Day eleven: Please strike day 10 from the record

Wow, what a miserable 24 hours that was! The wall of black clouds went straight up and down and stretched from horizon to horizon so it was no surprise what was coming. The first gusts rolling out of the front hit with a vengeance, in less than 5 minutes the winds clocked around to the east and laid into me. 25 knots steady gusting 30 knots - right on the nose, bitterly cold, wet, rough, loud and downright miserable. Three reefs in the main and the storm jib pounding to weather with every spot that ever leaked dripping cold saltwater into the boat. It was a pretty nasty night as the seas built and it just got rougher and colder.

After bashing ENE for a rather uncomfortable 24 hours, I gave up and am screaming north for warmer climes. My albatross buddy watched me turn north, rightly wrote me off as a whimp and I have not seen him since.

It howled through last night, but eased today for welcome relief - 20 knots from the south east with a bit of sun to dry stuff out and charge the batteries. There is a forecast low pressure system that I should be trying to avoid, but for the moment I am so relieved to be running downwind that I will deal with that later. It just feels better sailing toward the tropics.