| At sea. Friends of the Earth crosses the Equator |
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| Friday, 28 July 2006 | |
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Jonathan Crinion: We have covered 3165 nautical miles so far and are slightly more than half way to the UK. We have our massive 'Friends of the Earth' Gennaker flying off the bowsprit and a full main. With not a cloud in the sky and gently rolling waves we could do with more wind but we are happily coasting along at 9 to 10 knots anyway with lots of suntan lotion on. Haven't been in a queue, no traffic lights or congestion charges, in fact we haven't seen another boat since leaving St Helena - just clean air and a vast ocean seemingly filled with flying fish. Best of all we came all that way with just a bit of wind and sunlight. I cannot believe the number of flying fish. We cannot go more than 200 m before a school of flying fish take to the air and skim away from the boat. They go for about 30 to 50m and then bounce off the water and keep going en-masse. It's not just random jumping either, you can see that they are quite adept at flying and know how to play with the wind. A wonderful treat to watch. The moon only comes up for a moment in the evening, so it is still very dark with a spectacular display of stars and planets. A meteor lit up the sky like a flash of lightning that lasted half a minute, as it crashed to earth last night. There is a sailing expression 'Head in the boat' which basically means it’s important to stop fussing with all the stuff on the boat and look around at what surrounds you on the water. When I look at all the stars and planets as we sit on this vast ocean it's easy to feel totally insignificant in the scheme of the universe and at the same time feel wonderfully unique. I can't help but think that 'Head in the city' is part of the problem facing humanity. Toronto had huge blackouts for a week two years ago. It was wonderful! There was no electricity and in the summer evening you could hear children laughing and playing outside, candle light suppers and barbeques all around, people went to bed early, and every corner had neighbours chatting. The hum of air conditioners was gone and traffic moved better than it ever has. People were courteous and shared what they had and I hear there is talk of a staged re-enactment because people enjoyed the moment and talk fondly of when they had their 'Head out of the city' and momentarily they could see the stars again. Position: 0,00.01N , 14,53.10W Speed: 9 knots, Course: 323 deg. UTC Time: 28. July 2006 10:20 www. jonathancrinion.com |
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| Last Updated ( Friday, 28 July 2006 ) |
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