The forecast higher winds arrived yesterday evening (Saturday). As is usually the case with winds on the grib file forecasts of high teens we are getting low to mid 20s. Not in themselves dramatic winds but as they have been blowing for a few hours now a big sea has built up and the cockpit is regularly splashed.

Helen tidied all the lines in the cockpit as a final job yesterday evening so we haven’t lost anything overboard which is a possibility with Grace being rolled from one beam to the other in the waves.

We have just a scrap of the twin headsails out now and are still making 5 knots, fortunately in exactly the right direction.

Because of the conditions the routine on board is changed. There is no lounging in the cockpit this morning. No warming sun to enjoy. We have timers set on the iPhones. 20 minutes. H is in bed having done the 0300 to 0600 watch. Im lying on one of the saloon settees reading and listening to the sounds of the ship. All good thus far. When the timer sounds (constellation in my case) it’s time to haul upright, traverse to the companionway and climb the steps enough to get a head out for a scan of the horizon. It’s not raining so it’s ok to look out for a few minutes but not a place to stand for long so soon it’s back to the bunk and the timer is reset.

The generator is on so batteries are getting recharged and it’ll soon be time to try and coordinate some muesli and juice into a bowl. It’s a job that needs three hands so will be done over the sink in case of spillage.

There are some other yachts around but not in sight. We can hear them trying to contact each other over the vhf. I guess their routines today will be similar to ours.

No one will be fishing today.