Race 12 - Day 11
Crew Diary - Race 12 Day 11: New York to Derry-Londonderry
07 July

Michael Brien
Michael Brien
Team Garmin
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Now that we have sailed more than 360 degrees around the world and, judging by the weather this morning – dull, grey, overcast & drizzling – we must be nearly back in the UK, I thought it was time for a summary of some of the things I've seen since 20th August 2017 you wouldn't believe (and some you probably would):

  • Probably thousands of flying fish, in all oceans of the world, skimming over the waves and sometimes into the boat (and on one occasion directly into my dinner bowl)
  • Dozens of dead squid on the foredeck that come over with the waves – sometimes these get wedged in the folds of the not-in-use staysail on the foredeck and gently decompose over the next few days, resulting in a 'distinctive' smell when we next hoist it
  • Many dolphins swimming alongside the boat and under the bowsprit
  • As above, except in pitch black nights with lots of phosphorescent plankton in the water, showing up their trails as glowing lines behind them
  • Minke, humpback and killer whales – and some sharks
  • Turtles swimming slowly along
  • Huge albatrosses in the South Indian Ocean, petrels and shearwaters and skuas and gannets and so on and so forth elsewhere, fishing and gliding around us
  • Seabirds flying too close, colliding with our mast and crashing to the deck – these get thrown overboard, mostly just to fly straight off again. Mostly.
  • Sunfish in the water, looking just like oddly-shaped bubbles on the surface (Once, a few days ago on the foredeck, I saw one get snapped up by a small – basking? – shark.)
  • Fleets of literally hundreds of Chinese fishing vessels surrounding us at night, lighting up the entire horizon (and the navigation computer's screen) and requiring constant watch and course corrections to dodge them and their net buoys, as we race through them under spinnaker at 12 knots
  • As above, except in dense fog
  • Squalls that send the wind from 5 to 35 knots in 30 seconds
  • Cloud fronts that cause the wind to quickly change direction by 180 degrees
  • As above, except three times in one hour (With added beautiful cloud banks looking like rolling waves, or wind-blown snow.)
  • a gently smoking active volcano at close range (Mount Io)
  • GT doing the washing up
  • And some things we haven't seen:
  • the kraken
  • the Flying Dutchman
  • any mermaids (well, except Mia on Leg 5)
  • R'lyeh
  • Isla Nublar
  • Isle of Sodor (still got time for this one on the Derry-Liverpool trip)
  • GT doing the washing up again!