Saturday 24th November 2012
Found another two good-sized flying fish on deck this morning - might have for lunch - very bony and soft-fleshed, but tasty. Been another day of almost total light-grey cloud cover, broken midday by some bright sunshine - but that didn't last long before we were back into dull conditions. Sea temperature has been getting lower these past days - now down to 33C from the 35C of last Tuesday. Cabin temperature is 29C midday, 27C overnight.
Wind is stll around 15kt from SE so we're heeled rather, beating close-hauled into the continuing short and quite steep seas, pitching and falling into troughs.... not at all comfortable! (Not a time to think about mast-climbing!) We're still only making 4-5 knots .. and our course & speed are being affected by the strong Equatorial current, which is more NW-flowing today.... We're still only making a course of around 210T.
Checked in with the Maritime Mobile Net - propagation was again excellent to W coast of US mid-afternoon and Mike, W6WAR, 60mls from LA, was loud and clear. Pacific Seafarers Net has very few boats checking in, now - most are safely tucked up in S-hemisphere harbours for cyclone season. Listened out on 40m earlier for the Baja Net - nada!!
Getting way behind on emails - will need to have a blitz on them tomorrow!
Equator-crossing is looking likely to be very early on Monday, maybe 3-5am, during darkness ... Will have to postpone the party to daylight hours - maybe just give Poseidon/Neptune a toast and a tipple once we're over the line safely..!!
24hr DMG at 3pm: 100 n.ml. Golden Gate Bridge 2112 n.ml. & Strait of Juan de Fuca 2760 n.ml. away at 3pm & our position was then 1316 n ml. just W of S of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The Equator was 166 n.ml. due S.... and the Galapagos Islands, 1655 n.ml. to the ESE.
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For my daily position and track, see:
Link is on my website's 'Travels' page - goto www.svnereida, open 'Travels', then click on "Where is Nereida?"
http://www.exactearth.com/media-centre/recent-ship-tracks/tracking-nereida/ - courtesy 'exactEarth' using their polar-orbiting satellites - good everywhere, especially nearer the poles, i.e. when in the Southern Ocean
http://oceantracker.net?event=nereida - courtesy "Oceantracker' using geo-stationary satellites with good coverage until level with Valparaiso, Chile, probably.... Then from 1000ml WSW of Australia, onward to past New Zealand...