I can't get no sleep!
Viridian
Tue 11 Apr 2023 16:09
COG: 249M
SOG: 7.5 kn
Wind: 110M 19.0 kn
09:00 local time (UTC -7)
Distance to go: 1,297 nm
We are now making good speed with the stronger winds, but with every Yin there is a Yang.
The noise is ferocious!!! The water is surging past the hull; the boat is creaking; the waves are banging against the hull; the sails are slapping; and everything down below that can move and make a noise is doing so. When you add in the fact that we are well heeled over and the boat is bouncing around madly….pitching; yawing and rolling - it makes it very difficult to sleep.
We have a watch system going - 3 hours on during the day and 2 hours at night, but sleeping during the day is quite difficult because of the temperature.
Insomnia has now become our boat’s song….I CAN”T GET NO SLEEP!
I’ve heard that when tired enough people can actually fall asleep standing up. Well I am now officially absolutely knackered and I’m rapidly approaching that point.
At the moment the flying fish are still the only sign of life out here…we find half a dozen of various sizes on the decks every morning, from 2cm to 15cm long. Given that we still haven’t managed to catch anything I suppose they could be a whitebait-like snack if deep fried in batter, but we aren’t quite that desperate yet.
One of our sources of entertainment is watching them as the boat scares them into flight. If we pass through a shoal then they all take flight at the same time and it looks like a firework has exploded near the bows as these little silver sparks fly out in all directions. They can fly what seems like an incredible distance, some as much as 200 metres. I find them fascinating.