Since leaving Isla Santa Cruz, Galapagos we have been fortunate to have favourable winds that have quickly blown us down to 9 degrees south on a port tack.
This is lucky as it is common to have little wind in this sea area and our instincts told us that we may need to use the engine a lot, hence we filled up with Diesel in Galapagos at 6$ a gallon. The engine on Amelie is used as little as possible on passages (unless we are traveling less than 1knot over a period of time). It’s main purpose is to get us in and out of port and anchorages. We have used the engine for only one hour in five days.
Peace is......the sound of water rushing past the hull and the wind in the sails without the constant drone and vibrations of the engine.
Life was at a tilt to starboard (right) but quite manageable.
At 18.37 on Wednesday the 20th of March we turned towards the west (right) in the direction of the Marquesas. As we are writing this blog we have 2,480 nautical miles to go and the boat is sailing flat. Debbie is also eating peanuts out of Stephen’s hand as he doesn’t want oily fingers on his Macbook keyboard! See photo for life in the office!
The only wildlife we have seen (apart from ourselves) are thousands of flying fish and the odd seabird. This is spectacular at night when the flying fish skim across the waves illuminated by our navigation lights. We are entertained by a couple of light-coloured birds swooping down in our lights to fish. Life is never boring at sea.
Twice a day we are in contact via the SSB (single side band) radio with Yantina (fleet radio controller). We give our position, distance to finish and details of wind in our area. If any of us have any issues with our boats or equipment, we generally share our ideas for solutions and most often a remedy is gained from the fleet. There is a sense of comfort and support with this twice daily ritual. There is normally some banter regarding supper ideas; who has caught a fish and how big it is and despite this being a rally there is a sense of competitiveness regarding who will be the first in port. Amelie being one of the smallest vessels is generally one of the last in but we are not in a rush, just enjoying the glorious sailing.
Since our departure we have spotted only one container ship about 5nm from us, possibly heading towards Peru.
Star and planet gazing is a feature of our night watches and Stephen has downloaded the ‘Star Walk’ app. on our iPads. We are keen to see the Crux (southern cross) which is a small constellation but visible in the Southern Hemisphere.
We had the best starter of the voyage last night (the only one so far) - Globe Artichokes leaves dipped in melted butter followed by Teriyaki Giant Prawns with noodles. Very happy, full tummies last night.
Stephen has cast our hand fishing line. Our best lure which was attached by wire was bitten straight through. The famous one that got away! This why we won’t go swimming in these vast oceans when becalmed, there are always creatures looking for their next meal.
The second lure is now on the line and we are hoping for fresh fish for supper - perhaps we will defrost something from the freezer as a back-up plan.
If the trade winds do as they’re told we should be heading due west for the next two weeks and then we’ll be at the Marquesas.
We’ll be in touch soon.