Atlantic Crossing Day 14
Macushla
Mark & Sue Owen
Sat 4 Feb 2012 13:52
Miles travelled in the last 24 hours: 137
Miles logged since leaving the Canaries: 1,949
Miles to go to Barbados: 994
All is well on board and we had another impressive moonlit night as we continued to make steady progress, having set a cautious, double-reefed mainsail only.
As our journey progresses we're increasingly choosing a more conservative sail configuration, making for a reduced 24 hour run, but a less frenetic ride. As expected, the disjointed sleep cycle is taking its toll and sometimes we feel a light-headed tiredness (symptoms we treat alternately with day time napping and freshly brewed Lavazza filter coffee!). As a consequence we do not rush to make sail changes and our current set up is easily manageable - the only adjustments necessary involve furling/unfurling the headsail, which can be undertaken without disturbing the off-watch crew.
We are both collecting an interesting array of bruises as we are constantly bracing and balancing ourselves in the rolling conditions, but otherwise we're fine and are enjoying the adventure.
It's starting to get increasingly hot and sticky on board - 30 degrees C down below at 8.00 a.m. this morning - not helped by our having battened down the hatches on Macushla to ensure no water ingresses from any sloppy waves breaking alongside. Most of the time we're living in tee shirts and shorts; how glad are we that we bought ourselves full, blue water harnesses when we were in Gibraltar. They are much more comfortable to wear in these conditions than more bulky life jackets and still provide a secure method of attaching to the boat at all times.