We are on track for a 160 mile day over the ground, despite a half a knot of current against us. We had good brisk winds yesterday that were just forward of the beam for most of the day. We also caught a large Sierra which will make excellent ceviche.

We had to take two reefs while crossing the Gulf of Fonseca because the wind piped up to just below a gale (25-30 knots). Reefing reduces the sail area in order to sail in stronger winds.

Andrew was keen to learn how to take a reef so we had lesson number one this morning in light wind. Cisnecito is set up to be reefed from the center cockpit. Reefing lines are on the port side of the cockpit and the main halyard on the starboard side to make it easy. She also has separate tack lines for each reef, so you never need to leave the cockpit to reef. The process is fairly straight forward. The main halyard is eased, which lowers the main sail, and slack is taken up on the reefing lines, which pull the sail down reducing the area exposed to the wind. Often this is easier said than done. In high winds it can be tricky especially to avoid damaging sails and luff hardware.

Julie made excellent super spicy fish soup for dinner last night. Even after giving away large fillets of Mahi Mahi to other sailboats at Marina Puesta del Sol, we still had fish left over. The marina staff was nice enough to let us use their freezer while we traveled inland. Julie put lots of hot peppers in the soup and a little coconut cream which cut the spiciness nicely. We dipped handmade corn tortillas in the soup that we bought in the village next to the marina.

The picture above is leaving Marina Puesta del Sol with San Cristobal in the background.