After monsoon like rain at intervals during the night which found it's way

inside everyone's oilies except Joe's as he didn't bring his, on Tuesday

morning the sun came out. Smoother more rolling seas and lighter less gusty

winds foretold of a change in the weather, less English Channel and more

Tropical. Finally we could look forward to a day of true trade wind sailing

in shorts and t-shirts. It's been two weeks since we left Gran Canaria.

Before breakfast we gybed onto a port tack heading more south westerly on

260 degrees. Still under jib only but during the day it was gradually

unfurled bit by bit though not in its entirety. Tomorrow we may even put the

main up again. An important milestone was reached just after lunch – the

ships log (measuring the distance Temptress has travelled through the water)

reached 999 nautical miles and, as the display can only fit three digits the

crew watched with baited breath to see what next…. drum roll….. 0.00 –

meaning the Naviguesser now has to add 1000 to every logbook entry and

guessing the same thing will happen in a thousand more miles. We celebrated

the milestone in our own inimitable way by drinking today's ration of

Tropical. Today's noon to noon run wasn't great at 157nm, hoping for better

things tomorrow which will be a 25 hour day as we crossed into the next time

zone over night and changed the clocks to UT-3 in the afternoon.

I spent the morning restocking the galley lockers from the ships stores –

salt, sugar, sweetie, cornflakes and biscuit containers all needed topping

up. We are down to our last five packs of Bimbo Thins and one loaf and the

Carrefour shopping bag that has been acting as an overflow breadbin for the

last two weeks has finally been emptied. A batch of yoghurt was put onto

brew and promptly forgotten about until bed time so it is a bit runny but

will still be welcome for tomorrows breakfast with the last of our mangoes I

expect. Supper was a very traditional English sausages and mash with onion

gravy and, a bonus, some frozen peas we'd forgotten about.

Paul been maintaining that once Temptress reaches halfway the weather will

become more Caribbean like (which we are hoping todays warmth is) and we'll

be in shorts and t-shirts at night. Considering last night even oilies

weren't sufficient to keep out the torrents we have been dubious but this is

his third crossing so we bow to his greater experience. Meanwhile in another

strand of on-board conversation the Dubai taxi drivers use of the word

“backside” in relation to locations came up as in “I'll drop you at the

backside of the mall madam”. Two and two do not always add up to sanity at

sea…so following this logic currently the Caribbean is on the backside of

the ocean and we are on the front side but apparently tomorrow when we

cross the halfway mark Temptress and the Caribbean will be on the front side

and Africa on the backside. Will there be a painted line dividing the East

Atlantic from the West or a sign post pointing the way to the Americas? All

well on-board if temporarily a little insane.