4:45.54S 100:35.50W
Kahia
Paul and Catherine Davis
Thu 3 May 2012 15:56
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Another very pleasant day at sea, our casual watch
system varying from 3-6hrs on/ off seems to keep the body batteries well charged
up
and suits our sanguine natures well. A regular night
occurrence is the arrival of small squid and flying fish to be found on the
decks most mornings especially after a boisterous and windy night. We
found that the larger flying fish are perfect bate for the Mahi-Mahi
(dolphin fish) which happens to be one of the best tasting fish in the ocean and
there are plenty of them out here, we were told by our fishermen friends back in
Aruba,
and the squid perfect sizzled in butter and garlic with
just a` touch of salt` , (making me feel hungry).
So far the experience of sailing in the Pacific is one
of peace and easy sailing, that is to say, a huge lazy ocean swell coming
up from the south to south east direction with a wind
of between 8- 13 knots from the same direction. This combination seems
to hardly produce any significant waves at all, so far that is.
It'll be interesting to see if this holds true when we get into the proper trade
winds which should be up to about 25 knots and are still about a hundred
miles south of us.
Life aboard, apart from looking after our bodies
is looking after Kahia. It is amazing how much time is spent
checking over all the systems on board and carrying out, so far, small repairs
and adjustments. Got a fright when the water maker stopped working this
morning, in this desert of salt water, had visions of us not
washing for weeks and having to suck the fluid out of fish spines to stay
alive. Well, pleased to say after checking everything and
resetting the `start up`, it worked, but not until another heart
stopping moment, when I tasted pure salt water instead of fresh, only
to realize I hadn't given enough time for the `salt back flush` to
cycle. Any way all is well and it is now working perfectly ( thank you God
).
So Russell and Jaz, take plenty of tools, with
you, one of those head torches, a kneeling pad ( which comes in useful when praying ) and workshop manuals on
everything you have on board in the hope that you won`t need them but probably
will at some time or another.
We are averaging 149 nm a day which means that when
in a good wind it should be a fast passage. Also having a spotless bottom (the
boat I mean, although thanks to the water maker mine also), we are just slipping
through the water, so the two hours spent scrubbing and cleaning all
the goose barnacles off of our` copper coat` antifouling before we left is
paying off well.
So its about one hour to sunrise and my breakfast and
three hours to waking Catherine up with a `nice
cup of tea` and then my turn to slip into a cozy bunk. So bye for now, all you
lovely people, next installment later......
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