Just over 1200 nautical miles distance to finish, sailing upwind, heading north east with 10 knots of boat speed. Squally conditions with torrential rain and big winds shifts look set to last through today, more established trade winds ahead.
The Onboard Report From Today,”Full on night again in rain clouds bringing squalls of up to 30 knots of wind and sudden wind direction changes of 60 degrees. After a great day sailing yesterday making good progress, the building clouds and occasional lightening around dusk were the advance warning signs of a long night ahead. Sure enough as the first dark cloud came over head the wind shifted and increased suddenly, we rode it out – keeping the boat headed as high upwind as we could without stopping, before the cloud had gone. Wind speed was around 19 knots really too much for a genoa we are nursing northwards with a damaged leach (the back edge of the triangular sail). Next cloud – furl (roll) the sail early, same again feather the boat upwind, there after we set the smaller solent jib that allows us to deal with higher wind speeds. Then around 2330 GMT, two and a half hours before sunrise we could see by the light of the moon an enormous cloud, furl solent, put reef in….. then wind dropped to 4 knots. We were left there without wind, the boat slamming between her two outside float hulls, and the mainsail and mast crashing back and forth. After a while (seemed like a lifetime ) we set the genoa, only just as we are about to unfurl it, the wind cranks back in and we are back to the solent jib. Though the clouds are getting fewer now, there are still a few on the horizon and just a few minutes ago – the guys on deck received another shower.
The days seem to be going quickly at the moment – a good sign, I think by the end of sunday we’ll be thinking that every second is taking an hour, but for now the fast ticking clock is with us, and there is some motivation on board to ensure we have completed everything on our round the world experience list that we can before arriving. You don’t often get the chance to sail around the world so you have got to fit everything in!!! I am not sure what exactly is left, but I don’t want to wake up a few weeks from now and think – hey, I went all the way around the world and didn’t do that!”