Preserved Lemons!

Sailing east on winds once used by sailors of Spanish galleons made us think about life aboard for them.  Beyond the obvious treasure thing, arrrrgh yes, me hearties!  Flores was once a pirate’s lair; a hiding place to ensnare ships loaded with Inca & Aztec gold and West Indies spices).  We though, thought about preserving food supplies.  The ancients used large quantities of salt – it too being a treasure of sorts! – to preserve their beef, olives and pork, amongst other things.  There is so much salt aboard WJ3 (and on us) that we felt we were fast becoming preserved.  A couple of old lemons…..  

Repairs at sea whilst becalmed

So you may well ask, "What did they do all day"?

For those interested in our daily routine during those 20 days, let me tell you, it wasn’t much.  Time did go quickly however and it was only during foul weather (when WJ3 bucked like a frenzied donkey) that we ever wondered if there was indeed a better way.  GS will, from now on, only cross oceans again on the QE2; with associated comforts such as daily showers, hot water, feather beds and large buffets prepared by someone else. 

Irrespective of what other things we were doing, the boat’s progress (yes, forward!) always came first, day or night time.  This involved furling/reefing and unfurling sails depending on wind direction and speed, tacking, jibing (and other nautical manoeuvres) and sometimes using the spinnaker pole to ‘pole out’ the genoa.  Plus keeping the boat pointed in the right direction which meant fiddling with Burt according to any changes in the breeze’s direction.  We wanted to get to the Azores as quickly as possible. (Too damned right! Ed)

Are you sure you're watching out for sharks, My Sweet?
(You can just see lots of tiny bright yellow fish following WJ3 & the Cap'n) 

Our day began with an early morning watch and was there after punctuated with reading, listening to music, snoozing, discussing the weather or doing navigation/boat chores.  We often ate fruit and cereal for breakfast largely because you can serve it standing on your head…  The Cap’n would tweak sails to keep us going east and say a morning prayer to Burt, our self-steering (Hydrovane), who was selfless in his attention to duty.  Don’t leave home without one! 

After sending off an early position report to WJ3’s tracker using our satellite communication system, our thoughts turned to lunch.  Not dry biscuits (Ryevita) and cheese again!  Actually lettuce and tomato lasted quite well into the voyage.  Our last week was a bit spare of fresh rations but we’ve lost a few tummy tyres, so it can’t be all that bad.

Around 3pm, the Cap’n would prep for the daily Herb Hour.  Herb Hilgenberg is a famed weather router for North Atlantic & Bahama bound sailors.  It sure was nice to be able to speak to somebody (else), get a personal weather report and be routed around weather systems too nasty to contemplate.  We liked Herb Hour because Cocktail Hour followed immediately.  Once we discovered how to make a meagre portion of ice, we sipped cold drinks and nibbled on chips and nuts, talking about weather and various sightings for the day (pilot whales, sea birds, ships, whales, sharks etc).  Then it was dinner before dark.

Dinner depended upon the conditions.  It could be as simple as steak, mash & (tinned) vegies or salad in settled weather or a packet of mash mixed in with a tin of soup in bad - that’s the Captain’s recipe by the way!  Two minute noodles were another favourite.  For those wondering about the steak, our WAECO (a 12 volt car) fridge/freezer is the best thing since sliced bread!  After clean up, GS usually sent off her second position report, then it was bed for the off-watch. 

Assume the comfortable Watch Position (with Ipod)

Each watch usually lasted 3 to 4 hours depending upon how tired we were and continued through the night.  We dressed in our wet weather gear, attractive bib & brace pants and keep-me-dry-and-warm jacket.  Sometimes we wore boots, others just deck shoes.  During the day we usually wore quickdries, largely because the Gulf Stream carries with it plenty of that Caribbean sunshine.  We constantly wore harnesses (GS’s has a life preserver built in) and tethers – clipped to WJ3 by bright yellow ties. 

Only 19 days to go.....

GS mostly slept in the lee cloth berth set up in the saloon; she says it’s like sleeping in a sling shot.  The Cap’n braved the aft quarter berth, very comfy with a new mattress, but on occasions, was tossed like a salad.  We slept ready to take action if needed – read always dressed - although not in wet weather gear.  It was always close by if needed in a hurry eg wind squall/thunderstorm.  We managed a fresh water shower once each week (baby wipes or a bucket of salt water otherwise) and even had a mid-Atlantic swim in 16404 feet of water, during the calmest becalming.  Don’t ask about washing hair.  GS was sporting salt encrusted dreadlocks by the time we arrived in Flores.

So there you have it – WJ3’s routine. 

And no, we didn’t fish much.  After trailing a lure (Will it be big pinkie or slimy limey today?) for 3 days without success, we gave up.  Not even a fish to preserve with all this salt!  Maybe Admiral Nelson was right – we should have been adding a good slug of brandy to our evening cocktails instead.