Position
24:07.002N 018:59.690W
Day
3
Well
we found out today that we were in 51st position and we were thrilled
but then I remembered that I had forgotten to submit our engine hours in the
first position report -which were10!) so I will be heavily penalised I’m sure,
I'll have to look up the weighting they give you!
It’s been a really good
day today - just like being on hols – we woke up this morning to an eerily flat
sea - almost spooky, we could see no other boats and sky was thick and grey and
completely calm - the clouds cleared when the sun came up but the wind didn't
return, nevertheless - having motored all night - we decided we had to try and
sail so we have moseyed along for most of the day at 4-5 knts, first with the
cruising chute and then with spinnaker - something I only put up if really
desperate for wind!
It was so calm I cut all the boys hair on the back, wore
a bikini all day - we sat and had cheese, ham and prawns for lunch - I even
treated myself to a vodka - then Molly surpassed herself and pooed and wee'd on the boat!!!! She is
now officially a sea dog! Despite
the fact that it was very calm, she was agitated all afternoon - she kept
panting and was very restless - I guessed it was because she needed the loo and
I put her on a lead and took her for a walk round the boat, shaking her poo
bags as we do normally, but we were putting the spinnaker up at the time and I
think she was distracted by all the flapping, so half an hour later Dave
did the same - he put her on the lead and walked her to the front of the boat
and said "Good girl" and she squatted and did a huge wee - we were all so
excited - Dave W did an all ships alert on the SSB radio - announcing to all ARC
boats that "The Dog has been - I repeat - the dog has been!" I went to the front
to make a fuss of her and she must have thought in for a penny in for a pound
(as it were!) because she squatted again and pooed - the boat was
triumphant in it's celebration and the dog and all the crew celebrated with
chocolate!! (Dave W was a little bit miffed because it covered his
sun bathing area - but I’ve told him it will soon dry!)
The days have
flown by so far I have not even opened my book yet, though the nights seem long,
I did finally manage a couple of hours sleep last night so I’m sure that once we
get into a rhythm it will get better. We also spend alot of time on the SSB
radio, talking to the other ARC boats we know. We have also finally made contact
with Newtsville & Nychea who left a few days before us so keep telling us
what to expect ahead. In addition
you tend to just have friendly chats with the boats around you -
most nights
we have had at least 5 within sight - and as we fitted an AIS system, the
boats name comes up on our radar screen so you can radio them by name which is a
little more effective than just radioing and saying - big boat on my port bow do
you hear me! - Though that works too - everyone is always keen for a chat to
break the monotony.
We
had a bit of excitement last night - Dave W woke me about 4am as he was
concerned about a battery light - and as he did Sam noticed a faint light on our
bow - we struggled to make out what it was - so we put on the radar - sure
enough we picked up a blob - but it appeared to be stationary, Sam flashed it 5x
which is the signal for please state your intentions but this was ignored
- three times- in the end we changed course and veered around them - but as we
did they started coming towards us - of course by this time in the morning our
sleep deprived minds and group hysteria - had us all convinced we were about to
be boarded by a boat load of immigrants - in the end they turned and we saw a
large sail - it was basically a yacht - who probably weren't keeping a very good
watch!
Nevertheless an hour had passed in all the excitement and we were all
wide awake!
Finally the highlight of today was a HUGE (200+) pod of
dolphins that swam with us for over an hour and seemed to perform tricks - they
were coming along the side of the boats and jumping out of the air - then moving
along almost upright (seriously I took some photo's - have tried to attach
one!") so we clapped and laughed and they seemed to respond and do it more,
Molly got very excited - she could hear them clicking and was leaning over the
rail to see them - we had to put her on a lead in case she jumped in! They also
jumped and somersaulted in the air and belly flopped and slapped their tails -
we were all entranced for a good 30 mins, plus several hours earlier we
had several whales surface briefly by the side of the boat - we think they were
pilot whales but didn't see them for long enough to be sure. The low was the
lack of wind and only doing 137 miles against our hoped for 150!
Fish
caught - 1 - though ity took ther line and the lure and happened when the
dolphins surrounded the boat - so we were all quite upset at the thought of a
dolphin with Jordan's 50 euro lure stuck in it's mouth
Anyway just
approaching night 3 - if life stays like this - it will be a very enjoyable
crossing! Just pray God for a little more
wind...