Becalmed

So much for a hectic night last night...we went glassy calm at about 8pm and did not get any wind till about 4am this morning..we dropped the sails and just sat there with stars in the sky and on the water, all very beautiful unless you are trying to catch Bligh..at least it was not raining?..so the morning was a very slow sail till about midday when a breeze filled in from the south. we have 100 miles to go to the first of the Vanuatu Islands..big day tomorrow!! but a very slow trip across here.

A few days ago we had a bird,Noddy Tern land on the boat for a few seconds which meant we could eat a bonus tin of lambs tongues..YES!!..it took us a few days to find the tins..Dave W would not touch them, Dave price the same and Chris had one mouth full and said no thanks..I got the whole tin..very small ..and more protein which is a worry for my gout but I am washing it down with heaps of water now...no way will I pass up food other than the survival biscuits..two a day is my limit.

My favourite Antarctic birds are around at the moment..Wilson Storm Petrels..they have little orange webbed feet and fly along dancing on the water..I call them Jesus Birds..they pick up plankton with their feet and then eat it off while in the air..They breed in Antarctica in Summer and were with us on Cape Dennison when Margie and I lived there for a year in 1995..they were also with me during the BOC Challenge solo around the world yacht race in 1990..in the middle of huge storms they would be dancing around making me smile and worry less..they are the size of Budgies..

Tried to hot wire our solar panels direct to the battery today and set up a charging system from Panel direct to appliance..that worked and we were able to charge the iridium phone direct..but the computer may be a problem as we have to go through an inverter..our Batteries are close to 55% now and we are trying every thing and are even trying to get some new panels sent to restoration Island..this is all something that Bligh did not have to worry about ..so we are still on the air at the moment..

Kept thinking of Jess eating all that fresh fruit and new food last night!..not to mention a bed..we sleep two only under the dodger and one in the Bilge in the cockpit while the other is on watch..we sleep on sheep skins which we fight to keep dry but they are getting a bit manky now..the other night in the rain Chris used his to keep the water off him ..there were a few grumbles about that!!

The routine continues here..our limes are going off fast..the last of the coconuts were thrown over the side today as they went moldy..still trying to catch fish but no luck..I am hoping for more Birds to land on Talisker bounty boat, we are enjoying free water greatly and all on-board are hopping that you are not feeling too hungry with the Bligh challenge..It's good hey!!..so thanks for the support..I look forward to reading your comments on our just giving site..

Just before signing off..Dave W has just come off the helm and is now lying in the Bilge..SNORING and Gagging g just minutes after getting his head down..there is plenty of sleeping going on in the TBB..all good..temp about 28degrees, wind 15kts ,total cloud cover,1.5mtr sea occasionally splashing on-board, 5kts boat speed..thinking Restoration Island!!...Don