Tuesday 11th February 2014

00:21:89N

88:08:40W

We've crossed the ITCZ (Doldrums) AS a result of all this  we've got Alpharatz biting our ankles for a photo finish. All good stuff and nice to be out of the Doldrums and using white sails instead of all those hair raising spinnakers. 

We've had a wonderful moon so brilliant, 2 nights running it lit up a lovely white bird who fluttered about us for hours looking like the Holy Spirit.  When it sets we get a chance to gaze on the Southern sky, we can make out Scorpio with it's huge tail and the Southern Cross, but although shining with stars there aren't many named constellations basically because all the brainy people lived up in the Mediterranean.

Tantillizing sea life abounds just on the edge of vision, a pilot whale sleeping nearby, then a splash farther out, was it a breaching whale?  then later a turtle swimming past, what's he doing out here? 

Fishing hasn't been successful of late, we've lost 2 lures, yesterday the line wizzed off with a scream, we took a while to slow the boat and then saw a huge ? swordfish leaping and splashing, the line broke and that was that. Not that we'd have wanted a 4ft swordfish writhing around in the cockpit.