1742 miles to St Lucia

Panulirus
CR and KN Williams
Tue 5 Dec 2006 15:19
19:18:000N 30:34:000W

as at 1700 GMT 5th December 2006



Day 8



Keith

Good day, Horace says we're not last and may even be catching up. One of the big boys dismasted himself today, unable to help because we're 500 miles behind them!



Little Guy

A pleasant afternoon with the feet up in front of a blazing fire reading the Sunday papers. Had a nice nap after tea. Was a bit chilly out so didn't do much gardening. Looking forward to Last of The Summer Wine this evening, before another long and dreary week at work tomorrow. I hate Mondays.



Tom

And steamed pudding and custard to celebrate being a third of the way there. The tins of which came all the way from Sainsbury's in Wimbledon - so quite a few food miles. Although in our defense we haven't been past many shops for the last 1000 miles.



Clare

Why is it that the waves coming up behind us look so huge in the dark? And lying in bed you think that a gale has got up as you slide up and then down again before being tossed from side to side.

In daylight with the sun out the waves and the rolling are quite benign .





Day 9



Keith

Yet another breakage, if this goes on we'll arrive at St Lucia standing on the cross-trees like Capn Jack Sparrow of Pirates of the Caribbean! This time we were poling out the Genoa in less than 20 knots of wing when the bottom 7 rivets of the whisker pole track gave out and bent the track, That's 15 popped mast rivets this year! Clare's still struggling with the wind-vane and I couldn't get the TillerPilot to work but it's still early days. We wonder if the Duogen isn't functioning mainly as a port side drogue. Someone put out a Mayday because their skippers gone mad!

Wind is brilliant with 25-35 knots just off the starboard quarter, bit cloudy 'though.

More than 1/3 the way.



Little Guy

Pop goes the Whisker-Pole. Keith may ruefully view the events as further damage to his once-pristine Panulirus, but I rather like the new twisted metal on the front of the mast. It's a post-modern figurehead. A paean to brutalist architectural forms, yet with a deliciously minamilist approach to colour and form. I think we should be proud of it. I may be alone in this.



Tom

Note that in contrast to our un-ecological dessert of yesterday the installation piece on the front of the mast is entirely recycled. So that should please the environmentalists. Started reading the voyage reading kindly donated by Tom and Amanda Fieldhouse "Tossed at Sea". (An 1880 boys adventure tale. Honest.) And Guy's Daily Poem was "Fishes' Heaven" by Ruper Brooke. So rest assured that we are not neglecting our cultural and spiritual sides.



Clare

Despite the ingredients trying to launch themselves across the cabin we are eating well. Roast lamb for Sunday lunch , pork a la moutarde [Tom], spanish omelet for breakfast [Keith] and the aforementioned treacle pudding[Guy]





Day 10



Keith

Ship's clock put back an hour. Few squalls last night but they all missed us, now clearing. Water ?pump bust again.



Little Guy

Nothing broken yet today, but it's still early. I slept through all the excitement of squalls last night so hope to get in on the action tonight. Last night the most memorable thing on my watch was the moon going behind a cloud. Actually, it was a great cloud. It looked like a really menacing dwarf, with a pointy beard and curly shoes and everything. And it was really dark and scary.



Tom

Uncharacteristically, Guy neglects to mention that the freaky dwarf also appeared to emitting a five mile long vapour trail from his backside.



Clare

Major breakthrough- I have got the capehorn windvane selfsteering to work for at least 3 hours..watch this space.