34:47.7N 60:10.1W

107 miles to noon UTC.

Today’s blog is contributed by Allan.

The first sign that all was not well with the day came when the salt-rotted knee of my trousers split.

The second was when the bilge alarm sounded. This was a contingency we’d covered in the afternoon spent on safety issues back in Antigua. Within 20 seconds each member of the crew was checking their assigned hatches, and within 30 the problem bilge was identified. We found that the ingress of sea-water was caused by the water-maker filter having been struck and dislodged by the heavy spare anchor stowed in the forepeak. Would that diagnoses were always as straightforward.

The third sign was when the staysail furled untidily. This was found to be a capsized shackle at the head. Inspection from the bosun’s chair hoist to halfway up the staysail showed also a loose grub screw threatening to separate the two halves of the foil and jeopardise the integrity of the rig. This, and the chafed ‘nip’ of the staysail halyard, were soon sorted and the sail re-hoist.

Then the generator stuttered to a halt from fuel starvation and the engine sprang an oil-leak. Each of these was rectified in what has become the calm Neroli manner, with not much noise and the application of skill, experience and team work.

When the wind dropped to nothing, we furled the sails, had a good supper and a bottle of wine and celebrated the inaugural meeting of the 35N/60W waypoint appreciation society.

I will mend my trousers tomorrow.