180 Degrees
Vega
Hugh and Annie
Sat 21 Oct 2017 03:25
At around 0400 this morning we passed through the 180 degree line of longitude. A momentous occasion that warrants a toast and libation to Neptune. In our case I was asleep and Annie failed to notice. However, when on watch a couple of hours later I did give Neptune a ginger biscuit and apologised for our tardy celebration. We hope he doesn't hold this against us.
Technically we aren't quite half way on our circumnavigation. Bristol is around 120nm west of Greenwich so we still have around 90nm to go before we can celebrate this milestone. Nevertheless our position is now east of Greenwich so we are on the way back.
Today the wind has remained stubbornly in the south. This means we are close hauled and still to the north of our planned route. At this rate we'll be in Brisbane before Auckland. The wind is predicted to die away this afternoon and if it does we will motor in the right direction for the rest of today and tomorrow. In the meantime it's a cloudless day and in the gentle conditions just right for a snooze in the cockpit. Amazingly, before I had finished the last sentence the wind suddenly dropped and we are down to 3kts heading due west......................
