Malua is at 33:57.47N 12:05.07W at 0600 on 10/10/2012 at sea off Morocco

Last night as well as the previous night I could see the stars reflected in the still sea all around Malua as we motored through the flat calm of the night.  The deck log states under conditions: glassy – no wind – no swell.  It was a beautiful night as I came on watch at 02:00.  This is the third day in a row that we have had less than 4 knots of wind as the sun set.  The AIS can pick up a vessel more than 200 nm away under these conditions.  Thankfully it has filters so we only get those ships displayed that are within a 12 mile radius.  Two passed in the night.

We had run out of bread so I set about turning the French flour into bread.  My first attempt a few weeks ago resulted in a rather tasteless white loaf but this time the newer darker flour produced a nice round loaf which was eaten with relish along with the kidney beans, onion, red pepper, tomatoes and fetta.  A great meal to keep us occupied for the rest of the day.  A slow day as the engine droned on, three days non stop.  There are only 90 nm to go – about 13 hours at this pace.  We will have to slow down to reach the river mouth at sun rise on Friday.

Pete and I have slipped into a good routine in these conditions.  I can fall asleep almost instantly my head hits the pillow knowing that little will change in the next three hours.  Entering Moroccan continental shelf will add some challenges as the ships traffic will increase along with fishing boats and the associated fishing nets.  The moon only rises at 3:00 so the night will be dark, a watchful eyes will be needed.

A magical moment on Malua