Oct 29,2005 - 0915hrs UTC

0915hrs 29 Oct 2005 UTC 37’34”S 024’14”E Ref 498

DB: dmgDistance Made Good; More here 92 – gps 123 about right, as we’ve been headed a bit by the top of the high. 70/40, so tomorrow equals our record and, incidentally, equals the time it took Ellen MacArthur to go all the way around. She was going about three times as fast as us!

The equation: the great circleSee here (Wikipedia) distance to SE CapeThe southernmost point of the main island of Tasmania from here is about 5250 nm, rhumb lineSee wikipedia (Wikipedia). See also Great CircleSee here (Wikipedia). about 5500. We can go down to about 40 S on the Gt Circle but after (below) that it gets too iffy and we will try to run due east along 40 S. At this moment, we are heading straight down the great chalk circle to the good Dr. CooperCoopersCoopers Sparkling Ale: - according to Alex: “brewed in the bottle, so a bit of sludge comes with it - best beer on the planet - beats a Pan Galactic Gargleblaster hands down”. Also a home brew from a Cooper’s Kit, perfected by onboard master-brewer Pete. See Pete’s interesting equation Sparkling Ale: - according to Alex: “brewed in the bottle, so a bit of sludge comes with it - best beer on the planet - beats a Pan Galactic Gargleblaster hands down”. Also a home brew from a Cooper’s Kit, perfected by onboard master-brewer Pete. See Pete’s interesting equation – approx 120T. We have just about enough diesel to  keep the batteries charged without help from solar and with solar we can survive without diesel. We will not run out of food or water, although adequate (as opposed to survival) water does depend on power supply. Plenty of other essentials like bogBrolga Owners Group paper and engine oil, torch batteries and the rest. Patience will be a problem – the black sheep in the prudence, patience, persistence and perseverance progression. We will certainly denude the Medicine Chest sometime around 30 days from now – we are looking at extreme conservation measures as we go. Today is Pete’s appointment with the Consultant Physician, for instance, and I get mine tomoz. Drastic measure – perhaps not yet extreme. We have reserved half our remaining supply of G&TGin and Tonic not to be opened until past half way across the lily pond. The little bit of surplus G will be stretched experimentally with other fluids.

From Mark A.

Port Geographe is out:  I checked with my brother in Customs and can only clear customs in Fremantle, Bunbury or Albany ports.  I have set out the details of Bunbury and Albany ports below.

I will see whether I can source a cheap second-hand Ampair  and let you know.

So, Mark A in Perth, if you can find a second hand generator, we may have to ask you to kindly forward it to Sydney. We are resting the one we have here in the hope that we won’t damage it beyond reasonable repair. Albany is still on the cards and we won’t really have a proper feel for the final route until we are at least half way across.

Jo and the kids at at Kojonup – how on earth did you find us? – most unlikely website for you guys, I would have thought. Did you get the extra info on Pulau Tiga? Tiga is Indonesian for three, so Three Islands. Paul told us that there are three mud volcanoes on the island and as you approach it you see them first and it looks like three islands. I’m not sure exactly where it is and I can’t find it on the Cmap on the laptop, but somewhere north east or north of Brunei and not very far away. Probably too small for most atlases – Sorry, BelmoreSydney School corresponding with Berri, if you’ve been searching in vain. Perhaps Paul can come back to us?

Helen K at BelmoreSydney School corresponding with Berri, thanks for the bit of history about your Henry KnightHenry Knight died of starvation on the emigrant ship Java (from England to Australia) and was buried at sea on the 6th Feb 1853 in the S Atlantic - 28.35 S, 26.09 W. On the way home from Falmouth (1st circumnavigation) Berrimilla passed about 100 miles to the north and sent him some chocolate in a paper boat. Henry's sister Susan died in sight of Cape Town and was buried at sea 8 miles SE of the lighthouse. We waved to her on the 2ncircumnavigation from very much closer. More here . I think we should all meet for lunch with Doug and Estelle and compare artefacts – in a consultative environment!.

Linda and the kids at King’s – G’day. When I did geography at school in England – thankfully, a very long time ago – it was all about facts – tons of wheat grown in the USA, number of people who live in Timbuctoo, places where the rainfall is less than 3″ per year. All sort of out of context. Sounds as if you guys have a much more interesting syllabus. Have you studied the flows of the great ocean currents around the globe – we are meeting some of the surface ones, but it is as much the very deep ones that may affect your future if the flow pattern changes, as it seems to be doing. I think I would have enjoyed being an oceanographer, but too late now!

Sometimes I sit and look at this keyboard in sort of disbelief – what is there to talk about? – as happened this morning. But it seems to evolve. If we stay on schedule, there will be about 100 more of these and then the mighty Stephen can go and do something else for more that 12 hours at a time. What will the rest of us do? I guess Pete and I must try and get a book together, but that’s trivial and doesn’t involve all y’all.

No takers, so far, for out bijou penthouse for a goldfish. Perhaps there’s a friendly babel fish out there in need of a home who can delve into the BeepA short story by James Blish for us. This morning’s sailchange involved a convocation of about 50 black petrels sitting on the water a few yards away as we passed, all chittering and cheeping – such an odd sound for such big birds.