Sailing under fair winds towards Tristan da Cunha

Good wind to set sail and turn the engines off.  

Sun shining amongst the few clouds make for a more pleasant work on deck and aloft, and a more enjoyable ride.  

Just enough of heeling to still have quite a dry main deck. 

Both the sea and the air got warmer along the day. 

A set of conditions just like the ones we are welcomed on deck at the beginning of this new day. 

Still a crisp wind blows, although it is not as cold as it has been until now. The surface water temperature went up from 3.2ºC we measured this morning to 5.2ºC recorded in the evening, indicating that on our way northwards and away from South Georgia we are crossing the Antarctic Convergence Area. From now on we sail in the temperate subantarctic region, although still in the Furious 50’s. Tomorrow we will hit the lower latitudes of the Roaring 40’s. Nevertheless still we need to keep a good eye during the lookouts, some big bergs were still spotted today. 

The sailing went on Close hauled, with the braces pulled tight on Port tack. Squares up to the Top Gallants, Headrig, Lower Staysails and Spanker are set.  

The Northerly wind is picking up during the afternoon, blowing hard in the night. It is time for dousing and furl some of the canvas. Top Gallants first, Outer Jib afterwards and not much later swap the large Desmond for the smaller Aap over our main deck. We were ready for stronger gusts that eventually came during the nighttime.  

A good day for sailing, a good day too for resuming our talks, lectures, and sail training (even possible to do the instructions on deck setting and dousing the Top Gallants).  

Maintenance bits are always on the list, jobs that never end sailing on a steel hull launched well over a century ago and with a rig like ours. 

Sail handling, sail training, talks on deck and maintenance, steering and lookouts, today seemed that everything happened under the attentive looks of the numerous White chinned petrels that fly fast, glide and soar in high arcs above the sea. They were approaching our stern to such a close range that their usually not visible white chin spot could be easily seen. 

They were not on their own, a bit more shy today and not so curious were the Soft plumaged and Wilson storm petrels, Grey headed and Wandering albatrosses. 

Like that, enjoying a great sailing journey after yesterday’s full day under engine, South Georgia lays already a couple of hundred miles behind, it waved us farewell yesterday with a spectacular view of mountains and glaciers amidst openings on the low clouds while numerous whales and albatrosses wander around the edge of its continental shelf.  

As the superstition goes, a sailor should never look back once he has left, he should avoid suggesting that he is not ready to leave land. Now we should look ahead, to the many miles of open ocean on our way towards Tristan da Cunha, a small speck of steep volcanic land in the middle of the South Atlantic.