Colin and Callum took over at midnight to be greeted with equally light winds. However, the wind increased enough to raise the sails and turn off the motor around 0230 hrs. This confused my slumber somewhat as I was convinced there was another vessel alongside. I got up to investigate only to alert my fellow crew that they had a rogue sleep walker onboard. Day 4 and already losing it - this would need to be monitored. At least we were back under sail. After Alan took over and the sun rose, we were running downwind and set the sails like the wings of a goose. Jamie provided a rigging solution to prevent any accidental jibe and we were set for a long stint with the wind sailing south-south-west.
24 hour progress – 140 nm – cumulative 347 nm
Shortly after we decided to jibe, had to reset the jib, spinnaker pole and Jamie’s patented anti-jibe preventer system. All set…then it was time for the Code zero sail instead of the jib…better jibe again…and again…maybe, better to go back to the jib…sorted!
It was about now that we remembered it was Colin’s birthday. To celebrate, we cracked open a couple of bottles of fine white wine ( the finest we could muster anyway). So there went the tea-total voyage - all for a good cause! Happy Birthday Colin!!
Jamie was on cooking duty and we enjoyed a delicious carbonara without the carbon (i.e. vegetarian style). This was followed by hand carried birthday cake courtesy of Mrs Colin. That hit the spot, with the total ambiance fully supported by a gentle sail and glorious sunset.
We decided to shift the shift pattern, so Alan got the 2000 hrs slot. This was met with the traditional convergence of all shipping aiming directly for our location. Alan decided a full yacht pirouette should confuse the opposition, which it did. Thankfully, these rather large and fast vests decided to carry on their way rather than join our merry dance. Things we lined up and we continued on our nightly passage. The wind had dropped again, but the seas hadn’t, so there was much rolling and slapping of sails. Difficult to avoid and we didn’t want to revert back to motor.
Clive the cabin boy standing by...