the crew started their sail expecting to be under motor for prehaps a day. the forecast indicated they may be for two days but also had hints of winds that they should be able to sail in.
However, it knew best and although they caught these winds, they were far from consistent enough to sail with.
So they motored….. and motored…. for just on 44 hours however they tell me that just as they were updating me, they were able to get the asymmetric spinnakar out (aysm or screecher prehaps) which is pulling them along at a slow but steady and increasing rate as the promised winds build.
So the big question…… What has it been like? they inform me that it has been mostly very calm, they have had very little wind, Nothing more than 5Kts for the last 2 days. the days have been quiet and hot with mostly clear skies, so some washing and sunbathing has been done on the foredeck.
The seas have had big rolling swells coming through and while they can look dramatic (think big mountain ranges running at you from the horizon, A horizon that rises and lowers in relation to you on board) they have had a very large period (time between troughs) so they are a gentle ride up and down.
The crew has been very lucky and while the swells have been around 2mtrs, they can easily reach 4mtrs or much bigger (if your unlucky) during the Atlantic crossing, but they hope to avoid those and expect around 3-4mtrs in their future.
The nights have been star filled, until around 11pm when the moon has risen to its zenith and has a luminescence akin to a searchlight lighting up the surrounding dark and hidden sea while creating a sort of light pollution of its own causing the stars to retreat into hiding while it throws its light about.
The days have been hot, with cloudless skies and diamonds of light being cast off the rolling hills of water as it swells and lift the boat gently out of their way.
The crew saw some whales breaching out in the distance yesterday and are always on the lookout for Sealife that tend to come to check them out. but they haven’t had the pleasure of much aquatic company so far other than a pod of feeding dolphins in the distance yesterday.
they asure me they are under sail now and hope to avoid burning any more diesel from the tanks, other than to prehaps make some water so far they estimate they have used around 220lts of diesel or around £400 euros worth. They are currently deciding on a stop off at Mindelo (Carbo Verde islands) for a top up, which would make sense as they have used approxmatly 10% of their carried fuel and it would be good to have that in their tanks prior to the crossing proper.
At the time of contact it was 6am and greg had been on watch since 0330 so was going to take a stroll and check everything befor change of watch and updating the log.
Nick and Connie where taking the opportunity to sleep peacefully without the noise of the engines and taking full advantage of the lullaby wiata (aptly named I believe) sings as she creaks and groans her way through the gentle undulating seas on her way to Carbo Verde Islands around 644nm away.
Jump on and track the crew via our tracker located on our home page at http://www.sailingwaiata.com
