sy Timoneer

Noon Position 23deg 29N 44deg  39W

Course – 253 Degrees   Speed –  10.8  Knots        Day’s Run – 256  Miles

Weather –  Partly cloudy, rain squalls and swells from N

Wind – 16 knots form ENE

The rolling downwind continues and it appears that it will stay that way until we reach St Martin. Today we had a good haul of flying fish from around the decks which Jase then filleted  for us to have for lunch. The fishermen have got so desperate with their lack of success that we have resorted to the maritime equivalent of road kill, but only because we know how good they taste in a beer batter and lightly fried.

JC

Noon Position 24deg 44N 40deg  11W

Course – 253 Degrees   Speed –  10.5  Knots        Day’s Run –  252 Miles

Weather – Sunny with 15 foot (5m ) swells from N

Wind – 21 knots from NE

The rolling has got worse. We are now seeing the biggest swells of the trip but they are starting to space out a bit more, as one would expect of the Atlantic swell. Up until now they have been very close together more like the Mediterranean. The wind has been up for the last 24 hours and we have seen plenty of rain squalls though the night. Last night  we had the preventer on the mizzen boom break  and we had a bit of excitement getting a new one rigged up. These light apparent winds and big swells are hard on the boat.  The water temperature is now up to 77F (25C) but unfortunately the seas are not conducive to stopping for a swim. That will have to wait until we arrive.

JC

Noon Position 25deg 59N 35deg  48W

Course – 253 Degrees   Speed –  10.5  Knots        Day’s Run – 244  Miles

Weather –   Cloudy with rain squalls

Wind – 16 knots from NE

Today we have started getting a little more breeze which is helping us along a bit. This morning at 8am we passed the halfway point from Gib to St Martin. We now have less than 1600 miles to go and are looking good for getting in the evening of the 7th Dec. if conditions remain as forecasted. No fish today….yet. We are starting to see a lot of flying fish so hopefully there is something out here feeding on them.

JC

Noon Position 27deg 03N 31deg  24W

Course – 255 Degrees   Speed –  10.0  Knots        Day’s Run – 252  Miles (25 hrs)

Weather –   Mostly sunny with 3 foot (1m) swells from N

Wind – 13 knots from ENE

We caught a fish, a bonito tuna. They are far from the best tuna you can catch but cooked right are very tasty. We have just finished smoking some as well and it is great. The wind and sea conditions don’t seem to have changed much in the last 3 days so catching a fish has interrupted what was starting to feel like Groundhog Day. One thing that has changed is the temperature which is warming up nicely .

We have put the clocks back another hour today.

JC

Noon Position 28deg 08N 26deg  51W

Course – 253 Degrees   Speed – 10.2   Knots        Day’s Run – 242  Miles

Weather –  Sunny with 3 foot (1m) swells from N

Wind – 10.5 knots from ENE

Nothing has changed on the rolling front although the seas have got smaller they are now from the side rather than behind and we have the lightest wind conditions so far. On a positive note it is getting much warmer and we also caught a fish. Unfortunately it was the smallest Mahi Mahi I have ever seen so we threw it back. It has given the fishermen a boost to their enthusiasm if nothing else.

JC

Noon Position 29deg 18N 22deg 27 W

Course – 254 Degrees   Speed –  10.1  Knots        Day’s Run –   247Miles

Weather –   Scattered clouds and 6 foot (2m) seas

Wind – 15 knots from E

The rolling continues but the seas are getting better. Unfortunately the winds are not strong enough to push us along so we continue to motor sail. Normally there would be stronger winds south of here making it worthwhile to head down before going too far west but the trade winds have not settled in yet so we are now taking the rhum line to St Martin making the trip a bit shorter in distance.

The weather getting warmer certainly is being appreciated, but we have seen very little wildlife and still no fish.

JC

Noon Position 30deg 35N 17deg  58W

Course – 254 Degrees   Speed –  10.1  Knots        Day’s Run – 255  Miles

Weather –   Partly cloudy with 6 foot (2m) seas from behind

Wind – 17 knots from NE

We got the mizzen fixed and back in action yesterday and had another very rolly night heading down wind. The swells have settled down a little today but so has the wind meaning we are getting very little help from the sails other than to stabilize us.

Today we put the clocks back 1 hour and will have 4 more times zones to go through before reaching the Caribbean.

JC

Noon Position 32deg 32N 13deg  36W

Course -240  Degrees   Speed – 10.3   Knots        Day’s Run – 240  Miles

Weather –   Overcast with 10 foot (3m) swells from behind

Wind – 22knots from NE

The rolling continues as we head down wind. Yesterday afternoon during a man over board drill we had the the topping lift on the mizzen boom break. This added an extra dimension to already tricky conditions but we managed to get the mizzen sail down, locate and retrieve the bucket tied to a buoy in under 15 minutes. We had a very rolly night and this morning we have been working on getting a new topping lift moused through the boom. Unfortunately the old one broke inside the boom making the job a bit more difficult. Hopefully we will have the mizzen back in action this afternoon.

Still no luck with fish but not through lack of trying!

For those who have been checking our position on the website, you will find that the Tracker is back up and running now.

2900miles to go.

JC

Noon Position 34deg 20N 009deg  22W

Course – 248 Degrees   Speed –  10.8  Knots        Day’s Run –  229 Miles

Weather –  Sunny with 10 foot (3m) swells from behind

Wind – 13 knots from NE

We left Gibraltar at 2pm yesterday and had 25 knots from behind pushing us out in to the Atlantic. Once out of the Traffic Separation Scheme we altered course and had a great sail SW. Unfortunately the swell grew and the wind died and turned behind us forcing us to put the genoa away and motor sail with just the staysail and mizzen. We were going too fast yesterday for fishing but have had the lines out today since the crack of dawn.  Lets hope I have some fish to report tomorrow.

JC

Noon Position 36deg 08N 05deg  22W

Course –  Degrees   Speed –    Knots        Day’s Run – 188  Miles

Weather –  A big cloud over the Rock of Gibraltar, otherwise sunny

Wind – 15.8 from ENE

Yesterday afternoon could not have been more different than the night before. We had flat seas and little wind with sunny skies. We slowed down to arrive in time for our berth, but still no fish to be had. We had calm conditions through the night and everyone enjoyed a good sleep.

Gibraltar may  be British but its closeness to Spain has certainly affected the peoples sense of timing. We book a fuel berth for 8am. The night before we arrive we get told to come at 9am. One hour before arrival we get told 10am and finally we go on the dock at 11:15am. We are taking on fuel as I write this and we should be underway soon after lunch.

English fish and chips for lunch from the local chippy. Maybe by dinner time we will have caught some fresh fish!

JC