Wind at last! 15:34.58N 048:09.90W
Seaflute
Fri 25 Nov 2016 21:57
some wind!! It arrived yesterday morning and has remained with us all day.
We have averaged 6.5 knots all day. We took down the new twin headsail this
morning, its new name has become the "Blue Bastard" for reasons I will
explain later. The wind direction has backed to the extent that we are broad
reaching (wind over the stern quarter) rather than dead running (wind
directly behind) as we have been for the previous three days. Midday today
we had a close sail by with a 73 foot catamaran also part of the rally, a
great photo opportunity, let's hope they reciprocate with pics when we get
to St Lucia.
I caught a lovely Mahi Mahi this afternoon so Ian who was galley slave today
had to rearrange his menu choice and produced an extravaganza of 'Mahi Mahi
three ways'. This consisted of cerviche, pan fried fillets and lightly
smoked fillets with savoury rice, delicious!
A day of fettling (fiddling around on boats) resulted in some new tidy
leather covers for our hydraulic hoses to protect them from wear from the
sheets (ropes that pull in the sails) and UV degradation.
The "Blue Bastard" has been bagged and is currently residing in the middle
of the saloon floor, much to Lindys disgust, until I can find somewhere I
can hide it to prevent me from being tempted to put it up again.
I have self-indulgently included a picture of my Mahi Mahi for any fishing
enthusiasts reading the blog. The more observant of you will have noticed in
the background of all the fish pictures a rather attractive "plank" sticking
up where our passarell (gang plank) is located. I acquired this plank in
Cape Verdes when we discovered that our passarell is so long it stretched
across the pontoon into the water on the other side. Apart from being highly
antisocial to the other pontoon users, it was not a lot of use. So the
"plank" was acquired for an exorbitant fee as a temporary measure and a
great job it generally did. In normal circumstances the "plank" would have
been all round a perfect solution. The problem with Mindelo Marina is that
its subject to a constant wave surge which results in the moored yachts
swaying from side to side and up and down. So rather like a challenge from
Ninja Warrior, you have to wait for a momentary lull in the surge and commit
fully to the lunge across it to the safety of the boat. Ironically, the more
beer you drank the easier this became. The crew became fairly adept at this
leap of faith over the five days we were there and miraculously no one fell
off! Sadly on the day of departure, Tom, one of the other Oyster owners
visited us to wish us Bon Voyage and failed the challenge. He managed to
save the Ipad he had in his hand with a skilful lunge to the sugar scoop on
the aft of Sea Flute. Unfortunately the phone in his pocket didn't fare so
well, nor his ribs which he bashed on his way down into the oggin. I teased
him during yesterday's radio net that I would be pleased for him to sign my
"plank" when we get to St Lucia and he rather unkindly suggested he would
like to do something different with it. Can't please some people.
All for now
Much happier! skipper Peds
