Position 20:04.023N 22:52.653W

7 Kts now in NE F5 and 6

Rolly motion as expected and walking through the saloon is like a scene out of Indiana Jones. Timing the pendulum motion of the various nets of fruit and veg that hang from the ceiling is a fine art. Two dives and a roll usually do it.

We sat down like dogs to dinner last night. The plates were difficult to handle but luckily we had purchased 4 brightly coloured dog bowls with a section for water and dog nuts in each. The rice fits neatly in one side and the pork stew in the other. After dinner and a pat on the belly I rolled over and went to sleep. Ursula takes over at 21h00 and studies the stars. She has become our boat expert on the constellations whicfh she has been studying since we left Portugal.

We had a strange night. During Ursulas watch a vessel approached to within 200 metres showing incorrect lights and then proceeded to follow us closely. We tried contact on VHF to no avail. We could not identify what type of vessel it was and we are too far south for immigrant vessels. We decided for peace of mind to black out the boat and get out of there. Once we were a safe distance we switched on navigation lights and radar feflector again and further attempts were made at contact in case the vessel was in some kind of trouble. We had no response and by daylight they were gone.

Later in the night, during my watch, a red port light appeared suddenly on our port side. I checked on the radar and could see nothing and about 5 minutes later it was extinguished.

Like the pilot who decides what time its going to be in your destination country, as skipper  I get to decide what time it is on board. We have changed ships time otherwise we would be having lunch in the dark in a couple of weeks. This has caused some confusion and has meant more people than necessary being up at 0300.

Saw our first flying fish today, well Tom did at least. Tom also saw the only whale. Next time he sees one I have asked him to cry wolf.