Subject: CLEONE Leg 20 Day 4 - Wind over Current
An interesting day.
Bruce was right about everything except the exact time of the change in the
weather. We made good progress reaching on the starboard tack all
yesterday afternoon. We had put put a reef in the mainsail just
before lunch, the seas were reasonably comfortable, and by and large we were
making our six miles every hour. But it was humid, and the current was
behaving oddly. Sometimes it was with us, sometimes against us, and
sometimes half-way in between. Feathers of Cirrus suggested that there
might be some wind on the way, whilst some Cirrocumulus (mackerel) clouds
spelt rain. In short, the weather and the seas felt
unsettled. Well, this was just as Bruce predicted, and his lenghty
explanation in his two forecasts so far were models of clarity, but too
lengthy to reproduce here. The bottom line is that the southern
tip of Madagascar is a meeting point for currents moving westwards across
the Indian Ocean, and southwards between the African Coast and Madagascar,
and for weather systems that come up northwards from the Southern
Ocean and westwards across the Indian Ocean. These two great natural
forces meet together in the area that we are sailing across.
They combine to make life interesting for most of the time, and
dangerous at other times for the yachtsman.
As Alex was cooking supper, we put another reef in the mainsail, leaving
ourselves slow but snug for the night; we were expecting the change in the
weather to come through during the hours of darkness. As it happened, the
skipper slept undisturbed. Towards the end of his dawn watch (0300-0600)
he shook out the two reefs. Maybe he had been distracted by the various
ships that passed us; we seem to be travelling down one of the motorways of the
sea. Every few hours a huge tanker or container ship, too large for the
Suez Canal, passes us. And we heard one huge Chinese ship announce
that he was carrying 45000 tonnes of Manganese Ore from Richards Bay (our
destination) to China (and where on earth are they going to store this, and what
on earth are they going to do with this lot when it arrives? It's a good
thing that China is a big place!).
Anyhow, just as the Skipper had
finished shaking out the reefs, he looked at the sky in front of us. The
dull black cloud spreading across the horizon suggested his actions were
premature. Putting the reefs back again took moments, and he was back in
the cockpit just as the north-easterly wind died altogether. Norfy and the
Skipper looked at eachother for several minutes. The black clouds
moved closer. Then a breeze sprang up, this time from the South East
- the change had arrived! Soon we were close-hauled on the port tack, and
as it started raining, the skipper went below, leaving Norfy to deal with
it. And since then, the breeze has freshened, and even against the
one-knot current we have been happily making six knots or so beneath hazy skies
and in a lumpy sea. Let's hope we can keep our speed up.
Our only other reversal has been that the faithful kettle has not stood the
test of time. It's handle finally gave up the ghost, and it expired in
Alex's hands last night, just as he was preparing a cup of tea for the
Skipper. The burial was held immediately; the battered remains being
committed to the deep without ceremony - Alex having assured the Skipper that
the kettle was entirely agnostic.
We are now heading down the Rhumb Line (or rather the Great Circle Route)
straight for Richards Bay. Bruce has promised some more moderate weather, with
freshening winds towards the end of the week. We have about 850 miles to
run, and you will be the first to know how things go!
All is well with us, and best
wishes to everyone,
James, Norfy (Chris) and Alex
Yacht Cleone
26o18'S 047o47'E