Atlantic Diary

PART 10: Landfall Photos - Miss Olive resting

2007-06-19T14:39:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.39 GMT
Continued from the previous page.

Photo 1: MISS OLIVE resting on Jabberwaki Beach

Photo 2: MISS OLIVE resting on Jabberwaki Beach

Photo 3: WALKING AWAY: with the rudder in the hand. Miss Olive being towed away (background) to Camp Blizzard Military Base.

Darkwood beach, Antigua

Coconut Grove beach, Dickinson Bay, Antigua

Antigua Defence Force, Chief Of Staff & Comanding Officer, Coastguard

(For assistance with co-ordinating my arrival, many thanks to Maurice Merchant - Office of the Prime Minister, Antigua and; Barbuda, Jonathan - ABSAR,HeadofChancery, Guyana and; Embassy, Sweden, Captain Nicholas, Commanding Officer, Antigua and; Barbuda Coast Guard. Photos taken by Ted Martin, Antigua.)

My contacts in Antigua:
OR at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and; Resort
http://www.aycmarina.com/
Land: +1268 460 1544 , Room 25.
Mobile: +1268 772 9605.
(or + 268 772 9605 from the US)
mail@bhavik.com

My news updates will resume at www.bhavik.com.
Thanks to everyone for the support and following my Atlantic row.

PART 9: Landfall Photos - People and; Press

2007-06-19T14:27:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.39 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W
Continued from the previous page.

Photo 1: WITH JONATHAN FROM ABSAR (Antigua Barbuda Search And Rescue) and the broken rudder.

Photo 2: MISS OLIVE on Jabberwaki Beach

Photo 3: TRIP ODOMETER: Stands at 3456 nautical miles

PART 8: Landfall Photos - People and; Press

2007-06-19T14:25:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.38 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W
Continued from the previous page.

Photo 1: PRESS

Photo 2: PRESS

Photo 3: PEOPLE

PART 7: Landfall Photos - People and; Press

2007-06-19T14:23:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.38 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W
Continued from the previous page.

Photo 1: ARMED FORCES: Army Chief and personnel at Military Camp Blizzard, where my boat is presently moored.

Photo 2: INTERVIEW FOR TV

Photo 3: PRESS

PART 6: Landfall Photos - People

2007-06-19T14:17:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.37 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W
Continued from the previous page.

Photo 1: A CLEAN TSHIRT: I'd used all the clothes on board to soaking up water from the leak. A special thanks, Maurice Merchant from the Prime Ministers office for bringing a clean shirt along for me :)

Photo 2: MINISTER OF TOURISM

Photo 3: A BOOK GIFTED BY THE PRIME MINISTER

PART 5: Landfall Photos - 17.36 GMT

2007-06-19T14:13:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.36 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W

Continued from the previous page.

Photo 1: ONE FOOT ON: Photo taken by Ted Martin at 17.36 GMT. 106 days, 09 hrs, 30 mins. 6393 kms (3456 nautical miles) from El Hierro, Canary Islands.

Photo 2: ITS OVER.

Photo 3: MINISTER OF SPORTS: Winston Williams
(For assistance with co-ordinating my arrival, many thanks to Maurice Merchant - Office of the Prime Minister, Antigua and; Barbuda, Jonathan - ABSAR,HeadofChancery, Guyana and; Embassy, Sweden, A.Kelkar, S. Ambani, V. Tewani, Captain Nicholas, Commanding Officer, Antigua and; Barbuda Coast Guard. Photos taken by Ted Martin, Antigua.)
My contacts in Antigua:
OR at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and; Resort
http://www.aycmarina.com/
Land: +1268 460 1544 , Room 25.
Mobile: +1268 772 9605.
(or + 268 772 9605 from the US)
mail@bhavik.com

PART 4: Landfall Photos - Off the reef, Onto beach

2007-06-19T14:11:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.35 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W
Continued from the previous page.

Photo 1: OFF THE REEF: Pulling on just the starboard oar to turn it away from other rocks.

Photo 2: JABBERWOCK BEACH: Finally got the boat off the reef and towards a patch of beautiful white sand inbetween the corral reef.

Photo 3: TOUCHDOWN: Hard to stand up. Hurting from stomach cramps from working just one side of the body to escape the reef. Trying to walk. Jonathan from ABSAR - welcomes me on shore.
(For assistance with co-ordinating my arrival, many thanks to Maurice Merchant - Office of the Prime Minister, Antigua and; Barbuda, Jonathan - ABSAR,HeadofChancery, Guyana and; Embassy, Sweden, A.Kelkar, S. Ambani, V. Tewani, Captain Nicholas, Commanding Officer, Antigua and; Barbuda Coast Guard. Photos taken by Ted Martin, Antigua.)
My contacts in Antigua:
OR at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and; Resort
http://www.aycmarina.com/
Land: +1268 460 1544 , Room 25.
Mobile: +1268 772 9605.
(or + 268 772 9605 from the US)
mail@bhavik.com

PART 3: Landfall Photos - W.W.R.D.D?

2007-06-19T14:08:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 14.19 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W

Continued from the previous page.
Photo 1: TRYING TO STAY OFF: I finally turned the bow around, working just one oar with both hands. Desperatly trying to steer it away from the reef. My hands clawed up and had severe stomach cramps. With every second, the wind pushed the boat further onto the reef.
Photo 2: HIT THE REEF: A lot of conflicting directions from the coastguard and the photographers on the location of the corral underneath. I could not see the corral as my back was towards the front, trying to row away. The bottom of the boat finally struck the reef.
Photo 3: TRYING TO ROW OFF: An officer from the coast guard jumped and started swimming towards the boat to help with getting it off the reef. Unfortunately he got into trouble in the water and had to be rescued (not shown here). Trying to push the boat off the reef with the oar and row onto the beach in instead (Plan C) of the pier at Military Camp Blizzard. Photographers, Press and TV taking photos of me stuck on the reef and the coast guard trying to save the coast guard.
What Would Robert De Nero Do?
(For assistance with co-ordinating my arrival, many thanks to Maurice Merchant - Office of the Prime Minister, Antigua and; Barbuda, Jonathan - ABSAR,HeadofChancery, Guyana and; Embassy, Sweden, A.Kelkar, S. Ambani, V. Tewani, Captain Nicholas, Commanding Officer, Antigua and; Barbuda Coast Guard. Photos taken by Ted Martin, Antigua.)
My contacts in Antigua:
OR at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and; Resort
http://www.aycmarina.com/
Land: +1268 460 1544 , Room 25.
Mobile: +1268 772 9605.
(or + 268 772 9605 from the US)
mail@bhavik.com

PART 2: Landfall Photos - steering past reef

2007-06-19T14:04:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 13.53 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W

Continued from the previous page.
It was very tough trying to row the boat in an adverse SE side wind. 80% of the boat is out of the water, so its very sensitive to wind direction.
Photo 1: CLEARER AND CLEARER: One of those moments - watching trees and grass appear after 3 months of blue sky and water.
Photo 2: BUILDINGS: The tower like structure visible is that of an abandoned sugar cane processing mill on the island. Steering for Military Camp Blizzard
Photo 3: TURNING THE BOW: Trying to make it to channel markers. Fighting to turn the bow towards the white building (Marina at Military Camp Blizzard). Broken rudder visible at the stern. Its come off the last bit of lashing. The dark patches of water, seen in this photo is the corral reef. A few inches below the surface.
I was a little stressed. The wind was blowing the boat sideways onto the reef. It's very difficult to see where the boat is going while seated in a rowing position because the back is turned towards the front. (Hard to believe I've traveled backwards for 3000 miles across the Atlantic and had problems 500 ft from land).
People swimming on the beach looking on. Quite a show.
(For assistance with co-ordinating my arrival, many thanks to Maurice Merchant - Office of the Prime Minister, Antigua and; Barbuda, Jonathan - ABSAR,HeadofChancery, Guyana and; Embassy, Sweden, A.Kelkar, S. Ambani, V. Tewani, Captain Nicholas, Commanding Officer, Antigua and; Barbuda Coast Guard. Photos taken by Ted Martin, Antigua.)
My contacts in Antigua:
OR at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and; Resort
http://www.aycmarina.com/
Land: +1268 460 1544 , Room 25.
Mobile: +1268 772 9605.
(or + 268 772 9605 from the US)
mail@bhavik.com

Photo 1:Click to enlarge

Photo 2:Click to enlarge

Photo 3:Click to enlarge

PART 1: Landfall Photos and; recap - in sight, change of port

2007-06-19T12:47:00.000+01:00

19 June, 07 – 07.17 GMT
17.1218N,61.4120W

Hello from English Harbour Antigua!
wow! It takes 1 month at sea to miss life on land. And just 1 day on land to miss life at sea.
I set foot no land at 5.36 pm local time, at Jabberwok beach, next to military camp Blizzard, on the North East tip of the island. The clock stood at 106 days, 9 hrs 30 minutes. The odometer on the GPS stood at 3456 nautical miles (6393 kms).
Very mixed emotions being back on land. I'm making wobbly but fast recovery from life at sea but also missing the peace and freedom. Getting used to walking and the sores are subsiding. Here is a quick re-cap of my arrival in Antigua.
A number of overwhelming moments during my last few hours at sea.
Rowing in the darkness and watching a dull red glowing cloud, reflecting the lights of Antigua, appear on the horizon. The appearence of the strobe light high on the hills of Antigua. Stressing about hitting the reefs in the dark. Slowing the boat down with the sea anchor. Waiting for day light watching the boat drift closer and closer to shore as it dragged anchor. The first radio contact with land in the dark, on VHF. Rain. Then sunrise in the moring revealing Antigua covered in low clouds. Rain again. Watching clouds drift over the island. Then drift off the hills again. Watching the tops of buildings appear. Then trees. Seeing the first humans - coast guard officers - that came to escort me in. Finally the white sand the overwhelming smell of smoke, trees, flowers and land. Trying to make it into camp Blizzard. Pushed onto the reef by the winds. Trying to steer away. Hitting the reef. Coast guard officer getting into trouble in the water. Rowing the boat off the reef. Rowing it onto the white sand beach. Touching ground.
PHOTOS ON THIS PAGE
The conditions were tough. The weather refused to play ball. I spent 7 hard hours in the afternoon sun trying to row due South in South East headwinds in an effort to row into English Harbour, completing my row from land to land. It was hot, humid. I was tired. thirsty. Each time I stopped to drink water, I'd watch the numbers on the GPS change as the wind pushed the boat towards the North costing me hard earned progress.
There is nothing worse that rowing the same piece of ocean twice.
After speaking over the radio with ABSAR, I finally changed strategy and set course for CampBlizzard, a military base on the North East tip.
(For assistance with co-ordinating my arrival, many thanks to Maurice Merchant - Office of the Prime Minister, Antigua and; Barbuda, Jonathan - ABSAR,HeadofChancery, Guyana and; Embassy, Sweden, A.Kelkar, S. Ambani, V. Tewani, Captain Nicholas, Commanding Officer, Antigua and; Barbuda Coast Guard)
My contacts in Antigua:
OR at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and; Resort
http://www.aycmarina.com/
Land: +1268 460 1544 , Room 25.
Mobile: +1268 772 9605.
(or + 268 772 9605 from the US)
mail@bhavik.com

Last few hrs rowing:Click to enlarge

Hot and humid. Rowing all afternoon against the wind:Click to enlarge

Antigua visible in a distance, over the bow:Click to enlarge

The Atlantic Has Been Rowed!

2007-06-14T18:48:00.000+01:00

14 June, 07 - 23:33
17.1000N,61.4600W
At 17.45 Local TIme, I rowed the boat onto the beautiful white sandy beach of Antigua, at Jabberwaki Point.
My row from Land to Land is finally over.
I was receIved by the Prime Minister's Office, The Sports Minister, The Minister for Tourism and others from the community and military.
The boat is presently at Camp Blizzard Military Base. I had terrible wind conditions from the SE and after 10 hours of futile rowing trying to get to English Harbour and speaking to ABSAR, I changed my landfall point.
I've been sleeping for the past 18 hrs. Legs are recovering slowly but well. Strange to walk again.
Just got connected. I can be contacted at
Mobile: +1268 772 9605.
(or from some countries+ 268 772 9605 )
OR at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and; Resort
+1268 460 1544 , Room 25.
email : mail@bhavik.com
Local time here is GMT +5 / IST + 11
Will post more on here shortly.
Bhavik

Approaching land

Day 106 - ARRIVED!

2007-06-14T13:15:00.000+01:00

June 14, 2007 17:45 Local Time

BHAVIK ARRIVED AT JABBERWOCK BEACH, ANTIGUA AT 5:45 PM LOCAL TIME COMPLETING AN HISTORIC EXPEDITION TO BE THE FIRST ASIAN TO COMPLETE AN OCEAN ROWING EXPEDITION SOLO AND UNASSISTED LAND TO LAND.
HE WILL STAY IN ANTIGUA FOR A FEW WEEKS AND WILL UPDATE HIS CONTACT DETAILS SOON.

Day 106 – Land Ahead!

2007-06-14T07:34:00.000+01:00

14 June, 07 – 12.34 GMT
17.1275N,61.3575W

Note:
@ 12.34 GMT, 08.34 Local TIme Antigua (GMT +5) (IST +9.30)
Just a quick post.
Its been a long night. Very tired as I've been rowing all night. Rowing in the darkness and first seeing the clouds glow on the horizon, reflecting the light of Antigua will remain an unforgettable moment.
Soon after I could see the strobe lights of a lighthouse and a few lights on shore before the rain clouds appeared.
The weather right now is still a bit squally and low rain clouds are still over the island. It keeps appearing and disappearing from view. But at least it's there!
There is a strong SE wind and I'm a little stressed about being blown onto the rocks. The SE wind is also blowing me northwestwards. I'm currently at the North East tip of the island. So, I still have a struggle ahead trying to get into English Harbour on the South East tip. Over the next few hours, I will have to row across waves on a bearing of 180 degrees, due South and steer with the South East component of the wind into the harbour. I would like to get in by rowing and avoid a tow if possible. Land to Land.
Fortunately, I'm now also within Radio distance of shore and in touch with ABSAR.
Hope to touch land on about 5 hrs.
Very hungry. Very tired. Very happy to hit Antigua right on target...just as advertised two years ago.
B
PS. Will post from land shortly. Pls email your messages to mail@bhavik.com , my normal email, so I can reply. Pls do NOT message my satellite phone. I will have my normal mobile number posted on here shortly.

Last sunrise at sea

View ahead, Antigua hidden under the clouds

Land at last. Antigua appears.

Day 106 – UPDATE: THE LIGHTS OF ANTIGUA!

2007-06-14T07:17:00.000+01:00

14 June, 07 – 07.17 GMT
17.1203N,61.3205W

Distance left: 17.4 Nautical Miles
Posted at 03.17 hrs Local Time, Antigua on 14th June.
18.17 hrs Sydney, 13.47 hrs IST, 07.17hrs GMT,
Good morning!
I can see a faint yellow glow across the horizon to the West! I believe its the lights of Antigua being reflected by the clouds. The land is not yet visible, but the feeling of spotting the glow is indescribable.
Its 02.17 am here and I've been rowing in the pitch darkness for the past 8 hours trying to make my way further South West. I'm trying hard to avoid a tow in and complete my row from Land (Marina La Restinga, El Hierro to Land (English Harbour, Antigua), although I have officially completed my Atlantic crossing (at the longitude of Barbados).
Weather conditions have been tough and I now expect land fall within 8 hours.
New ETA: 12.00 Noon Antigua, 16.00 hrs GMT, 21.30 hrs IST, 04.00 Sydney
---------------------------------------------------
I should have been on land by now, however, since last evenings posting at 21.15 GMT last evening (13th June) I had a change of plans here is a re-cap of events.
On JUNE 13 @ 15.30 GMT, 33 NM away:
I posted on here (read Day 105 – POST 1: Challenges of Keeping Course, Weather Forecast) that
I was being pushed off course, to the North of Antigua, by a strong wind from the South East. I stated that I would try and make my way South West, rowing parallel to the waves.
@ 19.30 GMT, 29 NM away:
The sea state worsened. The wave height increased dramatically to around 8-10 ft and the wind speed increased to about 20 knots. I'm guessing that the sudden increase in wave height was due to the ocean floor rapidly rising, thus pushing the water upwards. It was getting dangerous to row parallel to the waves and it was difficult to make any further progress South West as originally planned. Very disappointing progress wise.
@ 20.00 GMT, 26 NM away:
The Office of the Prime Minister and ABSAR were standing by to provide me with a ceremonial escort from the time I entered Antigua waters until the distance to English Harbour. I contacted them Via Satellite phone and stated that it was difficult to make progress S and if the could extend the escort to 12 miles out of Antigua waters, it would really help.
@ 21.00 GMT, 25 NM away:
I received confirmation that the boat was on its way to tow me into port.
@ 21.30 GMT, 25 NM away:
I received clarification from land that a 65 ft coast guard boat was being specially dispatched to tow me in. (This was different from the official boat).
@ 21.45 GMT, 25 NM away:
I contacted the Coast Guard to request them to cancel the dispatch. It was not an emergency and I did not want to tie up rescue resources in case they were needed elseware on a real emergency. I decided to have another shot at rowing into port one more time under my own power.
---------------------------------------------------
So, I am still out at sea trying to make it into port under my own power. The sea state is rough. Far more that I had imagined. I'm 17 miles off shore making very slow progress forwards. Its dark and a little stressed about the reefs in the dark. I've got charts however. 3 hrs more till daylight.
I plan to row a bit more and then drop anchor till conditions improve.
Will post an update here in the next 3 hours.
Right now, just very excited to see the lights of Antigua!
B

Antigua

Nelsons Docyard / English Harbour Map

CMAP Data English Harbour

Day 105 – POST 2 : A LAST LETTER FROM SEA...

2007-06-13T17:26:00.000+01:00

13 June, 07 – 21.15 GMT
17.1646N,61.1885W

As I plot my progress on my Hydrographic / Topographic map of the North Atlantic Ocean, it's quite incredible to see the speed at which the numbers on the contours change 5645meters – 4680 – 3000 – 2000 and a sudden jump to 311 meters. I cannot see land as yet. My visibility to the horizon is limited to 5 miles as I am low off the water.
The Office of the Minister of Antigua has organized a welcome party and an official boat will shortly turn up to escort me into English Harbour....my row-eat-think lifestyle will soon be over.
Life on a rowing boat is like living on a bucking bronco. The boat gets chucked about in the waves far more easily than a sail boat, so the number of cuts, bruises and bumps is well above average.
Apart from the physical discomfort of being constantly wet and not being able to sit upright in the small cabin, living on a 7 meters space for so long has other challenges.
It takes constant organizing to keep things in their place and it's messed up just as soon as the boat rolls violently from side to side. Then there is the endless task of charging batteries, backing-up data, putting things in and out of waterproof bags and digging through various hatches before you can find something.
Every little thing takes twice as long to do and needs advanced planning. Eating and drinking anything is done thru straws and lids and packets to make sure nothing spills. Sitting straight requires you to take into account the direction from which the waves are hitting the boat. Any trip out on deck requires sealing the hatch and putting on the harness routine. Pulling things in and out of watertight cases. Removing the mattress and everything on it, each time you need to access the storage compartments below. The only upside of it all is that it makes time on board pass much faster
Take drinking coffee for instance. I mix the powder and cold water in a sports waterbottle that has a sip-lid on it to stop it from splashing in my eye when the boat rocks. Making it while rising and; falling, up and down at all sorts of angles is however is another story. I hold the open coffee bottle between my feet till I put the powder into the sports water bottle. Then hold the sports water bottle steady with my feet while I use my both hands to steady the 5 liter water bottle to add water to the coffee. Finally closing both open bottles of liquid quickly before they spill.
What gets you in the end though is not the large waves, constant wetness or salt sores or the routine. It's the small things that start to irritate. Like packaging for instance. Things that rust, spill or don't shut properly.
Technology is the worst offender. Chargers, inverters, cameras, laptop cables for cameras, laptops, cameras, card readers, hard disks satellite phone, voltage inverters all love to get entangled with each other. I just cleaned it up the day before and it's tangled again today. I'm the only one on board. Who is causing the mess?
But the advantage of such a small space is that if anything is not within arms reach, it will usually be within leg reach. Switches, radio, GPS, radar alarm, nav lights can all be operated with your toes. Even the ipod. However, it gets a little tricky if you're 6'3 like me. The head is too far from the toes to read the display properly.
I find that I've come off with a much greater appreciation for intelligent design and functionality. With boat design, not an inch of space on board is wasted and everything can be used for more than one purpose. I've used a single item, an all-in-one spoon, fork and knife for every meal for the past 3 months (see pic). I think I will continue using it at home.
Apart from the things I've missed, I've also realized the things I can do without. The Internet and Google for instance. (Yes. I said it.) Back then, when I first found the water at the bottom of the boat, I could swear, for a nanosecond I thought of searching for the leak on Google. I've been off line now for 3 months and I don't really miss it.
So, how am I doing physically?
Well, my dentist used to tell me that I was very brave. She used to say that on a scale of 1 to 10 for pain (1 being minimum and 10 being maximum), what is a 9 for most people is a 1 for me. So going by her scale, I would say the salt sores on my rear feel like 81 out of 10!
Apart from nothing major. A lot of bruises, bumps and cuts and my skin and hair look like 6 miles of bad road. All will be fixed by the first hot shower. I'm not a big fan of medicine anyway. A while back I was flipping thru my medical handbook. I came across the first illness and it looked like I had the symptoms for that. So I turned the page to the next one and found I had some of the symptoms for that too. So I turned to the next one and recognized more of the symptoms. By the time I got to the end of the book, I had all the illness except two of them. Quite worrying. Why didn't I have these two?
So, I'd rather not know. In fact, with all this rowing business, I've never been fitter or healthier and I can hold my breath for 1 whole minute more than Marlboro man.
How am I doing Mentally ?
Very exhausted. In fact, more than physically. It's been quite draining to maintain course, avoid tankers, cope with isolation and stay motivated. On one hand, I am quite sad to finish this journey but I am also looking forward to sleeping on a bed that I don't have to keep on course all the time.
It's been very motivating to receive messages of encouragement from everybody all along the trip. But now, all 1 billion of you can relax stop messaging me to go on. Not much of a choice left now :)
You will be amazed how many messages I have been getting from all around the world about one thing - the toilet!
Since it's my last post, I will finally break the suspense. Are you ready? Drum roll please...
IT'S A BUCKET.
(Trust me, it sounds much more posh in French “Je vais à la toilette dans un seau”. (pic on the right)).
Not very comfortable. But the view is unbeatable and the real fun is when the waves get over 15ft.
I will definitely have to update that CV of mine when I get back. (I wonder what you'll have been imagining all this time...)
It's finally time to wrap it up. It's been a privilege to experience total isolation, total exhaustion, and living alongside fear and beauty at the same time. Its' been am amazing row and the Atlantic has been gracious enough to let me complete it alive.
Anyway, I was going to end with of something motivational. Maybe something deep and thoughtful to say but I can only think of food right now.
So I will leave you with this instead.
A penguin that walks into a bar and says, "Has my father been in here?"
"I don't know," says the bartender. "What does he look like?"
A hug for the ladies, a handshake for the gents and a thanks to everybody for their support.
B
PS. Will post from land shortly. Please email your messages to mail@bhavik.com (my normal email account), so that I can reply. Please DO NOT message my satellite phone. I will have my regular mobile number posted on here shortly.
Email: mail@bhavik.com
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Get automatic alerts each time news is updated: http://www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/bhavik/newsletter/index.php
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Drinking everything thru straws

Just bucket and chuck-et!

