16:53.2N 024:59.5W

1100 UT Monday, 23 Jan

 

Weather is better today, as forecast.  Dust storm has abated and sun has appeared.  BUT we’re still here.  The reason is that poor Craig had been unwell some of the time during our passage from Tenerife caused, we think, by an adverse reaction to some medication he had been taking.  Skip was concerned  about him, and especially the impact it might have if his condition got worse.  The decision was made to add a fifth crew member and our mega-friend and sailing-buddy Michael Morland has stepped forward to fill the position.  He arrives on Wednesday to the neighbouring island of Boavista.  This is 150 miles east of here, upwind and in the wrong direction.  We could sail there to meet him but we are taking the easy way out: we sit here and Michael will take an inter-island flight connection.

Yesterday was spent making the changes to accommodate Michael.  The forward cabin was cleared.  Sails re-stowed. Elizabeth and Lucy have been through all the food provisions to cater for the extra mouth to feed and have faced some tricky decisions such as how to divide the pies by five not four. Answer: get more pies!  They have also put together a fantastic spread sheet listing all the available meal options for the voyage – see the excerpt below.

 

 

Now that we are here for a few more days we hope to explore a little.  Meanwhile here are a few pics of the local sights.