16:21.000N
52:16.000W
We are on day 14 of
the voyage and have had a pretty unremarkable day - that is for sailing a 52 ft
yacht across the Atlantic.
The night was a bit
difficult with heavy rain during squalls that demanded some rapid furling
of the sails to keep the boat trimmed well. Generally everybody had a poor
nights sleep as the sound of the winches and the crashing of pots, pans and cups
etc makes sleeping difficult - once again the white ghostly
figure was at work putting rubber gloves and dish cloths in the
lockers to stop the clatter. During the night there was also an
unidentified yacht that crossed our track causing us to make a change
of sail and direction for a while. It seems strange that in the vast ocean you
can come across another yacht so close who does not make contact - Andrew tried
to call them several times on VHF to find out their direction but to no
avail - so we took the appropriate action and went astern of
them -
our only conclusion was that they were sailing shorthanded and perhaps the night
watch was asleep - scary!!
I am pleased to
report that there have been no lasting effects from last night's chilli - not
that anyone has owned up to anyway!! Andrew is, as you might expect, gutted by
the comparison between his chilli and tear gas and has lodged a complaint with
the skipper. The skipper has however, unexpectedly lost the lining to
the back of his throat so it might be some while before a response is
heard.
Today has been a
continuation of the standard routine. The sailing is a bit frustrating as
the winds have dropped a little and the direction has not moved to the north as
promised so we are bimbling along at a respectable 7 - 8 knots, and heading
for Antigua not St Lucia - heh its a tough life. With 585 miles to go (to
some Island or other), we are all eager to keep GE moving speedily in the right
(any) direction - but sailing isn't always like that.
Fishing continues to
be a problem - Martyn isn't short of bites but seems to keep getting the biggies
that chomp through the line and take the lure hook and all! Most of the Atlantic
is between 3000 and 5500 mtrs deep but the number of lures we have lost means it
is now about 2mtrs shallower - a track of lures 2700 mile long! I think the best
we can do as we enter Rodney Bay is to hang some tins of sardines on the
stern - oh the humiliation.
An example of the
monotony that can set in at times is illustrated by the scene in the saloon this
afternoon, when Andrew was quietly contemplating the world in his usual
philosophical manner and Pascal was avidly reading ................. the
pressure cooker instruction book! So today's thought piece is 'life is like a
pressure cooker....debate' Answers please, on a postcard, to The Old
Boys Mid Life Crisis Society. Contributions and care sought from all of
society - especially family, friends and loved
ones.
If all of these
pictures about the crew look fairly inane then you must realise that GE has two
wheels and this casual look has only arisen because they are not steering -
faces are much more crumpled when concentrating on steering - sorry Jacky I am
of course referring to Pascal (not a good representation of his Gallic
charm).
Today's crew on 3 - 6
are Jackie and Pascal.
