Friday, March 1, 2019

Good Day’s Sail

17 02 N 100 53W
Enroute to Huatulco

We had a good day's sail today. The wind piped up around 13:30 so we hoisted the Code 0 and a reefed mainsail, reefed so as to not shadow the foresail when sailing deep downwind. I had set a course to put us about 10 nm offshore where the wind was forecast to be blowing a bit stronger than closer to the coast. It seems like that was a good idea.

Once offshore, we altered course eastward to parallel the coast which put us deeper downwind. What the mainsail was doing for us was the same as what it was taking away from the Code 0, so we dropped it. It's much more peaceful and easier sailing that way, especially at night.

We rigged up fishing lines but didn't catch anything. Dinner was tuna patties, sautéed vegetables and pinto beans. Simple but tasty. After dinner, a pod of dolphins came by to entertain us, featuring tail slaps and leaps out of the water. It was quite a nice show.

The two long day watches worked out well. We switch to four-hour watches for the night. We'll see how that works out tomorrow morning.