47:02.800n 26:10.400w

Distance to home:  1091 miles

Distance run today:  103 miles  

Course 050

We are trying to decide if we headed North too early and would have been better to close further on the Azores to get a lift from the Azores High.  Too late to worry much now, we are heading for home.

Domestic

Wills woke up this morning with a productive attitude, after some sausages for breakfast he set about scrubbing the teak in the cockpit, set out the fishing rods and sorting the reefing lines that have been in a slight tangle since we left. Jobs complete he even picked up his Bryson for a chapter or so… He did have the ‘all night in’ shift last night after all. It’s the one shift we all look forward to every third day where you get four hours sleep before getting woken at 2am but then get at another 4 hours sleep in.

Jez took one look at this youthful enthusiasm and decided to help by keeping out the way – 90 minutes in a sleeping bag did the trick

We’ve raided our grab bag for the last pack of bourbons, it’s a shame we don’t have the same back up option when it comes to tea bags as we seem to be running low of the faithful PG tips. Mind you there is plenty of filtered coffee to get through so we won’t be reduced to beer 24/7 just yet.

We refilled the diesel tank this morning, it has taken 8 gallons and room for another two, not bad going using only 10 gallons of diesel since leaving Bermuda nearly three weeks ago.

Tim and Wills are determined to get through the whole 192 sudoku’s in the book Emma kindly bought for the crew, about 70 to go!

Last night the choice of podcast’s to accompany Rummy were slightly more cultural and current, one about ISIS and the Syrian Kurds, another on the history of the California Goldrush and the last on the life and works of Marie Curie.

Sailing

Tim and Jez had to hand steer through the early hours this morning in order to get as much out of the wind as possible. 

As expected from the weather GRIB and conversations with passing ships yesterday, the wind has died away and moved to the east for now. The seas calmed over night so we are able to run the engine on its happy 1500 revs and achieve a good 4 knots for through the early morning before switching to sailing close hauled on Port tack in a light wind at present.

We are expecting quite a lot of wind tomorrow, unfortunately from the East which is where we want to go.  We have dug out the sea anchor so that if all else fails and we can’t make headway towards home, we can arrest any movement to the west and all go below to wait for a favourable direction as the low moves across us. 

Natural History

Thanks to Dave Smart for confirming that the fin we saw yesterday at the same time as the whale was a basking shark! It makes sense really if they are both interesting in finding plankton. Very cool, shame the GoPro wasn’t prepped and ready but we have some dodgy video on the phone.  The fin cruised serenely past whilst the whale that we were trying to film was moving fast and we couldn’t focus on it before it had moved on each time it surfaced.

Jez saw a splash of white in the calm sea this morning and immediately thought “whale”.  He was then disappointed to find that it was “only” a family of dolphins leaping clear of the water.  Our expectations have changed a little over the last week.   We are becoming very acute to the noises of all our sea creatures but always hoping for a closer whale sighting. The dolphins were entertaining nonetheless.

Today’s Responses

John Clarke / RBS –  We had a drink for John Meredith after dinner last night.  I have a mental picture of a man in a kilt with a beaming smile at his and Irene’s wedding that I shall hold on to. 

Dave S – So you have been talking to a proper Natural History Authority.  David Attenborough may be a god but you will do for us.  Kittiwake (well done for speed of response) and basking shark acknowledged. 

Emma – Great that you are out on bike.  35 miles is more than I could manage right now.

Richard – Hope you are better at Bridge than we are at Rummy.  Thanks for news round-up and bird.  (Not a tern, we recognise them, Flores is new to us and Dave S suggesting Kittiwake.  Are these similar ?)  Clarification required on AM Cup Dead – we read this as America’s Cup and that Ben Ainslie has failed in his attempt to set up a GB challenger.  Is that right ?

Lizzie – Come on then, how far did you jump ?

Mum (Pat) – Glad you have everything shipshape.  How’s Paul ?

Laura – Re. your last email, thank you, plenty of time to think and definitely got it right…Good luck with finding a firm to sponsor you at Cambridge, the story sounds unique so a good chance I reckon although I never knew you had done that, look forward to hearing more when I am home. Yeh my phone wasn’t working before I left because I changed network but forgot my phone was blocked to the network I was previously on, glad to hear you have a phone!

Lamorna – Thanks for passing on the message, you can just abbreviate like we used to have to do texting old school! Made any choices/decisions/dates etc…?

Bye for now

Sadie