At 19.15 hrs UTC I was at 34.16 N 49.18 W with 1022 miles to Azores, a 114 mile day. If I would be going striaght for the Azores these miles would be more like 120/125, but I am still holding to the south of it, for that predicted front above 35 North. Another outstanding sailing day. All night I was able to average above 5 knots, with just the 90% jib. Then the 3 reef main went up in the morning, now I am back again to just the 90% and still averaging 5 3/4 knots. I will have a picture to show you of the hand held GPS registering 9.5 knots… I saw it as high as 10.1 knots. This happens when the wave lifts me and lets the boat slide down again. It is exhilarating. If these winds and conditions hold to the Azores I’ll have a good chance to record one of the fastest passages for a 30 footer, from Bermuda. Herb could not hear me but another boat “Way we Go” is just 50 miles to the S.W. of me and his predictions will be identical for me. This might be come a regular race. The old racing juices are running already setting me up to lay out the 1 1/2 ounce spinaker.

The moon rise was obstructed by clouds. I did get a few pictures of it after it rose above the clouds and before total darkness. The moon set was the same problem. I might have another jab at it to night and to-morrow morning. While I was trying to get a few more shots of the Portuguese Men of War, concentrating on the water ahead of the bow, I see this great big mammal just under the surface ahead of the bow. I thought it was a dead whale. But it did slowly move aside. Not sure what it really was. Green and brown, spotted, about 15 feet long. Small for a whale but far too large for a porpoise/dolphin. It never surfaced. I changed the lure and added weights to it but I was still moving too fast and it just drags on the surface. Please, pray for a fish. You all are so good at it.

I listened to to-day’s Tour de France, time trials in Mont Pellier. And read the de Hartog book. I must try and read all his English written books. The first part was about the urchins, 10/13 years old, so called sea-mice, that were part of a Botter crew. The botters were the leeboard shallow draft sailing fishing vessels used around the Zuiderzee. They have a special significance to me. My grandfather, and several generations before him and two since him, made the masts and blocks for the Botters. And on my web site there is a section about my association with a famous botter yacht, the “Groote Beer”. The story I am reading now is about Jan de Hartog rescuing torpedoed commercial vessels off the English coast, with his tugboat, during the 2nd world war.

At 19.15 hrs UTC I am at 34.30 N 51.50 W with 1136 miles to go, a 103 mile towards destination day. In 6 days I have moved over 650 miles away from Bermuda, as the crow flies. It took me 8 days to cover the 600 miles to Bermuda, from Beaufort, N.C. Another fantastic passage making day. During the night the winds came down some and just the storm jib did was not sufficient canvas any longer. But I was lazy and waited till day light to go to the 90%. At 10.30 hrs my 24 hour distance had dropped to 93 miles but as you can see I have made up for that during the day. The winds came down to about 15 knots but have crept back up to around 20. At one time I was nearly surfing but the heavy load I am carrying makes this impossible, I was hitting 7 knots frequently. I could get used to this kind of sailing life. Most of the morning I have been able to get excellent reception on Radio Nederland. They covered to-day’s “etappe” from Marseille to la Grande Motte practically the entire route with another exciting finish. Radio Nederland invited listeners to e-mail or sms their reception. So, I sent an e-mail and 10 minutes later I hear my name and they read off my e-mail. Until now I have had very little luck on any reception in the morning, the evenings are always much better for that. I tried another heavier lure but have not had any hits on the trap line. I am hoping for a clear Eastern horizon to get a photo of the rising moon. It should still have some light left from the setting sun, to-day. Last night there were thick clouds on the horizon. To-morrow morning and Wednesday should also be good opportunities for moon sets. After that there is too much day light.

Herb wants me to continue south of my rhumb line to avoid possible gale conditions north of 35 degrees North. The daily faxed Grib files I get tell a different story. But to be safe I’ll stay nearer to 34 latitude.

