leak? - let’s not go there - not worth the thought. Carango feels very strong at the moment. One of our fellow rally boats just had his propellor slip out of the back of the boat leaving a hole which they plugged with a hand until they could think of a temporary repair scheme - all OK in the end but nerve wracking at the time!! Another boat on the Atlantic sank but they were saved by a passing freighter as their yacht just went down to deck level before finally sinking.

At about 9.30 we have breakfast - bowl of fruit Pawpaw, Orange, Apple and Banana - quite delicious and then various cereals and perhaps some baguette and marmite or marmalade. Orange juice and coffee - as we are pitching about such a lot that takes until about 10.15. We take in the fishing line - fish don’t bite in bright sunlight.

George doing a rigging check.

Then we review progress and plot positions and think about sail changes - decide against sail changes - and relax and snooze, read, listen to music and do Soduku and other activities such as repairs and e-mails etc. 

Lunch is a delicious soupçon of some fine food and we discuss supper menus. Fish perhaps tomorrow if we are successful - thank God the freezer works.

The another snooze - thinking about fishing again this evening. The suddenly it’s supper time and at about 6.00 pm sharp the darkness just falls like a curtain but we have a lovely waxing moon to light our way and leave a sliver trail across the Ocean towards us.