On Saturday morning I was in sight of the Falkland Islands, which is topical as I hear they have been in the news a lot this past week! From what I can see they're incredibly flat! Saturday was another sunny day, which is good, conditions are considerably better than they have been and considering we're in the middle of an ocean it is relatively calm out here. It's still incredibly cold at night, but with the sunshine is relatively warm during the day which is good for the spirits. I'm also making the most of these conditions to get as much rest as I can.
With the warmer weather I should really be thinking about shaving my beard. It is by far the longest time I have ever gone without shaving. I am not sure what I think about it, but at the moment I have no choice but to keep it. It would take about half a bucket of water for me to shave, and at the moment with my power issues I can't spare that much water!
I'm still happy with the progress I'm making, my route east of the Falklands has allowed me to benefit from the protection they have given me while I focus on the on-going hydro repairs; I spent a lot of time on these over the weekend. Hopefully the end is almost in sight with them as with around four weeks left of this race it's still important that I get the second hydro back into action. With regards to power I am hoping things will be back to normal soon. I have made the repairs to the hydrogenerator. I now just waiting for the right conditions to finish of the final parts of the repair, fingers crossed they will come soon and then I will be ready to test it.
Today, I have been in the middle of some very thick fog, and conditions at the moment are pretty light. But thankfully, as my heater is still out of action as I save power, it is starting to get warmer as I head up north. I spent a short time on a reach during the night, but today I am back on the wind. The current conditions don't marry up to what is forecast, which can be frustrating but there is nothing I can do about it but to sail the best I can in the wind that I have, I am still making good speed and happy with my progress north.
It was such a shame to hear that bad luck had struck Bernard again. I really feel for him after all the effort he put in to get sailing again and I only hope he can fulfil his goal and can make it to Les Sables d'Olonne.