[password] minta12
[position] 09 46.992N 055 27.069W
[weather] 12kt ENE, clear sunny skies,
[status] We?re on the home stretch now. The wind finally moved out of the north and turned more easterly so we are back on our bearing to Barbados. Lovely sailing conditions with gentle breezes and friendly skies.

We discovered another open seam on our main sail yesterday. Seems as though the stitching on the sail has reached its ?use by date?. Unfortunately, the rip is inside and above the clew of the second reef so we are now triple reefed. We could probably do a makeshift repair but it hardly seems worth the effort as we are still moving along fine and getting close to being there. Our friends Jim & Wendie on S/V Jaga doing this same passage have sails much older and less high tech than our five year old sails. Jim reckons his newest sail is probably about 23 years old.

Currently passing a tanker ?VL Nichioh? which is just a few miles away and has stopped. Not sure if we should do the neighbourly thing and call him up to see if he needs a hand. Does seem a bit odd to see a ship drifting along out in the middle of nowhere.

The snippets of BBC world news we receive on the SSB radio would make one wonder if we shouldn?t stay out here longer. The corona virus continues to spread and the world markets are falling. We still have a weeks supply of apples and oranges and lots of tinned food but we?re down to our last carrot and onion. In spite of all the troubles around the world, I am so looking forward to getting back onto the internet and in touch with everyone - plus I?ve got such a long list of things I must Google!!

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