Day 17 - Day 4 at Sea
Seaduced
John & Jane Craven
Sat 11 Jul 2015 09:08
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It is now 16.00 on day 4 and we have
covered 535 miles through the water and 450 miles over ground in 3 days. ie
178 miles per day @ 7.4 knots through the water or 150 miles per day @ 6.25
knots over ground. For non sailors, speed over ground is exactly what it
says, but you also measure speed through the water which varies with tides and
currents, which demonstrates how well the boat is sailing. As far as
actual distance travelled, speed over ground (SOG) it the most relevant
figure.
The winds have been fairly light over the past few days,
so we have been travelling relatively slowly. However, we are just
reaching the area of the Trade Winds, and the forecasts expect us to have winds
in the region of 15 - 25 knots.
The winds have increased during the day and we currently
have 18 knots from directly behind the boat and we are
currently sailing at around 9 knots, which makes a huge difference to
our progress, particularly on a journey of 15,000 miles. We are sailing
almost directly downwind with the full main sail on the port side and a slightly
reefed genoa poled out on the starboard side. This means that we are not
sailing at a constant angle, but role slightly side-to-side, depending on the
swell.
The first 3 nights have been spectacular and the further
away from land we travel, the more striking is the sunset and
the more dazzling are the stars. There a few more stunning places to
be on earth than on a sailing yacht at night, on watch on your own, with an
amazing display of stars above, and a lightshow of phosphorescence in the water
below.
During the day, we have settled back into our sailing
routine. As we are all up during various times of the night on watch,
breakfast is a case of helping yourself when you are hungry. However,
lunch and dinner are the focal points of the day, and a time that we all sit
down to eat together.
Another thing that happens is that at least once a day,
we have been buzzed by the Australian Border Force, checking on where we have
come from, where we are going, how many people on board etc. As we haven't
seen another yacht since leaving Darwin, I think that they are pretty bored with
nobody else to bother, so they just fly round for a chat & to break up their
day!
Finally, on to our fishing stories. At
around 14.00 yesterday we put out the fishing line and at dusk, around
19.00 we pulled it back in. At least the lure had had a good swim and
the line a good wash. This morning, nice and early, we threw the lure in
for its daily exercise. Just as Ant was about to serve lunch, the line
started running with something on the end. Forty minutes later
and a lot of sweat from me and blood from the fish, we had landed a 3 -
4 kg tuna. Sushi & Sashimi for dinner!!
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