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Luna Quest - Wednesday, 3rd February, 2016



Noon Position: 13.12S 32.06W

Daily run: 102 logged miles

Yesterday the wind began to take an afternoon siesta leaving us wallowing and rolling in an awkward swelly sea causing the genoa to jerk explosively from time to time. The staysail does not have that problem as it is tautly set. If we furl the genoa to set it taut, then the sail area is reduced, the speed is reduced and the rolling accentuated. We spent some time optimising the sail area without causing too much stress on the genoa. The wind levels did not recover and all night we rolled westwards with the genoa banging away as soon as Luna Quest began her rolling. This morning, heralding another beautiful day, the wind eased further to less than a gentle breeze and although the swell had diminished, the sails would not have it. At 8am we sought help from the engine.

The heat has increased, the sun is overhead, the engine is on and Julia is making bread. How the fridge seeks its cool in the heat is a wonder. To have a little breeze through the boat, we have rigged up the forehatch cover and the cockpit canopy. We have 380 miles to go. Rechecking yesterday’s position, I discovered that I had erroneously marked our position on the paper chart by about 60 miles. The distance to Salvador yesterday should have read 480 miles.

The forecast is for a little more wind tomorrow, so we have turned the engine off (11.30am) and are back sailing with our two poled-out foresails giving us just over 4 knots of speed and the occasional reverberating banging from the genoa.

Eric

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