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El Mundo - 10/12 - Good Day for Fresh Water and Spinnaker



It's been a nice day with consistent wind, except for an hour around midnight when it became light and a small squall came through. The log is 2660, so just shy of 180 miles in the last 24 hours and about 175 miles to run.....looking good for a morning arrival in Rodney Bay.
It was a good day...found the fresh water leak first thing in the morning, it was a faulty high pressure release valve on the hot water tank, cunningly hidden by an overly long drainage pipe that exited into an obscure part of the bilge. Removed the offending valve, soaked it in vinegar for an hour to clear any calcification (scarily effective), lubed it with PTFE and refitted it successfully. Even though it was a small flow of water, we lost 500 litres of fresh water but the water maker produces about 150 litres an hour, so it wasn't too difficult to replace.
Amanda had spent an hour helping me to untangle and repack the spinnaker the previous day, carefully tying the sail with cotton (as no wool on board) and coiling the torsion cable. In a lighter patch of wind yesterday morning, we hoisted it and kept it flying all day (before returning to goose-winged for the night watches), so it's all now thankfully furled properly and stowed. It gave us some great speed for several hours, though there precious little north in the wind, so we were on a heading somewhat north of our desired course.
We caught one more Dorado....still no sign of that illusive tuna. Dinner was chicken provencal, served a little late due to the spinnaker drop and re-rigging the pole.
Today is the anniversary of the installation of the first set of traffic lights in London, outside the Palace of Westminster, resembling railway signals and lit by red and green gas lamps. It's also the day that Henry VIII executed Thomas Culpepper and Francis Dereham for having affairs with his wife Catherine Howard. And more women issues for royalty in 1936 when Edward VIII signed the historic 'Instrument of Abdication'.
We can smell the rum punch already.....!


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