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Starblazer - 12/02/2014 – Wishes come true



In yesterday’s log we were wishing for either a wind shift or less wind so we could sensibly motor, we got both with unwanted additions! Almost exactly 24 hours after turning the engine off the wind died, we could make only about 3 knots and the current was having an increased effect, pushing us further north. We rolled away the genoa, put the engine on, then altered course to try to get further south. Within 30 minutes the wind backed 90 degrees and piped up to 20 knots. That should have made great sailing in the right direction but now we come to the ‘unwanted extras’. The wind was under the leading edge of a squall system which had sneaked up on us. The wind soon died but alas the squall system hung around for about 4 hours!
The radar showed us in the centre of a 12 mile diameter circle of rain clouds. We tried to escape by altering course to where there seemed to be a gap. The clouds had other ideas. We have a photo of the radar image
showing three rain clouds converging on our position. That’s not just idle fancy, we turned on the ‘trail’ function so the red/green/yellow clouds are followed by a blue trail showing their movement over the last 30 minutes. I’ll try and post the photo but I took it with the i-pad so John will have to do some work on it.

The rain had its benefits, just, as we both managed a fresh rainwater hair wash! We also collected some water in buckets so we could shower without using our precious tankage, but the temperature in the cockpit was rather
cool so showers have been put off until today. Normally we don’t worry about water usage because we can make our own using the watermaker powered by the generator. As the generator is stripped down to the extent that the
cylinder and its head are tucked away separately and securely in the forward cabin, the unwilling watermaker is having a rest! We have a replacement lift pump to feed the high pressure pump, which we believe will solve the problems, however we have so far been unable to source the necessary plumbing bits to fit it. Hopefully they will arrive with Richard and Stephanie when they fly in to the Galapagos from Hong Kong, by which time John should have put the generator back together.

The good news is that we hope to arrive Thursday evening, crossing the equator sometime Wednesday night. We’ll no longer be ‘shellbacks’. If it’s at a reasonable time we plan to offer Neptune a share of our champagne to
appease him. Neither of us has crossed by sea before so we can’t initiate each other. I don’t think flying over counts, though we do have a photo at home with John standing with one foot either side of the equator somewhere
in Ecuador. Does that entitle him to dress up as Neptune? (I’m not sure I should let him read this before it is sent, he might get ideas!)

Dinner was Chicken Stroganoff followed by jelly with tropical fruits. The celebratory meal for crossing the equator is supposed to be steak but it will probably have to wait until we are anchored.

Joyce

Postscript: Fish 2 – John 0, slightly better than Monday’s Fish 3 – John 0


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