At last! We have now come off the rather uncomfortable broad reach and have set the twin

headsails for the run into Barbados. The unusual weather we have been experiencing, both

in terms of temperature and wind direction, has meant we have not been seeing the true

trade winds which traditonally set in towards the end of November. However having now

moved approximately 600nm west of the Cape Verdes we are now seeing the settled 20

to 30 knot easterlies we would expect. The grib files going forward show little change so

if they hold true we can look forward to reaching Barbados in as little as 7 days time but

with 1361nm to go as of 11.00 hrs GMT things could change!  

5 large flying fish on deck this morning but don't recall any yesterday - strange. Were

followed the other day by a small flock of 7 egrets. I have read that these birds are now

one of the most widely distributed species and if they are capable of flying across the Atlantic

I am not surprised. They don't however look strong flyers and you don't think of egrets or their

cousins herons spending much time on the wing. They flew around Freewheel for some time and

we wondered whether they were going to hitch a lift but finally bade farewell and flew off...