Day 2 - Noon June 11^th to Noon June 12^th

It feels good to be back at sea again and not hanging around in port waiting for repairs. The distance to Portugal is coming down steadily. Just before midnight on 11^th June we overtook the fleet which was waiting in Ponta Delgado. The yachts were due to start at midday on 12^th June but we decided it wasn’t worth stopping and messing around with berthing and clearing in and out for the sake of 12 hours. So by the time they started we had a lead of about 65 miles. We are about the slowest boat still left heading for Portugal. The other slow boats have either stayed in the Azores or are heading to Northern Europe. I expect the other faster yachts heading to Portugal will overtake us before we get there.

We’re currently sailing straight towards Lisbon but the Portuguese current will sweep us south and we should end up somewhere near Lagos. That’s the plan and the skipper’s sticking to it.

Dolphins continue to amuse us and we’re now getting good enough to argue about which species is paying us a visit.

The Azores are now out of sight so the next land we see will be continental Europe. But just before we left the islands we shot an interesting photo. You often get sunbeams poking down through the clouds. It’s not often you get a sunbeam going upwards. Check this out.

Paul - Peejay