Time to cast off lines and put Cape Town to our rudder as we set sail for Sint Maarten
-
First visual contact by the lookout in a week as we approach the TSS near the coast of Brazil. We hope the northerner ocean currents will help carry us through the doldrums if the winds fail.
-
Enjoyed the almost full moon during our night watch.
-
The moonlight was bright enough to set the stunsails without any headlamps.
-
Sunrise at sea marks the end of our night watch.
-
The light makes the ocean look different colors sometimes.
-
Today we celebrate the halfway point on our voyage from Cape Town to Sint Maarten.
-
Enjoyed a beautiful full moon rise at sunset as we continue our run westward on a port tack towards the Brazilian coast.
-
Learning how to turn a three lead decorative knot into a five lead version is tricky but doable during a quiet watch.
-
Let's set the stunsail flying since the winds are light...
-
Finally finished the French spiral and decorative knotwork on the foredeck ladder handrails using the bosun needle.
-
And then relaxed on the fore royal yard to enjoy Sailors Sunday before evening watch starts.
-
Just before sunrise we lashed down the mainmast stunsail booms for the last time, marking the end of the broad reach of our Atlantic crossing as we switch to a downwind run north for the rest of the voyage (with both port and starboard stunsails set on the foremast)
-
The whole pod came out to play.
-
Unbent the heavy main course and tied the lighter weight "tropics sail" (480g/m2) onto the yard as we approach the equator.
-
Waiting for the sunrise.
-
The sun is here but the winds are not.
-
We've heaved to and opened the pool since there is still no wind.
-
It's a really big pool.
-
That's not the sunrise, it's light pollution from Natal
-
At sunrise we could just make out the buildings of Natal and nearby cities.
