DAY 15...AND NOW.....THE GREAT CIRCLE to GIB
Gaviota
Sat 17 Jan 2009 12:00
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34:57.563N 35:02.370W
At 1000 local time (1200 gmt) distance run in last 23
hours 149 miles
So passed the 2000 mile mark (now 2139 miles so far) and
effectively through the chicken run and onto the next phase.... but the days
sailing first
Well I got the spinnaker up straight after yesterdays blog
.... but on the opposite tack to the one I had planned on (was intending to go
on starboard gybe and get a bit further north for more wind ) so now on
port gybe and trying to keep as close as possible to the great circle route (ie
the shortest distance between 2 points on the globe) to Gib from here. The
really interesting thing was that every time I started to set up for the
starboard gybe... which began yesterday ... something happened that stopped me.
.. The final thing this morning was a squall ..only small .. but not what
you want to put a spinnaker up in .... So I decided that someone was trying to
tell me something and went for the other gybe ..... so far its definately been
correct.. The spinnaker is still up as I write this so had her flying all night
and given the quiet conditions .. wind varying from 7 to 12 knots most of the
time and max sqall only up to 18 knots .... Yes someone was telling me
something! The wind is so steady that I can leave George to it and only
intervene when there is one of the few (half dozen ish) shifts .. and then
usually under 5 degrees! The effect of sailing in a high pressure
area!
So having decided to head direct now I am gambling on the high
pressure NOT expanding north or east(the Azores high) until I
get passed 25 degrees west and will only start to relax when I get to
20 degrees .... that equates to 6 - 900 miles!.... So the faster I go the
less chance of the pressure system changing ... hence the spinnaker up all
night! And if the high pressure does increase ....wind dies and I have 900
miles of motoring to do .... ugh . In the last 24 hours the pressure has
increased marginally, but not enough to concern me ..yet.. but listen to this
you guys in the UK, pressure now reading 1034 mbars and sunny
and a nice spinnaker breeze over pretty calm seas ... i am going to enjoy the
sail today (or should I say tomorrow)!
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