Today we've logged 147 miles and covered 143 towards our destination which is good going for Haku. I got a great sleep as last night's watches were fairly uneventful. At 6am Jim woke me to say we had a south going current of almost 2 knots which is bizarre for an area supposedly in the Gulf stream but wasn't exactly on my list of things to wake the skipper for.
We ran with 2 reefs during darkness and put full sail up at 08:30 just in time to have to drop it again for a squall. We have had powerful squalls threatening us on and off all day but only got blasted occasionally as they have veered away or dissipated. Most of the day has been 14 to 20 knots apparent just forward of the beam and our log speeds have been between 7 and 9 knots hence the good progress. So far squalls have only gusted to 36 knots.
Louise has started to enjoy her night watch and saw 3 shooting stars. Justin apparently saw a white "Moonbow" in the rain... Speaking of strange stories when Louise and I went provisioning at Wynn Dixie on Tuesday the checkout operator asked if we were shopping for a month so we explained our voyage. She proceeded to tell us that as a child she had been going round the world on a sailboat, it was to have taken three months but that she and her Pa decided to return home after seeing a shark off the tip of Africa in the first week - her bagger was seriously impressed.
No fishing today as we have been going too fast, but very exhilarating sailing. Louise has been wearing a scopolamine patch but is now switching to an electric bracelet - I thought both of these things were used by torturers but at least they don't make you sleepy.
Jim has been teaching Louise the basics of navigation and the in's and out's of true, magnetic and compass courses which as everyone knows requires a true virgin making dull company*
I'm pleased to report that my very expensive and nearly new but leaky Musto MPX gear is now waterproof around the crotch after dousing it with a bottle of waterproofing spray. There is nothing worse than a damp... place to sit.
It was my galley duty today and for lunch we had chipotle scrambled eggs, freshly baked fruit bread and a spinach salad with blue cheese, candied pecans, apple pieces and raspberry vinaigrette (which is much nicer than it sounds). We had Chilli for dinner which was easy to cook and to eat as we were moving around quite a bit.
We've just reefed down for the night as we still have squalls on the radar. I think everyone else is secretly keen to have a proper one to see what it feels like. Personally I like a nice gentle wind on the beam.It's too early to predict a good run but it has been a good day.
*(mnemonic for True, Variation, Magnetic, Deviation, Compass)
We ran with 2 reefs during darkness and put full sail up at 08:30 just in time to have to drop it again for a squall. We have had powerful squalls threatening us on and off all day but only got blasted occasionally as they have veered away or dissipated. Most of the day has been 14 to 20 knots apparent just forward of the beam and our log speeds have been between 7 and 9 knots hence the good progress. So far squalls have only gusted to 36 knots.
Louise has started to enjoy her night watch and saw 3 shooting stars. Justin apparently saw a white "Moonbow" in the rain... Speaking of strange stories when Louise and I went provisioning at Wynn Dixie on Tuesday the checkout operator asked if we were shopping for a month so we explained our voyage. She proceeded to tell us that as a child she had been going round the world on a sailboat, it was to have taken three months but that she and her Pa decided to return home after seeing a shark off the tip of Africa in the first week - her bagger was seriously impressed.
No fishing today as we have been going too fast, but very exhilarating sailing. Louise has been wearing a scopolamine patch but is now switching to an electric bracelet - I thought both of these things were used by torturers but at least they don't make you sleepy.
Jim has been teaching Louise the basics of navigation and the in's and out's of true, magnetic and compass courses which as everyone knows requires a true virgin making dull company*
I'm pleased to report that my very expensive and nearly new but leaky Musto MPX gear is now waterproof around the crotch after dousing it with a bottle of waterproofing spray. There is nothing worse than a damp... place to sit.
It was my galley duty today and for lunch we had chipotle scrambled eggs, freshly baked fruit bread and a spinach salad with blue cheese, candied pecans, apple pieces and raspberry vinaigrette (which is much nicer than it sounds). We had Chilli for dinner which was easy to cook and to eat as we were moving around quite a bit.
We've just reefed down for the night as we still have squalls on the radar. I think everyone else is secretly keen to have a proper one to see what it feels like. Personally I like a nice gentle wind on the beam.It's too early to predict a good run but it has been a good day.
*(mnemonic for True, Variation, Magnetic, Deviation, Compass)
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