My spoon-fork-knife

Day 105 – POST 1: Challenges of Keeping Course, Weather Forecast

2007-06-13T11:22:00.000+01:00

13 June, 07 – 15.30 GMT
17.1592N,61.0980W
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 33 Nautical Miles ( 61 km)
POSTED AT 21.00 hrs IST, 15.30 hrs GMT, 12.00 Local Time, Antigua
I rowed past my final meridian at 61W last night and all of a sudden my row seems to be ending much faster.
Its been quite a bumpy ride over the past 12 hrs. I've been rowing at a 45 degree angle to the waves all night (as opposed to following waves) trying to make progress South West. It felt like riding one of those Bajaj three wheelers on the surface of the moon and the salt sores on my rear were running for cover :)
Navigating without a motor or sail across 3000 miles ocean has been quite a daunting task. Its been a constant fight for control between the oars and the elements of the nature. Added to that Antigua is quite a difficult target to hit. Its one of the smallest islands in Caribbean measuring just 12 miles from North to South.
I'm now just 33 miles from the destination I chose 2 years ago. I'm very pleased that my choice of route (I chose a longer Southerly route as opposed to straight line or Northerly route) and zig zag adjustments for winds and currents along the way have turned out right. (...and some of you messaged me saying I was obsessing too much??? :)
The next bit of the challenge is getting into port.
The original plan was to stay South of Antigua (Around N16.3000 deg) until I was around 20 miles away and then follow a gradual gradient to make progress North West (bearing 270-290) towards English Harbour. My calculation was based on factoring in 0.5 knot north equatorial equatorial current turning NE and 10-15 knot winds from the E or SE
Unfortunately, restoring things after the capsize took up valuable time at the oars. The severe squalls and winds predominantly from the SE over the past few days have also pushed me further North West (I am now past the latitude of Antigua).
So, its been back to the drawing board. I've fixed the rudder back for one last time hopefully, so steering is a little easier. I have three options. The first, to row South West on a bearing of 220-240 till I am back on level with Antigua. Or the second option, which is to continue North West of Antigua till I am on lee of the Island and then make progress backwards in a mild headwind. Third, to drop anchor and wait until Friday, when the wind starts blowing from the East.
At present I am trying to row South West. I'm parallel to the waves but the wave height is manageable for now.
There is still some work left ahead. The other factors that complicate the landing is the wind around the islands and the tidal currents. If I miss Antigua and the headwind is more than 10 knots, it will be almost impossible to row backwards. My next options would be the islands of St Martin. Anguilla or the US Virgin Islands.
Will tell you how it goes in the next few hours...
B
WEATHER FORECAST:
OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST FOR THE SOUTHWEST AND TROPICAL NORTH
ATLANTIC AND CARIBBEAN SEA
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL
530 AM EDT WED JUN 13 2007
OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST FOR THE CARIBBEAN SEA AND TROPICAL N
ATLC FROM 7N TO 22N BETWEEN 55W AND 65W
AMZ087-131530-
TROPICAL N ATLC FROM 7N TO 22N BETWEEN 55W AND 65W
530 AM EDT WED JUN 13 2007
TODAY THROUGH THU NIGHT
S OF 17N E WINDS 15 TO 20 KT.
N OF 17N SE WINDS 15 KT.
FRI
S OF 17N E WINDS 15 KT. SEAS 8 FT IN E SWELL.
N OF 17N E TO SE WINDS 10 TO 15 KT.
SAT AND SUN
E WINDS 15 TO 20 KT. SEAS TO 8 FT IN E SWELL.

Cmap view English Harbour

Position on Google Earth, marked by Green Arrow in the top left corner

The variety of birds around the boat keeps increasing as I get closer to land

Day 104 – POST 2: FINAL 24 HRS , Tanker, Submarine, Dorado Jump

2007-06-12T18:12:00.000+01:00

12 June, 07 – 10.22
16.5283N,60.2720W
24 hr progress: 19 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 43.2 Nautical Miles ( 79 km)
Distance completed: 3385 NM (6262 km)
Wave height: 6-8 ft, Winds: 20 knots SE, Bearing: 270-290 degrees.

I am presently 43 miles away to the East of Antigua and hope to make landfall at English Harbour Village / Nelsons Dockyard (on the South West corner of the Island at 17.00 N, 61.48W) in the next 24 hours.
Its been a tough 72 hours and its been a fight to stay on course. My position has oscillated between North and South of Antigua and for a short period I was caught in a counter current and pushed back out to sea, loosing about 8 miles. The weather has been dull, gray and not very friendly and I've counted more than 8 rain squalls that have passed thru just in the past 24 hours.
Another tanker turned up today, without its radar on. It appeared about 500 meters off the side of the boat, just as I got out of the cabin. I had no response on the VHF either. I was too tired to panic or get angry and just counted my self lucky that it missed the boat.
Regardless of the navigational challenge, I am trying to enjoy my last 24 hours at sea as much as possible. There was quite a show last night with thunder and lighting and high winds and it's quite amazing to watch the change in sea states – from flat calm to 10 ft waves - as a squall moves over the sea from one end of the horizon to the other.
It's also my last day of watching my Dorado friends hunt for flying fish around the boat and jumping in the air to catch them. They are extremely fast and I had the rare luck of getting an incredible photo of one as it jumped right across the bow.
Amongst other diversions, the fiberglass cabin walls often happen to pick up and amply different sound waves in the water. I can usually hear the whistling of dolphins in the water. This morning I could quite clearly hear the ping of a submarine through the water. It must be why the radar alarm has been going off randomly.
Well, back to things rowing related, SE winds @ 10-15kt have been advertised for the next 24 hours. I've been pushed to the NE of Antigua by the weather and its going to be tough trying to row across the South East winds to make it into English Harbour that lies to my South West.
For the next 24 hrs or 'til landfall, news here will be updated every few hours.
Right. Back to rowing.
B
Email: mail@bhavik.com
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Get automatic alerts each time news is updated: http://www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/bhavik/newsletter/index.php
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

GPS showing Flags marking my 24 hr waypoints.

Tanker that came close this morning.

Massive 1 meter Dorada jumping across the bow to catch a flying fish

Day 104 – POST 1: About the capsize

2007-06-12T04:19:00.000+01:00

12 June, 07 – 15.40
17.0189N,60.5455W

A week ago, I was on deck rowing at around 3.00 am when I was hit by what felt like two waves very close together. A breaking wave followed by a large one right behind it. I will never know exactly what it was. It was quite dark due to the cloud cover. The only light was when the moon and a few stars made a brief appearance between patches of cloud. All I could hear was the hissing of the first wave as the top of it started to break. Then about 2 seconds of silence before the port side was lifted off the water. Just as I thought it would fall back into the water I was hit by another wave, that was impossible to see in the dark.
I was thrown off the rowing seat onto the deck as the force of the wave flipped the boat over. Black water can be very disorienting and my only recollection of what happened next is of surfacing a few feet away. My eyes and sores on the body were burning from the salt. I spotted Miss Olive lying upside down in the water. As the overturned hull rose and fell in the swell I could feel a slight pull on my 10m lifeline (which usually gives plenty of slack) as if it had got entangled with something below the water. Ironically this was more re-assuring than anything else at that time. I swam under to try and free it from what ever it was caught on, but I could not see much in the darkness. Fortunately, I had a spare 6m line trailing from the starboard quarter and grabbed onto that and let go of my original life line.
Out of habit from going over the scenario hundreds of times, the first images to flash thru my mind was the location of the rescue beacons, flares, emergency grab bags, knife, survival suit. I was prepared to spend the rest of the night on top of the hull and wait until daylight to dive below and fetch the survival suit and the rescue beacons.
I was a little worried that the boat did not self-right by itself, as it was designed to do so in a capsize situation. (The self-righting property of the boat, ie: to turn the right way up again – like a kayak). The force of the wave hitting the boat should have been sufficient to push the boat over all the way thru 360 degrees. I was sure the cabin entrance was sealed shut because I triple check this each time I go on deck. It occurred to me that maybe the sea anchor I had left out on deck had deployed and that somehow it was preventing the boat from turning over again. I dived back down under the boat and thankfully found the sea anchor had not yet deployed, but it was starting to roll out of its cover, so I tied it back up.
I decided to have a final shot at manually turning the boat over, using my weight on the lee side together with the momentum of the next wave to turn it over. I remembered there was a beam running the length of the boat, forming a very shallow keel. It was quite difficult to get a grip however, as the surface of the hull was slimy from the barnacles and growth on it. Fortunately I had a t-shirt on and I took it off to clean part of the surface and gripping the mean with the t-shirt was better that with bare hands. I managed to get some more leverage to roll the boat as each wave passed by using the metal railings (normally on the gunwale) at the bottom as a foot hold - so my body was wrapped around the side of the hull.
After a few small waves I was finally lucky enough to get a wave big enough to help me roll the boat over. I count myself very fortunate that I was out on the deck at the time of capsize and not inside the cabin. Had I been inside the cabin, I would have been stuck upside down with questionable chances of rolling it over from inside. I also would have had to open the cabin hatch to get outside resulting in flooding the cabin and making it impossible to right the boat over anyway.
So, why did I capsize?
As I wrote here on the 5th of June, I was forced to take the rudder out as the lashings had come loose and the force of the waves hitting the rudder was vibrating through out the boat. I was unable to get into the water to tighten the lashings because of the open sores on my body. So I took the rudder out and planned to fix it back closer to landfall, when I would need it to steer thru the reefs.
In the meantime, I decided to move some of the water ballast from the center of the boat into the the stern cabin, in the hope that this would weigh it down and keep the stern into the waves as well as make steering without a rudder more manageable.
Unfortunately, the problem with making adjustments to the weight distribution on board is that it's difficult to judge how effective it is unless the boat has been through different sea conditions. When I first adjusted the ballast, the sea was fairly calm and the change seemed to be helping, so I kept it. However, at the time of capsize the weather changed and I found the boat responded in a different manner. Though the conditions were not unusual (I've been thru heavier seas in this boat). My conclusion is that the boat was lighter after consuming all the food on board and moving some more weight from the middle to the stern increased the instability and caused the capsize.
Why did it not self-right?
When I self-righted the boat, I discovered that one of the watertight compartments on deck, holding the watermaker and the batteries was open (I must have left it open whilst trying to fix the watermaker). I'm not sure if this caused any extra resistance to the movement of the hull turning back over. I'm also not sure how the extra weight at the stern affected the self-righting.
Whats the damage?
The force of the boat turning over, cracked one of the carbon fiber oars, that got trapped underneath the boat. I also lost the power supply. It's hard to say where or how water entered the system or if it was the water on the battery that created a short circuit in the system.
The casualty list of things lost over board includes: video camera, ipod, sunglasses, sports water bottle, skin cream for sores, deck barometer and compass, star charts.
Anyway, that's a few less things to drag thru the water!
In the words of Bond, still little shaken, but not stirred.
48 miles left for a warm meal...
B
Email: mail@bhavik.com
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Get automatic alerts each time news is updated: http://www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/bhavik/newsletter/index.php
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Squall passing overhead, heading West, Taken @ 23.20 PM 06 Jun

Deck

View of the hull underwater. Beam that runs the length of the boat that I used to turn the boat over

Day 103 – RE: RESCUE CLARIFICATION

2007-06-11T19:06:00.000+01:00

11 June, 07 – 11.48
16.5228N,60.3129W

To Tatiana @ ORS, ABSAR, MCGA and all personel from the relevant organisations following this:
This is a clarification that No Rescue is necessary.
I've just downloaded this email while uploading the last posting. “messages being sent between 4 official agencies. US Coast guard, Fort A France Search and rescue, and Falmouth Coastguard. Plus we have ABSAR monitoring”.
On the 6th of June, I messaged Debi Taylor re: the Capsize. I stated that that No Rescue was necessary and I would attempt to fix things myself. I received an satellite message (via my PR agency) later in the day from Falmouth Coastguard @ MCGA UK. I replied again that NO RESCUE IS REQUIRED and requested to relay the message to Fort A France.
I've no idea who contacted the US Coast Guard in Miami. In case a safety message has been misunderstood and relayed by a passing ship, the only safety message I have issued is Pan Pan on VHF CH16.
The sea is rough today. I don't think I'd be getting into a rowing boat if I was on a cruise ship, but will attempt to row into English Harbour. Should anything go wrong between now and then, distress on the Argos beacon and EPIRB will be activated. I have the contacts for ABSAR and will radio in at 30 NM from shore.
Thanks for the concern but all is under control. NO RESCUE NECESSARY!
Cheers
B
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From wikipedia - A call of pan-pan means that there is an emergency on board a boat, ship, aircraft or other vehicle but that, for the time being at least, there is no immediate danger to anyone's life or to the vessel itself. This is distinct from a Mayday call, which means that there is imminent danger to life or to the continued viability of the vessel itself. Thus 'pan-pan' will inform potential rescuers (including emergency services and other craft in the area) that a safety problem exists whereas 'mayday' will call upon them to drop all other activities and immediately instigate a rescue attempt.

Day 103 – PART 1: Rewired, Elect and; VHF Working

2007-06-11T07:02:00.000+01:00

11 June, 07 – 11.48
16.5283N,60.2720W
12 hr progress: 8.9 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 73 Nautical Miles ( 135 km)
Distance completed: 3349 NM (6195 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20-25 knots SE, Bearing: 270-300 degrees.

Hello everybody,
I've managed to re-wire the electrics and charge the laptop, sat phone and get the VHF working again. Its taken time to disconnect everything and dry it all out after the capsize as I've had nothing but rain squalls for the past few days. I've hooked up to the secondary battery and solar panel and I've switched the higher resistance circuit breakers around from the midship lights, satellite NAV and water maker to the VHF and 12V circuits. Its a spaghetti solution but it just works for now.
I had been trying to fix the de-salinator on the evening of the capsize. The de-salinator and one of the two onboard batteries are in the same water tight compartment on deck. Water entered the battery compartment (which was open as I was not locked down) and when I capsized. Fortunately, water did not enter the cabin (hatches sealed shut) so the control panel stayed dry.
I'm using a hand held GPS as my primary (instead of the fixed one on deck) and I've got an independent solar panel charger for the Sat phone, so at least that remains all charged up.
Anyone know what went wrong with my weather report forecasting “Sunny, clear skies and 10 knot winds ahead Bhavik?”
I've had mostly rain squalls the size of King Kong for the past 72 hrs.
For the first time yesterday I experienced thunder and lightning. I've no idea yet what the impact of a lightning strike would be on the boat (the highest point is the metal mast with the radar reflector on the bow that is wired right into the cabin. I've just fixed everything so a lightning strike now would be very annoying. Hope it stays away).
Although I'm glad to have the VHF and radar alarm working, I was kept up all of last night by the radar alarm indicating a ship within 3 miles). I spent about 6 hrs watching and waiting in the pitch dark for a light to appear on the horizon and shouting Pan Pan on the VHF, yet no response or a sign of any ship.
Around 5.30 am I finally got a half hearted response. From a submarine!. Why am I not surprised!!
When the moon goes behind the clouds, there is nothing but blackness all around. Its very difficult to distinguish where the black water ends and the black sky begins on the horizon. The rising and falling of the boat in the water also distorts one's sense of height above the ground. As I have done in the past, its easy to mistake Venus or other stars for the lights of a ship. (Without the light pollution of land, the light of Venus actually creates shadows on deck, which is quite surreal).
So after staying up all night, I trying to get a little sleep before it gets too hot here in the afternoon. Will post an update here on the Capsize (Part 2) and Course (Part 3) in a few hours.
Anyway, we're re-wired and back in business.
B
Email: mail@bhavik.com
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Get automatic alerts each time news is updated: http://www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/bhavik/newsletter/index.php
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Squall, 06 June, Day 98

Squall, 09 June, Day 101

spaghetti Electrics

Day 101 One step forward, two steps back

2007-06-09T10:00:00.000+01:00

9 June 2007 7:30pm local time
16.44N,60.02W
More SMS messages received in from Bhavik (7:30pm local time)
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V BAD DAY STUCK IN AN EDDIE (CIRCULAR CURRENT) BEING DRAGGED BACK EAST OUT TO SEA. HOPE WIND CHANGES 2 EAST. LOST BOUT 9NM.
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TODAYS PROG 9.5 MILNS. DONT LIKE ROWING SAME PIECE OF OCEAN TWICE. BIG SQUALL 2 NIGHT. REWIRING 2 GET POWER.
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posted by rowdeb at gmail.com
NOTE: To keep communication lines clear for Bhavik, please do not SMS him as he is still low on battery. You can however post him a message of support in his website guestbook. I usually email them to his account several times a day so he'll get to read them all once he's back online, hopefully by Sunday night - Debi
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Day 101 Slow progress north, squall coming thru

2007-06-09T04:56:00.000+01:00

09 June 2007 9:30am local time
16.40N,60.02W
More SMS messages just received in from Bhavik (9:30am local time)
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TRYN 2 CHARGE LAPTOP. SQUALL COMIN THRU. MAKIN PROG BACK NORTH. VSLOW. WILL TRY CONNCT. TIRED. NOT MUCH SLEEP. ROWAT NIGHT. 2 HOT IN DAY 2 SLEEP.
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CROSSED 60 LAST NIGHT AT 12.30ISH. FEEL MUCH BETTER.
(ANTIGUA IS 17N 61.43W)
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JUST SAW SHIP AHEAD. NO VHF. THANKFULLY ITS HEADING ACROSS THE BOW
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posted by rowdeb at gmail.com
NOTE: To keep communication lines clear for Bhavik, please do not SMS him as he is still low on battery. However, you're welcome to post messages of support on his website. I email them all to him several times a day and he'll get the read them once he's back online, hopefully by tomorrow - Debi
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Day 100 Calm before the storm?

2007-06-08T18:55:00.000+01:00

08 June 2007 8:20pm local time
16.38N,59.55W

A few hours ago today, Bhavik was informed that the US Coast Guard was trying to contact him and whether he needed assistance.
THX. DONT REQ HELP NOW. FIXIN MY SELF. WILL TRY 4 ANOTHER 24 HRS
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More SMS messages just received in from Bhavik (8:20pm local time)
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SLOW PROG. DRYING ELECTRICS. WILL CONNECT WIRES 2 NITE. ETA MON OR TUE NOW. 107NM LEFT.
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WIND DROPPED SUDDNLY. CALM B4 STORM?? LOST DECK BAROMETER N COMPASS IN CAPSIZE. CAN U LET ME KNOW WEATHR. NOT SO GD DAY. NOW OFF COURSE 30NM STH
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TIME HERE 8.20PM. W059.55 N16.38 TIRED N HUNGRY. ETA MON OR TUE. FOCUS ON ENG HARB. ANTIGUA
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posted by rowdeb at gmail.com
NOTE: To keep communication lines clear for Bhavik, please do not SMS him as he is low on battery.
However, you are most welcome to post your messages of support on his website and I will pass these on when he is back online - Debi
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Day 100 Limping Along

2007-06-08T06:54:00.000+01:00

08 June 2007 7:30am local time
16.4317N,59.50713w
SMS message just received in from Bhavik 7:30am local time
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MY POS 16.4317N 59.50713W 109 NM/195 KM AWAY. FIXN ELECTRICS. NO VHF N SHIPS IN AREA. LITTLE STRESSD. OFF COURSE 17MILES OFF ANTIGUA.
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posted by rowdeb at gmail.com
NOTE: To keep communication lines clear for Bhavik, please do not SMS him as he is low on battery.
However, you are most welcome to post your messages of support on his website and I will pass these on when he is back online - Debi
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Day 99 Water in compartments

2007-06-07T18:53:00.000+01:00

07 June 2007 6pm local time
16.5461N, 59.4617W
SMS message just received in from Bhavik
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WATER IN BATT COMPARTMENT N 1WATRTIGHT COMPARTNT.TRYING 2 DRY.NO RDR. N16.5461 W059.4617 24HRS 19NM.INTOUCH W FALMTH COASTGUA
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Received 6pm local time - posted by rowdeb at gmail.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: To keep communication lines clear for Bhavik, please do not SMS him.
However, you are welcome to post your messages of support on his website and I will pass these on when he is back online - Debi
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Day 99 No power/radio. Backup oar!

2007-06-07T06:52:00.000+01:00

07 June 2007 7-8am local time
16.55,59.39W
SMS messages just received in from Bhavik
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FIXNG. HAVE ARGOS. 116 NM. BACKUP OAR USED.
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PLS UPDATE WEBSITE. GOT MSG FROM FALMOUTH COASTGUARD. N HAVE ARGOS BEACON. TRYING 2 MANAGE. (7:36am)
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CANT POST. NO ELECT. RADIO REFL. N VHF NOT WORK. BACKUP OAR.
IN TOUCH W FALMOUTH COASTGUARD. WILL HIT EMERGENCY IF NEC. WILL TRY MANAGE (7:42)
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DONT WANT RESCUE (7:32am)
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Although Bhavik's problems are not over by any stretch of the imagination, at least it sounds like he is well and that at this point he does not want rescuing. Hope he can continue to update us via SMS. - Debi
posted by rowdeb at gmail.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: To keep communication lines clear for Bhavik, please do not SMS him.
However, you are welcome to post your messages of support on his website and I will pass these on when he is back online - Debi
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Day 98 CAPSIZED!... Cont..

2007-06-06T09:49:00.000+01:00

06 June 2007 ~8pm local time
16.58N,59.15W
SMS messages just received in from Bhavik
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TRY 2 FIX W SOLAR PANL. HAV ARGOS BEACON. WILL HIT EMERG BTN IN 8 HRS IF NO FIX. PLS PUT MSG ON SITE SO ORS N ERDEN SEE 16.58N 59.15W (Sent 06 June 2007 ~midday local time)
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PLS UPDATE WEBSITE. MILES. 28. NO RUDDR. HAVE LOST ELECTRICS. BROKEN OAR. WAITING 2 CALL RESCUE. 200KMS 2 GO.
(Sent 06 June 2007 ~4pm local time)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
posted by rowdeb at gmail.com
NOTE: To keep communication lines clear for Bhavik, please do not SMS him.
However, you are welcome to post your messages of support on his website and I will pass these on when he is back online - Debi
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Day 98 CAPSIZED!

2007-06-06T06:48:00.000+01:00

06 June 2007 ~8am local time
17.06N,59.00W
SMS messages just received in from Bhavik
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CAPSIZED LAST NIGHT. 3AM LOCAL TIME. NO ELECT. NO COMP. BROKEN OAR. TRYNG 2 FIX. PLS POST WEBSITE. NO BODY MSG ME. SAVING SATPHONE BATTERY. I WILL CAL 4 RESCUE MAYBE.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
CANT REC. COMP N NO LIGHTS. WILL TRY FOR 24 HRS TO FIX B4 RESCUE CALL. PL POST ON WEB NO BODY MSG ME. SAVING SATPHONE BATTERY
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Day 97 – Course, Steering problem, Ballast

2007-06-05T18:47:00.000+01:00

05 June, 07 – 23.15
17.0745N,58.5731W

24 hr progress: 38.1Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 159 Nautical Miles ( 294 km)
Distance completed: 3230 NM (5975 km)
Wave height: 10 ft, Winds: 18-20 knots E-NE, Bearing: 250-270 degrees.

