It is early Tuesday morning, just beginning to get light and we are 143 NM from Bali. As reported previously we have not had much wind on this leg and have consequently motored most of the time. We have been experiencing light-to-moderate trade winds since yesterday afternoon and have been able to do some sailing and some motor-sailing. It was great to have the engine not running for a few hours and we hope for more of the same today.
One thing which has been slowing our progress is the marine growth on the bottom of our hull. The anti-fouling paint which was applied last October in Portugal has mostly worn off and we have quite a growth of plant material which is likely slowing us down by one half knot or more. We are planning to have the boat hauled and painted in Capetown but in the meantime need to have the bottom cleaned regularly by a diver. Unfortunately the conditions in the last marina were not really suitable for this work and the bottom is now much more fouled than usual.
In addition to school work for the girls and boat work for the adults we have seen quite a lot of marine life since departing Darwin. Yesterday we saw a large whale, probably a sperm whale. We have seen many dolphins, some of which were much larger than the ones we normally have seen. We also saw a group of sharks feeding on something but don't know what it was. These sightings were in addition to the countless flying fish, long distance oceanic birds and the occasional fin or tail sticking out of the water which we are unable to identify.
If we maintain our current speed we will arrive in Bali early Wednesday morning during darkness which we have been advised to avoid doing. We will probably have to slow down at some point today so that we can arrive at daybreak. Slowing down with the current amount of wind should be no problem!