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Day 40 Three sails since collision |
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Saturday, 02 June 2007 |
Today we are sailing with three sails for the first time since our collision 27 days ago. The jib is not ready to set on the bowsprit as there are still details that I have to tend to. Boy does it feel good to have a brisk wind on the side and be sailing along in the direction we want to go at a comfortable 4 knots. Now we should start seeing our track move across the Atlantic at a bit more of a steady and consistent pace. If we had become disabled near the coast, I could have given the schooner the ability to sail against the wind to the safety of more sea room and would have done the job quicker than what I'm doing now. I couldn't have physically worked any harder, but could have temporarily jury-rigged things to get the schooner sailing quicker. Once I thought I could fix the boat for the long run, I worked with that goal in mind and took longer to do a better repair.
We are sailing cautiously because we had a weather forecast for 28-38 knot winds. This is not quite a gale, but does require reefed sails. Note that the foresail and mainsail (foresail on left, staysail on right in pict) both have a reef in them. We feel snugged down, comfortable and ready for a lot more wind. If the wind increases beside us or in front of us, I'll drop the foresail. We need some part of the mainsail to keep us moving against the wind. If the wind increases behind us from the west, then we will drop the main and the reefed foresail and the staysail will propel us forward.
I put out three fishing lines because we are now going fast enough to catch fish. I've got my fingers crossed because I have been promising Soanya fish for quite a while.
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