700 TO GO!

Elizabeth D of Gosforth
D R R/ C Abram
Fri 20 Jan 2012 12:25
18:09.50N 49:15.00W

Fickle Winds, 40’s, Flying Fish and 15.4….

Imagine yourself in a train carriage in the dark with just the ambient
glow of various instruments around you. Also picture the train carriage
being taken over by some supernatural force and being jerked
intermittently up and down and side to side. Lastly fill the train with a
1000 screaming fruit bats…
Now try and sleep….
This is the sensation we were all feeling a few days ago as Elizabeth D
encountered large Atlantic rollers from the North and a following sea from
the East and South. No matter how many sail patterns we tried to stabilise
her she was determined to prove that she was the little boat that COULD
make the most noise! Our little tall ship… bless…
Thankfully things have calmed down (albeit only slightly) and we have
become somewhat accustomed to the cacophony of creaking that accompanies
our daily lives.
There has been a noticeable change in the weather as we enter the tropics.
The days are hot, the breezes are fickle and we there are new squalls
appearing on the horizon regularly. The other night I was monitoring a
small ‘blip’ on the radar, better to be safe than sorry I thought, so I
rallied Anna and we began to drop the mainsail. Within four minutes Spanna
was on the wheel helming in forty knots as I tried to throw sail ties over
our (thankfully down) but billowing main! Half an hour and some torrential
rain later, all was calm and quiet again.
The occasional strong breeze has brought ideal opportunities to surf the
rollers. I was the first to hold the record with 12.4 which George matched
within a few days. It seemed to be her peak surfing speed until one day a
triumphant shout was heard from Jason on deck… “15.4!!!! 15.4!!!!!”
Seemingly caught between two rollers and carried along Elizabeth D set a
new record that will most likely be her fastest speed for a long long
time. Mind you… Jason was alone on deck at the time so whether the record
can be verified or not is another matter!!!
Anna has been amusing herself playing soccer with the flying fish that are
determined to catch a ride in our cockpit. Having an open stern provides
an ideal set of goalposts as the poor little fliers zoom into the cockpit
and flap around before copping a quick boot up the backside, shooting them
back into the deep blue. One proceeded to get revenge the other night
though as not long after she disappeared to go to the bathroom I heard a
high pitched squeal. Somehow a flying fish had managed to hit the boat,
hit the windscreen and make its way underneath through our bathroom
porthole. Spanna likes to go to the bathroom in the dark to save her eyes
adjusting to the light but got a very rude shock when she trod on
something smelly and slimy on the shower floor!
At present we are aiming directly for Antigua trying to hold the main and
genoa. As usual the wind is behind and light to boot... joy!! Only 700nm
to go… woop woop!