Mistral of Portsmouth - Day 5 - Santa Marta is within reach!

Another uneventful night - good, as we are all starting to feel tired by the end of our watches. The wind was a consistent force 4 to 5 (between 12 and 20 knots) and we are back close to the rhumb line. The day promises to be another beautiful one and it started with big excitement at 8.30 in the morning - I saw whales! First sight was lots of activity in the water off the starboard bow and then spumes of water with 2 sightings of bodies emerging … the activity moved down the side of the boat and to our stern … sadly, no pictures as it all happened so fast. Still - we know they were there!

The routine of the passage is well set by now. Daily deck checks have revealed some issues that will need attention when we reach land … a bent stanchion, the vang not holding pressure (we think an internal seal may have broken), a wobbly antenna at the top of the mast, some stitching coming loose on the mainsail, some chafing to look at on the staysail … finally, I think we are learning to get ahead of the game.

Jane is not improving so this afternoon, we contacted MSOS - our medical support team to get help for her. Good practice for me to prepare for the call by taking all vital signs … Jane showed admiral patience with my hopeless attempts to take her blood pressure! That said, the satellite call was a good one. Jane is now on a course of antibiotics and will get to a medical centre as soon as we get to Santa Marta.

Although Jane has lost her appetite, Chris, Tim and I are eating well! Delicious marinated lamb last night courtesy of Jane and Tim; scrambled eggs for brunch by me. Freshly baked cake and our fruit supplies are lasting well. The less said about Chris’s supply of cheese puffs the better!

Karen, Chris, Tim & Jane