45:51.75N 007:31.21W

Halfway across biscay!

26/08/13

18:55 UTC

 

So since this morning progress has been steady, with no change in sail plan we have kept plugging away with 6-7 knots of boat speed, and tide both with and against us. The top boat speed with have seen so far is a decent 10 knots. Haven’t seen a single vessel all day, with only 3 appearing on AIS this last hour. Fingers crossed for a quiet evening.

 

Fishing has been impractical with our French purchased hand line, with such a high boat speed, however we have still caught fish! After doing a rig check this afternoon two small fish were found dead on the deck, one very small specimen, the other a much longer, thinner thing with a spikey nose. Anyone able to identify these?

 

Apart from that, the hydro generator has acquired a vibration when above 7.8 knots. Highly annoying! Oli spent 20 mins over the stern trying to tighten bolts between and through the waves, only to have partially fixed the noise.

 

Decided to change course to leave the northern tip of Portugal with a bit more room and hopefully stay in some deeper, more comfortable swell. Hopefully will be arriving at the tip in approximately 27/28 hours. Breeze is forecast to increase, with the potential for some 28 knot breeze sometime next week.

 

As I type a bird has just found its way into the cabin, causing a bit of fun and chaos! It looks tired but i think James is more worried about it pooing on his pillow.

 

Until next time my fluttery friends!