Halifax, Nova Scotia. 44 38N, 63 34W.

Yes, we are in Canada and not in the sunny Azores!  On our way from Bermuda, Ian noticed an unusual noise coming from the engine and it was vibrating quite badly and so we decided not to run it in case we caused some permanent damage. We had also managed to break the whisker pole (our fault!) and the spinnaker pole fitting on the mast broke (wear and tear) during a force eight and so we did not have a capable downwind rig, and these factors made us head for the closest land, which happened to be Canada.

We had an eventful few days getting here. We had the F8, then we have a force seven on the nose, twenty hours of being becalmed and then fog to greet us in Halifax. The fog was probably the worst day we have had during the trip, as we did not have the radar due to the batteries being flat, no charts and no knowledge of the place. Fortunately, Deb and Peter (my brother) had arranged a tow in with the coast guard and this proved to be essential as we nearly strayed into a traffic separation scheme which we had no knowledge of! 

Anyhow, we have been trying to repair the boat to get back to the UK, but I travelled home for a week and had a fantastic time with Deb in Wales and Warrington but it came to an end all too quickly. This week, Louise is on the boat visiting Ian, but it has been down to three degrees Celsius and it hasn't stopped raining for forty eight hours. Very miserable indeed!

Anyhow, I was testing the instruments this morning only to find that the radar now has an intermittent fault. We would be reckless to leave here and go across the ice limit without a functioning radar and so our woes continue for a while. Can anything else possibly go wrong?

Mike White

Mob: 07825925838/Sat Phone:+881631528694

mike {CHANGE TO AT} tradewind {DOT} eclipse {DOT} co {DOT} uk