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Firefly - Fast at last



Friday was a very pleasant day but we were plagued again by light winds (again!) The wind speed and direction being about 6 knots and easterly. Most of the day was therefore motoring and as we were going at 6 knots and heading west it was hot. The wind came back this morning (Saturday) and we have the Gennaker up in a north easterly wind that is touching 20 knots in the gusts. Its close to the wind strength limit for this reaching spinnaker and its giving us speed surges of nearly 10 knots and an average of over 7. The forecast is for the wind to keep building so before dark (at 1830 in our current zone) we will drop the spinnaker for the night. If the wind does keep building it may not come out again then for the duration of the trip.

This morning Murray and Peter saw a large pod of dolphins over 20! Two or three stayed with us for while circling and jumping around Firefly. Hopefully we have a few photos and video clips but they don't make it easy and tend not to pose for shots!

Over lunch we had a review of our remaining food and we concluded that we have judged our provisioning about right. Murray had the last orange and Peter and Paul cut into the last remaining fruit, a honeydew melon that is just ready for eating now-and so huge it should last us to Antigua. Onions, garlic, potatoes are all hanging in there and no one has yet seen a weevil in the ship's biscuits. None of us have any medical expertise but the consensus is that no one has scurvy!

With about 800 miles left to run the conversation increasingly turns to Antigua and while these long passages are a somewhat extraordinary experience - we will all be glad to arrive and get back on terra firma.

Paul, Murray, Peter and Grateful (curious to meet Long John Silver)
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