Three donuts and more

02’09.7S 017’17.3W course 330′ speed 5 kn (under engine)


What an exciting night, lets start with the wind, lightning, thunder and windshift during the dog watch! Our watch started off slow, doing 4 knots on a lazy breeze, sometimes 5 knots when steering more on a beam… So chores were done, vegetables were turned and hugged and talked to and a general clean was commenced. When this was done a shower rolled in and so all the hatches were closed, the doors were closed and the wind started to increase a little, from a force 3 to a force 4. As we were heading downwind, this was not a problem, we started doing 8 knots and it felt pretty good.. But then the shower finished and the wind went back to a light force 3.
Time for our midnight snack, yoghurt with muesli and a slice of bread with peanut butter.
But as Tom and Stella were downstairs eating their midnightsnack, a heavy rain started, wind disappeared and the returned from the North! I turned on the engine, all sails a back, headed down wind once more, going South (!) for a bit to sheet all the sails in and turn around again. We did nearly 3 donuts before heading on our course again. We woke up Joel and Myrthe to help out to take away all sails.. There was still lightning around and the sails were only swinging over the deck, so down they went.

Now we are under engine, just under 200 miles on our courseline to the equator.. I hope that daylight brings a small breeze with her, that way we can do some topsail sailing during the day. This evening the wind should disappear completely and that will be our last hours sailing on the Southern Hemisphere for now. We have well and truly entered the Doldrums then.

But thats not all that happened today! First we had a fire drill with door procedure explanation and after that a nozzle/hose test. The nozzle and the hose worked just fine, we all had to stand right in front of the spray of salt water to see if it was really working.. And it was, it cooled us down a little in one of the hottest hours of the day as well! It was also the Dutch Kings day! So we celebrated with a beer (his nick name was Prins-pils for a while) and brought out Joels mug (that sustained substantial injuries in the first week on board..) and my new mug (my steel one broke off the handle..) that the crew bought me on Saint Helena… On my mug I carry a sentence you all know I use, that was send to me by Joanna, I love it so much, that deserved a place on my new mug!

And with that sentence I would like to end yet another day in our logbook, All is well on board, Jet

One Response to “Three donuts and more

  • Boukje
    10 months ago

    Nice pictures, you look very proud Jet! You Should be…wat a great trip and team. Kings day in Enkhuizen en Medemblik was about a lot of beer but no mugs unfortunately..
    All is well aboard the Stella..

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