Atlantic Blog#14 - Sunday 7th December 2014

Today has been one of the quietest and relaxed of the trip. The winds continue to blow from the SE at a steady 15-20 knots. Initially we have been maintaining a just-south-of-westerly course, as satnav tells us St Lucia is about 260' .  The weather forecasters are predicting lighter winds to the south, so about lunchtime as the wind shifted slightly to the south we changed our course more to the north.  Little Pea, Class G leader, has headed to our south.  This is not a race, you understand. Yeah, right!  So keep your fingers crossed for fair winds to the north.  Thank you to all for the microwave cake recipes, especially the Lemon Drizzle Cake again.  We are on our last gas bottle so trying to conserve on cooker use.  Generator is doing sterling work with water making, battery top up and washing, so in between our favourite cake, apart from Tanya's chocolate brownies (we're saving that for the last but one day), will be zapped up tomorrow.  There have been few notable events today.  Much book reading in evidence.  The daily routine of chopping plastics, wiping through the cockpit (main on-deck crew area) and saloon (sitting room) floors, and making sure everything is shipshape (tidy) in the galley (kitchen) in preparation for the next watch's (shift's) brew stop (tea break), has continued.  Last night and this morning we were down to our 2nd reef (sail size reduction) in both the main sail and the big sail at the front.  Progressively today, we have knocked out both, to a comfortable 1st reef in the main only, and that mostly because we have become accustomed to protecting the 1st batten car.  It remains firmly unattached to the mast (the main sail has thin strips of stout plastic running the full width of the sail maintaining a pre-stressed curve to aid efficient wing shape; the batten is attached to the mast track by an articulating arm and runner, the car).  Although our fresh food stocks are depleting rapidly, we continue to maintain the highest of culinary standards, with today's offering starting at late breakfast, with freshly squeezed carton of orange juice, scrambled dijons of ham and eggs, sautéed premier cru pomme de terres in a butter joue, served with crusty bread rolls and a selection of red berry jams.  Tea of coffee to complement, of course.  Lunch at 2pm:  finely rolled wraps with a thin coating of mayonnaise, the last of the fresh tomatoes and lettuce, a flavouring of mild tomato salsa, spiced with chorizo and salami slivers.  Finely selected Mr Robinsons' blackcurrants blended with mountain spring water to accompany them.  And for supper, vegetable ragou on a bed of cream of mashed potato.  Mouth watering menus!  How are we surviving the rigours of the Atlantic?