A pretty strenuous night overall with wind puffing away the whole night from sunset onward, between 16-26knots. This built up a bit of a sea state as time went on, so the beam reach was a hard jolting ride. Just what was required though to break the back of the sea miles to Noumea. Bacon and egg muffins were a welcome start to the day.
Sailing hard all day provided plenty of mirth. I'd got a bit of diesel on the soles of my sailing shoes the day before. Of course I didn't really realize. This was bad. Moments when both hands were occupied and bottom not firmly wedged against something in the galley, would see me slide across the cabin floor. Hey, it's like iceskating - only unexpectedly.
The lunch washing up water kept running away, making it necessary to hunt the water. A paper towel escaped its compartment, fell to the floor and unraveled as it took off. Retrieving it was even funnier.
Two days under sail alone with all our instruments ON and "Austin" (the autopilot) on duty, meant we needed to recharge the battery bank. Our solar panels are sufficient only for refrigeration. We were on such a lean the gennie had to be lashed on to secure it!
The last of the cooked chook was put in bowls for lunch and accompanied by a huge salad. My, how important food becomes on passage!
Cheesy fivers was followed after dark by a warming bowl of meatballs, saffron rice and steamed veg. Why the bowls all the time? So the food doesn't get blown away or slide off our plate!
The boat was put to bed. Mainsail furled away. The headie on it's own would move us along while providing a manageable night. The Bloke downloaded the latest weather at 18:00, entered the new waypoints, checked the setup, then went below for a well deserved sleep.
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