At 19.20 UTC I am at 34.33 N 54.02 W with 1239 Miles to Azores. A 102 mile day. Tonight/to-morrow I shall pass the 1/2 way mark from Beaufort N.C. to the Azores. The strong wind I reported yesterday evening has not let up and is still close to 25 knots. And according to Herb, the weather Guru, it will continue for the next 3 days. It’s a rocking and rolling, with just the storm jib up. The waves have grown formidable. When I look out of the cabin over the stern I see the waves rise several feet above the stern, it looks like the tops of the waves want to take a peek and see what I have in the cockpit but then they lift me up and slide away under the boat. Once in a while they slap the stern around a bit and then there is a lot of screeching and squeaking of the wind vane control lines through their blocks to bring the boat back on course. But even though I prefer less wind, the good part is that I do not have to make any sail changes and only have to keep an eye on that tiny storm jib, and I keep a steady speed of close to 5 knots. I searched for a Sunday sermon. I ended up listening to the French transmission of Family Radio. Later in the morning they talk right over the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation program on the same frequency. Very little ship traffic in this part of the Atlantic. Yesterday a bulk carrier heading from the Caribbean for Europe. Earlier in the week an ore carrier (bauxite?), same direction. I will continue dead east along the 34.30 latitude and not go further north yet ( which I’ll need to do eventually) because gale force winds can be expected north of 35 N latitude. Fortunately I have been able to just hold this on the jibe I made yesterday. I Photo Shop edited my 30 plus shots of these wonderful creatures which I believe to be Portuguese Man of War. Got a few really good ones. I’ll be posting them when I get to the Azores. They are still around but fewer. I’m cooking white beans, canned chicken, onions and spices for dinner. The lettuce is all gone, still have a few fresh vegetables and fruit left, then it will be cans/dried food.

One person reads the blog. Sorry for the omission: At 19.15 hrs on July 4th I was at 34.29 N 56.11 W 1341 miles to Azores a 105 mile day.

This morning, July 5th at 9.30 UTC I was at 34.23 N 54.53 W with 1279 miles to go a 113 mile day. All night it stayed close to 25 knots and all I am flying is the tiny Storm Jib that I bought in Durban, after I had my knock down under bare poles off Richards Bay. It has been a life saver for keeping the boat moving in these strong winds. I am doing 4 1/2 to 5 knots. Last night when I hauled in the trap line, for the night, I discovered I was dragging a fish. Again a small tuna, but it did not make it to the boat, lost it. Have a blessed, joyful Sunday.

At 19.15 hrs I am at

So far this has been the best passage sailing that I can remember. Yesterday the wind died down to where every other sane passage maker would be running his motor. But with my full main and 140% I managed to stay close to 4 knots. During the night the genoa sheet snapshackle broke open, twice. The sail would just flap like a flag. The reason was that with the rocking motion due to the surface surges the wind is take out of the sail, momentarily, and then when it fills it takes a hard jerk on the sheet (sheet=rope that controls the sail shape). That slowed me down some but the wind slowly built during the day and right now it is between 20 and 25 knots, but the seas are still relatively flat from the earlier calmer winds and this makes for fast sailing. And as you see I am still staying above the 100 mile per day. And bear in mind that I am calculating this to destination, whereas I am not going in a straight line, to-day I have been sailing more towards the north, to a way point suggested by Herb. This is because at the higher latitudes the westerlies are usually more reliable. A brief interruption; the wind still increasing, needed to slab in the 3rd reef in the main. Going like gang busters. I edited about 30 shots of the Portuguese Man of War (I think..) Got some good ones. If the weather calms I plan to hang from my toes down the lifelines and try scoop one up. If they were not so rare I’d not be going through so much effort and might be less in awe of their incredible delicate beauty. What if Dandelions and Sparrows were rare? On my early morning bike rides from the boat yard in Green Cove Springs into town I used to marvel at the precision of the way the dandelions would face the early morning sun.

