Well, yesterday and last night got a bit more blustery and squally than I might have liked, with winds averaging in the mid 20’s the whole time. This also rapidly built up the sea state to an average 8 feet. Fortunately, it was still still just aft of the beam, so no slamming or pounding, but lots of rocking and rolling. I’ve got 2 reefs in the mainsail, and only about 1/3 of the jib out, and the boat is fairly balanced with a neutral helm, so the autopilot isn’t working too hard. We’re just creaming along, and despite the tempest raging outside, inside the boat is warm and dry and comfy. Conditions should start to moderate this afternoon.
The big plus of all this wind, and help from the Guyana Express current, is that I covered a best-ever-for-this-boat 221 miles in the last 24 hours. That’s an average of 9.2 knots. Panama just got a lot closer!
While all this was going on, I had to entertain a lot of company. Last night, a bird got tired of fighting the winds and sought refuge with me. He initially landed on the bimini, but could barely hold on in the wind and rain, so I grabbed him and set him in the cockpit, where he could settle down out of the wind. I think he was half terrified and half thankful.
Early this morning I went on deck and discovered another guest- one of those vellela (sp?) jellyfish, that have the inflated fins sticking out of the water to catch the wind. The ones I’ve seen in the pacific are purple and fairly small, but this guy was as big as my hand and pink. I took a picture, a very low-res version is attached, and then tossed him back into the sea.
Not long after that, a school of dolphin came out to play. Maybe 20 or 30 of them, jumping clear out of the water to get a look at me, playing in the bow wave and along side the boat as it rollicked through the waves. They stayed with me for almost an hour, which was quite entertaining, thank you.
I hope your Friday is a good one, too.
4/6 8am 6.48N 52.39W 3746nm gone, 1727nm to go