Life here is back to rowing without a rudder. The steering continues to be a problem. The lashing on the rudder loosened more since yesterday and by this evening it was impossible to continue rowing because of the vibrations. (The last time I fixed the rudder, I had taken it off the hinges and just tied it to the back of the stern. .This stress on the fiberglass back of the boat, but its hard to keep the lashings in place because there is no supporting structure.)
It was difficult to fix the rudder today without getting into the water. (I have too many bleeding sores on me right now to get in), so I was forced to lift it back out of the rear hatch. All these adjustments are very time consuming and I hope I can find another solution over the next 24 hrs. I have been thinking of using an oar blade in place of a rudder. I hope to get this fixed soon as I will need better steering ability to get past the reefs.
In the meanwhile, I've moved some water ballast from the center of the boat into the stern, to weight it down more and keep it into the waves.
I've made further progress back South and now just 7 miles of course of landing option numero uno - English Harbour, Antigua at 17.00,32 N 61.45,44 W.
Weather wise, the heat all day has been incapacitating but a strong steady wind all day helped take some of the edge off it. The sea as been fairly calm – in the pre-hurricane sense of the word. The forecast today predicts rain squalls for the next few days. Pressure is normal.
As I write this, its 11.30 am local time (GMT -3 hrs). A rain cloud has just passed over ahead leaving a clear sky. The moon is waning and the stars are back out again. I am still a few good miles away from the light pollution of land, so the view of the Milky Way is brilliant.
The wind has started to pick up a bit and the swell is back. Its going to be a difficult nights row without the rudder. The boats already rocking and rolling a bit more than Elvis.
ETA Antigua: 4 days.
B
Email: mail@bhavik.com
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Get automatic alerts each time news is updated: http://www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/bhavik/newsletter/index.php
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Ein swimming by the boat...one of the doradas that have been travelling with me for the past few weeks

Mo ro

Dusk taken at 23.00 GMT

Day 96 – Back On Course, Sea Weed, Turkish Tanker, Liquid Diet

2007-06-04T17:43:00.000+01:00

04 June, 07 – 22.01
17.1222N,58.1790W

24 hr progress: 43.7 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 196 Nautical Miles ( 362 km)
Distance completed: 3189 NM (5899 km)
Wave height: 6-10 ft, Winds: 18-20 knots E, Bearing: 250-270 degrees.

I was greeted this morning by clumps of sea weed (Saragasso Seaweed maybe?) floating in the water. Its quite a strange feeling to see plant life again after 95 days. The wind has shifted from SE to E causing a slightly confused sea, as the old waves continue to come at the boat from the SE and clash with new larger waves coming from the East. If the wind stays put at E for a few days, the E waves will dominate, the SE waves should subside and rowing will be easier.
The weather got off to an erratic start. I had a rain squall in the morning and the sea got a bit rough by mid morning. By noon it was calm and sunny again. Then another squall came by and it went back to being calm and nice. Anyway, I'm very pleased with the progress for the day. The windspeed was good and I took advantage of its direction and made good progress, correcting my course back towards Antigua. I'm now just 12 miles off course.
The rudder is starting to come loose again so its on my fixing list for tomorrow. I will try and fix it back on in a way that allows me to steer the boat rather than just keep the stern centered into the waves. Right now I'm steering with the oars, but will need more control to navigate the reef surrounding Antigua.
Normally, the crew on passing ships are unusually friendly when they get to know that I am rowing across the ocean. Today was different. The captain of a Turkish tanker in the area, did not believe I was rowing across the Atlantic and refused to give me his GPS location over the VHF, thinking I was some sort of pirate. Anyway, while we are busy arguing over the VHF, the Tanker appeared over the horizon, almost dead ahead, bearing 070 deg. After much shouting back and forth, they spotted my boat in the swell and finally altered course. It was interesting to watch the conversation turn amazingly friendly and apologetic when they realized I was really rowing. Unfortunately, the conversation did not get very far. I said “Istanbul is a beautiful city” and the captain replied “I'm aware its a beautiful city”. And that was the end of that. What a conversation killer.
The Turks were quite fascinated at the rowing thing and extra hospitable to make up for nearly running me down. They inquired about my water supplies, food supply and offered to drop off wine, cheese, vegetables, batteries. I had to politely refuse primarily because I wanted to complete the row without outside help and secondarily cause the tanker seemed to be kicking up a massive bow wave that most likely would have capsized the boat if it had have come too close.
The most striking part of meeting the tanker at such close proximity though, was the smell of land, of paint, dirt, food and diesel fumes, things I had long since forgotten.
My food packs are over and its a liquid diet of protein shakes from now on. There is no fear of running out. There is plenty of protein on board for myself and the rest of China. Plus I find it a good way to de-tox from the preservatives in the meal packs. Not overly bothered about the lack of choice. Trying to focus on keeping course as much as possible. I tell you - after 95 days on freeze dried meals, I could eat sweets while they are still in their wrappers and still find them tasty.
It's good to be back on course to Antigua..
B
Email: mail@bhavik.com
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Get automatic alerts each time news is updated: http://www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/bhavik/newsletter/index.php
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp

Sea weed picked up this moring. Its got barnicles and other creatures growing on it.

Turkish tanker Chem Libra

Rowing at Sunset. Taken at 22.11 GMT

Day 95 – Steep Waves, Keeping Course, Ein Stein

2007-06-03T18:27:00.000+01:00

03 June, 07 – 22.57
17.2164N,57.3336W
24 hr progress: 32.8 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 238 Nautical Miles ( 440 km)
Distance completed: 3140 NM (5809 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 18-20 knots E - SE, Bearing: 270-290 degrees.

Last night, I rowed into the 57W meridian. Thats another merry crossed off the list. Almost officially in the Caribbean sea now, which starts at Barbados which is at 59'60W. Got an email today about a low pressure front arriving in the Canaries over the next 4 days. Not sure how long it will take to reach here.
Anyway, closer to home, the winds have been fairly strong and waves steep, but overall the conditions have been better than expected. I was prepared to deploy the sea-anchor out, but haven't had the need to use it.
Its quite an exhilarating experience being lifted up by a steep wave. The boat is raised about 10ft off the surrounding water, the bow is raised right up into the sky as if the boat is about to be shot into space. For a split second, there is an incredible view of a 15 foot valley forming just in front of the wave. Just before the boat slides back down the back of the wave.
My mileage today (32.8 nm) was above average and if the wind swings around overnight (ie. blow from the East or North East), I should be able to steer more efficiently towards Antigua. Currently, I've been trying to correct my course all day and steer towards Antigua in the face of SE winds. I managed to reduce being blown off course completely and was only pushed 7 miles to the North. Its incredibly difficult to aim a piece of wood and two oars across 3000 miles of ocean. Land fall will be within 50 miles N or S of Antigua (if not Antigua), so I'm quite pleased about that.
Still some way to go. No sign of human life as yet. I suppose all the yachts around the islands have been taken out of the water, packed away or transported further South, out of harms way. Looks like I've got the 200 miles of sea ahead to my self. How exclusive.
My 2 Dorado friends are still around swimming in the shade of the boat. Beautiful blue,yellow and silver fish, about a meter long. They have been faithfully following me for the past 400 miles. (I don't know if the flying fish I've been feeding them everyday has anything to do with it! ). I now recognize them by their stripes and have named one Ein and and the other one Stein. Its been quite entertaining watching them jump out of the water trying to catch flying fish. Very graceful and confident, as it they belong in the air. Anyway, I hope Ein and Stein turn back home soon, before they get caught by fishermen on the other side (here you go - me and Ein, Stein in the same sentence :).
Allrighty. Back to the oars....
B
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Sea anchor on deck, ready to deploy

piccy of Ein

Day 94 – Tropical Storm Barry, Shipping Lanes

2007-06-02T18:38:00.000+01:00

02 June, 07 – 23.14
17.1624N,56.5956W
24 hr progress: 33.4 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 271 Nautical Miles ( 501 km)
Distance completed: 3102 NM (5738 km)
Wave height: 12-15 ft, Winds: 25 knots SE, Bearing: 280-310 degrees.

(ps. Yesterdays post was uploaded late. Please check yesterdays post for more).
A short post. Very tired.
Its been a tough 24 hrs. Sea state has worsened. Im still in the shipping lanes, and its difficult to keep a watch of the horizon in the swell. The radar alarm has been constantly on. I've been blown a further 16 miles North since yest. Not been able to concentrate on rowing as I've had to get on the VHF every half hour to communicate with ships in the area.
Here is my most recent weather update from Weather.com and the NOAA:
“The Atlantic hurricane season has begun with a big bang with Tropical Storm Barry forming in the southeast Gulf of Mexico. Maximum sustained winds are 45 mph with higher gusts. Heavy rain has already invaded the Florida Peninsula and rain will continue working its way northward tonight. Some areas may see 3 to 5 inches with locally higher amounts some low lying areas may see some flooding. All in all the rain is very good news for the Florida Peninsula, however. Some isolated tornadoes and waterspouts are possible around the Florida peninsula, however.
Tropical storm warnings are in effect for the western coast of Florida from Bonita Beach to Keaton Beach. A tropical storm watch is in effect from north of Keaton Beach to St. Marks. Marine interests in the eastern Gulf should keep track of the progress of Barry as wind gusts may exceed 60 mph in some locations.
About 140 miles southwest of the Mexico-Guatemala border is Tropical Storm Barbara in the eastern Pacific. Barbara is back to tropical storm strength and still heading eastward. Barbara will soon turn northward toward the Mexico-Guatemala border. A tropical storm warning has been issued from Barra De Tonala, Mexico, to Sipacate, Guatemala. A tropical storm watch is in effect from Barra De Tonala to Salina Cruz.”
The weather to my West does not look too good. Hopefully, any low pressure system forming to my East will hold off for another week. Back to the oars...
B
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A few low rain clouds

Hello!

Night row

Day 93 – Crossing Shipping lanes, Tankers, Storm Warning

2007-06-01T18:34:00.000+01:00

01 June, 07 – 23.48
17.0030N,56.2888W
24 hr progress: 28.8 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 301 Nautical Miles ( 556 km)
Distance completed: 3068 NM (5675 km)
Wave height: 12-15 ft, Winds: 20 knots SE, Bearing: 280-310 degrees.

(NOTE: I had a storm warning this morning. I am awaiting confirmation. The hurricane season has started and the first storm of the season, tropical storm Barry is forming in the SE of the Gulf of Mexico. The weather where I am is a bit rough but currently I'm ok. Just a massive swell. A bit hard to control the boat.)
A busy and stressful day trying trying to steer south and avoiding tankers. Over the past 24, the shipping traffic has increased dramatically. I am currently crossing 3 shipping lanes,
Trinidad – Gibraltar, Trinidad-Bishop Rock and Curacao-Safi.
The radar alarm has been shouting its head off all day and I've been more or less constantly on the VHF radio.
As I type this, the radar alarm is still ringing. I've been trying to contact a tanker for the past 2 hrs, but I've had no response on the VHF. I had contact with the crew of another oil tanker called Great Horizon from Venezuela heading for Spain and they confirmed that there was another ship in the area, about 13 miles NE of me, bearing 230 degr. (heading South). So far, no response on CH16, and the alarm keeps getting louder. About an hour ago, the lights of another tanker that I had been trying to contact for 3 hrs appeared on the horizon. No response to any calls on the VHF from it either. I set off 2 white hand flares and it passed within half a mile, across the bow. Its incredibly irritating when there is absolutely no radio response from a ships crew. Thankfully, most of the other crew on the ships that I've passed have been professional. This evening, another tanker called the Symphonic, appeared on the horizon, dead ahead of me. Fortunately, this time I got hold of the Captain on the VHF and they altered course just in time to avoid me. They passed about 400 meters off starboard!
I've been quite lucky so far.
Getting run down by a big ships has been my worst fear since I started this row.
The radar alarm goes off each time it detects radar signals emitted by another ship. Unfortunately, its quite confusing as well as a ships radar emits the signals omni directionally (360 degrees), there is no way of knowing which direction the ship is coming from, or if the alarm is from a ship that has just passed me or a new one approaching.
Ships often de-sensitize the radar in order to eliminate radar reflections from smaller things such as waves, floating containers etc. and show reflections from only big objects such as ships. My boat is just 1 meter above the surface and often hidden between waves. So, although I have a radar reflector on board (to amplify the radar signal), most of the passing ships still fail to pick me up on the radar.
Being in a rowing boat also complicates all visual matters. When the boat is between waves, its very hard for ships to visually identify the boat until they are within a mile. Inversely, if a ship gets too close and the if boat gets under the bow of the ship, it may not be visible from the deck of the ship.
In a rowing boat, my visual distance to the horizon is also reduced to 3 miles (it's about 10 miles for a normal ship. As a rule, the higher the eye is above the surface, the longer the distance to the horizon). The average speed of a ship is 15 miles/hour. Which gives me about 15 minutes (from the time I first see it on the horizon till the time we cross paths), to taken any collision avoidance action. And that's without factoring in the time needed by the tanker to alter its course.
So, its a long night ahead. Very exhausted already from rowing all day. Could use some sleep, but will have to stay awake, row and keep watch for a few more hours 'til the alarm subsides. It will be a relief to clear the shipping lanes, hopefully within the next 48 hours. The propellers on 'em tankers don't look very friendly...
B
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Conditions a bit rough. Tropical Storm Barry is forming to my West

On the VHF

Tanker Symphonic, about 500m off starboard

Day 92 – Weather Ahead, Bleeding Sores, Laundry, Last Meal

2007-05-31T18:32:00.000+01:00

31 May, 07 – 23.15
16.4297N,56.0490W

24 hr progress: 29 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 326 Nautical Miles ( 603 km)
Distance completed: 3040 NM (5624 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots SE, Bearing: 280-300 degrees.

A quickie today. It's been beautiful and sunny all day. The wind has started to pick up. I've spent all day trying to maintain course, but have still been pushed Northwards. It's incredibly frustrating.
My next Landfall option after Antigua is St.Christopher and; Nevis or Barbuda.
If I do get blown past those, it will take a few more days to hit Anguilla and; St.Martin or the US Virgin Islands.
I'm not overly concerned about which island I make landfall at. Any island would be ok to officially qualify my record as an Atlantic crossing. It's just the time spent at sea. Right now, each day spent is one day more into the path of an approaching hurricane.
I received a message yesterday saying the weather over the next 3- 5 days is going to worsen with a low pressure coming thru. I'm still waiting confirmation on that from the land team, before I prepare the boat for bad weather. For now, just concentrating on progress W.
I've washed the salt off the sores on my rear today and put a new antiseptic dressing on. A few of them are bleeding, so swimming in the sea is off the itinerary for a while.
In other stuff, it was hot and sunny so I got some laundry done today. The 4 way underwear routine can only last so long...you know...day 1 front to back, day 2 – back to front, day 3 – front to back inside out, day 4 – back to front inside out. (I've heard there is a 5-way switchover routine, but frankly that would be just showing off :).
Very exhausted. My last dinner ration pack of freeze dried Rice and Basil Sauce is waiting for me to make my move.
Another long nights row ahead...
B
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External GPS

Dusk, start of my night rowing session

My view at night - Full Moon over the stern

Day 91 – NorthSouthNorth, Steering Limit, Moon

2007-05-30T17:27:00.000+01:00

30 May, 07 – 23.37
16.2652N,55.3910W
24 hr progress: 30.4 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 352 Nautical Miles ( 651 km)
Distance completed: 3012 NM (5572 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots SE, Bearing: 270-300 degrees.
(Apologies for the delayed updates. The cabin is still a bit wet and I have to make sure the equipment is dry before I can post dispatches – read Day 88)
My bet - on following a course South , past the latitude of Antigua and then using the currents and winds from the South East to approach the island – paid off!. However, the wind and the currents seem much stronger than marked on the charts. I got pushed North by 5 miles more than I would have liked.
The boat has been pushed to its limits in the process of getting as much mileage as possible. Its amazing how much stress she has been able to handle already – being suspended between waves while she was fully loaded and going beam on for 2 weeks and the endless amount of waves breaking over the sides.
I'm not sure how much more the steering system will be able to handle, but this is the last 300 miles, so Im pushing it to the max. I tried to steer back South by re-tying the rudder at an angle, but the stress caused by the force of water on the hinges started vibrating thru the boat with each wave. So I had to re-tie the lashings back to its normal position. Its back to steering with the oars again which is not impossible, just harder.
Another ship on the radar today.
I spoke with the crew of another ship over the VHF around 10.30 GMT. A very brief conversation, but it was good to hear another voice. It's hard to imagine I have not see a human being for 91 days now. I wonder who the first person will be?
The area around has been very silent. The GPS says 651 kms more so its still a bit of a hike ahead.
I plan to spend some time this weekend on trying to have another try at fixing the water maker. I've got a manual backup water pump but using it to make freshwater is slow and tedious job. Alternatively, I could stop a passing ship, but I wanted this crossing to be solo and unsupported – which means no outside help at all.
Its a full moon out here now, so its very peaceful rowing in the moonlight with the sound of breaking waves and the occasional whale or dolphin breathing heavily thru their blow hole.
I'm just taking a break before my night rowing session to write this. So its back to chugging away at the oars!
Here are photos took just a few minutes ago. The sun setting off the bow (due West) at the same the moon rising over the stern (due East).
Thx for the messages...keep firing away...they are much appreciated out here...
B
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Map Position

Sun set off the bow, 23.05 GMT

Full Moon rising over the stern, 23.05 GMT

Day 90 – Maintaining Latitude, Low cloud

2007-05-29T16:44:00.000+01:00

29 May, 07 – 21.14
16.1382N,55.1059W
24 hr progress: 39 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 382 Nautical Miles ( 706 km)
Distance completed: 2975 NM (5503 km)
Wave height: 10-12ft, Winds: 20 knots SE, Bearing: 270-300 degrees.
Another good day. Crossed my second last milestone, the 55W meridian. Another wet and windy day. The low clouds in the sky blocked out the sun almost completely and made the waves look quite evil. On the upside, the rain helped cool things down in the afternoon and I took the chance to wash the salt of my skin and the sleeping bag. No chance of drying out the cabin however (from the waves the day before), so things are still a bit damp.
I'm still struggling to maintain a steady latitude. Over the past few days, I've been pushed North, South, I made my way North again. Antigua is at 17N. I am currently at 16.13N. Im trying to space out my climb North towards Antigua. If I get North too early, and go past Antigua, it will be very hard to get back South again as the weather system will push me towards the US Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.
Quite a tiring day.
B
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Course plotted on the GPS, showing waypoints varying North and South

View over the bow

View North East of the bow

Day 89 – Speed, Squall, Squid

2007-05-28T17:29:00.000+01:00

28 May, 07 – 21.51
16.0451N,54.3125W
24 hr progress: 44.5 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 421 Nautical Miles ( 778 km)
Distance completed: 2935 NM (5429 km)
Wave height: 12-15ft, Winds: 20-25 knots NE, Bearing: 2 70-300degrees.
What a difference a proper rudder for steering and 24 hrs make. One of the best days yet. The big rolling waves came back and stuck around for most of the day allowing me to get some good mileage surfing the waves and recording a top speed of 6.1 knots. I also made up for lost progress, and gained some mileage Northwards, after being pushed South the day before. I am currently 60 miles South of Antigua and trying to maintain a steady progress of 6 miles /day Northwards.
Weather has varied all day. Squally and gray all morning and blistering hot in the afternoon. But fortunately the wind and wave conditions have been consistent.
Found a few dead squid on the deck this morning. The only newsworthy part is that it gave me something different to look at, poke at and photograph. Makes a change from flying fish. The bird life around has started to increase noticeably – land is getting nearer at last...and so is a warm meal.
It's been a long day and quite exhausting. Arms are aching and my hands are starting to claw up again.
Will keep this post short for today.
B
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Something different for a change

Wave height above the gunwale

Dusk taken at 20.28 GMT

Day 88 – Heavy Squalls, Cabin Flooded, Rudder Back

2007-05-27T18:00:00.000+01:00

27 May, 07 – 22.30
15.4173N,53.5168W
24 hr progress: 31.5 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 463 Nautical Miles ( 856 km)
Distance completed: 2883 NM (5333 km)
Wave height: 12-15ft, Winds: 25-30 knots NE, Bearing: 240-260 degrees.
Very testing weather. Clouds have been low and depressingly gray all day. High winds and high waves. Usually, the higher the waves, better the mileage gotten by by surfing down them and increasing the momentum to row up the next one. Unfortunately, without a rudder, the higher the chance of capsizing as well. As a general rule, if the height of the wave is more than twice the width of the boat, the boat is likely to capsize.
The good news is I got my mileage back up into the 30's by putting the rudder back and taking advantage of the good surfing conditions.
June 1st is the official start of the hurricane season. Although most hurricanes occur in the July-September period (when the water temperature in the Atlantic starts heading upwards of 26 degrees C), one or two hurricanes still occur in June. Last year, the first low pressure system swept thru the South Atlantic on the 7th of June. Given the ongoing changes in global weather (plus this year is an El Ninio year), opinions vary on whether it will be a late start or an early start this year.
So right now, to err on the side of caution, I'm desperate to improve the mileage, so that I can make it to the safety of land before the hurricanes start.
Ever since I took the rudder out a while back, I've watched my daily mileage drop from 40 miles/day to 8 miles/day and from then on hover between 10-15 miles/day for the past few days. This morning, I re-calculated my ETA for arrival based on speed and distance left to Antigua (above). 40 miles/day would be an ideal, to finish around 1st June. However at my current mileage of 15 miles a day I would be well within the chances of getting caught in a hurricane.
As I wrote earlier, I was saving the use of the rudder for the last 300 miles to Antigua, so that in case the force of the water ripped it off the back, I would still be within rescue distance. However, the drogue slows the boat down and putting it back on now (at 463 miles to Antigua) is the only way could be on target to achieve around 30 miles/day and make landfall by June 10th, before the hurricanes start.(I will be trying for 40 miles/day but right now 30 miles/day seems a more realistic target, taking into account my physical condition, salt sores, lack of sleep etc).
Putting the rudder back in was easier said than done. As the rudder is made from plywood coated with fiberglass it's quite buoyant in the water and I had a tough time trying to get it back on the hinges (which are underwater). I spent about 45 minutes in the rough water trying to get it back on but it was impossible to do so in the rising and falling swell and the hull of the boat threating to smash into my head. In the end, I finally got it on the hinges and lashed down by leaning out of the rear hatch of the cabin. But in the process, I had a few waves break and flood the cabin.
Though it took me some time I've now cleaned up most of the water but it's going to be quite a damp night ahead. Luckily, there is sun today to help dry out the sleeping bag and rubber mattress.
Well, at least the mileage and mood onboard is back up again!
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Gray clouds and metallic silver sea all around

