May 27
Mrs Nuts writing.
Ian and Nuts arrived back in his home port, Horta, which they departed from 7 months ago. He had no internet connection for the last 36 hours so, unfortunately, there was no news from him yesterday. But, I can tell you that the in last 48 hours he had the worst conditions of the whole 7 month voyage. I am sure he will put it all into words soon but in the meantime here are some images of his arrival.
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| On dry land, with a glass of bubbly to celebrate |
May 25th 1300 UTC
Trip meter 6895nm
Dist to Horta 113nm
Dist in 24 hrs 106nm
DMG 97nm
Yesterday had fast smooth sailing, which became fast rough sailing. I realised that if I kept the speed up I would arrive near Horta in the worst possible weather so dropped the main and been under jib only since 3am. Seas are still building and becoming more confused with breaking tops. We are approaching the mid-Atlantic Ridge with it's many undersea formations that play havoc with currents in very local areas. I should pass close to the Princess Alice Bank which is less than 50m deep. Got a bit of sun which is boosting batteries. I will be using Starlink for the last time tonight because my subscription expires at midnight and I'm not spending 300 euros to renew the subscription for just a few hours. I'll get phone signal as I approach the islands. Let's hope the weather front is not too severe.
May 24 log 13000UTC
Trip meter 6789nm
Distance to Horta 210nm
Distance in 24 hrs 72nm
Distance made good 64nm
Slow steady sailing since yesterday. Got more wind in the early hours so sped up a little. If I can go fast enough maybe I can miss the worst of the weather. The problem is to get into the harbour in gale force SE wind. I would be on a lee shore with no way out. The alternative is to slow down and go through the worst wind in deep water, delaying arrival by at least 24 hours. The seas close to the islands go crazy in strong winds because of undersea banks and tidal rips. Going to push till tomorrow morning and then see what the weather is doing, the forecast changes every few hours. Tomorrow is my last day with Starlink and I don't want to pay another 300 for a whole month when I only need it for a couple of days. I can get the weather on my phone when I get close to the islands (about 20 miles?). Still suffering with little sun for solar. Rainy again this morning with complete cloud coverage.
May 23rd 1630 UTC
Trip meter 6717nm
Dist to Horta 274nm
Dist in 24 hrs 75nm
DMG 63nm
Wind been very light and running with jib poled out. Sea calm with cloudy night and morning fog. No sun today so batteries very low. Just been passed by a 12m Swedish yacht under motor with no sail up. Lucky for him as there is a nasty depression forming which will zap me as I get close to Horta. They should arrive before it hits. I think I will be in the wrong place at the right time to get clobbered. Took advantage of the calm to heat some sea water and fresh water for a hot shower with fresh water rinse off. I checked the remaining water - 66.4 litres. Not monitoring weather as often as I would like because I am not connecting the Starlink too often because of the low batteries. Coffee supply running low! I am drinking a lot more coffee now with the colder weather.
Mayy 22nd 1300UTC
Trip meter 6642nm
Dist to Horta 337nm
Dist in 24 hrs 83nm
DMG 73nm
As expected the wind eased off overnight. Took the reefs out and was under full sail by sunrise. There was light drizzle the whole night and a cool breeze. The clouds disappeared during this morning, the sun is shining on the solar panels and the batteries are breathing a sigh of relief Got as low as 15% charge. I will be able to connect the Starlink a little later. Sea has calmed down with smooth swells. Slipping along at 3 knots in a light breeze.