Gentle easy sailing in warm balmy breezes astern along the coast of the Western Sahara. More whales around the ship this afternoon: we saw them breach and blow across a huge area around the ship, and even a few sets of flukes. From their bulky shape and size we think it was a pod of sperm whales. It was such a quiet, still day you could hear them blow from far away, amazing!
SHIP’S WORK: Send down starboard fore upper topsail footrope for inspection, overhaul and replace aloft; paint buff on edge of focslehead, port focsle ladder and varnish starboard charthouse rail, slush standing rigging at deck level, re-stitch chafe gear on main topmast shroud, ratlines on fore topmast shrouds, stretch new tarry ratline stock, replace wooden ratline on port main t’gallant shroud. The sailmakers are spread out in the sunshine on the quarter deck, working on hand seaming the new main topmast staysail, finish work on the main t’gallant staysail, and inspecting a couple of topsail for repairs and reinforcements.
TOWARDS: Dakar, Senegal
TIME ZONE: GMT – 1/2 hour
NOON POSITION: 21°53.2’N /017°47.1’W
DAYS RUN: 85nm
PASSAGE LOG: 423nm
DISTANCE REMAINING: 439nm
COURSE AND SPEED: South by West (CMGT 197°T)
WIND: Force 2, East
WEATHER: 3/8 cloud (cirrus and cumulus), air temp 70F (21°C), barometer reading 1020 millibars, visibility good
SWELL HEIGHT & DIRECTION: approx 1 foot, NE
SAILS SET: Everything set: square sails to the royals, outer and inner jibs, fore and main topmast staysails, main t’gallant staysail, mizzen topmast staysail, and the spanker.