The horizon

Heavy rain

Day 87 – Radar Off, Tanker Missed, Squalls get stronger

2007-05-26T17:24:00.000+01:00

26 May, 07 – 21.45
15.5097N,53.2041W
24 hr progress: 25 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 490 Nautical Miles ( 907 km)
Distance completed: 2848 NM (5268 km)
Wave height: 10-12ft, Winds: 25 knots NE, Bearing: 270-300 degrees.
Heavy rains again last night. The increasing strength of the squalls is hard to miss and is a constant reminder of the oncoming hurricane season.
A few hours into my night shift, it got difficult to row, so I tried to catch up on some sleep around 11 pm.
I was woken up by the sound of engines around 3.00 am and found the lights of a tanker about 1 mile to the north.
I narrowly missed another ship – this time it was entirely my fault. While speaking to the Captain of the passing Tanker yesterday morning, I had switched off the radar alarm, as its beeping in the background was interfering with our conversation over the VHF radio. In my tiredness, I must have forgotten to switch it back on again. Luck helps sometimes!
I've crossed the 53 degrees W meridian over the past 24 hrs which improved my spirits a bit. I'm closer to my second last major milestone of 55W meridian (the last milestone being 60W meridian).
Quite happy with the days progress – 25 miles almost due West despite the waves from different directions. I've been experimenting with deploying the drogue (sea anchor) off the stern using different variations of length on the main line and slack on the trip line. I think I've finally found a solution that works well to somewhat help turn the stern into the waves. I'm now using the drogue on a shorter 15m line, partially collapsed with a 14m trip line, that allows it to float the breadth of 1 wave away. I think this gives better control when the sea state is confused and lots of shorter waves coming at the boat from SE and NE.
On the wildlife front, I spent the evening on deck watching Dorados. The Dorados can get up to a meter in length and its quite amazing watching them leap out of the water trying to catch the flying fish.
On things calorie related, - I found a treasure of 2 bars of Ritter Sport chocolate that I must have placed under the bag of emergency collision flares - a thank you to the Tanker that made me reach for the flares.
I've got 4 days of food left, so enjoying my last few meals, before its a protein shake only diet. That will be a new experience!
B
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passing rain shower

Taken at 20.48 GMT

Dusk & getting ready for my night row

Day 86 – PM Post: Flying along, big fish & dolphins, Argos

2007-05-25T23:19:00.000+01:00

25 May, 07 – 21.48
15.5233N,52.5454W
24 hr progress: 21.3 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 514 Nautical Miles ( 951 km)
Distance completed: 2816 NM (5209 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 25-30 knots NE, Bearing: 270-300 degrees.
The day turned out to be better than expected. Although it was raining heavily all day, high winds, close to 25 knots helped me get some more miles in. Quite a day for big fish as well. A few large orange and white fish swimming around the boat all day followed by a pod of around 30 dolphins that stopped by. Unfortunately, the dolphins arrived around sunset, and the poor lighting made it difficult to take very clear photos. But it was quite an honor to be rowing with a stunning sunset on one side of the boat and dolphins on the other.
Amongst tasks, I switched over to the secondary Argos satellite tracking beacon today as the primary one had been operational for more than 80 days and the batteries were starting to run out. In other news on board, the deck was starting to smell like a fish market after all the fish that landed on board over the past few days. I used the rain and surgical wash to scrub the assortment of fish scales, broken wings, dead fish off the deck. It looks much more respectable now.
I plan to have another go fixing the electric desalinator once the weather settles down, hopefully day after. The manually operated desalinator works fine, but its taking up valuable time at the oars.
B
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Secondary Argos satellite tracking beacon activated

Pod of Dolphins at sunset

Taken at 23.22 GMT

Day 86 – AM Post: Squall, Tanker, Rough Weather Forecast

2007-05-25T07:17:00.000+01:00

25 May, 07 – 11.25
15.4821N,52.4362W
(This is a quick morning post )
Had very heavy rains last night. The heaviest I've experienced so far and the sea turned nasty again with a large swell. Not much sleep at night again as the radar alarm went off around 6.00 GMT. At about 9.00 GMT I made contact over the VHF with the Captain of a tanker heading for North America. The first sign of humanity after 50 days. The Captain gave me the 72 hr weather forecast that states 35-40 knot winds and wave heights of 5-6 meters.
Here are some photos from this morning.
Well..off to secure everything on deck and brace for a rough weekend ahead.
B
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Taken at 10.14 GMT

The top of the tanker seen across the swell

Conditions are not fun anymore...

Day 85 – Back on Course, Sitting Down, New Fish, Tiger Shark

2007-05-24T17:15:00.000+01:00

24 May, 07 – 21.33
15.3739N,52.3379W
24 hr progress: 12.8 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 537 Nautical Miles ( 993 km)
Distance completed: 2784 NM (5150 km)
Wave height: 6-8 ft, Winds: 15 knots NE, Bearing: 270-290 degrees.
Sorry guys, this post is a bit of a rush job. Not up to usual standards as I am very tired..
Beautiful weather. Clear, sunny and a light breeze. A hard days slog at the oars and I've made further NE progress, so well on course. A bit slow as the waves and wind are still going off in different directions.
The salt sores on my rear are getting worse from all the sitting down and starting to bleed. Hurts like crazy no matter what type of seat padding I use or antibiotic cream I put on. Its the rolling of the boat from side to side and sliding all over the seat that makes it worse. Not the sitting down part.
My plan was to row 2 hrs on 2 hrs off, but, so it s closer to 1 hour on and 30 mins off right now.
This morning I found a very unusual fish that must have jumped on board last night. I first mistook for a small eel. It looks like a flying fish crossed with a sword fish but much longer and thinner. Its wings are the same as on a flying fish, but the sharp sword sticking out of its head makes it look way much cooler than its cousin. Or maybe its just part of some fashion designers summer collection... (check out the photo)
I think I figured out why the fish have been so jumpy lately. This afternoon, I spotted the fish under the boat being chased by heavy 10 ft shadow. At first glance it looked like a Tiger shark, judging by the botches on its gray body and its wide head. I spent most of the afternoon trying to film it as it was too hot to row anyway. Since my tripod was washed overboard, I made a hand held swivel for the underwater camera by strapping the camera on to one of the long hand pumps that I normally use to pump water out of the compartment. The hand-pump underwater camera combo worked better than the original tripod I was using. Panning the camera around was smooth and much more controllable with the longer body of the hand pump. What a pleasant discovery.
I did not get many shots of the shark but I got some great ones of the other fish around.
Sharks are incredibly fast underwater, especially when they are hunting and its difficult to catch them for more than a few seconds in the camera frame. It is easier if they are further away from the camera, but then the visibility drops dramatically when they start to get more than 20 feet away from the lens. Will find out in the editing room how the filming turned out.
Food is pretty much down to the basics. The coffee is officially over. Snacks etc long gone.
Dinner today: Freeze dried pasta bolognese. Rice in basil sauce, Chinese chicken. - all guaranteed to put more hair on your chest!
Dessert : Freeze dried hazel nut yogurt to which I added broken bits of toast to break the monotony. Quite good.
The weekends coming up. Funnily enough, the weekends out here feel lonelier than the week. Strange how the mind works.
Right! Im off to sleep now. Keep the messages coming, they are very welcome,
B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
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One very cool looking fish...

Underwater camera strapped onto a handheld water pump for filming the shark

Taken at 22.31 GMT.

Day 84 – Glacial pace, Heading North, VHF Fixed

2007-05-23T00:12:00.000+01:00

23 May, 07 – 23.45
15.3082N,52.2234W
24 hr progress: 11.4 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 550 Nautical Miles ( 1017 km)
Distance completed: 2760 NM (5106 km)
Wave height: 6-8 ft, Winds: 15 knots NE, Bearing: 270-290 degrees.
Progress wise, below average but I am back on course to Antigua, heading NE. Still proceeding at a glacial pace in mixed conditions and it looks like I have lost the assistance of the North Equatorial current. Its quite hard to stay motivated hour after hour, day after day. Viewing life from a rowing boat, everything seems to overtake you, the waves, clouds, sea life – not excluding sea turtles (I know, I know, the speed can be quite pathetic at times). Anyway, going by the numbers, I have crossed the 5000km mark for miles rowed to date. The trip odometer still indicates 1017 km more, and I'm looking forward to getting below the 1000 mark. Still a bit of hike ahead at any rate.
After one last rain shower, shortly after midnight, the weather calmed down suddenly around 1.00 am and the skies cleared a bit.
I was leaning over the side and brushing my teeth in the silent darkness, around 3.00 am on deck, - before getting get back on the oars when something underwater – a fish hunting under the boat caused a massive disturbance. What ever it was, it must have frightened the fish pretty well because the surface suddenly erupted with hundreds of flying fish, bombarding me in the face and landing all over the deck. Brushing the teeth was the only thing that helped maintain a sense of normalcy.
Owing to last nights episode, the deck looked more like a crime scene when daylight hit this morning. With atleast 60 dead flying fish all around. I took me 2 hours to clean it up before it was safe to walk around without slipping and sliding again.
Flying fish are cool and annoying in equal measures. Its quite amazing to watch them leap 10 ft out of the water just to escape a predator – usually a large Dorado or a Barracuda. Annoyingly enough, the land all over the boat, on the roof, ropes, rowing seat and worst under the floorboards of the bilge where the soak in the water and start marinating in the afternoon heat.
I fixed the VHF antenna today in anticipation of the shipping lanes that will be crossing in the few days ahead. I am trying to get some sleep in before I am kept up all night by the radar alarm.
Lately, with all the rain the bilge (the space between the cabin and the deck) has been filling up with water. I usually pump the water out manually. However, the pipe attached to the pump does not reach the bottom of the bilge and as a result there is always water at the bottom of the boat.
I thought of fixing the pump but I'm 20 days from land.
So instead, in honor of all the water thats there in it, I think we should change the name from Miss Olive to Budweiser. What do you think?
B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
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Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

VHF antenna, which was damaged by a wave, rewired and fixed with generous helpings of sticky tape. My engineering degree finally came in handy.

Spectacular sunset caused by squall clouds clearing up and heading West and skies clearing overhead. Taken at 22.12 GMT

Quite a show. My dinner view. Taken at 23.03 GMT

Day 83 – Mental State: 83 Days in Solitary, Stormy Conditions Continue, 52W

2007-05-22T18:09:00.000+01:00

22 May, 07 – 22.15
15.2492N,51.5410W
24 hr progress: 16.5 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 561 Nautical Miles ( 1037 km)
Distance completed: 2738 NM (5065 km)
Wave height: 10-15 ft, Winds: 15-18 knots NNE, Bearing: 260-280 degrees.
Overcast most of the day with big black rain clouds like yesterday. No sign of the sun except for a postage stamp size piece of sky between clouds that appeared occasionally. The boats rocking violently from side to side with the waves coming from all directions. I've been constantly wet with spray most of the day day. Its too hot to wear the rain overalls to keep dry. The salt gets into the clothes and rubs against the skin making the sores worse.
Anyway, there is some comfort in knowing its not going to last for ever and hopefully tomorrow the clear skies, breeze and sun will be back. And the good news is that I have crossed the 52W meridian and feel tangibly closer to my next major milestone of the 55W meridian.
Well, 83 days since I last had human contact on the island of El Hierro. 83 days living on 5 meters of space. I suppose it justifies a few sentences on my mental health.
Mood
My mood very much depends on how tired I am, the time of day, the mileage of the day, the weather, problems with the boat etc. Food, music and distractions like the wildlife around the boat go a long way in improving the atmosphere on board. Food would have made a bigger difference if the cooker was working and I could have a warm meal. Unfortunately, it stopped working early in the trip due to corrosion. Still its not too bad. Everything out here tastes much better than on land and I am constantly hungry - burning about 7000 calories a day. So any meal is welcome.
Sleep & Dreams
I split my sleep into two periods of 4 hours. When I sleep depends very much on the rowing conditions. If it's good, I skip sleep and row till the conditions last. The sleep is deep regardless of weather because I am usually very tired.
In rough seas though its a bit harder to sleep as I get thrown against the cabin walls.
It still takes a while – about half a minute to remember where I am when I wake up. I've experienced this every single day since I started and I haven't adjusted to this part yet.
The dreams with 4 km of water under the bed are a lot more intense, vivid, strange and ridiculous.
I've been using Nightol to sleep and its cousine Dayol to stay awake depending whether or not its possible to row.
A while back, I was trying to force my self to sleep because the weather was rough and it was impossible to keep the oars in the water. Well, anyway, it was pitch dark and I must have picked up the wrong bottle in all the blackness around. I took a swing off the bottle that I picked up and swallowed the syrup– and to my horror I realized to late that the nasty aftertaste was Dayol. So, anyway, I decided to take two sips of Nightol. In the hope that the first sip of Nightol would cancel out the first sip of Dayol and the second sip of Nightol would overtake both of them and help me sleep. I was very wrong. I slept deeply, but dreamt I could not sleep, so woke up feeling very tired. You know, sometimes you just cant win!
Hallucinations
Trying to keep a sane mind is a challenge. Of all the effects of solitude I have been most afraid of hallucinating.
The mind is the last line of defense in survival, especially for solo sailors.
There is the story of two brothers who tried to row across the Atlantic a few years back. They were somewhere in the middle, when one of the brothers jumped overboard and started swimming towards land. Fortunately,he was rescued in time by his brother who jumped in after him. But they had to abandon the row. It later turned out that the had stopped taking his anti-depressant tablets and had seen land in a hallucination.
I have started experiencing minor hallucinations. Sounds, mostly the sounds of dogs barking, cars and truck – which I can easily dismiss as just imagination. Visual hallucinations are much harder to dismiss. Especially when the waves are high. I get only 5 seconds to glimpse the horizon - when the boat is on top of a wave, before it plunges back into the valley of water with blue walls on both sides. During those 5 seconds, I have often imagined seeing the white hull of a yacht on the horizon when its usually only a breaking wave. Occasionally I thought I have spotted tankers etc but there is no alarm on the radar or no response from the VHF radio when try to verify what I have seen.
How do I cope?
Maintaining a log book and writing a journal for the ship helps immensely to give a sense of time and a point of reference in an otherwise monotonous landscape. Keeping the mind busy with the various repairs that come up, scheduled maintenance or improvements that I carry out helps fend off boredom. I spend a lot of time looking at different maps, topography charts, star charts, fish charts etc along the route, that has made the surrounding more interesting than just different shades of blue. I've got thru quite a few books, The Kite Runner, Life of Columbus, Shantaram, Einsteins String Theory, Joshua Solocum's Diary and the Biography of Clinton. I'm probably also the first person in the world to read a water de-salinator manual cover to cover.
On the whole, I'v managed to keep the mental situation under control so far. Its getting harder with each day, combined with the slow progress, lack of sleep or proper food and the heat. But for all that, I think it will make success even sweeter when I hit land in 20 days.
B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
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Squall ahead. The curtain of falling rain is visible as it moves across the sea. Quite an amazing sight to watch.

Dark rain clouds over

Overcast above. Clear sunset to the west. Taken at 22.44 GMT

Day 82 – Squalls, Further South, Wheels

2007-05-21T17:05:00.000+01:00

21 May, 07 – 21.36
15.2492N,51.5410W
24 hr progress: 14.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 577 Nautical Miles ( 1067 km)
Distance completed: 2700 NM (4995 km)
Wave height: 10-15 ft, Winds: 20-30 knots NNE, Bearing: 230-260 degrees.
A short one for today.
Not a fun day for rowing at all. Heavy rain squalls (rain showers) and high winds from NNE. Gray color for most past of the day and massive waves. I've had 4 or 5 rain squalls during the day and some last night. Not sure if this indicates an early start to th hurricane season.
I had a few emails warning me about the chances of a low pressure system going thru the area. Its not something to be sneezed at but there is not much that I can do about it in a rowing boat. Will deal with it when it comes along. As they say - “let your self be surprised”.
I got hit by a few massive waves threatening to flip the boat over as I am beam on (sideways) to the waves right now without the rudder. I deployed the sea anchor out from the stern to get it back into the waves. Below average progress for the day, with the anchor dragging out the back. Even more frustrating is checking the GPS to find I've got pushed further South than yesterday and I will have to work my way back up North when the weather clears.
There is a perverse beauty to the the bad weather. Its a very humbling experience. The waves merciless but yet quite awesome to look at. The lack of sunlight creates quite a cold and evil atmosphere. And you can never get tired of watching small waves slide backwards into one another, gradually culminating into a 20ft gray wall of water crashing down on the boat. The trick is of course knowing when to stop taking photos and jump for cover before getting washed off the deck.
Kept my self quite busy anyway. Managed to wash the sea salt off the skin and sleeping bag during the heavy rain shower. Bailed water out of the bilge from the rain and waves crashing over the side. During a particularly rough period when it got impossible to row so I finally got around to replacing the wheels on the rowing seat. The plastic has worn out and got so thin, I swear you could almost read thru them.
Looking forward to cross the 5000 kms rowed milestone and into 52W.
Off to catch some zzz.
B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
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Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Squall over the boat

Rain clouds pass over on its way to the West

Rain all around

Day 81 – Pushed South, 81 Days of Solitude

2007-05-20T18:01:00.000+01:00

20 May, 07 – 22.45
15.3089N,51.4081W
24 hr progress: 9.1 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 588 Nautical Miles ( 1087 km)
Distance completed: 2684 NM (4965 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 15-18 knots NNE, Bearing: 230-260 degrees.

Rain last night and I've been fighting to get north all day but I've blown pushed south by the wind to 15.30 deg N. I was planning to maintain my level between 16N and 17N (Antigua is at 17N). Still have 500 odd miles left to go and I am making progress W. The weather forecast for this week predicts consistent Easterly winds = good news. A very tedious day otherwise. Inching my way forward.

Apologies for the short post, very tired.
81 days in solitary confinement. Will write more on the state of my mental health shortly.
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Hello from my watery kingdom! Taken at 21.25 PM

