Pierless Adventures - April 17 - Wildlife

 Last night was partially cloudy, but we did see some stars.  The bright moon kept many hidden.

 Sunrise was beautiful and brought back some warmth.  We were still dealing with headwinds, so not making a direct course to Cabo.  We had shortened sail for the night, so as conditions changed we put up the genoa sail (the large jib) to keep our speed up.  Sail changes usually take three people.  One to manage the helm, one to manage the sail sheet and one to work the halyard.  Of course, the genoa is roller furled, so nobody has to leave the cockpit to take it in or let it out.  The staysail requires someone to go up on the foredeck to pull it down and secure it, or the reverse it it is being put up.  Our first few times were a little clumsy, but everyone is getting better at it as we go.

We saw several whales today.  We are guessing humpback or greys.  Lots of birds as well.  We are all settling into the motion of the boat.  Not always liking it when you bump into something below or on deck, but it does become "normal" after a fashion.

 

Our new percolator coffee pot top broke.  It is the little glass top you watch the coffee perk through.  It was mostly intact, so I sanded off the sharp edges and applied a little epoxy.  Seems to be working fine now.  Everyone enjoys a warm drink in the morning.

The forecast was for the winds to die down later in the day, but they remained fairly good into the night.  We are a little behind schedule for a morning arrival.  We'll see how it goes.

 

It is sometimes tricky to fill our water bottles when the boat is "on the lean".