The calm before the storm

Saxon Blue's Blog
Harvey Jones and Andrea Stokes
Fri 3 Sep 2010 19:16
49:52.193N 58:04.795W Friday afternoon

We're now at the southernmost point of our journey so far which seems very strange. Newfoundland is normally considered as part of the North but we're now on a latitude a fair way south of The Lizard, our previous furthest south point. That just goes to show what an effect the Gulf Stream has because the sea we're now sailing in freezes solid in winter. At the moment, though, it's at 20 degrees C and we're all sitting around in T-shirts. Not only the temperature but also the wildlife has changed again. We've left the open ocean behind and we're now seeing seagulls rather than Fulmars and Gannets instead of Auks. I love the Gannets so that's a good thing in my book.

We expected the Straight of Belle Isle to be foggy and full of ships but it's neither. We've only seen two fishing vessels all day and the visibility is perfect. That means we've been able to see the coast all the way along. It's mountainous and wild with the occasional small port. From reading The Shipping News, I'd got the impression that Newfoundland was a small island but it's massive although I don't think many people live in it.

We're all pleased that we decided to set off last night as we'll be getting into sheltered waters later tonight and should be safely out of Hurricane Earl's way soon after first light tomorrow. In the meantime, it's back to the surreal world of sleeping in the daylight, eating all the time and looking out at endless water. Watchkeeping is very odd and the time passes quickly despite not really doing anything that's worth recalling or writing about. Hence the short blogs when we're at sea.

Harvey

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