Rain expected tommorow

Taken at 22.27 GMT

Day 80 – Progress Stats

2007-05-19T19:07:00.000+01:00

19 May, 07 – 23.37
15.3550N,51.3273W
24 hr progress: 9.8 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 595 Nautical Miles ( 1100 km)
Distance completed: 2660 NM (4921 km)
Wave height: 6-8 ft, Winds: 10-12 knots NE, Bearing: 230-260 degrees.
Apologies for the short post. Very exhausted. Not a very good day. Tough conditions. Only 9.8 miles. Rowing with the drogue (sea anchor) partially out has helped somewhat keep the stern into the waves but twice the effort is needed to row. Off to get some sleep.
Here are the progress stats recorded daily by the satellite tracking beacon on board. Indulge!
B
Day/Date Latitude Longitude Progress
(time is GMT) (degrees/minutes/seconds) (degrees/minutes/seconds) (miles,km,nautical
miles) n/m = nautical miles
Day 79 - May 18 (19:00 GMT) 15:40:01N 51:22:26W 15 miles (24 km) (13 n/m)
Day 78 - May 17 (19:00 GMT) 15:43:26N 51:09:29W 20 miles (33 km) (18 n/m)
Day 77 - May 16 (18:00 GMT) 15:50:24N 50:52:44W 28 miles (45 km) (24 n/m)
Day 76 - May 15 (19:00 GMT) 15:50:35N 50:27:22W 16 miles (25 km) (14 n/m)
Day 75 - May 14 (19:00 GMT) 15:48:36N 50:13:30W 19 miles (30 km) (16 n/m)
Day 74 - May 13 (19:00 GMT) 15:52:01N 49:57:11W 18 miles (29 km) (15 n/m)
Day 73 - May 12 (19:00 GMT) 15:51:04N 49:41:10W 20 miles (33 km) (18 n/m)
Day 72 - May 11 (19:00 GMT) 15:38:28N 49:28:16W 14 miles (22 km) (12 n/m)
Day 71 - May 10 (19:00 GMT) 15:35:13N 49:16:23W 13 miles (21 km) (12 n/m)
Day 70 - May 09 (19:00 GMT) 15:37:01N 49:04:34W 14 miles (22 km) (12 n/m)
Day 69 - May 08 (19:00 GMT) 15:40:12N 48:52:41W 8 miles (13 km) (7 n/m)
Day 68 - May 07 (19:00 GMT) 15:39:43N 48:45:11W 14 miles (22 km) (12 n/m)
Day 67 - May 06 (19:00 GMT) 15:37:01N 48:33:14W 21 miles (33 km) (18 n/m)
Day 66 - May 05 (19:00 GMT) 15:28:55N 48:16:41W 33 miles (52 km) (28 n/m)
Day 65 - May 04 (19:00 GMT) 15:22:44N 47:48:07W 31 miles (50 km) (27 n/m)
Day 64 - May 03 (19:00 GMT) 15:16:52N 47:20:42W 38 miles (61 km) (33 n/m)
Day 63 - May 02 (19:00 GMT) 15:16:19N 46:46:44W 39 miles (63 km) (34 n/m)
Day 62 - May 01 (19:00 GMT) 15:16:41N 46:11:35W 47 miles (76 km) (41 n/m)
Day 61 - Apr 30 (19:00 GMT) 15:28:48N 45:31:12W 35 miles (56 km) (30 n/m)
Day 60 - Apr 29 (19:00 GMT) 15:35:13N 45:00:32W 37 miles (60 km) (32 n/m)
Day 59 - Apr 28 (19:00 GMT) 15:37:12N 44:27:18W 41 miles (66 km) (36 n/m)
Day 58 - Apr 27 (19:00 GMT) 15:36:07N 43:50:17W 43 miles (69 km) (37 n/m)
Day 57 - Apr 26 (19:00 GMT) 15:46:12N 43:13:05W 48 miles (77 km) (42 n/m)
Day 56 - Apr 25 (19:00 GMT) 15:48:11N 42:29:53W 42 miles (68 km) (37 n/m)
Day 55 - Apr 24 (19:00 GMT) 15:58:26N 41:53:28W 41 miles (66 km) (35 n/m)
Day 54 - Apr 23 (18:00 GMT) 16:00:18N 41:16:41W 32 miles (51 km) (27 n/m)
Day 53 - Apr 22 (19:00 GMT) 16:08:10N 40:49:19W 33 miles (53 km) (28 n/m)
Day 52 - Apr 21 (19:00 GMT) 16:17:49N 40:21:32W 41 miles (66 km) (36 n/m)
Day 51 - Apr 20 (17:00 GMT) 16:24:04N 39:44:49W 39 miles (62 km) (33 n/m)
Day 50 - Apr 19 (20:00 GMT) 16:34:16N 39:11:38W 39 miles (62 km) (33 n/m
Day 49 - Apr 18 (19:00 GMT) 16:34:16N 38:36:47W 33 miles (53 km) (29 n/m)
Day 48 - Apr 17 (19:00 GMT) 16:26:13N 38:07:55W 28 miles (46 km) (25 n/m)
Day 47 - Apr 16 (18:00 GMT) 16:30:50N 37:42:36W 28 miles (46 km) (25 n/m)
Day 46 - Apr 15 (19:00 GMT) 16:37:26N 37:17:46W 31 miles (50 km) (27 n/m)
Day 45 - Apr 14 (19:00 GMT) 16:44:42N 36:50:46W 25 miles (40 km) (22 n/m)
Day 44 - Apr 13 (19:00 GMT) 16:55:12N 36:30:58W 44 miles (71 km) (38 n/m)
Day 43 - Apr 12 (19:00 GMT) 17:07:41N 35:28:08W 24 miles (39 km) (21 n/m)
Day 42 - Apr 11 (19:00 GMT) 17:07:41N 35:28:08W 24 miles (39 km) (21 n/m)
Day 41 - Apr 10 (18:00 GMT) 17:15:47N 35:07:44W 18 miles (30 km) (16 n/m)
Day 40 - Apr 09 (19:00 GMT) 17:26:20N 34:55:12W 23 miles (37 km) (20 n/m)
Day 39 - Apr 08 (19:00 GMT) 17:34:59N 34:36:36W 19 miles (30 km) (16 n/m)
Day 38 - Apr 07 (19:00 GMT) 17:36:47N 34:19:48W 21 miles (33 km) (18 n/m)
Day 37 - Apr 06 (19:00 GMT) 17:47:31N 34:04:44W 19 miles (30 km) (16 n/m)
Day 36 - Apr 05 (19:00 GMT) 17:59:28N 33:53:17W 16 miles (25 km) (14 n/m)
Day 35 - Apr 04 (19:00 GMT) 17:58:16N 33:38:56W 16 miles (25 km) (14 n/m)
Day 34 - Apr 03 (19:00 GMT) 17:55:30N 33:24:58W 17 miles (27 km) (15 n/m)
Day 33 - Apr 02 (19:00 GMT) 17:56:31N 33:09:32W 21 miles (34 km) (18 n/m)
Day 32 - Apr 01 (18:00 GMT) 18:04:55N 32:52:30W 16 miles (25 km) (14 n/m)
Day 31 - Mar 31 (19:00 GMT) 18:10:34N 32:39:25W 23 miles (37 km) (20 n/m)
Day 30 - Mar 30 (18:01 GMT) 18:11:56N 32:18:18W 33 miles (53 km) (28 n/m)
Day 29 - Mar 29 (19:00 GMT) 18:04:41N 31:49:30W 32 miles (52 km) (28 n/m)
Day 28 - Mar 28 (19:00 GMT) 18:00:29N 31:20:24W 42 miles (67 km) (36 n/m)
Day 27 - Mar 27 (19:00 GMT) 18:10:16N 30:43:55W 43 miles (70 km) (38 n/m)
Day 26 - Mar 26 (19:00 GMT) 18:24:43N 30:07:26W 35 miles (57 km) (31 n/m)
Day 25 - Mar 25 (19:00 GMT) 18:38:06N 29:38:10W 35 miles (56 km) (30 n/m)
Day 24 - Mar 24 (18:00 GMT) 18:44:35N 29:07:01W 25 miles (40 km) (22 n/m)
Day 23 - Mar 23 (19:00 GMT) 18:47:53N 28:44:20W 29 miles (47 km) (25 n/m)
Day 22 - Mar 22 (19:00 GMT) 18:54:29N 28:18:36W 28 miles (46 km) (25 n/m)
Day 21 - Mar 21 (19:00 GMT) 19:03:43N 27:54:22W 32 miles (52 km) (28 n/m)
Day 20 - Mar 20 (18:00 GMT) 19:24:25N 27:33:58W 29 miles (47 km) (25 n/m)
Day 19 - Mar 19 (19:00 GMT) 19:39:36N 27:12:36W 47 miles (76 km) (41 n/m)
Day 18 - Mar 18 (18:00 GMT) 20:05:35N 26:39:07W 39 miles (63 km) (34 n/m)
Day 17 - Mar 17 (20:00 GMT) 20:22:01N 26:07:44W 54 miles (86 km) (46 n/m)
Day 16 - Mar 16 (19:00 GMT) 20:43:16N 25:23:38W 49 miles (79 km) (43 n/m)
Day 15 - Mar 15 (19:00 GMT) 21:03:47N 24:43:30W 42 miles (68 km) (37 n/m)
Day 14 - Mar 14 (19:00 GMT) 21:36:32N 24:25:12W 53 miles (85 km) (46 n/m)
Day 13 - Mar 13 (18:00 GMT) 22:15:36N 23:59:24W 55 miles (88 km) (48 n/m)
Day 12 - Mar 12 (19:00 GMT) 22:43:44N 23:17:49W 39 miles (62 km) (33 n/m)
Day 11 - Mar 11 (18:00 GMT) 23:02:31N 22:47:46W 44 miles (71 km) (38 n/m)
Day 10 - Mar 10 (18:00 GMT) 23:17:10N 22:09:14W 44 miles (71 km) (38 n/m)
Day 9 - Mar 09 (18:00 GMT) 23:46:41N 21:42:18W 40 miles (64 km) (35 n/m)
Day 8 - Mar 08 (18:00 GMT) 24:17:06N 21:23:42W 37 miles (59 km) (32 n/m)
Day 7 - Mar 07 (19:00 GMT) 24:40:08N 20:59:31W 45 miles (72 km) (39 n/m)
Day 6 - Mar 06 (19:00 GMT) 25:05:31N 20:27:11W 48 miles (77 km) (42 n/m)
Day 5 - Mar 05 (19:00 GMT) 25:38:13N 19:58:44W 53 miles (85 km) (46 n/m)
Day 4 - Mar 04 (19:00 GMT) 26:14:20N 19:27:00W 52 miles (84 km) (45 n/m)
Day 3 - Mar 03 (19:00 GMT) 26:57:36N 19:11:42W 34 miles (54 km) (29 n/m)
Day 2 - Mar 02 (18:00 GMT) 27:14:56N 18:45:14W 33 miles (53 km) (29 n/m)
Day 1 - Mar 01 (18:00 GMT) 27:35:13N 18:22:34W 24 miles (39 km) (21 n/m)
Start day - Feb 28 (13:15GMT) 27:37:48N 17:58:48W Start day
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Send me a short message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Progress map reported by Argos

Taken at 08.58 am GMT

Taken at 22.42 GMT

Day 79 – Heat, Drogue as Rudder, FreshWater, Kick boxing

2007-05-18T17:56:00.000+01:00

18 May, 07 – 22.11
15.3916N,51.2329W
24 hr progress: 12.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 604 Nautical Miles ( 1117 km)
Distance completed: 2625 NM (4856 km)
Wave height: 6-8 ft, Winds: 10-12 knots NE, Bearing: 250-270 degrees.

A low mileage day. One of my toughest days yet.
I was too tired to row effectively last night. I just about managed to get in 4 hours in before the salt sores on my rear started complaining. It's getting harder to sit down for long hours at a time. I do about 45 minutes on, and 15 minutes off. But there is no space to walk around so I just end up going from sitting on a rowing seat to sitting on a different part of the boat.
The self-righting property of the boat (ie: to turn it the right way up again like a kayak in a capsize) depends entirely on the weight distribution (of food, water, equipment) on the boat . Storing more weight below deck and less weight above deck ensures that she is unstable in an overturned position and she rolls over. If the boat capsizes with the cabin doors open, the water entering the cabin will prevent the boat from self righting again – which means the end of the crossing and an SOS.
So the cabin door is sealed shut at all times whether I am inside the cabin or on deck. The trade off to the self-righting capability is that when its too hot on deck to row, it gets even more oppressively hot inside the cabin to sleep. Thus, I'm left with 15 hours in the day between 4.00 pm and 9.00 am to manage my sleeping and rowing.
I try to fit in my tasks to do or general maintenance work in the remaining hours.
I concentrated today on trying to find a replacement for the rudder, to help bring the stern of the boat into the waves. I've put the drogue (sea anchor) out from port quarter and am experimenting with different lengths of line, to see what's most effective. (Note: A few weeks back I put the sea anchor out, varying the length of the trip line so as to partially collapse the anchor. This was not very effective then.)
I've also had to work the water pump manually to produce freshwater as I was down to my last liter. I have no solution in sight for fixing the pump as yet.
In all a very exhausting day. I've struggled through the 12 miles feeling like a one legged man in a kickboxing match. The good news is I will never ever again have to row those same 12 miles that I did today.
B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Send me an SMS message (up to 160 chars) via my satellite phone 881631582692 by going to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a much longer personal message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
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Another hot day

VHF Antenna broken by a wave. On my list to be fixed

Taken at 10.07 GMT. Just starting my night rowing session

Day 78 – Adjusting Ballast, Finding weight

2007-05-17T16:54:00.000+01:00

17 May, 07 – 21.33
15.4320N,51.1083W
24 hr progress: 16.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 615 Nautical Miles ( 1137 km)
Distance completed: 2613 NM (4938 km)
Wave height: 10 ft, Winds: 15 knots NE, Bearing: 270 degrees.
(Sorry for the short post today. Just very tired.)

Yesterdays trend of rolling waves continued into early this morning before dying out around 6.00 am and it was back to rowing in a very confused sea.
I am back to 16.2 nautical miles today which is better than expected. I have mentally prepared my self to expect an average of 15 nautical miles per day – rowing without a rudder so what ever extra mileage I gain above that helps improve the atmosphere on board.
I am finding it a bit stressful trying to keep the boat on course. To achieve a straight line progress of 15 miles, I have to row a lot more to make up for zig zag path of the boat and course corrections.
The the leak forced me to empty the three storage compartments at the stern earlier on. As a result of the lighter stern, it been more difficult to keep the rear into the waves as it gets frequently lifted out and slammed back down with the force a passing wave.
The good news is that my last fix to the water leak is holding up well. Its reduced to a trickle, which I bail out every few days rather than everyday.
So, I spent the day trying to resolve this weight issue by desperately trying to find items on board that I could use to put some weight back into the storage compartments in the stern.
I went through everything on board and I've managed to add about 80 kg in weight to the stern made up by:
- gas canisters, cooking stuff, tools, spare parts for equipment – that I don't think I will need till I reach Antigua
- all the saved rubbish consisting of plastic, tin and glass packaging packaging from the food consumed on board (this had been saved to be disposed off in Antigua in an environmentally friendly way.)
- bottles sun creams, lotions etc
- empty jars and bottles -refilled with sea water
The overall weight of the boat is still considerably light. However, the extra 80 kg at the stern should make some difference.
At least, I will not have to sleep in the furtherest corner of the boat trying to use my body weight to keep the stern down.
B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Send me an SMS message (up to 160 chars) via my satellite phone 881631582692 by going to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

the bottom of the wave

Surfing down the back

Taken at 22.38 GMT. The world looks better in colour.

Day 77 – Big Rollers, Kenny G, Physical Health

2007-05-15T23:49:00.000+01:00

16 May, 07 – 21.47
15.5005N,50.555W
24 hr progress: 25.3 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 628 Nautical Miles ( 1161 km)
Distance completed: 2589 NM (4789 km)
Wave height: 10-15 ft, Winds: 15-18 knots NE, Bearing: 270 degrees.

25.3 miles. What a day!. After the rain early morning, the gray sky cleared up around mid morning. The wind picked up. And the small waves turned into big rollers – long and consistent 15 foot waves. The big rollers make near perfect conditions for rowing – just as long as they don't break over the boat. They travel in a long row, like a watery mountain range, with about 50 meters in between waves, where the water turns into a flat patch until the next wave arrives.
I managed to get more mileage today by surfing down the top of the waves to gain speed and using the momentum to get across the flat calm between the waves. Rowing without the rudder to hold the stern into the wave is a bit nerve wracking, as the occasional wave hitting the side sends the boat sliding across the surface at a near 45 degree angle.
Now, what I usually do when rowing is that I choose a genre of music depending on my mood and let the ipod play songs it chooses at random. Today, I happened to choose Jazz in the hope of taking the edge off the stress a little. Anyway, Kenny G came on some time into the rowing session. My first reaction was to reach for the skip button. But since I had my hands on the oars and had a good rowing momentum going and its a bit fiddley to get the ipod out of the waterproof casing - I let Ken play on. Which was a mistake I had to endure for an hour. Somehow listening to Kenny G on a boat, while it rose and fell 10 ft felt somewhat like being stuck in an elevator that kept going up and down between two floors. I must say however, that I did have a few amusing moments imagining how elevators and hotel lobbies have single-handedly destroyed Kennys music career. So, looks like Kenny did prove useful in taking the mind off the waves in the end.
I've had a lot of messages wondering about the status of my physical health. I'm not sure where to start, but I suppose the top is a good place as any. So here you go. A status report in top-down order-
Hair: It's quite encrusted with sea salt. I'm saving all my fresh water for drinking and so haven't been able to wash any off the salt out of it. The hair is starting to catch on the strips of Velcro on the cabin wall – so that gives you a good idea of its current texture.
Eyes: Hurt from the endless hours of looking at the distant horizon as I row. I have to keep the sun glasses on all day. Looking for long periods at a large reflective area of water is stressful on the eyes. I've been using SunSensor lenses from Corning, which have been performing exceptionally well.
Hands – A few sores on the hands from rowing. The biggest problem I have is that they are starting to claw out – ie: freeze in a curved position – just the way I hold the oar handles for 12 hrs a day. It takes constant effort to straighten them out after and before each session. Over the past few weeks it's worsened and it makes simple tasks like eating, writing and typing on the laptop difficult to perform.
Legs – A few bruises scraping against nails etc. I can feel the leg muscles wasting away due to the lack of walking.
Skin on back - The sea water breaking thru the hatch has left salt crystals all over the mattress and sleeping bag. As a result I've got plenty of salt stores and thousands of small scratches on the skin because of sliding around (due to the movement of the boat) while sleeping on a salty mattress.
Skin on shoulder – The deck harness that I wear at all times has been cutting into the skin. I have recently changed to attaching a safety line around my waist instead.
Skin on feet - The skin on my feet is starting to rot as its constantly wet.
General Muscles – The soreness has reduced from the time I started to present. The muscles have got used to the repetitive workload and aches and pains are few – or the case is I have gotten used to them. I try and vary my rowing position to increase the range of activity. Using the water pump to produce water and swimming also helps to work out a different set of muscles.
Rear – I have a few serious callouses and boils from sitting down on a rowing seat so much. I've got two which are bleeding. I try to vary the padding on the seat so as to shift the body weight away from the boils. Sitting down really hurts and there is no real solution but to endure it and KBO 'til Antigua.
Weight: It feels like I have lost about 15 kilos in body weight. I was 100 at the start. The food ration packs are high in carbs – like pasta and rice. However, I find my body craving more proteins than carbohydrates. I've increased my intake of protein to 5 protein shakes a day of PowerBar FitMaxx protein power and cretin.
Overall, I feel very healthy. It's great to be out here in the absence of pollution, cigarette smoke and dust. The air is fresh and the exercise feels good.
In the scheme of things, the physical discomforts I have are trivial. I can quite easily endure them. The mental discomfort is a bit harder to manage and I will write a bit more about that in a following post.
In the meantime, the extreme Atlantic weight loss program continues...
/ B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Send me an SMS message (up to 160 chars) via my satellite phone 881631582692 by going to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a much longer personal message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com (I won't be able to check until I hit land)

Salt sores on my back

PowerBar FitMaxx - the best protein on both sides of the Atlantic. :) Thanks to the team at PowerBar Europe, Germany. PowerBar Europe is the Official Supplier of protein supplments for this crossing.

Hanging with the phone outside the cabin to upload this while keeping an eye out for waves. Solarpanels on the roof prevent reception inside the cabin.

Day 76 – Balancing act, Sea Bed

2007-05-15T16:47:00.000+01:00

15 May, 07 – 23.40
15.5076N,50.2937W
(A short post today as I am quite tired.. A longer one will follow in a few hours. )

The sea has been fairly high all day with a few rain clouds overhead.
As I write this it's 11.40 at night. The wind has picked up considerably. Somehow it always seems to do so at night. The waves have gotten a bit fiercer since sunset and the boat is rolling from side to side in the choppy sea. Rain clouds overhead and a clear sky in the horizon.
I am sitting inside, on the starboard side of the cabin, just by the entrance. Opposite me is the panel with the VHF radio, the barometer, and electrics for controlling the water maker, radar etc. This is the widest point of the cabin 1.5 meters. The boat is rocking back and forth as waves hit the sides instead of the stern (because I don't have the rudder out). Trying to get any work done on the laptop while rocking back and forth is quite a challenge I have got my leg extended to the opposite wall for stability and the computer on my lap and my neck against the ceiling, because its too low for me to sit up straight.
So there you go - now you know what a circus performance it is to update this everyday :)
Mileage has been just below my target of 15 miles per day. The wind has been fairly consistent. Usually the wind and waves line up, but for the past few days the waves have been very confused – coming at the boat from different directions.
I've been trying to look around for an explanation. I spent some time looking through the charts I had on board and came across the hydrographic / topograpic chart of the area. My current position places us above a ridge called Researcher Ridge, with the water depth varying vastly between 563 meters and 5125 meters (5.125 km) over a very small area. Thats a massive amount of water being displaced upwards and sideways by the ridge.
I'm not sure how big a part this plays in influencing the surface conditions. Still, its quite amazing to see such a variation in the sea bed below and imagine mountain heights as I row over.
A bit stressed but in fair spirits.
I've been getting a lot of messages from school kids from all over. Thanks. It helps brighten up the day out here,
Stay tuned,
B
Confused by any of the nautical terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
Send me an SMS message (up to 160 chars) via my satellite phone 881631582692 by going to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a much longer personal message via my webpage http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com (I won't be able to check until I hit land)

Balancing act to update the website

Topography under the boat - Researcher Ridge

CEV Image of undersea mountain

Day 75 – Milestone reached - 50W, Visual monotony

2007-05-14T16:36:00.000+01:00

14 May, 07 – 21.17
15.4870N,50.1499W
24 hr progress: 16.7 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 667 Nautical Miles ( 1233 km)
Distance completed: 2536 NM (4691 km)
Wave height: 15-18 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots NE, Bearing: 270 degrees.

Crossing 50W was moment of mixed emotions.
I strongly remember checking the GPS after hours and hours of rowing during the first few days trying to change the number 18W displayed on the screen. It felt like it would take for ever to reach 50W.
For the first time ever, I felt a little nauseous from the visual monotony before me. From the unchanging scenery as well as the colors. (I don't mean to confuse this with boredom.) Looking at the same unchanging view, day after day is starting to hurt the eyes. I find that taking a long swim around the boat - just to look at the boat from a different angle makes an incredible difference. I haven't been able to swim for the past 3 days due to the rough sea.
Possibly why this the monotony of the view has been unbearable today.
Anyway, I'm trying to enjoy the monotony of the view and the isolation as much as possible. As I progress further W, more into the Caribbean sea, I will be crossing the shipping lanes of Trinidad – Bishop Rock and Trinidad. The ocean traffic will increase which will keep me busy on the VHF trying to make sure I don't get run down by a ship.
Its been long 24 hrs. I had to row a few extra hours to meet todays mileage target for the day.
Very very tired – as you can judge from the length of this post.
More tomorrow,
B
Confused by any of the terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

The Sun never fails to entertain. Taken at 21.57 GMT

Taken at 22.17 GMT

My new salt sores near the knees. Something new to look at.

Day 74 – Sunday, Latitude & Long, Course explained, Milestone

2007-05-13T16:32:00.000+01:00

13 May, 07 – 21.54
15.5181N,49.5855W
24 hr progress: 15.9 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 682 Nautical Miles ( 1261 km)
Distance completed: 2509 NM (4641 km)
Wave height: 10-15 ft, Winds: 15-18 knots NE, Bearing: 260-270degrees.

In all, quite a surreal atmosphere on board. Not a single ray of sunlight to be seen all day. The sun has been hidden behind a thin layer of Altostratus clouds – fairly thick clouds forming a grayish veil over the sky. The only visual all day has been a watery disc in the sky, just a bright blurry spot moving across the sky and a very gray sea. Looks like the Sun has taken the Sunday off as well.
I'm averaging 15 nautical miles a day without the rudder. Painfully less than my average of 30 nautical miles a day before I took the rudder out. The gameplan is to get within 300 miles of Antigua (rescue distance) before putting the rudder back in and making a last dash for shore before the fiberglass gives in completely. 30 days more to go!
I had a few messages asking me about the latitude and longitude figures that I post on here. So here's a quick explanation of my course to put the numbers into perspective.
I started from the island of El Hierro which is at N27, W018 setting course for Antigua at which lies at 17N, 61W.
In a motor boat or in a perfect world :), I would have traveled in a straight line (the fastest route) between the two points.
Rowing across the Atlantic is very much influenced by the prevailing winds and ocean currents at different latitudes.
When I left El Hierro, I had 3 options a) try and steer the boat in a straight line towards Antigua b) maintain a northern route and “touching down” to Antigua from the North East or c) follow a southern course - a more U- shaped course where I row below the latitude of Antigua and then row back up again approaching the island from the South East.
I have 4 Pilot charts on board for the North Atlantic covering March, April, May, June showing the currents and wind speeds at different times of the year. On comparing trends for the wind and currents, I found the North Equatorial Current increasing in strength (to about 1.5 knots) and curving off more to the North as the period of May-June progressed.
I compared this with the ships log of Graham Walters, who had chosen to follow a Northern route to Antigua. From the log, it seemed he was having trouble making progress South towards Antigua due to the currents moving northward. I spoke to a few other people, Rune, Erden Eruc who confirmed favorable prevailing winds at that time of the year for a SE approach.
Therefore, at El Hierro, I decided to set a Southern course for Antigua, betting that the wind and currents turn out as advertised. I followed the Canary Current south from El Hierro, down to the Cape Verde islands, where I got hold of the North Equatorial Current.
Over the next few days, as I get closer to the Caribbean, I hope to catch the SE Antilles current.
The currents have performed as advertised, working at 0.5 – 1 knot in my favor. The winds have been consistently astern, varying between gale conditions and a light breeze. However a few shifts between NE and SE, causing a confused sea and difficult rowing conditions.
At my current position from my current position is 15.51N, 49.58W, I am 2 degrees(approx 120 nm) South of Antigua and 600 nautical miles to the W. My next big milestone is crossing the 50 degrees W, which will be a great psychological lift and give a sense of being closer to achieving the goal.
Back to the oars for now,
B
Confused by any of the terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 881631582692 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Terns fishing near the boat

Altostratus clouds - 2.5 km

Blurred sun all day

Day 73 – Solitude, Calls, Eurovision

2007-05-12T17:13:00.000+01:00

12 May, 07 – 21.47
15.5181N,49.4204W
24 hr progress: 17.4 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 698 Nautical Miles ( 1291 km)
Distance completed: 2486 NM (4599 km)
Wave height: 10-15 ft, Winds: 15-18 knots NE, Bearing: 270-290 degrees.

