Starblazer - 05/09/2014 – Sailing!

Actually, the title is a bit of an exaggeration. The wind put in an

appearance just before 0800, John rushed up on deck when he heard the engine

revs reduce. We let out the main and pulled out the genoa and sailed for

81/2 hours, managing to average 5 knots until the wind died again. We have

been motoring all night at just under 5 knots because we don’t want to

arrive before 0830 on Monday morning. According to the information we have,

overtime is charged for a minimum of 3 hours for each official required.

Tonga and Fiji have each had 4 officials.



Just for once, I am lost for words because we did nothing all day. We tried

to get into hunter/gatherer mode and put out two fishing lines with no

result, not even a nibble. My lure came back minus a hook but I’m sure it

rusted through! Nature has been obvious by its absence, not a bird has

drifted by overhead, no dolphins have come to play under the bows, not even

a flying fish managed to land overnight. The highlight of John’s first

evening watch was a solitary yacht he had spotted on the radar which slowly

overtook us.



One thing we have been mesmerised by is the colour of the sea. Readers of a

certain age will undoubtedly remember Quink Ink, the most common colour was

a beautiful royal blue which is a very close match to the colour of the sea.



On the culinary front, dinner was Portuguese sausage and bean casserole with

mashed potatoes followed by yoghurt.



I forgot to wish our friend John a very happy birthday yesterday. As I

write this, it is about 8.00pm on Thursday in England, so it’s not really

late!



Joyce