Day 49 – Confused seas, high wind

18 Apr, 07 – 21.30    
16.3482N,38.3907W
24 hr progress: 29.9 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1328 Nautical Miles ( 2456 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots NE, Bearing: 250-300 degrees.

A very unfriendly start to the day. Gray rain clouds and mountains of water crashing over the stern. The wind has picked up and it's been blowing in a different direction to yesterday. So the sea is a lot rougher causing the sea to be very confused all day, with a mix of small waves, large waves and wind in different directions. It cleared up a bit in the afternoon, with huge wide waves that made surfing up and down them possible for a while but then it got too hot to row and I could feel my body overheating.
Progress today has been hard won. Despite rowing SW all day with NE winds, it seems that the North Equatorial current underneath has started curling off slightly to the Northwards, dragging me 8 miles to the North.
My game plan is to head further SW with the wind till 45W 15N, at which point approach Antigua (or any of the other islands) from the SE. This will reduce my chances of being blown North past Antigua towards the Bahamas.
The weather forecast for the next few days looks favorable and strong enough for me to overcome the current and make some progress further SW. 19 APR 20 ENE, 20 APR 15 EN, 21 APR 15 ENE, 22 APR 15 ENE, 23 APR 10 E, 24 APR 15 E, 25 APR 15 ENE
The fix to the leak is holding up so far. A bit concerned if it's going to hold up if the weather gets much worse. Only one way to find out I guess.
My highlight of the day - Todays ration pack had my favorite Vanilla Freeze Dried Yogurt, which I have saved for my extra night meal. Making the yogurt is fairly easy. Just add some cold water and let it stand for a few minutes. There is no refrigerator on board which is a good excuse to consume it all at once. Its quite a large quantity of yogurt, so I've worked that into the fourth meal of the day and stretch my rations a bit more. I will be mixing that with some cereal left over from breakfast, dried nuts and the last bits of dried pineapple left on board.
As I write this it is pitch dark outside and the sky has cleared up again. No moon tonight as well, so the Milky Way can be seen with stunning clarity. As this might be my second last full moon night before landfall, I will be making the most of it by rowing in the darkness with the constellations of Orions Belt, The Plough and Mitanka keeping me company.
I am rowing a few hours more than usual in order to make up for the time lost during the repairs and thus stay on schedule so that the food and water rations are sufficient. 78 miles left to the half way point.
B
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Gray and cloudy start

Photo taken from the bottom of the wave, looking up, just before it crashed over the stern of the boat

Cloudy, depressing conditions