Yesterday afternoon turned into one of our most memorable days at sea thus far. We sailed over the edge of the continental shelf and the seas began to smooth out into longer swells. We hoisted the A4 and shook out a reef. We were soon surfing down the waves in 20 knots of breeze in the sunshine. Pippa Potamus joined us on deck for our Sunday afternoon picnic which comprized saucisson, cheesey biscuits and fresh orange wedges. We all needed our dose of vitamins and nutrients after a week at sea.

Before dinner we put in a few gybes down the rhumb line to Black Rock off North West Ireland. As the wind was slowly clocking round to the east we shook out our last reef in the main. Common Dolphins joined us for a while before we hoisted the A2 our biggest spinnaker of 185m2. Despite the clear sky and the bright moon light it was one of the warmest nights we have had. The wind steadily decreased over night and made decisions difficult. The mountains off Ireland became visible 47nm away at sun rise. The wind had decreased to less than 10 knots and we were sailing higher angles in oder to lay Black Rock. In a matter of moments the wind was coming from the south and we quickly dropped the A2 and hoisted the solent. The wind then died out completely but fortunately the sun was out and we were able to dry out our wet gear. As I write the wind has been increasing… we now have 3.2 knots of breeze!