Bermuda to Azores 10.5.13
Persephone... Cruiser/Racer
Nigel & Karen Goodhew...
Fri 10 May 2013 16:04
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We are fairly hard on the wind, heading
north. Last night we passed through a frontal system which produced a new
wind direction...the wind is now blowing from the east rather than the
north.
So we have tacked, and headed off to the north,
where we are told, there are better times
ahead.
The frontal system contained a good deal of rain,
bundled into enormous squalls, each with sheet and forked lightning, which
momentarily lit up the whole sky. On one occasion we were spooked enough to tack
back and sail the wrong way for a couple of hours, rather than pass through the
storm.
Another feature of the frontal system was the
occasional complete lack of wind...so we have motored a little too.
Now, we have a great deal of wind, and have reefed
down to 3 reefs and the sturdy no 3 genoa. Big winds bring big waves, and as we
have discovered, very few things can stop a sailing boat better than large waves
coming at it from the direction in which you want to go. Ours are larger than
the boat, (memo to self....get a larger boat) so, if we try and sail fast, it
feels like falling down stairs..we climb up a crest and pivot on the top before
digging the bow into the next wave with a crash. If you are down below, it
sounds like someone is hitting the front with a sledge hammer.
So we sail slowly...
This afternoon, we sailed within a boat
length of a large slice of nature; we tend to think the item, like a huge
elephant ear, might have been thee tail fluke of a largish whale. We did not see
the rest of the animal though...nor did we see it "blow"... but then they can
hold their breath for a long time. We have ben visited by several species
of dolphin too, which always cheer you up.
Food at this angle is basically grazing snack
stuff, though we did enjoy a nice cassoulet for dinner last night...a tinned
one, bought in the French supermarket in St Martin....which seems a very, very
long time ago now.
Otherwise, apart from the normal frustration of
sailing in changeable weather, all is well.
Position as at 1600UT;
35 14.185N 42
42.454W
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