BattPack Log Day 5 - 29 Nov -I wake at 4:00 for the
sunrise shift. I listen to music throughout and the sunrise doesn't disappoint!
The sky shifts through a glorious ensemble of colours, from dark grey, to
orange, yellow, then through pink, purple and blue! he rest of the crew join me
about 8:00 for a delicioud breakfast of scrambled eggs.
The wind has been blowing over 20kts all night and we
have covered 165 miles in the last 24 hours. We are now catching the Trade Winds
as hoped and they continue to blow over 20kts. The waves have increased notably
in height- it is a good job that we all have our sea legs. Mine have finally
arrived today, thank god for that! Feeling nauseous throughout the passage was
certainly not my plan!
It is Day 5 and we have decided that not another day can
pass without a shower! Wet wipes have been our friend until now but this is
officially the longest that I have ever been without a shower & it is really
not my thing! I am craving full body cleanliness! Apart from Ruby, the kids
don't seem to mind the lack of showers at all! The salt water hose is
working again so we don our swimwear (a brave move given we have been in long
sleeves and trousers until now) and head to the bow of the boat. God it felt
good to wash my hair- all done with salt water, with a frugal dose of fresh
water right at the en! The sun shone but it did little to stop our bodies
shivering in the wind! How can we describe the experience? Utterly invigorating!
We stopped to check ourselves as we washed, looking around us ,thinking that we
certainly haven't ever showered on deck in the middle of an ocean before and it
is something we won't forget! The towels felt delicious as we wrapped them
around us and we sat and brushed our hair dry in the wind, which by the way is
an excellent hairdryer!
Today is the first day that we are all barefoot. We are
feeling the pull of the Caribbean! It will be time to move our clocks back soon
- how wonderful to be sailing through time zones.
We haven't seen any marine wildlife yet, despite 8 pairs
of keen eyes. We have seen 2 birds swooping low, to check us out, but no sea
creatures. The fishing lines remain untouched and the wish for a BBQ dinner
remains unanswered! The lines have gone in again this afternoon- we are keeping
the faith.
BattPack Log Day 6 - 30 Nov - The wind blew up
overnight and continued into the day, circa 30kts. We are going across the swell
as we continue our turn West towards St Lucia, so the conditions are more
difficult to weather. It feels as though we are on a bizarre rollercoaster that
simply won't stop. The kids are dealing with it very well but the best way for
me to stomach it is to lie down. Even then, with such a strange motion, my
internal compass simply doesn't know which way is up! We are going up and down
big waves and being thrown continuously from side to side. Our insides are
continuously compensating for the irregular shifts. This is not a motion that I
am keen on. At all. It is akin to what I can imagine it is like being thrown
around inside a washing machine.
We had a lovely family chat in the saloon after lunch.
Everyone hunkering in, swapping stories and entertaining each other. This is the
highlight of the day, until we get the fishing lines out. We have caught
something! Much excitement in the cockpit, and someone exclaims that it looks
like a sea snake! Indeed it does, look like a long sea snake wiggling and
fighting its way toward our boat. Alas, it is a piece of heavy rope! Dismay!
Vegetable pie for dinner it is then!!
Jason does a boat check and is mystified why our water
tank has gone down from 7/8s to 5/8s in 24 hours. Not good news and no-one
understands how as we have all been so frugal. Jay manually checks the level of
the water tank and checks for any leaks, there were none. It must have come from
a tap not being turned off properly. We must all be vigilant going forward
otherwise we will run out of water way before we get to land. Crikey!