It chases us.
A day that starts with setting more canvas in a reasonable 25 to 30kn of wind. We try to speed up.
Beam reach, broad reach, downwind later on. Running eastwards from a sharp line that shows up in the weather forecast indicating a sudden increase in the wind.
It follows us. Faster than we can sail away from it, though the strategy game between the combination of Low Pressure Systems that ally and interact with each other on one side and the skilful routing of the sailing on the other is avoiding the worst of the hit.
The colourful screen on the bridge computer showing the forecast puts us sailing in an area of relatively fair conditions. Zooming out, it shows up. Green and orange become sharply purple, a straight line north to south, sweeping eastbound for miles and miles along a considerable portion of this area of the South Pacific. Green to orange represents fair, relatively strong but good wind conditions. Purple means lots of wind to deal with.
At the same time, countless signals keep popping up on the ship’s radar: squalls, fast-moving showers with their associated wind shifts, rain and hail crossing our path.
From having all our canvas set, but the uppermost staysails, as the hours pass we reduce sail. Royals come down, Fore Topmast Staysail and Outer Jib are doused, Middle Staysails are soon furled and the Spanker too. Whisker Poles stretching the Courses are taken in before dinner.
The following swell grows as well. With all that, we get ready for the stronger wind conditions to come, the heavier weather expected at night-time. But we don’t have to wait long. After dinner we feel the blows and gusts. Time for striking Top Gallants and Main Course and quickly furling them, while the waves start washing the Main Deck. And there it is, up to 40kn shows on the wind meter, the westerly gradually becomes southwesterly. From square, the yards are set on a broad reach.
Until then, the last 24 hours had brought us 162 nautical miles closer to the Horn, 3143 to go in a straight line there.