I started reading Jan de Hartog’s “The Call of the Sea”. He was born in the late twenties in Holland and came to the USA in the mid fifties. He wrote mostly about the sea. In his preface for this book he ends with the observation: “The call of the sea only ends when it is finally obeyed”. And my thoughts are that one can only obey a command when you fully understand it and are capable of obeying it. Some people figure that for the distances I have covered since 2005, over 30,000 miles, I must be a good sailor. But I meet many sailors who have done much fewer miles who are far better sailors. Just to give a few examples, that the learning process never stops. 1) To douse a head sail I have to release a halyard (Val)stopper in the cockpit and then work my self to the foredeck quickly before the sail drags in the water. Only yesterday did I find the solution; I take the tail of the halyard forward cleat it off on the bow mooring line cleat, go back release the stopper and then have control from the cleat right where the sail needs to be pulled down. Why did I not discover this earlier? The problem is that single handed sailors have no-one to learn from. 2) Since most of this sailing is down wind or broad reach, I use the spinaker sheets for the head sail this keeps the clew (lowest aft part of the sail triangle) further out board than using the genoa block on the deck track. These sheets are lead through blocks on shackles attached to the most aft life line stanchion. But as I described above these sheets, when the wind is momentarily taken out of the sails, will slacken and then the block drops hard on the deck. And my head is just below this spot when I am in my bunk. So, the noise is aggravating. As of yesterday I have hung these blocks with a shoe lace attached to the life line, no more dropping to the deck, Jack sleeps in peace.

My contribution to to-day’s festivities is that, the third reef I just put in, has three reefing grommets and I use a Red a White and a Blue sail tie through them. Patriotism of the finest kind on “Fleetwood”

Later: 20.20 hrs Just talked to Herb and I have jibed to not go any further north to avoid stronger winds in the next days. Right now I am down to just the 90% and rocking and rolling in about 25 knots.

No fish this Friday on the line but I did have two decent flying fish laying in front of the companion way with the morning paper. I fried them for breakfast. They are tasty. You might remember that I had a bowl full of them one morning, just before arriving in Trinidad, in May 2007. And then in Trinidad the Swedish couple on “Acapella” made maatjes, pickled flying fish, what a treat, with ice cold Aquavit. At 19.30 hours I was at 33.44 N 58.03 W By the way, not sure if any one caught the error on UTC. Europe is two hours ahead of UTC, not behind. Also yesterday was July 2nd not June 2nd. I am now 1446 miles from Azores. That made for a 101 mile day. Last night was slower. I found that I could not budge the main sail boom. I had to wait till daylight to free up the friction caused by one of the hose clamps that I put on to temporarily fix the broken gooseneck. So I could only fly a head sail during the night, which was plenty before night fall but then I needed more sail during the night. It was a very nice sailing day to-day, not as rough and lots of sunshine. But the wind has now dropped to where I can only make 3. 1/2 – 4 knots with the most sail area that I have up now. But it gave me the opportunity to get several good pictures of these unusual critters that sail over the surface. It’s an unreal sight. Herb promises me decent conditions and wind for the next four/five days, as long as I stay below 35 North. To-night is the Cryptogram on Radio Nederland. I missed it the last number of weeks.

Well, I wish every one a very happy and pleasant 4th of July Holiday.

At 21.30 utc I was at 33.33 N 59.57 W with 1540 Miles to Azores. A 119 mile day. At 2.30 in the morning I had to pry the washboards out of the companion way entrance to get on deck. A horizontal sheet of pounding rain hit me. I wrestled my way, dressed in watch band, head lamp and safety harness to the foredeck to douse the head sail. It had to be blowing more than 30 knots in this rain squall. The rest of the morning it was a steady rain. Dark and miserable in the cabin. But what the heck! As long as I am making progress. Talked to Herb. Stay on the 33.30 latitude, don’t go further north. Without the sun I have had to run the engine to charge the batteries. No luck on the trap line. The lure stays on the surface because I am moving too fast. I’ll have to add more weight.

