Day 82 – Longitude East
Where Next?
Bob Williams
Sat 5 Mar 2022 14:13
Course: ESE Speed: 6 knots
Wind: NW, F5 Sea: moderate
Swell: NW 3 m
Weather: overcast, occasional shower, cool
Day’s Run: 152 nm
At 1600 yesterday we crossed the Greenwich Meridian, 0 degrees longitude, marking our return to the eastern hemisphere.
Shortly after crossing 0 degrees the wind picked up that little bit more prompting me to reduce sail down to three reefs in the main and 30% jib poled out to port. It was one of those days where the wind just increases little by little and one is inclined to hang on to the extra sail that bit longer; however, the approach of sunset generally motivates one to reduce canvas to provide for a reasonable chance of a relatively peaceful night.
Unfortunately, it was not a comfortable night. The wind was close to force 8 and at the threshold of needing a further reduction in canvas. Also Sylph’s motion was a jerky roll with a short period of about six seconds making finding a comfortable position in my bunk very difficult. So for most of the night I lay listening to the wind howling above and the seas breaking astern, and glancing at the GPS readout on a regular basis keeping an eye on Sylph’s speed. I figure that as long as she is not pushing past eight knots than she is okay.
We got through the night, the wind easing a little towards dawn but the motion as uncomfortable as ever. Come daylight, looking about it seems that two seas are running about 30 degrees out of phase with one another and it was the combination that was causing Sylph’s sharp motion.
With the slight easing of the breeze I have unrolled some jib but kept three reefs in the main.
The Walker trailing log is now streamed and is tying in well with the GPS. This forenoon I pulled the electronic log’s head display apart as far as I am able (it is mostly a waterproof sealed unit). It would seem the internal battery is fine but the external power supply is not charging; however, the inbuilt tiny solar panel is charging. So, because the head unit is mounted under the dodger it only gets partial sunshine and of course the sun has to be shining in the first place. Consequently the internal battery has gone flat and I can only charge it by placing the head unit in the sun, which is not a very practical long term solution. Conclusion – scratch one log/echo sounder. Bother!
I forgot to mention that we advanced clocks to time zone 0 (Greenwich Mean Time) two days ago.
All is well.