17:42.2N 40:52.3W

The other piece of equipment to shine is the water maker. It is a bit like the hare and the tortoise; once going the water maker keeps up its constant dribble and it becomes easy to forget to check the water bottle under the sink because, before you know it, the bottle will have filled and the output from the water maker is overflowing into the bilges.

Steve and I have adopted a good way to wash with minimal water use. You wash and rinse your hair with the shower attachment into the basin with the plug in. The basin of water will then sustain a flannel wash and you emerge like a shiny new pin and feeling good about conserving water. The dirty water is so thick it barely runs out of the basin and is probably a serious pollutant but, hey, the Atlantic is pretty big. Annie is due for a hair wash today so the water maker could be on overtime.

Yesterday Annie put the fishing line out the back. When retrieved the lure had gone and now we feel really uncomfortable that something may be swimming around with the lure as a permanent attachment. In future we will use a wire trace and not leave the line unattended. Could do with some tuna or dorado for supper - apart from garlic, potatoes and some bananas we are out of fresh food. I should have kept the two flying fish rescued from the deck in the early hours. Onions are the biggest crisis. There weren’t any to be found in Mindelo during our last minute shop and we now realise that onion is the core of practically every recipe you can think of. So its on with the  pasta, pulses and passata which can be a tasty combination, given all the spices and flavourings we have on board. Good for the wind too.

I may have indicated previously that January is the best month to cross the Atlantic and the route from Cape Verde to Antigua the most favourable - trade wind with you all the way. Which is why it is a tad disappointing to find that we are tacking into a westerly wind. Yesterday, not helped by 9 hours drifting backwards when we were hove to, we made only 43 miles - see photo of the plotter below. We had been achieving more than 130 miles each day. Today we are tacking and making slow progress again and just hoping for wind properly from the north (or the south would do). The trade wind is forecast to return by Friday so its going to be really frustrating in the meantime.

Annie and Steve are on the foredeck as I write this, taking the staysail down ahead of unfurling the genoa. Should be a good test of teamwork………….. And they’re back, there’s even talk of gladiators. Kettle is on.

And the wind has gone around to the NNW - euphoria up in the cockpit - Steve thinks he will now make his flight home on 30th.