[password] minta12
[position] 09 09.22S 088 30.30E
[weather] 15-20kt SE Mainly cloudy
[status] Yet another good night and no fish died on deck.

We are in SSB radio contact with several other boats we know in the area. Unfortunately propagation has not been good the past couple of days. Fortunately most also have satellite phones so we can still send emails and SMS messages and report our positions and discuss any problems.

We are in daily contact via our satellite phone with Des Cason who is in Durban, South Africa. Des is a retired yachtsman with many years and miles of sailing in this part of the world. He is very generous in sharing his experience and local weather knowledge. We send him a daily position report and within a couple of hours he sends back a two to three day outlook specific to us. He has been providing this service free of charge the past four years. Last year he guided more than a hundred boats across to South Africa and down the coast to Cape Town.

Today we are 860 miles from Padang with 1586 miles to go to Rodrigues.

[END]