The sea has been metallic gray all day. Tough conditions, but with the rest from the day before and a little shouting I've done my best mileage yet (without a rudder for steering) of 17.4 nautical miles. Saturday is supposed to be Half Day isnt it?
I got a few messages asking me how I handle solitude and what I think about when I am rowing alone. Well, in response to that, I wrote on here that I try not to think of the outside world too much and focus on the job at hand.
Well ever since I posted that, I have been bombarded (by so called 'friends'), with offers for pizza delivery, chinese takeaway, bbq party invites, a trip to the cinema and TV shows.
Today being Eurovision Song contest weekend, I got no less than three invites to come over and watch it with them.
(For those not familiar, the Eurovision (is quite a funny) Song contest is an annual event where each European country puts forward their best party-pop song to a Europe wide TV audience. They who vote for each song as it is played on TV by calling a phone number. A country is not allowed to dial in to vote for its own song. The winner with the most votes wins the Eurovision award.)
Anyway, preparing for the night row ahead, it did give me something different to think about for a change. Trying to predict who would win it this year. Quite an easy one if you look at what usually happens each year. To start off, the French and the Belgians only vote for each other. The Spanish, Portuguese and Italians do the same for one another. The Scandinavians vote for each other, except from Sweden that votes for everyone. In the Baltic states, Finland votes for Estonia thats across the water and their linguistic cousins Hungary. Estonia returns the favor by voting for Sweden. Latvia and Lithuania choose each other. Norway votes for Iceland. Unfortunately, nobody votes for England. Germany depends on Austria. Swiss don't vote. Turkey records the most phone calls coming from Germany. The Czech Republic, Poland and Romania get the most votes out of England, as these days everyone lives there now. Israel gets a tough time because some people think there has been some confusion on screen. (Isn't it in the Middle East?). Greece and Cyprus help each other out. Around the black sea, Romania supports Bulgaria. Slovenia and Croatia give each other points. That leaves only the Balkan states and the Dutch that get an even vote from everyone.
The trick is to gradually teach everybody in the EU to be fair in their voting so that some day there will be hope of having standard electric wall sockets.
------------------------------------
Anyway, that was my digression of thought for Saturday night. Back to “reality”, here in the Atlantic. I have a few tasks on board including cleaning the deck, making more water and trying to experiment with an alternate solution for the rudder. I've been thinking of trying to fix an Oar to act as a rudder.
Rowing alone and trying my best to enjoying it while it lasts.
Let me know who won the Eurovision. Just curious.
B
Confused by any of the terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

This morning, I found a new darker species of flying fish that landed on deck overngiht. Black and much sleeker unlike the Silver variety

Silver gray mountains astern. The white object is a float for my life line

Saturday night solitude.. adrit with thoughts of Eurovision

Day 72 – Rested & stronger, Dolphin

2007-05-11T14:10:00.000+01:00

11 May, 07 – 22.51
15.3920N,49.2901W
24 hr progress: 12 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 714 Nautical Miles ( 1320 km)
Distance completed: 2449 NM (4530 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots NE, Bearing: 260 – 270 degrees.

I've caught up on some sleep in the past 24 hrs. Well rested and feeling as fit as a fiddle again. I've attended to a few cuts and bruises on my knees and shoulders. Put on some cooling skin cream on my back which has burnt in the sun. All of last night I could feel it radiate the absorbed heat during the day. I usually try and avoid sun cream as it makes it harder to wash the salt off the skin at the end of the day. I've also re-hydrated properly. Drank a total of 3 ½ liters of water today and very little of it came back out. Where has it all gone?
I stayed away from protein supplements, vitamin tabs, coffee, snack bars etc today, to give the system a break.
Mixed weather conditions continue. Sunny on one side, cloudy on the other, producing amazing views but not so great conditions for rowing.
I've got a my plate full at the moment. A lot of work ahead. I must get the speed up. Progress at this rate would take me another 59 days to reach Antigua, well into the hurricane season. Not a practical option. So top of my list is 1. producing enough fresh water to last me the rest of the way so I can then concentrate on the rowing. 2. getting the daily average up to 15-20 knots.
The dolphins have returned to hunt fish under the boat. My faithful companions all through this journey. Its as if they sensed the pain of progressing at 12 miles a day and turned up to cheer me up while I struggle to get on course again...
B
Confused by any of the terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

View to the West. 19.49 GMT

View to the East 19.49 GMT

Dolpins swimming by the bow

Day 71 – Heat, Capsizing concerns

2007-05-10T14:06:00.000+01:00

10 May, 07 – 21.35
15.3568N,49.1708W
24 hr progress: 11.6 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 724 Nautical Miles ( 1339 km)
Distance completed: 2430 NM (4495 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots NE, Bearing: 260 – 270 degrees.

Todays posts is shorter than usual.
I've decided to take a break, rest the muscles and catch up on some sleep.
Very little sleep last night. Sea has been very erratic over the recent weeks. At first its dead silent. No sound of waves breaking. Just a small swell and lite breeze from the east. Then all of a sudden the Atlantic changes her mind and hell breaks loose with waves breaking over the stern, wind picking up and waves coming beam on to the boat.
Last night was one of those nights. I got very little sleep. The sea state was calm until around 2.00 am before going bananas. Rowing was impossible so I tried to get some sleep. I put my body weight as far back to the stern as possible to keep that part of the boat down. Each time a wave hit it would send me sliding across the mattress to the opposite wall and I have to get back into position and brace my self for the next wave.
Miss Olive has been handling the waves till now. I'm a bit concerned about stability however as she is much lighter now than at the start. I have consumed about 200 kg of food since leaving (counting the weight of tins, glass bottles, syrups, etc etc). In addition, the stern is quite light as it had three of the compartments that cannot be used to store anything owing to the water leak. All last night the waves were hitting us on the port quarter. We were rolling quite a bit with the gunwales coming within inches of the water.
Next on my list of items to do, is to see if I move some more weight below deck. For now, as a precaution, I am keeping all hatches closed in case of a capsize despite the heat in these patch of the ocean.
In other news, today was a nice and sunny day. As I had my swim today the water felt noticeably warmer. At least by a few degrees. A possible sign that we have successfully caught hold of the Antilles current which is a warm water current. The breeze also feels a lot warmer these days and so it's getting even harder to escape the heat of the sun.
Hasta pronto,
B
Confused by any of the terms? Visit the Glossary: http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/about_glossary.htm
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816315826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
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Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Sunny side up

Taken at 22.48 GMT

Inside the cabin

Day 70 – Part 2: Rainy & cloudy, freak wave, Sargasso Sea

2007-05-09T16:50:00.000+01:00

9 May, 07 – 21.47
15.3695N,49.0525W
24 hr progress: 12.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 735 Nautical Miles ( 1359 km)
Distance completed: 2410 NM (4458 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots E, Bearing: 260 – 270 degrees.

What a difference 24 hours can make. Yesterday was sunny and calm. This morning, the Atlantic had changed back into its silver gray liquid metal persona. Cloudy, rainy and an unfriendly atmosphere all day.
On the bright side (ironically) the temperature dropped slightly, which made my job of working at the water pump a bit more comfortable than working in the heat on deck.
A slow news day in general and the sea has been dead quite for most of the day. Apart from a nanosecond of excitement provided by a 20ft freak wave – that appeared out of nowhere, broke over the boat, left the deck covered in foaming water and continued on its way as if normal. No explanation given.
Less time spent at the oars today. I choose to spend more time on making water. Rowing in these conditions is too much work for too little reward.
I currently have the coast of Brazil, 900 Nautical miles to the South and the Sargasso Sea to the North. As we move forward, I will be passing over French Guyana, Suriname, Guyana and Venezuela – Papillon Territory.
Maybe it's the ocean rowing version of beer goggles – but after 70 days at sea, even Guyana is starting to look attractive as a destination for landfall.
Looking at the progress map today (produced by Argos Satellite Tracking), a bit of good news. I have almost cleared the Mid-Atlantic ridge (shaded light blue on the map) and will be heading back over deeper water (shaded dark blue) before heading into the shallow waters surrounding the islands. The deeper water will provide slightly calmer rowing conditions.
B
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 881631582692 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Rain clouds tto the west

Metallic Atlantic

Light blue - Mid-Atlatnic ridge. Dark blue - deep water

Day 70 – INFO: COMING TO THE ARRIVAL

2007-05-09T13:48:00.000+01:00

9 May, 07 – 21.43
15.3696N,49.0523W
24 hr progress: 12.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 735 Nautical Miles ( 1359 km)
Distance completed: 2410 NM (4458 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots E, Bearing: 260 – 270 degrees.

I hope to reach the Caribbean in the next 4-5 weeks, factoring in the current problem of making water and rowing without the rudder. I am currently at 15N, about 120 miles due south of Antigua 17N. The plan remains to catch the Antilles current and make a SE approach to Antigua. If weather conditions change or I run into further problems, I have kept my options open to make landfall at any off the islands.
So, for those of you who's idea to row across the Atlantic is being seated in row 10 on a Boeing, here is the info of my alternate landfall options – in case you fancy short holiday in the Caribbean. For those of you who are sailing, the coast guard and port information is included. I will post the info now so you'll have adequate time to plan your trip. It would be great to have you there.
B
PORT & COAST GUARD INFO FOR ISLANDS
Barbados: Port St. Charles near Speightstown
Customs telephone number is 246 419 1300. Before entering, call the
dockmaster, Derek Ince, on VHF16 or 77 for instructions. Dockmaster
Tel:246-419-1000 ext. 2230 / Mob. 246 262 3759, VHF Channel 16,77
psc.dockmaster@caribsurf.com
Barbados: Bridgetown very small port 13.0833330N, 59.62W
Barbados: Speightstown very small port 13.25W, 59.65W
Port St. Charles is quite fancy
St. Lucia: Castries, small port (near NW corner of island) 14.0166664N, 61W
St. Lucia: Vieux Fort, very small port SW corner of island 13.733333N,
60.97W
St Lucia has Castries located very conveniently around the corner as soon as
you clear the north end of the island.
Martinique & Guadeloupe - Coast Guard: +596-596-709-292
Martinique: Le Marin very small port, 14.4666662N, 60.88W
Martinique: Fort de France, small port, 14.60000N, 61.08W
Martinique: St. Pierre, very small port 14.733333N, 61.18W
Martinique is fine, aim for Le Marin at the SW corner if you have to.
Dominica Coast Guard: 1-809-448-2222
Dominica: Roseau very small port 15.283333N, 61.4W
Dominica: Roseau very small port 15.566666N, 61.47W
Dominica is supposed to be poorer, if you are that far north, aim for
Guadeloupe for better help with shipping the boat, etc.
Guadeloupe: Grand Bourge very small port, 15.883333N, 61.32W
Guadeloupe: Bourg des Saintes very small port, 15.86666N, 61.58W
Guadeloupe: Riviere Sens small marina SW corner by the lighthouse 15.98217N
61.71610W
On Guadeloupe, I would aim for Riviere Sens for clear access there.
I will be receiving a tow to Bas-du-Fort at
Pointe a Pitre, that's where I will be shipping the boat.
- (special thanks to Erden Eruc.)
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Hop onboard Coconut airways...see you in the Carib!

Day 69 – Split schedule, perfect day

2007-05-08T13:44:00.000+01:00

8 May, 07 – 21.43
15.4018N,48.5307W
24 hr progress: 7.4 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 746 Nautical Miles ( 1380 km)
Distance completed: 2387 NM (4415 km)
Wave height: 6-8 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots E, Bearing: 260 – 270 degrees.

Glorious weather today, without any rain. Clear blue sky and a fairly calm sea.
Slow progress as I spent a few hours today producing water from the watermaker. I am using the backup handpump. It's mindless & back breaking work trying to produce fresh water. And very slow. About 4-5 hrs of work at the pump to produce 3 liters of water. I was glad to get back to the oars at the end of it.
Not too bad tho. Get to work another muscle group for a change :)
Spotted a ship today in a distance, the first one in 3 weeks. I was looking forward to a human conversation over the VHF radio, but unfortunately they did not reply on Ch 16, even at visual range. I tried to call them for about 2 hrs. No response. It such a case, was a good thing they were 2 miles off port and not on a collision course with me.
I meant to write something here about my physical state, but I am way too exhausted today after work at the oars and the water pump. My fingers are also 'clawing' up more after holding onto the oars and pump all day. So will post that on here tomorrow.
Thanks to all for the messages. I get about 3000 messages a day. While its impossible to reply to each and every one, I read them all at night. On days like this it makes a huge difference out here.
B
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Perfect sky, mixed waves

Fish under the boat on my afternoon dive

Bonjorno! How does the beard look?

Day 68 – Dealing with the weather

2007-05-07T16:43:00.000+01:00

7 May, 07 – 21.43
15.3988N,48.4545W
24 hr progress: 11.1 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 754 Nautical Miles ( 1394 km)
Distance completed: 2344 NM (4336 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 15 knots E, Bearing: 290 degrees.

This morning, I got news that there is a low pressure system to the NW of me that may be confusing the winds.
The weather for the rest of the week is:
8th May – 15 (knots) E, 9th May – 15 ENE, 10th May – 15 E, 11th May – 15 E, 12th May 15 – ESE, 13th May 15 ESE.
Occasional squalls expected.
I've had a few messages asking me what a squall is.
Well, a squall is a sudden and violent wind often accompanied by rain. They are created by local conditions around the world and called different names. Off Eastern Australia – they are called Southerly Busters, in the Med. they are called Mistrals and around Cape Horn they are called Willie Waughs.
As the journey has progressed, I've changed my outlook on what I stress about.
A piece of useful advice I found invaluable on this journey: “Concentrate on the things that you can do something about and not to waste effort on those that you can't do anything about”.
It's easy to get stressed and frustrated about the weather and I try not to let it get to me as much, even though the clock has been counting down to the approaching hurricane season, June 1st and the sea state for the past 2 weeks has been very confused with winds and waves in different directions.
Instead, I have been focusing on getting as much mileage as possible on a given day by resting during unfavorable conditions. Though it must be said that bad weather is never too bad. It would be boring if it was calm all the time. A storm is scary. For someone alone here in a rowing boat, it succeeds in raising the level of fear and adrenaline running through the veins. But sometimes it's just as good to sit back and watch the awesome power of nature at work from a ringside seat.
I had a rare view in front of me around sunset as the sun was setting under grey altocumulus clouds to the west. Today's photo, shows a high altitude Cirrus cloud (white), reflecting light from the hidden sun and casting a 'moon-beam' over the water.
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Houskeeping on deck - cleaning the dead flying fish off it.

break in the clouds

Cloud casting a moon beam across the water

Day 67 – Watermaker, Mako Shark

2007-05-06T16:39:00.000+01:00

6 May, 07 – 11.58
15.3737N,48.3427W
24 hr progress: 18.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 764 Nautical Miles (1413 km)
Distance completed: 2334 NM (4317 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 15 knots ENE, Bearing: 290-300 degrees.

Its been an exhausting week and I was looking forward to some calm weather today, to get some some Sunday-style rest, by reading a few more pages from my book on deck. Unfortunately, the Atlantic had other plans. It felt sluggish rowing this morning through the grey sea and occasional rain. As if rowing thru molten steel. Its amazing how much of a psychological impact the color of the water can make to the effort.
Not a single atom of progress in fixing the water maker.
The water maker is a high pressure positive displacement pump that is powered by a motor (using electricity from the on board (solar panels). The pump pressurizes input sea water to approximately 800 psi thru a semi permeable membrane to give fresh water.
I reserved today to fix the water maker. and as such I spent all morning going back and forth between the machine and the manual that says “remove the large o-ring (8012588) from its groove in the side of the pump back plate that faces the pump body. Remove the wiper block and spacer from the pump back plate. Replace the two large o-rings (8012947) and the two smaller o-rings (8013006) on the membrane tube plug with new o-rings from the RSK. Insert the small end of the membrane tube plug into the exposed hole of the membrane element and press the plug into the housing” ...
I've checked the electrical connections, the plumbing, cleaned the membrane (with Acid cleaner), applied grease, checked the seals. No luck. So I've decided to use the Manual water maker from the emergency bag for now.
I spotted the thin sharp fins of a beautiful 6-7ft Mako shark in the water in the afternoon, just as I was finishing off work. A very welcome change of scenery. They are a lot sleeker than the Great White and and are super fast swimmers. It circled around the boat a few times, like an F1 car on first gear, before going off.
Other minor tasks crossed off the list today - padding the corners of the light near the hatch entrance that I've been banging into and scrubbing the damp growth off the ceiling of the cabin.
Small tasks such as the above keep cropping up. One of the many reasons I look for things to fix or modify is to keep the mind mentally occupied and it adds a bit of variation to the routine. Its a well known fact of nature however, that the longer you live in a space, the more you customize it to your needs. Perfection after all is a moving target :)
Off to get some Sunday rest now and its back to the world of rowing and sleeping tomorrow,
B
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Mould in the cabin caused by dampness

Masking tape and padding on the light just above the hatch entrance on which I've hit my head a zillion times

Water mountains

Day 66 – Without rudder again!, squall

2007-05-05T13:36:00.000+01:00

5 May, 07 – 21.30
15.2966N,48.1718W
24 hr progress: 27.6 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 783 Nautical Miles ( 1448 km)
Distance completed: 2314 NM (4280 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 degrees.

A shorter post than usual.
The weather continues to be squally (a preface to the hurricane season perhaps?) and mixed periods of clear skies and sun.
Last night was rough and it looked like the rudder is about to put its last orders in at the bar. Quite a nervous night, hoping and praying that the rudder with just hold on for a few hours more. For a while I found my self talking to the rudder and the boat, motivating it to just 'hang in there'.
I tried to fix it again this morning with ropes but by afternoon it looked obvious that it was not going to hold.
I took the rudder out this evening and have decided to carry on to Antigua without the rudder until I am around 100 mils off shore. Rowing without a rudder is going to be a lot harder, but I just cannot risk a larger crack in the fiberglass.
Another long over due task was to improve my sleeping arrangement. My bed consists of 3 foam camping mats (6 ft by 2ft) along with an inflatable heat reflective mat. Its been one of the many irritations at sea - trying to get a few hours of comfortable sleep without being thrown against the sides of the boat or having the sleeping mat slip away from underneath my back. I spent some time taping the mattress together and tying the ends up with string they wont run away. Another one crossed off the list.
No sign of human life around yet. Not a single boat or ship seen for days.
Enjoying the peace
Im expecting a harder row ahead, now that I've taken the rudder out, using only the oars to steer. Hoping that the sea state improves. It will be nice to have the winds and waves aligned up.
Off to get some rest on my 'new' bed!
B
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

Rudder, as seen under water

Fixing the mattress on deck

Incoming!

Day 65 – Slow prog. Leak fix (again...)

2007-05-04T16:32:00.000+01:00

4 May, 07 – 21.30
15.2296N,47.4947W
24 hr progress: 26.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 810 Nautical Miles ( 1498 km)
Distance completed: 2296 NM (4247 km)
Wave height: 10 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 degrees.

Another day for unusual photos. A clear blue sky over half the sea. Rain clouds over the other half.
Frustrating as hell to row in however.
As I have limited food (energy) supplies on board, given the present sea-state, I decided to save my energy and water and wait till the waves make up their mind which way the want to go. Sitting at the oars today felt like rowing inside a valley surrounded by gray mountains of water on three sides. The wind as been as blowing steadily from the E, but the waves have been hitting the boat from the North East and the South East, destroying any chances of making any progress north towards Antigua, or South towards Martinique and slow progress forwards.
We are currently crossing the mid-Atlantic ridge. The amount of water being displaced by the ridge may be one of the contributing factors to the confused wave patters I am experiencing on the surface.
(The Mid-Atlantic ridge is a submarine mountain range running from Iceland to the North to the 58 Degrees South latitude, dividing the Atlantic into two parts. Looking at our position on the charts, the depth of water above the ridge is 2,700 m (8,900 ft) while the average depth of the surrounding waters is 3,700 and 5,500 meters (12,000 and 18,000 ft).)
So instead of rowing, I took some time off the oars and focused on getting some of the jobs done.
I gave fixing the leak priority today over the water maker as the flow of water had increased again and I was a bit concerned that all that water swishing about underneath would make the boat unstable. This time, I re-sealed it with the last bit of sealant left and made a “rain coat” using plastic garbage bags to seal off the area from any water contact with the sealant. Quite a ridiculous looking solution :) but it seems capable of holding fort till we reach Antigua.
The fix, which should have taken me an hour to get done on land took me about 4 hrs to complete, working in-between waves crashing onto the rear and waiting for them to pass. That included the routine drying out all the soaked contents of the cabin on deck, including the mattress, survival suit, electronics etc. Hopefully this is the last time time I have to do it, as it has lost its novelty value long ago.
Tomorrow, I get to work on the rudder and the water maker.
B
To send me an SMS message (160 chars) via my satellite phone 8816 315 826 92 go to http://messaging.iridium.com/
Or you can post me a longer personal message via my webpage which will be forwarded to me within 48 hours.
http://www.bhavik.com/crossatlantic/messages.asp
Otherwise email me: mail@bhavik.com

360 degrees half cloudy, half sunny

Leak at the back of the stern

New fix using garbage bags to keep the area dry

Day 63 – A Quick Update

2007-05-02T16:48:00.000+01:00

2 May, 07 – 11.58
15.1564N,46.3394W

Hi everybody,
The weather has been rough and squally (rainy) for the past 5 days and I've had a few large waves break into the cabin while I've been trying to re-fix the rudder, and this is the first time I have been able to dry out the equipment enough to update the website.
The proper log pages will be posted here within the next few hours. For now here is a quick update.
Awful rowing conditions. Confused seas and shifting winds, Waves from all directions, NE, East and SE.and 10-15ft waves occasionally breaking over the stern. The wind varying from 15 to 25 knots, but thankfully in the right direction (SW).
Progress has been ok and I've been fighting to maintain course. As a result, the rudder has started to play up again (found out on the 26th) and needs to be re-secured. I think the main holding pin is starting to give away. Been re-fixing the leak caused by the mooring ring on the stern. My fix to the leak caused by the steering cable is still holding. Got nearly thrown overboard when hit in the night by a wave. I had my safety harness on fortunately. But the cable for the safety harness needs more slack. I've put out two additional lifelines from the stern. About 20m of line, trailing thru the water. Camera tripod washed off the cabin roof and antenna for the VHF broken by a wave. Will have to be replaced, but I haven't found any shops yet closeby.
Water: I have 2 weeks of water left. Could not fix the water maker in the bad weather. If conditions ease will give it another try. If not, will be in the shipping lanes by then and will try and get water from a passing ship. Will be rationing a bit more till then. Food: stores are ok. Will be replacing the meal packs with protein shakes for the last few days if I run short. Last bit of coffee left. Fruit tins over (disaster!).
In other news, wildlife appears and re-appears with breaks in the weather. Sharks and Dolphins continue hunting fish next to the boat, schools of Dorado, Bonito and Grouper.
Well, 2 months at sea and have not seen a single human being nor a shower for 60 days!
Milestones achieved:
Crossed below the 1000 nautical miles to Antigua mark
Reached 45W, clock moved 1 hour backward from GMT. Now at GMT -3.
2 Months at sea complete!
Estimated arrival time in Antigua: June 15th. (45 days).
Pls check back in a few hrs for the complete log including the past few days. Thanks for the messages,
B

Squall, high wind, rough sea

Day 63 – Night Rowing, Dolphins

2007-05-02T13:28:00.000+01:00

2 May, 07 – 11.58
15.1596N,46.4956W
24 hr progress: 34.4 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 877 Nautical Miles ( 1640 km)
Distance completed: 2220 NM (4107 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

Dolphins go crazy in the moonlight. There are about 5 or 6 dolphins around the boat, glowing in the darkness as they disturb the plankton (that throws out light) in the water. Every now and then a luminescent shadow can be seen in the crest of a wave, as the dolphins surf down it towards the boat and back up again. There is a brilliant full moon out tonight that's been steadily rising up the east over the stern. It has turned the sky all around into a surreal kind of extended evening rather than night. Occasionally a cloud drifts in front of the moon, throwing out moon rays behind it. As I write this its about 2am GMT here, I'm sitting on deck, taking a coffee break. The Atlantic has entered one of her calmer moods for the night, which gives me about 6 hours to get any work done that needs any muscle co-ordination – like typing.
As I posted here before, I have changed my rowing schedule around, so I row mostly in the evening, night and morning when it is much cooler. It's infinitely more entertaining to navigate with the stars (on a moonless night) at night or by the moon. Right now, I have the bow following the highway of moonlight, pointing due west.
Another passenger on board tonight – a Tern has stopped by, trying to get some rest on the roof of the cabin til daylight. By by the looks of it I doubt it's getting much rest as it's chosen the downward-sloping-solar panel part roof to stand on. It promises a bit of entertainment as it keeps losing its balance and sliding off it each time a wave bumps the boat. I tried to lift it up and put it in the bilge, so it gets a bit better shelter from the wind (and I made a mental note to remember not to step on it in the darkness)
The day has been fairly productive in terms of mileage and staying on course. Now that I am half way across the anxiety is much less. Despite the bad rowing conditions (cross waves), I am enjoying the experience of being out here. It's a true privilege.
I shall try to post twice a day from now on, as I have more time to write during the day than at night.
B
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Progress as recorded the onboard Argon Satellite trackign beaon

Taken at 22.31 GMT

One of the many birds fishing around the boat. Get some rest on board at night.

