We have 2093 nm to go after motoring and then sailing in light winds for the majority of the day. This winds have been mostly under 10kts and we’ve been making about 5 kts under sail with our screecher/spinnaker so it’s a little slower then motoring with one engine. The forecast looks good for the remainder of the trip and we should be in the trades the rest of the way.
We expect the trade winds to be 10-15 kts from the east and if we go far enough south of our rum line we might be able to stay in at least 10 kts the whole time. This is the slowest passage we’ve every made and it’s an adjustment but so glad we are now in the trades. From Gibraltar to the Canary Islands we average 185km per 24 hours over 3.5 days. I’d guess we’ll do 135km per 24 hours on this passage. If that holds, we’ll be at sea for 19 days total.
The weather continue to heat up with 79f water temp and 72f air temperatures.
Finished the Andrew Jackson book a day or two ago and finished Born a Crime: Trevor Noah. As for Jackson they didn’t really cover much of the policy actions but he clearly was a racist, treated slavery as a business and believed the Indians were inferior and deserved only limited rights. It’s hard to reconcile but he also appeared to be a man of Honesty, Integrity and Courage. Besides being on the wrong side of history on many issue his biggest character flaws were his lack of empathy and his pride which resulted in multiple duels. The irrational need to protect his honor/pride nearly killed Jackson multiple times. I guess there are some similarities with our current president but for the life of me I’ve struggled with Trumps strength besides branding, media manipulation and showmanship. On the negative, I’d add narcissist, pathological lier and I suspect a sociopath but what do I know.
Trevor was raised under Apartheid in South Africa so it was fascinating to hear a relatively dispassionate description of life as a “Colored” and what life was like not so long ago. I like him a lot more now.
I’m taking a short break now and listing to Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. Wow, I’m finally getting the big bang theory explained. I always thought of infinity as really big but in the big bang theory things happened in an infinitesimally short time frame. My brain hurts.
Very kind of you and Jerri sharing these moments with us. As I read these posts I can only image what its like. Then questions develop. I only ask, because I find this story soo interesting.
Developing Questions
1.) How many hours a day are you sailing (traveling)?
2.) Do you sail throughout night? (ie: auto pilot), Does crew member need to stay up/watch?
3.) How many hours a day are spent on maintenance on the boat?
4.) Can you describe the sea conditions with respect to height of waves high, frequency?
5.) How do you manage your food supplies? (how much you have Frozen vs canned, do you need to catch, etc…)