Horta to Bristol - Day 5
Vega
Hugh and Annie
Tue 20 Jun 2023 03:20
46:11.2N 19:00.3W Now approaching the half way stage in the passage and so far it’s been on schedule and in line with our weather routing. The wind has been consistently more from the north than forecast which means we have been on a closer reach than predicted - almost close hauled at times. All the forecast models have been pretty much aligned over the last tow or three days. We were hoping we might outrun the new low pressure system developing on Wednesday but it looks like there will be no escaping it. This will mean wind of up to 25kts and gusts to 35kts on Thursday and Friday with waves to 2.5m. At least the wind should be from behind and we will have a boisterous genoa run up the western approaches. There will be a day of motoring ahead of this. With a bit of luck we will be able to measure the strength and direction of the wind as it comes through. I changed the wind transducer on the stern for the original one from the mast top and, hey presto, data! This suggests that, given we had exactly the same faults when using the both the original instrument and it’s replacement in the Seychelles, it was the wring that was at fault. The current problem is with the Seychelles transducer. The batteries are showing a steady 13V or thereabouts and the freezer fluctuates between minus 9 and minus 14 degrees because there is little in it to stabilise the temperature. This is good because it is on a lot! Another reason for not raising and lowering the Duogen is that it might be picking up Portuguese Man of War tentacles and it is a pain dealing with these whilst also holding the Duogen at 45 degrees and balancing on the transom. Annie has consulted our Offshore Doctor manual of self sufficiency at sea and there is a section on dealing with stings from PMOW as follows - 1. Administer CPR if necessary 2. Apply hot water as soon as possible. If not available seawater will do. Recent studies have cast in doubt the remedy of applying vinegar or baking soda to the area. Also avoid meat tenderiser, ammonia or alcohol (either rubbing or liquor). Don’t pee on it; it won’t help. 3. Don’t touch the tentacles with your hands; use a stick or other object. 4. An antihistamine, such as Benadryl may be administered. 5. Medication for pain may be given, orally or IM 6. Administer large doses of vitamin C; 3-5 grams spread out over 3-4 hours may help to neutralise the toxin. 7. A steroid may be taken either orally or by injection. A Medrol Dosepack (methylprednisolone) may be administered, or Decadron (dexamethasone), 4 mg orally. So there you have it, take plenty of oranges with you to the beach this summer. Quite why anyone would put meat tenderiser on jellyfish stings is beyond me, unless they intended to eat the affected part. Last night neither of us felt like cooking so we resorted to a tin of tartiflette. I had romantic notions of hot steaming cheese, potato, bacon and onion, crispy on top - perfect for that ski slope lunch. Sadly it was pretty disgusting. Apparently there are eight “pleasure craft” showing on MarineTraffic within our vicinity. Sounds crowded but nothing is showing on AIS, radar or visually. I wonder if they all feel as alone as we do?! |