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Starblazer - 14/11/2016 – Sunday



If Saturday was full of positives I’m afraid Sunday did not follow in the
same mould! Overnight there had been several squalls, more rain than wind
though the latter waltzed around the compass. I led a charmed life; the
squalls all arrived during John’s watches. I didn’t mention yesterday’s
sunrise as I wrote the blog because it was unspectacular, light working its
way through dense clouds which threatened more rain. We motored most of the
morning, sailed during the afternoon, motored again for a few hours then
sailed until 0200. There were a number of heavy showers as the black clouds
marched past but, by late afternoon, the skies cleared and it became a
lovely evening.

I do appear to be doing my best to fit the stereotypical Brit, always going
on about the weather! At sea there is not a lot to do, what we do or how we
do it is largely governed by what the weather is. Our decision making is
partly based on forecasts and partly on the actualities; i.e. the course we
decided upon was expected to make the most of the forecasted winds and
currents, the way the sails are set and whether or not to use the ‘iron tops’l’
(engine) depend upon the strength and direction of the wind. We have
decided to arrive in daylight, without the engine that could be Tuesday
morning or later, however we expect to arrive today, Monday, before sunset.

The day’s run to noon yesterday was a very respectable 151 nM over half of
which was under sail. As I write this we have 57 miles to go and I am
looking forward to a rum punch and dinner ashore!

As the weather was Not Quite What We Wanted or NQW3 I cooked egg, bacon,
black pudding and toast for lunch. For dinner we had pork chops with apple
sauce, boiled potatoes, carrots and courgettes. One item which has proved
invaluable for producing varied meals on a two ring cooker, apart from the
oven and the now repaired grill, is a silicone trivet bought from Lakeland.
I threaded some cord around the edge and pulled it up to form a basket. The
potatoes go in the saucepan first, the trivet sits above and I add the
vegetables as the cooking time demands, meaning that the potatoes are boiled
and the veg is steamed. If we had any other crew on board this wouldn’t
work but it’s great for two.

The final blog on the trip should appear tomorrow.

Joyce


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