Chagos to Mauritius - Day 3

Harmonie
Don and Anne Myers
Tue 1 May 2012 09:33
12:02.537S  69:30.488E
 
May 1, 2012
 
Better.
The other two boats we are traveling with said exactly the same this morning on the SSB radio.  Better.  It seems all three of us were spit out of the ITCZ around the same time although we are spread out over a distance of about 80 miles.  After chewing us up for 24 hours, the ITCZ released us early this morning.  There was a bit of sun at dawn where previously there was just a lighter shade of gray.  This afternoon it's partly sunny.  It's good to see some blue.
 
There has been plenty of wind, at times as high as 30 knots, but usually around 20-22.  Not so bad except that we are sailing into it (as we knew we would have to on this passage).  Struggling to pull ourselves around the tilted boat from head to galley to pilot berth, and to sit without sliding off the helm seat just confirms our previous thoughts about sailing hard on the wind - it sucks.  There is a bright side though!  The toilet sandwich problem has been solved.  Instead of trying to hold the lid up while simultaneously trying not to slide off the seat, a bungee cord has been expertly installed so the lid stays up on its own.  Brilliant!
 
All in all, our lives are suddenly very simple.  We eat what is already prepared - straight out of the containers.  We drink water because we can't be bothered to make tea or coffee (imagine Don without coffee for three straight days - not pretty) and we sleep on a  rotating 3 hours on 3 hours off schedule.  That's it.  We will definitely deserve our arrival champagne after this trip!
More tomorrow -
Anne