Becalmed in the Southern Ocean

Jean-Luc van den Heede reports

Day 34. Position at 1300: 56°31 S / 78°10 W
Wind 8 knots from NNE, sea slight, with heavy swell
Temperature day: 8°C / night 4°C / sea 5°C
Distance covered in the last 24 hours: 210 miles. To the ante-meridian 3,676 miles.
Lead over Monnet: 7 days and 6 hours.

Hi there,

What had to happen has happened...the fine winds I had have moved off, and I’m now becalmed. It’s an interlude and I spent the night bouncing around on the waves without really moving forward.

I didn’t really expect to cross the whole of the Pacific downwind at an average of 13 knots with just the genoa raised!

As I’m writing these lines to you, the wind has got up again from the NE and should provide some joy for Adrien and myself up to 13 December, as it’s not head on and not blowing too strongly. The sky is overcast and it’s starting to rain a bit, and the three albatrosses that were circling took off at the same time as Adrien started to make some headway.

The temperature is now quite cool and I warm myself up between two manoeuvres with some soup. Alongside feeding myself well, I’m wrapping up warm in my Guy Cotten fleece, and I make sure the damp doesn’t get in, as that is my toughest enemy!
See you tomorrow,

JL VDH

A day with the cuddly toy from the singers from Bobigny, a pretty little wooden sculpture.