Saturday 16^th May

Last night was a real rush. From early evening on, the wind started to build and the swell steadily grew from the north. Handling the wheel from the midnight till 2am watch was stunning; breeze consistently in the high twenties, and frequent periods at 35 knots, the boat surging relentlessly downwind in the dark. The wheel needs a fair amount of handling to keep the boat on track, as both the wind and the steep, occasionally cresting waves have a go at disturbing the partnership There’s a lot of pitching and rolling, and from time to time, both boat and helmsman join in a little dance called ‘Let’s roll 60 degrees together Baby’, any ensuing intimacy firmly extinguished by buckets of water from stage right.’. Early in the watch a dirty black cloud loomed up to port, emitting occasional eerie flashes of greenish lightening, a light shower of rain and the wind joined the party with a sustained gust of 40 knots. The storm then crossed steadily in front of the track as the moon rose, peering wanly through rents in the gloom. Meanwhile the watch below are trying to rest and sleep while berth and boat revolve around them and every tin, jar and loose item band together to entertain with a percussive, clashing cacophony – marvellous, now, when’s the next meal.

Knot of the day: Slippery bowline   Nautical saying: Comb the cat