We had a nice day's run. Our weather guru gave us a pair of way points. If we started at the first one and ran to the second one, we would benefit from a favorable current. So we did just that and had an extra 1.5 knots of speed from the favorable current (although not exactly a direct course for the Azores). And since it was blowing 20K or more, the boat was moving very well. As the day progressed, the seas grew lumpier and it got harder to move around comfortably. However, our valiant cook added to our Costa Rican stew and put out some brie and munchies, so we all sat around the table and tried diligently to keep a bowl of stew, a glass of wine, our silverware, and the saltshaker from jumping off the table. We're getting better at it.
At sunset, it started to lighten a bit and we reset the spinnaker pole and put the jib out wing and wing. So running dead downwind with our magnificent autopilot steering we are on course and still making a good speed. The waves have moderated a bit, but they are more confused than previously, coming from both the NW and SW.
There is a storm ahead of us and to the North. It is packing winds of 35 knots and so we are not going as far North as we might want until the storm system dissipates. We are just running along the 35th parallel.
We are running our genset more than I would like. Between the autopilot and the freezer, we go through 10 amps every hour and end up running the genset about every 6 hours. It only burns about 1/8 gallon of diesel fuel every hour, so the fuel is not an issue, but running an engine of any kind is a nuisance. I have been customizing the program that the voltage regulator is using to get more charging done in the same time frame. I think it is working and tomorrow will customize still further.
Still, it beats having to sit outside and steer all the time - something that we always used to have to do. It was hard enough just steering a compass course. At night, the compass was lit up so we could see the numbers, but steering by the wind was much harder. We would either have to watch the wind vane up at the mast head to see the wind angle (and get a very sore neck) or put yarns on the rigging to show the wind direction. Even so, a human had to interpret what the wind vane was saying while it waggled from side to side. Given the difficulty that humans have concentrating on something for a long time, the autopilot does a far better job. It always pays attention and either steers a compass course or the wind angle, depending on what we ask of it.
I just went up and checked for shipping, about my only duty while on watch other than to ensure the status quo of the course and sail trim. No shipping. We haven't seen any sign of humanity since the second day. In the old days, couples who were sailing used to just go to bed for the night. Some still do, but we are being prudent, especially since there are 3 of us.
So I'll bid you a good night for now and remind you to write using our sailmail email address.
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