3PM 9/12/07
The Raymarne system decided to play up. What
happens is that you get a NEMA freeze in which the computer and the navigation
think they’re getting a correct positon on
the network but fact it’s
not updating. This is
normally cured by the high tech expediant of turning everything off for a bit
and then on again. Not this
time.
In the end I have to manually delete all the
waypoint and route information in the Raymarine system on both the plotter and
the repeater. Restart them empty.
Re download the route from the main computer and now it appears to be
playing correctly except that this leg is over 1300 miles and the Raymarine
system can’t cope with Waypoint range and Time to Go over that large a distance.
The cockpit repeater does give the correct distance but the plotter itself is frozen at 409.5 miles when it should
read 1383. The Raymarine technician
in Gran Canaria did say all of our gear was way behind on software updates but he
wouldn’t advise changing it just before a crossing.
5PM.
It did it again. It always starts with a Lost GPS error
message. There in nothing
wrong with the GPS. But this time I restarted the Navigation
program and it all came back. Don’t know if it was coincidence or what, but it
sure was a hell of a lot easier and quicker than reprogramming everything.
It’s a hot muggy afternoon. The wind persists in
staying SSE which is not great
for either boat speed or comfort.
Sotiris found the halyard shackle
pin on the deck hours after it had fallen out.
8PM
We have a visitor. A small sea hawk(?) stopped to rest for
a couple of minutes but he was just casing the joint and when he thought we weren’t
looking he came back.
I hope there’s not too much evidence of his visit
in the morning.
The sea is getting up a bit so it’s not going to
be a comfortable night for sleeping.
The wind is SE now and I hope it stays
there.
4AM 10/12/07
The wind did stay SE Force 5 and I slept
surprisingly well. The stars are
particularly bright as there is no
competition from the moon. We are
making a few degrees East of track, so should the wind go more South than we
like, we will have some sea room to manoeuvre.
No sign of our visitor on the poop deck.
We are sighting cargo ships every few
hours.
It’s too hot belowdecks even for a T
Shirt.
There’s a little water slopping about in the bilge
which every once in a while sets off the bilge alarm. This is an especially
virulent noise and although it only lasts a few seconds, it really gets
everyone’s attention.
9AM
The wind continues at SE Force 5/6.
Everyone slept well last night, and when I arose again at 8:30
everyone was up, the first time apart from day 1 that’s
happened.
There precious little bird poop on the poop deck
so he’s welcome anytime. He’s still around as Sotiris just spotted him flitting
amongst the waves. Ah, the waves,
every once in a while one flicks up on board curling around the spray hood. Bathing suits may become the order of
the day for the watch. Actually Sortiris is one step ahead as he’s already
wearing one, which is handy as he just got drenched sitting at the leeward
helm.
We are 80 miles abeam of the Arquipelago
De Fernando De Noronha, a protected
nature reserve about 200 miles offshore, which we visited in March 2000. Dolphins go there by the 1000 to breed
which is where they must all be now as we haven’t seen one for several
days.
We haven’t touched the sails in a few days, the
sail plan is a bit of reefed everything, yankee, staysail and main. The running backstay is up for good
measure.
10AM
Steve wants to vacuum down below and
asks Nik to help by corralling the canister so it can’t leap about the boat
while he’s vacuuming. He then tries
to persuade Nik to call it a VAcuum cleaner not WAcuum cleaner. After a bit of
to-ing and fro-ing they decide to call it a Hoover…even though
it’s a Meile.
Noon
Daily run 194 miles. I’ve just realized that by supper we
should be half way. So I’d better put a bottle of wine in the fridge.
