OK, so what's this NSTR, then?
Answers on a post-card, but actually it means Nothing Significant To Report!
We've had another great day's sailing, and, noon UK time to noon UK time, we've covered another 164 miles, taking us 158 miles closer to Hiva Oa.
Someone asked Elizabeth what she did to fill her time, and didn't she get bored? And Norfy and I have been asked the same thing often enough. And the answer from us all is a resounding No! We hand steer the boat most of the time, probably unlike most other boats (except Andante at the moment, because her autopilot is broken). Apart from the obvious fact that it saves power there are good reasons for this. First is that a person on the helm is much more in touch with their surroundings and with the boat. For instance, we've noticed that Cleone rolls less when hand steered, and of course any shifts in wind direction and strength are much more quickly spotted. So we sail more efficiently and are kinder to the boat, reefing and un-reefing in better time (hopefully) and spotting as soon as the steering gets a bit heavy, which is always an indication that either the sails need trimming or we've got too much sail up. And the helmsman is constantly looking around at sea and sky; the human eye is still the best look-out of them all, and is also best and early warning of incoming squalls! So there's 8 hours of every day used up straight away. Then we sleep, and I think again most of us use up 8 hours a day doing this. It's easy to know when Norfy is engaged in this activity as he emits a sound signal warning us even when visibility is excellent; with Elizabeth and the Skipper a prone position, closed eyes and regular breathing are normally the tell-tale signs! So that leaves 8 hours for meals, keeping the boat (and ourselves) clean (but at sea, both stay cleaner for longer), writing and reading our e-mails and carrying out the many little tasks needed to keep the boat in good shape. (These include checks of the engine, rig, bilges and all sorts of other things, and sorting.out the menu and food. And the skipper is now baking bread on most days). All in all this keeps us pretty busy, though some crew members have been noticed reading books or doing the Sudoku.
We spend some time every day also thinking about our families and friends. We can imagine Easter traffic jams, freezing rain and gales, deep snow and ice, days spent in front of computer screens or attending meaningless meetings, queuing in banks, queuing in supermarkets, cars not starting, parking tickets and lack of spaces and tradesmen that don't turn up when they say. But we do miss our friends and families and very much look forward to getting your e-mails and news of the other world. It makes us realise how much we miss you, and also how very lucky we are to be able to be here at sea and visiting all these wonderful places, making new friends and meeting new and different and interesting peoples.
All well and happy, Bernard still not back!
Best wishes,
James, Chris & Elizabeth
Yacht Cleone
At sea
08.53S 126.00W - 767 miles to run