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10:00 am Wednesday, January 30: Last Trans-Atlantic Missive via Satellite from Taka Trois.

1/30/2013

4 Comments

 
Antigua approche! were the opening words of Michels daily weather satellite transmission to us this morning and indeed, with less than 83 nautical miles to go, Antigua is drawing near.  Our current ETA is 9:00 pm today which means that we will be arriving in the dark, but thankfully there will be a half moon to light our way.

We have a beautiful sunny day with a few clouds, but not much wind so we are motor sailing.  Its not ideal, but we've had it at this point and will do what it takes to make landfall ASAP.  Considering we've been under sail for more than 90% of the trip, I think we've done quite well.

The mood onboard Taka Trois is expectant, excited and EXUBERANT!  We were all on deck this morning singing a rousing chorus of the Beatles Here Comes the Sun as we watched the sun rise for the last time over this passage.

Gourmets to the bitter end, our last meals onboard will include first an extravagant brunch with homemade bread, omelettes, bacon and baked beans and dinner will be more of my boeuf bourguignon which is always even betterthe second day, served with olive oil and garlic mashed potatoes.  Sadly the champagne and the Bordeaux will have to wait until we make landfall yes, friends and neighbours, you may find it hard to believe, but aside from the odd dash of angostura bitters to liven up our daily virgin cocktails, this crew has been dry for two weeks!

Well spend our last hours onboard tidying up the boat a bit, writing down our last impressions in our journals and enjoying the moment.  Its hard to digest how far we've actually come and strangely its even a bit hard to take in that this journey is almost at an end.

There is no need to vote for a delight of the day, but we all agree that the unsung hero of this boat is OTTO, our trusty autopilot without whom we would've had a much more stressful and strenuous journey.  Before
I end this last satellite transmission,  I must give thanks to God to whom
 we are eternally grateful for His protection and guidance and for making 
this all possible.  He is our greatest Delight today and always.

P.S. Breaking News!

Just before sending this message, we suddenly noticed an unmistakable decrease in speed.   Glancing over the back of the boat, we could see a bit of something trailing along with us just under the surface of the water.  Our valiant skipper put on his snorkel mask, tied himself to the boat and went in to have a look.  He saw that we had picked up a large fishing net, which had wrapped itself snugly around our keel and quite impossible to dislodge safely in our current position.   URRRGGGHH!!!!!

Thankfully it had not wrapped itself around the propeller, but just to be sure, we have stopped the engine and are now sailing painfully slowly to Falmouth Harbour, where we plan to drop anchor and hopefully sort out the problem in calm shallow waters before proceeding to the marina.  Our ETA is
 now sometime in the wee hours of tomorrow morning.  To say we can't wait 
is an understatement.
4 Comments
Judith
1/30/2013 09:42:05 pm

You are almost there !!!! Congratulations, there will be a wonderful celebration in the hours to come, I am sure. Take care, we are so happy for you !!!

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Your Favorite Sister-in-Law
1/31/2013 10:15:16 am

So glad you have arrived safely and can enjoy a VERY well deserved drink (or twelve)! Our prayers and the prayers of our friends were answered with this great news. Can't wait to see you in a few weeks!

Reply
Kevin Haggerty
1/31/2013 02:30:13 pm

Congrats! Wish I didn't have this damn job..... I'd be there right with ya!
Enjoy!

Reply
Cousin Kim and Pescador Mike
1/31/2013 07:31:43 pm

Beautiful news! After the Jimmy Buffet concert Saturday, we'll Skype. See you soon down in dez iezlanz!

Reply



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    Debbie is first mate of Taka Trois as well as head cook and chief provisioning officer. 


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