Day 62 – Broken EPIRB

2007-05-01T13:26:00.000+01:00

1 May, 07 – 11.58
15.1683N,46.1399W
24 hr progress: 38.4 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 901 Nautical Miles ( 1667 km)
Distance completed: 2184 Nautical Miles (4040 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20-25 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

This morning, I got thrown against the EPIRB (Emergency Beacon) and I've cracked the plastic around the aerial as the EPIRB was pushed against the cabin wall. I've sealed the plastic back up with some tape.
After what seems like a record number of squalls in a week, the sky has finally started to clear up a bit, cheering things up slightly. Wind and winds still strong, in different directions “of course”.
I've been getting lots of messages about now updates for the past few days. Thanks too all for the concern. I've had water all over the cabin, that got in while I was trying to make adjustments to the rudder. I'm living in a perpetually wet condition, so I had to wait till things dried out a bit before I could operate any electronics.
Glad to be on the other side of midway point. Still a bit of hike ahead, though I am told its all downhill from here.
Not getting comfy just as yet. Back to the oars,
B
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The deck is a mess with ropes, food and flying fish all around. Schedueled for weekly houskeeping tommorow

Cracked aerial on the EPIRB. Fixed up again with wonder tape

Taken at 21.58 PM. Squall clouds have passed overhead on their way Westards. Can be seen here on the horizon as the sun sets

Day 61 – Almost overboard

2007-04-30T17:23:00.000+01:00

30 Apr, 07 – 21.35
15.2775N,45.3549W
24 hr progress: 32.9 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 936 Nautical Miles ( 1731 km)
Distance completed: 2140 NM (3959 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20-25 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

Last night, I got caught off guard by a freak wave just as I was walking back from the deck to the cabin. I had my back to the waves and my eyes were still getting adjusted to the darkness when a giant wave hit the boat broadside, bringing the gunwales within inches of the water and throwing me onto the rails. Fortunately I had just enough time to grab hold of the rails and I had my life line still on.
Usually, while rowing, I am facing the waves which gives a few seconds of advance warning. And with a breaking wave, its always possible to see the white foam reflecting in the moonlight. The problem with freak waves is that they tend to be unusually large (often an accumulation of waves) and break at the very last minute (under the weight of the crest), making it quite difficult to spot them until the very last minute.
After yesterdays close call, I have put out additional life lines from the stern, , that trail behind the boat, to grab a hold of in case I fall overboard and snap my primary life line.
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More morning rain storms

Additional lifelines trailing out from the stern

Sunset taken at 22.16 PM GMT

Day 60 – Course Update, Routine Change

2007-04-29T17:20:00.000+01:00

29 Apr, 07 – 21.35
15.3466N,45.0217W

24 hr progress: 32 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 967 Nautical Miles ( 1788 km)
Distance completed: 2105 NM (3894 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20-25 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

I reached 45W sometime around midnight yesterday. Since leaving El Hierro, I have been following a course SW, using the NE winds and Canary Current. From here on, for the next 600 miles, I follow an almost straight line course due West before making my a South Easterly approach to Antigua with the help of the Antilles current and the hopefully a helpful South Easterly wind.
The leak has worsened since the bad weather yesterday and water started poring in again around 3 in the morning yesterday. On closer examination I found that some of the sealant around the mooring ring has given away to the water pressure from the waves.
I am using my sleeping bag to soak up the water for now and will carry out fresh repairs once the waves settle down a bit.
I've changed my day routine around, so that I can row more at night when its cooler and sleep during the day.
Afternoons spent reading in the shade of the cabin (one eye on the hatch for breaking waves trying to enter the cabin) and swimming. Trying to minimize exertion and water consumption in the heat till I have fixed the water maker.
Currently reading – The Kon Tiki Expedition, about the raft voyage by Thor Hydral in 1945 from Peru to Polynesia.
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Using the sleeping bag to absorbe water from the leak.

Sun outside as seen from the cabin while sleeping.

Reading inside the cabin. Slightly bigger than a coffin.

Day 59 – Wave day, VHF antenna snapped, tripod lost

2007-04-28T17:17:00.000+01:00

28 Apr, 07 – 21.35
15.3738N,44.2916W
24 hr progress: 36.1 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 998 Nautical Miles ( 1846 km)
Distance completed: 2076 NM (3840 km)
Wave height: 12-15 ft, Winds: 20-25 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

Quite a day to sit on deck and watch dark rain clouds dump rain over the boat as the pass overhead followed by giant 15 ft waves breaking their tops as they rolled past .
Today has been the worst conditions for rowing since leaving El Hierro.
Big waves are ok, as long as they are coming consistently from a certain angle and do not break.
For the past few days waves have been coming at all sorts of angles, which makes it very hard to cut a steady path thru the water. As soon as I have gained some momentum SW, a wave from due W or NW comes crashing thru, pushing the boat in a different direction. Very frustrating.
The wave hight today felt a lot higher than usual. Got hit by a few unusually large waves mid morning that washed the tripod off the stern and snapped the VHF antenna. The VHF radio is still working and I have fixed the antenna back with gaffa tape. The snap does not seem to be affecting reception or transmission. Should hold up till landfall.
Less of rowing today and more of surfing. Still making progress though.
Looking forward to crossing the 45W meridian. The next big milestone.
Latest logs for the past 5 days as recorded by the Argos satellite tracking beacon.
Day 59 - Apr 28 2007 (19:00 GMT)15:37:12N 44:27:18W41 miles (66 km) (36 n/miles)
Day 58 - Apr 27 2007 (19:00 GMT)15:36:07N43:50:17W43 miles (69 km) (37 n/miles)
Day 57 - Apr 26 2007 (19:00 GMT)15:46:12N43:13:05W48 miles (77 km) (42 n/miles)
Day 56 - Apr 25 2007 (19:00 GMT)15:48:11N42:29:53W42 miles (68 km) (37 n/miles)
Day 55 - Apr 24 2007 (19:00 GMT)15:58:26N41:53:28W41 miles (66 km) (35 n/miles
B

Gray mountains, Gray skies

15 ft wave astern, as seen from the bottom.

The top crashing down the back of the wave as it passes under the boat

Day 58 – More rain, more wind, heat

2007-04-27T17:13:00.000+01:00

27 Apr, 07 – 21.35
15.3580N,43.5178W

24 hr progress: 36.2 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1034 Nautical Miles ( 1912 km)
Distance completed: 2020 NM (3737 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20-25 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

More of the same, awful conditions. Morning squall. Clear skies. Squall again. Clear skies, More rain.
The sea color keeps alternating between silver, grey and blue to match an equally confused sea.
Struggling to keep course amongst other things on my mind, including fixing the water maker, adjusting the height of the radar reflector.
The breeze is getting distinctly warmer and so its the water temperature as we head further south and also towards the start of the Atlantic hurricane season. Today felt exceptionally hot inside the cabin. I suspect the red paint on the outside as well as the black solar panels must be heating up quite a bit with all the absorbed sunlight. In hindsight, it would have been better to paint the boat white or silver so as to reflect more of the sunlight off the surface. It just so happened that the boat was used in a previous attempt sponsored by Virgin Atlantic and we decided to keep the original color of the boat, as it would be easier to spot from the air in case of an emergency.
Took the afternoon swim and found that the marine life under the boat is increased since a few days ago and gotten a bit more colorful. Noticed a beautiful white – yellow-blue fish with a black stripe down its body, swimming with its mate by the side of the boat, from stern to bow, turning around at the bow and swimming back again to the stern, turning around and back again to the bow. The did not alter routine even as a shark turned up around feeding time to feast on the tuna underneath the boat. It seems that the sharks are quite picky about the type of fish the feed on and not so mindless after all. Quite entertaining to watch these two fish calmly swim alongside the boat while hundreds of others swam for their lives.
I'm saving my energy till the weather improves. At least till the waves make up their mind which way they want to go.
B
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Fish swimming alongside the hull

Another approaching rain storm

Sunset taken at 21.59 GMT

Day 57 – Best mileage, Squall forecast

2007-04-26T17:07:00.000+01:00

26 Apr, 07 – 21.35
15.4585N,43.1568W
24 hr progress: 42.8 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1067 Nautical Miles ( 1973 km)
Distance completed: 1981 NM (3664 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

One of the best days as mileage as yet. On track to reach the next major way point at 15N and 45W as planned.
Rain showers have become a regular feature in the mornings.
The afternoons are as hot and balmy as ever with a textbook clear blue sky. I have started taking fairly regular swims in the afternoon to cool off in the water. It is way to hot to row and impossible to stay in the cabin with the hatches shut.
Todays swim was shorter than usual. Waves are still massive and winds high.
There is nothing I can do about the conditions but wait for them to ease.
The weather forecast for the next few days:
26th Apr 15E, 27th Apr 20E, 28th Apr 15E, 29th Apr 20E, 30th Apr 20ENE, 1st May 20ENE, 2nd May 15ENE
The squally conditions are expected to stay for the rest of the week.
A very exhausting day and looks like a harder week ahead. Somehow, the 20 knot forecast always feels like a lot more out here. Maybe its just the muscles complaining.
B
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Start of the night rowing shift

Rowing at sundown

Checking the rudder from the rear hatch

Day 56 – Squalls, re-fixing leak,

2007-04-25T18:07:00.000+01:00

25 Apr, 07 – 21.40
15.4803N,42.3145W
24 hr progress: 35.8 Nautical Miles (1 nm = 1.85 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1109 Nautical Miles ( 2051 km)
Distance completed: 1936 NM (3581 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

A quick shorter post than usual due to bad weather.
There sea was so bad all of last night that here was no flying fish to be found on deck. What a pleasant change. No sign of any other wildlife under the boat as well, apart from the odd solitary pilot fish swimming alongside the hull.
I was greeted by a squall once again this morning. Very unpleasant rowing conditions. The squall however did provide a change of scenery, as I sat on deck watching a stormy curtain of rain racing across the sea towards the boat and passing over it followed by sunshine minutes later.
Above average mileage in the last 24 hrs, thanks to strong winds. Keeping course has been a challenge without the rudder fully immersed. The stern has taken a bit of a beating overnight and there is more water in the boat due to the sealant coming off from the outside. Will have to re-fix the leak again.
In todays dinner time news, I spilt treacle pudding on the black mattress as I was eating dessert in the darkness. It happened when I left the packet for a few seconds to go an re-tie the oars on deck. Unfortunately, I did'nt discover it, until I laid down to sleep and started sliding around on my back. By this time, it had run over the sides of the mattress into the other mattress below and the wood. So the smell of Treacle now joins the other smells in the cabin including Fish, Salt, Dampness, Blue cheese, Lemon Deodorant, Sealant, and Mint toothpaste.
Looking forward to the next milestone, crossing the 45W mark.
B
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Approaching rain clouds

Squall passes overhead

Half squall, Half clear skies

Day 56 – Progress Log, Trip Odometer vs Dist Lef

2007-04-25T16:51:00.000+01:00

25 Apr, 07 – 21.40
15.4803N,42.3145W

Note: The straight line distance between El Hierro and Antigua is 2499. However, the actual distance rowed to reach Antigua is far more as the boat takes a curved route to Antigua (17 degrees N) ie: Heading further South to 15 degrees N until 45 degrees W and making a South-Easterly approach. Also, the actual distance rowed daily (shown here), does not count miles spent tacking (zig zag) to get the best mileage with the prevailing wind and wave conditions at the time.
Distance from El Hierro, Spain to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles (4623 km)
Total distance traveled to date: 1936 Nautical Miles. (3581 km)
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1109 Nautical Miles ( 2051 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Day/Date Latitude Longitude Progress
(time is GMT) (degrees/minutes/seconds) (degrees/minutes/seconds) (miles,km,nautical miles)
Day 51 - Apr 20 (17:00 GMT) 16:24:04N 39:44:49W 39 miles (62 km) (33 n/miles)
Day 50 - Apr 19 (20:00 GMT) 16:34:16N 39:11:38W 39 miles (62 km) (33 n/miles)
Day 49 - Apr 18 (19:00 GMT) 16:34:16N 38:36:47W 33 miles (53 km) (29 n/miles)
Day 48 - Apr 17 (19:00 GMT) 16:26:13N 38:07:55W 28 miles (46 km) (25 n/miles)
Day 47 - Apr 16 (18:00 GMT) 16:30:50N 37:42:36W 28 miles (46 km) (25 n/miles)
Day 46 - Apr 15 (19:00 GMT) 16:37:26N 37:17:46W 31 miles (50 km) (27 n/miles)
Day 45 - Apr 14 (19:00 GMT) 16:44:42N 36:50:46W 25 miles (40 km) (22 n/miles)
Day 44 - Apr 13 (19:00 GMT) 16:55:12N 36:30:58W 44 miles (71 km) (38 n/miles)
Day 43 - Apr 12 (19:00 GMT) 17:07:41N 35:28:08W 24 miles (39 km) (21 n/miles)
Day 42 - Apr 11 (19:00 GMT) 17:07:41N 35:28:08W 24 miles (39 km) (21 n/miles)
Day 41 - Apr 10 (18:00 GMT) 17:15:47N 35:07:44W 18 miles (30 km) (16 n/miles)
Day 40 - Apr 09 (19:00 GMT) 17:26:20N 34:55:12W 23 miles (37 km) (20 n/miles)
Day 39 - Apr 08 (19:00 GMT) 17:34:59N 34:36:36W 19 miles (30 km) (16 n/miles)
Day 38 - Apr 07 (19:00 GMT) 17:36:47N 34:19:48W 21 miles (33 km) (18 n/miles)
Day 37 - Apr 06 (19:00 GMT) 17:47:31N 34:04:44W 19 miles (30 km) (16 n/miles)
Day 36 - Apr 05 (19:00 GMT) 17:59:28N 33:53:17W 16 miles (25 km) (14 n/miles)
Day 35 - Apr 04 (19:00 GMT) 17:58:16N 33:38:56W 16 miles (25 km) (14 n/miles)
Day 34 - Apr 03 (19:00 GMT) 17:55:30N 33:24:58W 17 miles (27 km) (15 n/miles)
Day 33 - Apr 02 (19:00 GMT) 17:56:31N 33:09:32W 21 miles (34 km) (18 n/miles)
Day 32 - Apr 01 (18:00 GMT) 18:04:55N 32:52:30W 16 miles (25 km) (14 n/miles)
Day 31 - Mar 31 (19:00 GMT) 18:10:34N 32:39:25W 23 miles (37 km) (20 n/miles)
Day 30 - Mar 30 (18:01 GMT) 18:11:56N 32:18:18W 33 miles (53 km) (28 n/miles)
Day 29 - Mar 29 (19:00 GMT) 18:04:41N 31:49:30W 32 miles (52 km) (28 n/miles)
Day 28 - Mar 28 (19:00 GMT) 18:00:29N 31:20:24W 42 miles (67 km) (36 n/miles)
Day 27 - Mar 27 (19:00 GMT) 18:10:16N 30:43:55W 43 miles (70 km) (38 n/miles)
Day 26 - Mar 26 (19:00 GMT) 18:24:43N 30:07:26W 35 miles (57 km) (31 n/miles)
Day 25 - Mar 25 (19:00 GMT) 18:38:06N 29:38:10W 35 miles (56 km) (30 n/miles)
Day 24 - Mar 24 (18:00 GMT) 18:44:35N 29:07:01W 25 miles (40 km) (22 n/miles)
Day 23 - Mar 23 (19:00 GMT) 18:47:53N 28:44:20W 29 miles (47 km) (25 n/miles)
Day 22 - Mar 22 (19:00 GMT) 18:54:29N 28:18:36W 28 miles (46 km) (25 n/miles)
Day 21 - Mar 21 (19:00 GMT) 19:03:43N 27:54:22W 32 miles (52 km) (28 n/miles)
Day 20 - Mar 20 (18:00 GMT) 19:24:25N 27:33:58W 29 miles (47 km) (25 n/miles)
Day 19 - Mar 19 (19:00 GMT) 19:39:36N 27:12:36W 47 miles (76 km) (41 n/miles)
Day 18 - Mar 18 (18:00 GMT) 20:05:35N 26:39:07W 39 miles (63 km) (34 n/miles)
Day 17 - Mar 17 (20:00 GMT) 20:22:01N 26:07:44W 54 miles (86 km) (46 n/miles)
Day 16 - Mar 16 (19:00 GMT) 20:43:16N 25:23:38W 49 miles (79 km) (43 n/miles)
Day 15 - Mar 15 (19:00 GMT) 21:03:47N 24:43:30W 42 miles (68 km) (37 n/miles)
Day 14 - Mar 14 (19:00 GMT) 21:36:32N 24:25:12W 53 miles (85 km) (46 n/miles)
Day 13 - Mar 13 (18:00 GMT) 22:15:36N 23:59:24W 55 miles (88 km) (48 n/miles)
Day 12 - Mar 12 (19:00 GMT) 22:43:44N 23:17:49W 39 miles (62 km) (33 n/miles)
Day 11 - Mar 11 (18:00 GMT) 23:02:31N 22:47:46W 44 miles (71 km) (38 n/miles)
Day 10 - Mar 10 (18:00 GMT) 23:17:10N 22:09:14W 44 miles (71 km) (38 n/miles)
Day 9 - Mar 09 (18:00 GMT) 23:46:41N 21:42:18W 40 miles (64 km) (35 n/miles)
Day 8 - Mar 08 (18:00 GMT) 24:17:06N 21:23:42W 37 miles (59 km) (32 n/miles)
Day 7 - Mar 07 (19:00 GMT) 24:40:08N 20:59:31W 45 miles (72 km) (39 n/miles)
Day 6 - Mar 06 (19:00 GMT) 25:05:31N 20:27:11W 48 miles (77 km) (42 n/miles)
Day 5 - Mar 05 (19:00 GMT) 25:38:13N 19:58:44W 53 miles (85 km) (46 n/miles)
Day 4 - Mar 04 (19:00 GMT) 26:14:20N 19:27:00W 52 miles (84 km) (45 n/miles)
Day 3 - Mar 03 (19:00 GMT) 26:57:36N 19:11:42W 34 miles (54 km) (29 n/miles)
Day 2 - Mar 02 (18:00 GMT) 27:14:56N 18:45:14W 33 miles (53 km) (29 n/miles)
Day 1 - Mar 01 (18:00 GMT) 27:35:13N 18:22:34W 24 miles (39 km) (21 n/miles)
Start day - Feb 28 2007 (13:15GMT) 27:37:48N 17:58:48W Start day

Day 55 – PHOTOS OF THE DAY

2007-04-24T17:03:00.000+01:00

24 Apr, 07 – 21.40

15.5784N,41.5671W

Photos of the days cloud cover, continued from the previous page.
B

13.02 GMT Rare 360 degree view of half the sea covered in storm clouds and the other half with clear blue sky - as the squall cleared and moved Westward

16.47 GMT Altostratus clouds with cirrus (white wispy aka mares tales) clouds and cumulus clouds (fluffy white)

19.10 GMT Stratocumulus clouds re-appear, lumpy rolling masses bringing light showers

Day 55 – Squalls continue, cloud watch

2007-04-24T16:41:00.000+01:00

11/30 GMT Low dark blanket of Stratus clouds

10.20 GMT Curtain of rain moving across sea towards boat

0935 GMT Approaching squall from East

24 Apr, 07 – 21.40
15.5784N,41.5571W
24 hr progress: 35.4 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1134 Nautical Miles ( 2097 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

The rudder was taking a beating in the heavy seas all of last night and I lifted it partially out of the water to ease the surface pressure and thus the pressure on the hinges. As a result of diminished rudder effectiveness, a lot of work steering all day to keep the stern into the waves.
Very pleased at achieving above average mileage, despite the rudder problem, by surfing down the waves to increase speed.
More wind and squalls this morning. However, a fantastic day just to watch the cloud patterns change over the day as the squall moved across the horizon from east to west. (see photos).
As the day started clearing towards mid-morning, I had the rare chance of witnessing a 360 degree view of half the sea covered in storm clouds and the other half with a clear blue sky as the squall cleared.
In contrast to the progress, the menu today was a catastrophe. The pasta in tomato sauce tasted like pasta in cheese sauce. I managed to salvage it a bit after performing emergency surgery with some Tabasco and a packet of ketchup. (After typing this sentence, I noticed that the spell checker corrected my spelling of Tabasco. Wow..its that brand recognition or what?. Quite cool.)
On the dessert front, a break in the landscape with a new pack of Chocolate Pudding – that I had not tried before. Surprisingly chewy. Maybe the packet had been stepped on too many times or left it out in the sun too long.
B

Day 54 – More confused C's, Squalls

2007-04-23T16:36:00.000+01:00

Squall right over boat

Approaching squall

Morning start , metallic gray seas

23 Apr, 07 – 21.40
16.0031N,41.1905W
24 hr progress: 27.4 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1177 Nautical Miles ( 2177 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

Gray, windy and rainy. Very difficult rowing conditions today. Waves from the East and South East, wind from the North East. No wild life around, apart from the breakfast breakfast show put on by the flying fish, gliding about 6 ft off the water near the boat. Sharks, dolphins, whales have all disappeared off the surface in the bad weather.
As I stepped onto the deck this morning, I saw the mast of a yacht near the horizon, heading due West. There was no warning from the radar reflector, so seeing another boat took me by suprise. Its been my first sighting of another man made object in 20 days (since that tanker that ran me over). Quite a weird moment. I've got quite used to seeing nothing around but water in all directions.
Had a shorter night rowing session as the conditions were too rough to row. It was also too cloudy to see any of the April Lyrids, the peak of the meteor showers that were promised to show up on the 22nd.
Not much luck in the sleeping department as well. Crashing waves all around. We got hit by a massive freak wave at around 4.00 am last night. It made such a huge crash, that for a moment I thought we had hit a floating shipping container or some other submerged object in the water.
The wave dumped a lot of water in the bilge again, making the boat roll even more than usual. I had to pump out about 1 foot of water from bilge before going back to sleep. Didn't have much memory of it this morning. Thought I had dreamt about about pumping water out of the bilge, until I found the torch that I had left out on deck.
A very exhausting and frustrating day of rowing – as reflected in the quality of todays posting.
B

Day 53 – Rough & confused sea

2007-04-22T07:28:00.000+01:00

Sunrise in East, taken at 09.33 GMT

Reflection in clouds due West at 09.22 GMT

Gray confused sea

22 Apr, 07 – 21.40
16.0730N,40.5148W
24 hr progress: 29.2 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1202 Nautical Miles ( 2223 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

Crazy winds all night and day. But me and Miss Olive are flying along despite the cross waves. Trying my best to maintain a daily average of 30 nautical miles.
The forecast was for 15 knots, but at times it feels a lot more than that, especially in the mornings and night. Not sure, if its because I am rowing without a shirt, and the wind and water on the skin give a different perception of strength.
This morning, as I was having breakfast on deck, I thought I saw about 50 small birds flying skimming over the water before diving in at intervals of 50 feet. It took me quite a while to get a closer look as the boat was rising and falling 8 feet between the waves and there were 2 waves between me and the fish.
It turned out to be a school of flying fish (or a flock?). I had never seen this variety before. The looked a lot more sleeker and faster than the usual belly-flopping variety of flying fish that hang around the boat. Or maybe it was just the force of the high winds that increased their range and speed.
I got woken up as we got hit by an unusually large wave in the afternoon that went right over the back and into the hatch. It poured a bucket of water into the cabin, as I was sleeping underneath.
Proud to say that after 50 days at sea, I have perfected the routine of damage control after a waves enters the cabin. In 15 minutes I can collect the water before it spills over the electronics, roll up the sleeping bag with the water inside and hanging it out in the sun on deck, dry the pillow (my towel and survival suit) and wiping the salt off my skin with baby wipes. Then went back to sleep.
Will keep this one shorter than usual. Very exhausted and trying to catch up on sleep after yesterdays extra-long rowing session.
Thanks to all for the messages. The are a welcome diversion out here.
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Day 52 – PHOTO TOUR - A typical day - PART 5

2007-04-21T19:04:00.000+01:00

21 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.1641N,41.2701W

Hot Afternoon – The afternoon is usually still and sweltering. It's too hot to be out on deck or row. To hot to be in the cabin. Usually take a swim around the boat to cool off or get some sleep.
Evening Row – Wind picks up again and a few more hours rowing till sun down.
Sunset - Coffee and Dinner usually had on deck with the sun-cooked meal of the day. Checking messages, mails, updating the ships logbook etc.