At 18.30 UTC (I am going to use this now till I get into the West Europe time zone)UTC or Zulu Time is 2 hours before Europe summer time, 4 hours before Atlantic Summer time and 7 hours before Pacific Daylight Saving Time) I am at 33.24 N 62.23 W with 1659 miles to Horta, Azores. A 124 mile made good 24 hour period. The winds strengthened last night and I had to drop the main and sail with just the 90% jib. In the morning they were getting close to 30 knots, reefed the jib to 60%. All night there had been a heavy cloud cover, pitch black. Then the rains came, in buckets at times, and gusty winds. For a while I sailed under bare poles. Then the storm jib but in the afternoon the clouds broke up and the wind also went back to less than 20 knots. Right now they are back to 25. Herb gave me a new waypoint, keeping me going dead east along 33.30 latitude. Since yesterday he had me going more north eastward.

There are these beautiful little creatures sailing along the surface. Not certain if these are Portuguese Man of War. About 2 1/2″ (65mm) long. Looks like something for kids to play with in the bathtub. The sail looks like a transparent rooster comb. The odd part is that they sail with their sails directed the same way as the wind direction. They come in different colors. White sail with light blue body/boat. Yellow with red, etc. They are difficult to catch quick enough to have the camera ready. But I promise a picture.

Tuesday evening: It is 9 p.m. and I am having one of the best sails ever. Since leaving Bermuda 6 hours ago my speed has not fallen under 6 knots. I just put a third reef in the main, for the night. It is still blowing close to 25 knots. When I approached the fuel dock there was a boat at the dock and he informed me that there was another boat ahead of me in line. Guy with a British accent, American flag. When I said : “oh, really!” He sarcastically snapped back: “Yes, really”. On the way out he passed me while I raised my sails. His boat was all of 48 foot. Then I sailed past him. So, I got my revenge. His crew finally managed to get the way too big reacher sail down with the snuffer sock. Real sailors only put socks on their feet. The Bermuda AM station is playing oldies, like real oldies, forties/fifties, “Jezebel”, (if ever a devil was born without a pair of horns,,,) etc. So, it’s Kareoke night on “Fleetwood” without an audience.

At 17.30 Bermuda time I am about 20 miles East of Bermuda. Good strong 20/25 SW and doing over 6 knots. According to Herb this will last thru Thursday morning nand then moderate to 15/20 knots, same SW direction. That’s good news. My Grib files show some light winds in 4/5 days. I got fuel and water ( 13 gallons) about 4 to 5 in the emergency can, so, apparently I did not quite fill the new bladder tank. But that should be enough. I leave Bermuda with some sadness. I enjoyed this place and met lots of nice people, some will stay friends. This morning I had a nice talk with Matteo at the customs dock, he is from Lombardia, married to a Dutch lady and making his home in Cuyck, Holland. He is a paid crew on a 65 foot Swan. And enjoyed seeing Rod again. He and his handsome son and beautiful wife and daughter were sitting next to me at mass last Sunday. He is from Bataan, P.I. and works at a sail loft and rigging outfit. Kelly, an R.N.from Missouri who crewed on “Voyager” with Ed Mapes, the skipper and crew in the Marion-Bermuda race. Marion (??) is near Newport and this race is held every odd year. The traditional Newport-Bermuda race is sailed in even years. The Marion race is lower tech and more for offshore cruising boats. I had a great chat with the attendant at the fuel dock, about our faith. I could have stayed longer and learnt more about it’s history.

So, for the next three weeks or so, till I make landfall, I will not be able to have internet access or see mails directed to jack@cometoseaus-w160c2.preview.wpmanaged.nl

Put in the new pre-feeder for the head foil, installed the spare water tank bladder, received the repaired auto pilot back this evening. In the morning I need to check out with customs and then move to the fuel dock to fill up and get water. Did my fresh vegetable/fruit shopping.

Wireless righ now is a very weak. Radio Transmission was very difficukt with Herb and the boats here could not get a forecast. But the grib files look good and we do have local predictions on VHF. Squid , sauteed with a shot rum, and penne, salad for dinner.

The picture is of  ” Westward”. She arrived Sunday. Last night I had  beer and a chat with one of the crew at the Dinghy Club.

"Westward"