Atlantic Crossing WEEK 3 & a bit – Ratty Ratty Sea Rats

Day 15 (6 Dec)

The fruit flies are are now driving me insane so I emptied and cleaned out all of the cupboards which is so difficult when you are getting thrown around. Next time you all do your housework spare a minute to remember this. Despite cleaning everything & putting stuff in containers the little bastards are still hanging around.

All of us were so excited about the pub quiz we couldn’t wait for the afternoon so played in the morning and all really enjoyed it so that was a moral boast. The swell seems worse than usual today and there is lots of big patches of weed so we didn’t put the fishing rods out. A few minor squalls hit today which we haven;t seen for a while.

There isn’t much fresh food left now and I’m losing interest in cooking now, we will be hitting 999 miles to go soon and we all feel like there is very small light at the end of the tunnel. At 7pm the boys all sat around the GPS for 15 minutes waiting for the milage counter to change from 999 to 998 as it doesn’t go above this number. I made choice chip fairy cakes to celebrate, it is these small things that you really come to appreciate!

Day 16 (7Dec)

The sunrise was very pretty this morning and I expected it to be a warm day, when I say warm I actually mean roasting alive!!! It has been Everyone had washes today the boys hung off the boat into the atlantic, good thing as they are all stinking! I had the luxury of the fresh water camping sun shower.

The rods went back out & Matty caught a decent sized fish but shortly after lost another lure nicknamed bluey to a monster. & Simons reel broke so they are down to bastardising what fishing tackle is left as we’ve lost 5 lures in total.

The clocks went back again today by 1 hour and we hit another squall but this time with a lot more rain. During the night shift we saw a tanker which past infront of us & Simon spoke to the Captain on the VHF radio but e was’t very chatty. These are signs that we are heading towards LAND but still another 850 miles to go.

Day 17 (8 Dec)

I haven’t written a diary entry for a few days so I have no idea what actually happened today. I think I may have been a moody & ratty with sea life getting to me & I just want to be there now. We ran out of water today in the boat tanks but we still have bottled drinking water, so now all the washing up has to be done in sea water & no more fresh water showers 😦

I made some scones which were more like biscuits with jam & UHT cream which curdled when Simon whipped it but was still nice. So far we have sailed 2142 miles and have 758 to go ….. but who’s counting!!!!!

Day 18 (9 Dec)

I really want to wake up in a good mood but something always seems to instigate an instant outburst of anger. This morning I got flung onto Chris’ saloon bed and spilt scrumpy’s water everywhere. I have no tolerance for it the last few days & am getting irritated & impatient at the drop of a hat. I hate it as I am not setting good example to the female race in front of the boys as they think I am mental crazy!!!!

We did another pub quiz which Chris always wins so we have stopped giving out haribo as prizes. Simon spilt his pot noodle over twice losing all the flavouring so flashed and threw the whole thing over board in a Bake Off Baked Alaska style tantrum so I think we are all struggling a little bit mentally. It is very noticeable that Simon has lost a lot of weight & is tanned and even building up some muscle from all the active work he has to do. Boat life really is suiting him.

Day 19 (10 Dec)

If all goes to plan we should arrive in 4 days, none of us can wait & we keep taking of the food & alcohol feast we are going to have when we get there. Chris said this is the longest he has gone without a drink, he had planned to drink during the crossing until Simon told him that it will be a dry boat for the crossing for safety reasons. Simon asked him a few days ago if he still wanted to drink on the trip to which he gave a firm reply of NO. Having not experience a long ocean passage I guess people don’t understand what it is like. If an emergency kicks off & even worse if it is at night the last thing you want or need is someone drunk or hungover!

Simon made us chocolate flapjacks & spilt half of down the back of the cooker covering it in chocolate goo. I have been trying to be in better mood and the fact that we only have 4 more sleeps is helping with this. We are almost at the 500 mile mark ….whoop whoop.

Day 20 (11 Dec)

My early morning shift on the helm was awful as the swell keeps pushing us off course making the autopilot go haywire & shift off constantly. Simon cooked the worlds longest fry up of sautéed potatoes, eggs, beans & fried spam when he finally served it up it was a portion size fit for a borrower. It was a nice treat though so I am not being ungrateful. We are struggling for breakfast & lunch ideas now that food supplies are dwindling. I am struggling to keep up with my diary & keep forgetting what has happened even a few hour ago, everyday is just a blur of sky & sea. The wind id dying down and if it delays us this will not be good for sanity.

Day 21 (12 Dec)

I made a focaccia loaf with the last of the flour & we had a nice lunch considering we are exactly 3 weeks in; tinned pimento peppers, fried chorizo, oil & vinegar & some tinned meatballs in my home made tomato sauce. The boys put out the rods with their custom made lures & caught 3 different kinds of fish which was a nice change to Dorado. Unfortunately the motor is back on as there isn’t much wind & we have the fuel so are not prepared to slow down at this point! It is unbearably hot again & we are desperate to get in the sea but its too much admin & is only allowed for the odd wash as it can be dangerous.

Day 22 (13 Dec – Sunday)

So this should be our last full day before we see land & finally get to Rodney Bay Marina. At this point in the journey we are literally going through the motions. We are no longer trying to enjoy ourselves we are just counting down the clock unitl we arrive. The motor is still on & we should arrive around midday tomorrow all we want is the day to be over so we get to go in our standard issue passers time machine (sleep) as the nights go quick.

Day 23 (14 Dec)

We were all up early as excited to see land for the first time in 3 weeks. Although it is exciting we know it is coming so it isn’t a spectacular surprise, its more of a relief. It wasn’t until we rounded the Northern point, Pigeon Point & started our way into Rodney Bay that it really sunk in. The sun was shining, Palm tress swaying, crystal clear aquamarine water & we could smell and see a beach BBQ. I felt so emotional finally arriving after all Simon & I have experienced to get here. It felt overwhelming & I couldn’t stop grinning from ear to ear. I even shed a small tear, Simon also said he felt close to tears but his eyes just glazed over …. real men don’t cry apparently ha ha

We entered the marina carefully securing the Tudor Rose on Berth G23 & all enjoyed a well earned celebratory cold beer on the pontoon before Simon went off to check us in the country & sort out Scrumpys paperwork so we could let him off boat. He was excited to get off but jumped straight back onto the boat. I think it was even overwhelming for him too, but he was soon haring chasing his ball & quickly becoming the most famous dog in the Caribbean.