Afternoon

Evening

Night

Day 52 – PHOTO TOUR - A typical day - PART 4

2007-04-21T19:00:00.000+01:00

21 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.1641N,41.2601W

Argos Beacon re-location – I have 2 Argons beacons on board to track my position via satellite. The first is an active beacon that is tied on deck (pictured here) and the second is a standby beacon – to be switched on when the batteries on the first one run low (usually after 65 days or so). Since the leak, I have made arrangements with the land team, that in case of an emergency or capsize, I will hit the emergency buttons on BOTH beacons as well as set of the EPIRB. While checking the beacon the other day, I realized that if I did capsize, I may not be able to reach both beacons or set them off in time. I've decided to relocate the standby beacon to the inside of the GrabBag and secure the active beacon to the outside of the GrabBag which is tied to the deck. Another task for my to-do list, that I will do later in the week.
Gray Rowing – The morning usually starts off with gray dull weather and choppy seas.
Clear Mid Morning – By mid-morning, the sky clears and huge long swells replace the choppy small waves. Good (a bit ruff) rowing conditions last till noon.
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Argos satellite beacon

Gray rowing conditions

Clear skies by mid morning

Day 52 – PHOTO TOUR - A typical day - PART 3

2007-04-21T17:55:00.000+01:00

21 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.1641N,41.2501W

Coffee – My day's ration of coffee. About 1 liter, black coffee powder mixed with cold water in a sports water bottle. I leave it on deck in the sun, which sort of warms it up a bit. Not too bad tasting. The coffee will never know the difference.
Breakfast – Coco Chia – South American Coconut and Chia Seed Mix, added to cereal and powdered milk, plus some raisins and nuts.
Clothes Drying – Drying out some of my Helly Hansen base layers, that got soaked in the previous nights row by a wave.
_______________

Coffee

CocoChia breakfast

Drying out the HH baselayers

Day 52 – PHOTO TOUR - A typical day - PART 2

2007-04-21T17:51:00.000+01:00

21 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.1641N,41.2401W

I thought the Half Way point would be a good a day as any to give you all a photo tour of what my typical day on board is like. So here you go. Indulge!.
PS. Apologies to those who have subscribed to Automatic News Alerts. I can only upload 3 images per page, so you may receive 5 email alerts for this post as it runs into 5 pages / 15 images.
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Sunrise: Taken at 10.42 am GMT (08.00 am Mid-Atlantic time). A very gray start to the day. Spectacular special effects on the sunrise show due to the clouds.

Sleeping area & Water leak – Checking the level of water and bailing water out from the watertight compartments underneath the mattress. I'm using the survival suit stuffed with clothes as a pillow with a blue towel as a pillow case. Quite comfy actually. At the end of the cabin is the 1 inch fiberglass back of the stern with the rudder hinges on the other side.
In rough weather, it takes some getting used to sleeping with the noise of waves crashing on the other side. Almost everything, maps, music, vhf radio, electrics etc except the oars (unfortunately) is within arms length and a foot kick. Which is very very useful.

Primus – Tried to get the gas cooker to work by scraping off the corrosion. Some hot water to make coffee would be nice to celebrate the half way point. No luck however.
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Sunrise

Sleeping area

Primus

Day 52 – PHOTO TOUR - A typical day - PART 1

2007-04-21T16:48:00.000+01:00

21 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.1641N,41.2301W

I thought the Half Way point would be a good a day as any to give you all a photo tour of what my typical day on board is like. So here you go. Indulge!.
PS. Apologies to those who have subscribed to Automatic News Alerts. I can only upload 3 images per page, so you may receive 5 email alerts for this post as it runs into 5 pages / 15 images.
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GPS Co-incidence - Checking the GPS at 12.21 at night. It shows distance to Antigua (1255), which is 5 miles to my half way point (calculating a distance of 2499 miles from El Hierro).;
The GPS also showed W 039'55.152. which co-incidentally also happens to be 5 miles short of crossing the 40 degrees West Meridian. Two milestones at the same time.
Roof Cabin Foam – The foam padding on the support beam that runs thru the roof cabin has been coming off as I've bumped my head into it way too many times. Another task added to the to-do list.
The 'Office' – My work space. Laptop, chargers, sat phone, maps & charts, vhf radio. Taken at 12.20 am, just after I updated the map and updated the ships logbook. The cabin ceiling, just above the laptop is 3ft and is the highest point in the cabin before sloping down to 2ft at the stern. Pictured here is the black plexi-glass entrance, thru which I step outside onto the deck.
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GPS

Foam padding on ceiling

Workspace

Day 52 – HALF WAY! 2 Milestones, Antigua in Sight.

2007-04-21T16:45:00.000+01:00

21 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.1741N,40.2301W
24 hr progress: 32.3 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1229 Nautical Miles ( 2322 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 10-12 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots ENE, Bearing: 270 -310 degrees.

At 00.21 GMT last night (morning, 21st Apri), I checked the GPS to find a reading that I have no way of explaining. I was exactly 5 miles short of my halfway point (my first milestone) AND 5 miles short of crossing 40 degrees West (my second milestone). A very unsual co-incidence.
Last night was the big one. After writing on here and 3 protein bars for ' a late snack', I decided to row into my halfway point. With the moon and stars hidden behind the thick cloud cover, I rowed away in the solid darkness.
At just a little before 4.00 am GMT I reached my halfway point, 1250 nautical miles from El Hierro, and crossed 40 degrees W. The two biggest milestones I have been looking forward to since Feb 28.
Since leaving El Hierro, my North Atlantic pilot chart is folded into two sections along the 40 degree W meridian. For the past 51 days, as I have plotted my daily position, the view has been of Europe, Africa and the Canary Islands. Today, I finally turned over the chart and made a little pencil mark, about 1400 nautical miles directly above Brazil. Antigua and the rest of the Caribbean islands are finally within sight. Though I still have 1250 nautical miles to go, it's unbelievable what a great psychological difference it makes to see Antigua finally on the map.
As I sat alone in the solid darkness after crossing the halfway mark, I had a few moments of mixed emotions. Elation - at the thought of making it even halfway this time around, after 3 failed attempts. And sadness - as I know the second half will go much faster than the first and this dream like existence will end.
I am determined to get the jobs on the task list (fixing the watermaker etc) possible and enjoy the last leg of the journey much more.
I will write on here more about my mental and physical state after my 52 days of solitary confinement. For now, I am going to celebrate my half way crossing by trying to get some sleep to make up for no sleep last night. As I type this, its 11.30 pm GMT here.
Celebration was extravagant by on board standards. Fruit. A tin of peaches, a tin of lychees (woohoo!), double ration packs, coffee and the last bit of aquavit. Warm coffee would have been nice, but could not get the Primus to work. Nah worries! Its only 7 weeks away now.
I thought the Half Way point would be a good a day as any to give you all a photo tour of what my typical day on board is like. So here you go. Indulge!.
/ B
PS. Apologies to those who have subscribed to Automatic News Alerts. I can only upload 3 images per page, so you may receive 5 email alerts for this post as it runs into 5 pages / 15 images.
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Turning the map over: My North Atlantic Pilot Chart - The Orange land mass on the lower left is Brazil.

Day 51 – PHOTOS OF THE DAY

2007-04-20T17:40:00.000+01:00

20 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.2253N,38.5097W

The ships clock is still GMT.
As we progress westwards, the sun sets about 5 minutes later each day. At present, around 22.00 GMT.
B
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Taken at 20.18 GMT

Terns and Petrels checking the boat out and staying till sunset to fish around the boat

Taken at 21.44 GMT

Day 51 – 2 Milestones coming up, Fish Toothpaste, Meteors

2007-04-20T16:38:00.000+01:00

20 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.2353N,38.4997W
24 hr progress: 36.8 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Total Distance Rowed: 1757
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1262 Nautical Miles ( 2334 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 15-20 knots NE, Bearing: 290-310 degrees.

This morning I was woken up from my sleep by dolphin whistling in their high pitch around the boat. What a way to be woken up! The dolphin's whistling sounds are incredibly loud from inside the cabin. My guess it's because there is just an inch of fiberglass between my head and the sea when I lie down at the back.
The awful weather looks like it's here to stay. At least, it's awful weather in the right direction with 15-20 knot winds. So the end result is not too bad. The waves are rough, so its more surfing and steering down the waves with the oars rather than rowing.
I'd rather be resting, but tying to squeeze every mile I can get out of her before the halfway point.
I have made up for about 5 days of lost time out of a total of 14 days. I had earlier planned to reach the half way mark after 6 weeks. We are 10 days behind schedule which is not too bad in the Atlantic sized scheme of things.
A bit concerned about the rudder and am keeping an eye on it to see how it holds over the next few days. My next best option would be to execute plan B, which is to lift it higher than now, so there is less water pressure on it.
On schedule for reaching my two 'ginormous' milestones tomorrow...
1. Crossing my halfway point at 1250 Nautical Miles to Antigua
2. Turning the map over to the Western half of the Atlantic.
As I mentioned here before, I have kept my options open on landfall at other islands, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Barbados. I will take the decision when I am about 500 nautical miles way, taking into account food, water, situation of the leak and ability to steer to Antigua.
Another notable achievement of the day.. I located the source of the rotten fish smell that has been driving me crazy for the past few days. I discovered that 2 flying fish had found their way underneath the bilge boards. (the bilge is the standing room that is just outside the cabin and before you step onto the deck.)
They must have been marinating quite well the afternoon heat, as they had turned into brown-silver “fish-toothpaste”. I gave them as respectable a burial at sea as possible by scraping them up with an empty Pringles tin, which also doubled up as their coffin.
Todays menu from the kitchen – Chicken casserole, Pasta in tomato sauce, vanilla yogurt, ration of chocolate and nuts, protein bars.
As I write this, it's pitch dark outside and bits of the Milky Way can be seen through the clouds in the sky. Tonight, I am looking forward to the peak of the April Lyrids (the fast meteor showers) that's due on the 22nd. At the peak, it's about 15 meteors an hour. Hopefully, there will be a preview show on tonight. What a way to celebrate the the half way point!
B
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Taken at 09.21 GMT

View from inside the cabin, thru the plexiglass hatch

Freeze dried pasta. An everyday debate between level of hunger and amount of taste

Day 50 – PHOTOS OF THE DAY - PART 2

2007-04-19T18:33:00.000+01:00

19 Apr, 07 – 21.45
16.3150N,39.1509W

Sunset – Photo taken at 21.15 GMT
15 mins later – Photo taken at 21.36 GMT. A completely different sky 15 minutes later. An indication of how fast the clouds are being blown to the west.
46 minutes later – Moonless night sky at dusk – No. Thats not the moon. Its Venus, the first star out. On a moonless night, like tonight and the absence of any light pollution from land, shadows are cast just by the light of Venus.
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Taken at 21.15 GMT

Taken at 21.36 GMT

Taken at 22.21 GMT

Day 50 – PHOTOS OF THE DAY

2007-04-19T17:25:00.000+01:00

19 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.3250N,39.1409W
PHOTOS ON PREVIOUS PAGE

Morning – Sunrise due East, over the stern. Cloudy, windy and large gray seas. Usual gray depressing start to the morning in this patch of water, before it clears up around by mid- morning.
Wave passing under – Photo shows a large wave, 12 ft lifting the boat as it moves under. Photo taken from the stern. Often fish can be seen in the clear blue crest of the wave, surfing down it towards the boat..
Surfing – the boat surfing down the back of the wave as it passes underneath
PHOTOS ON THIS PAGE
Paper bath - Baby wipes replaces taking a shower as I am rationing fresh water till the watermaker is fixed ... its much more convenient at anyway...
Rowing deck – As seen from top of the stern cabin. Cleaned up and ready for the next session.
Current reading – The perpetually wet copy of Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. After getting soaked by a wave...when I left it out to dry on deck...after it was soaked by the water leak...
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The shower

Deck view

Wet-Dry-Wet again Shantaram

Day 50 – 50 days in Solitary, mental health

2007-04-19T17:19:00.000+01:00

19 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.3350N,39.1309W
24 hr progress: 32.7 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1297 Nautical Miles ( 2399 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 8-10 ft, Winds: 20 knots NE, Bearing: 260-270 degrees.

Rowin, rowing n 'mo rowin...like its going out of fashion. The progress is back in the 30's and on schedule for crossing the half way point day after and crossing the longitude of 40 degrees W. My other big motivator is that at 40 degrees W, I turn my Pilot Chart of the Atlantic over and Antigua will finally be in sight. This will make an end in sight look more realistic.
The wind has been 20 knots, causing large long waves that look like a range of water mountains. By now, I have well mastered the skill of surfing down the waves, ie. wait till wave raises the boat and when the boat is just at the crest, I give a few strong pulls on the oar, just enough to tip the boat over and surf 15 feet down the other side of the wave. It gradually becomes more fun once you have figured out how to stay on the rowing seat without being thrown across the deck.
Many people have been asking me about my mental state of mind and how I am dealing with the loneliness and solitary confinement, hallucinations, boredom etc.
Well, I have not seen a human being for the the past 50 days. The radar alarm has also been dead silent for the past 10 days as I have rowed thru the most isolated part of my course. The only other conversations (apart from receiving a few calls on the satellite phone) have been with the skippers on passing ships, usually about the weather forecast and other ships in the area.
Dealing with loneliness at times has been one of the challenges. More difficult however has been dealing with solitary confinement on a 7 meter space. Both physically and mentally.
Physically, I can feel the certain leg muscles starting to waste away as I don't take more than a few steps a day. For a bit of relief, I try and do sit ups if the sea state permits and the occasional swim around the boat.
As far as maintaining a sane state of mind goes, I try to follow a fairly strict on board daily and weekly routine that gives a slight sense of normalcy to the situation. For instance, a typical day would be something like this:
7.00 am to 10.00 am – rowing (10 minute break every hour)
10-00 am to 02.00 pm – sleep
02.00 pm – 03.00 pm – lunch
03.00 pm – 05.00 pm – rowing
05.00 pm – 06.00 pm – coffee / snack break
06.00 pm - 08.00 pm – rowing / reading
08.00 pm – 10.00 pm – dinner, reading / relaxing / messages / ships logbook
10.00 pm – 02.00 am – rowing
02.00 pm – 06.00 pm - sleeping
I alter the routine slightly for unforeseen events like the weather, ships in t he vicinity, wildlife etc and it helps break the monotony of the routine. For my weekly schedule, I have fixed days of the week to clean the deck, laundry, carry out small fixes (that are not emergency), other jobs like scrubbing the hull, cleaning out the lockers, the bilge etc.
Hallucinations, dreams & nightmares at sea after all the this solitude are another affair. More on that in the next few posts.
So long for now,
B
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Morning view due East

Wave rising under

Surfin' down the back

Day 49 – Confused seas, high wind

2007-04-18T17:17:00.000+01:00

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

Day 48 – Milestones, Course, Martinique, Barbados

2007-04-17T17:13:00.000+01:00

17 Apr, 07 – 21.30
16.2641N,38.0922W
24 hr progress: 24.0 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1356 Nautical Miles ( 2508 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 7-8 ft, Winds: 10-15 knots E - NE, Bearing: 270-300 degrees.

Only 104 nautical miles more to the halfway point!! Yay!
At the current average of 25 miles a day, I am on schedule to reach the half way point on day 52 (Apr 21).
Although I have fixed the rudder back on, I am effectively without steering, as I have lashed the rudder in the central position to minimize movement and stress on the hinges.
I've lost about 2 weeks of progress due to the problems with the rudder & the leak, so I am desperately trying my best to average 25 miles per day. This is tough, as I am steering only with the blades right now.
There's a debate as to which is the best route to Antigua. A straight line route, which slopes down from La Gomera (28N) to Antigua (17N) or a slightly more curved route that follows the wind. The curved route leads further south, past Antigua to 16N following a more SE approach.
The Pilot Charts for April and May show the North Equatorial Current flowing northwards around the 20th Parallel at around 0.5 to 1 knot. I confirmed this by looking at Graham Walters' progress log for that same latitude during April.
Day 69 - Apr 13 19:03:54N 49:01:08W 37 miles (59 km) (32 n/miles)
Day 68 - Apr 12 19:02:42N 48:27:25W 46 miles (74 km) (40 n/miles)
Day 67 - Apr 11 19:11:38N 47:46:01W 45 miles (72 km) (39 n/miles)
Day 66 - Apr 10 19:14:17N
It seems that at 19N, fair westerly progress is possible, but Graham must have experienced some trouble in making any headway south towards 17N - either pushed NE by the current or SE winds.
Taking the winds and current into account, my route plan is to continue SW to 15N and then head W using the prevailing easterly winds at 45W. Finally, making a SE approach to Antigua from 55W using the SSE winds and WNW current.
Although I have stated that the end destination will be Antigua, my crossing will be officially complete once I have crossed the longitude at Barbados, which just is before Antigua.
As I am rowing without a proper rudder and steering is difficult, I am keeping my options open for landfall at any of the other islands to the south of Antigua, such as Martinique, St. Vincent, St. Lucia, Dominica, Montserrat, Guadeloupe.
Just finished another moonless session of rowing, as I write this. Progress has been sluggish all day. More like rowing thru a sea of honey. The winds have also been fickle all day, swinging between E and NE, leaving the sea a bit confused.
Off for dinner (more soup and pasta!) and then on to rowing for another three hours before bedtime. Hoping to see some shooting stars tonight as it's the season of the April Lyrids, which peak on the 22nd of April.
Thanks to all for the messages. Keep them coming, they make a huge difference out here,
B
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Endless water desert . Choppy and confused sea today

The Map Office. Inside the cabin. Impossible to sit upright with the 2ft ceiling

Another day, another spectacular sunset...

Day 47 – Shark Attack

2007-04-16T18:10:00.000+01:00

16 Apr, 07 – 22.00
16.3088N,37.4474W
24 hr progress: 25.8 Nautical Miles
Distance to Antigua: 2499 Nautical Miles
Distance left to Antigua (straight line): 1379 Nautical Miles ( 2551 km) (1 NM = 1.85 km)
Wave height: 5-6 ft, Winds: 10 knots E, Bearing: 240 - 280 degrees.

This is a double post for today, as the previous post was pre-occupied with details of the leak.
An additional bonus today was watching a shark attack from my ring side seat.
I was hanging half out of the rear cabin, applying my blue-tracer toothpaste to the joints on the outside of the boat. My eyes have gotten used to watching nothing but blue sky and water and my senses are ever more in tune with the surroundings. I find that I quickly notice any sound or activity, like unusually bubbly or agitated water, that has not been naturally caused by a wave.
The first sign of something unusual happening was when I noticed a smooth patch of water just just a bit north of the stern. A few minutes later, I could make out a big silver mass under the water making its way towards me, which dissolved into a school of hundreds of Doradas swimming at top speed toward the boat. A telltale sign they are being chased. I grabbed the video camera just in time to film a massive tail fin cutting an arc thru the water, heading for the fish below the boat. A few seconds later the water underneath the boat erupted into a complete war zone with fish jumping out of the water and the shark circling around, diving and re-surfacing before its next attack.
The battle went on for about three hours. A gigantic underwater stampede as hundreds of Doradas, banged into the hull of the boat, fighting for their lives, and me fighting to maintain a 'look but dont touch policy' around my rudder.
Watching the 500 pound shark hunting will remain one of the highlights of the row.
Onto, things a bit less violent, I found a packet of Minestrone soup in my ration pack. Something new that I havent tried so far. It worked out ok with cold water. The powder took a little coaxing to dissolve, but it all tasted minestrone-ish in the end. Dinner was another pack of Beef Chili finished up with freeze dried hazelnut yogurt. Snacks are being rationed ever since I lost a lot of them in the water leak, and I have been consuming at least 6 snack bars a day for the past 47 days. My half way point is coming up this week and will be doing a bit of a clean up through all the hatches onboard to see what's left and what needs to be rationed.
Very tired today and have had little sleep as I have been rowing extra hours to make up for the hours lost spent on fixing the leak.
Will post an update here on my half way mark tomorrow.
B
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Battleground near the boat

Shark underwater catching Dorad, just near the stern

Large flying fish that jumped onboard dring the attack