Monday 26th November 2012 20:08.00N 025:28.38W

 

Yesterday Rossi caught her first Mahi Mahi (a.k.a Dorado). Not a big fish, but more than adequate to provide tonight’s supper.  Not bad for someone who doesn’t like handling fish and only caught her first one this year on the way from the Azores to Plymouth in June. 

 

Thanks to Rossi and Gill, we are eating well and the boat is being kept in very good condition. 

 

The boat is going well and the sun is shining on us.  New reefing blocks on the main sail, fitted by Westaway Sails in Plymouth, turn out to have sharp edges to the machined edges which abrade the sail and almost cut through the reefing line, so yesterday I had to fit leatherette patches to protect the sail  and line from further damage.  Westaway have generally botched their sail service to such an extent that I have to wonder if they actually employ any sailmakers or just the couple of youths who visited the boat twice in Plymouth to rectify other faults I had pointed out to the company.

 

We are heading towards Barbados, which will give us the option of visiting the island if we arrive in time, or going direct to Grenada if not.  John, who crewed the last leg to Tenerife, and Stuart, the skipper of “Desiderata” which was moored near us in San Miguel marina in Tenerife, have given differing accounts of the Barbadian handling of visitors on private yachts. We may have an opportunity to see for ourselves if current progress is maintained, although it is still early days despite the 650 miles we have already sailed since leaving Tenerife.  Our waypoint to Barbados (a day’s sail from the island) is still over 1900 miles away.