Walkabout II - Blog

N 23.54
W 22.01
Approximately 325 nm south-west of the Canary Islands

I am pleased to report that 'the beast' has been tamed. Yesterday in 12-17 knot winds we hoisted, flew and doused the beast like champs. Not only did the beast do our bidding and pull the boat forward at excellent speeds, but it was well mannered. We now feel confident that we have taken the beast and created a domesticated animal that will do our bidding. That said, we're still not game to let it out of it's bag above 20 knots. Best not to tempt fate.

Patrick has been hailed by his niece Debbie as 'the best cook in Brug' (short for Birmingham). Last night we had a beef stroganoff with carrots and eggplant over rice with a side dish of mashed potatoes with shallots. Now, I don't want anybody to get jealous, but it was seriously good, savoury, tender with a bonza gravy.

We also have our Hydrovane working. We are now steering without the use of electricity (or diesel). This relieves us from running the diesel for a few hours each day to charge our batteries.

I've got to go. The 'sked' is coming up. It allows us to hear the latest weather and position reports. Not to be missed.

Cheers and best wishes to all from the crew of Walkabout II.