4th August 1330UT Gibraltar 108 miles
As expected, life has become significantly easier on board as a result of
passing Cape St Vincent. The winds backed to NW and reduced, the seas also
calmed so that moving could be done without too much climbing. A blessed
relief for the pair of us.
At 0530UT Andy sighted the Portuguese coast. This was a very exciting moment
but, as he mentioned yesterday, our Atlantic crossing will not be done till
we pass through the Straits, specifically off the Isla de Tarifa. We hope to
be at this point tomorrow morning although the time is shifting right
somewhat!
Why is the time shifting? Because the wind has turned on us and is now very
light and from the east! We are shaping a course to windward but it is a
slog. At the moment we are heading back into land to try and pick up any sea
breezes that might form in the afternoon because there is nothing helpful
towards the middle of the channel. This also takes us out of the way of the
main shipping channels which is always a good thing!
Morale on board is considerably better than it was yesterday, even with this
wind, and we hope to send our blog from inside the med tomorrow.
For the record, our run yesterday was 137 miles and, despite conditions, I
cooked a 'pot-mess' of leftover pasta, Irish stew and sweetcorn. It was
great, but you probably would have to take my word for it!
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