Sailing along at 9kts the schooner Halie and Matthew is making up for their slow start from Miami. About 200nm north of Cuba, they are enjoying 20kt trade winds on the beam. All the crew is well, the only gripe being that food rationing has been instituted to extend their supply. They are having rice with every meal. Minor issues with the boat continue to cause irritation onboard. The latest 2 issues are the fuel transfer pump has failed, requiring manual transfer of diesel fuel from the fuel tanks to the day tank that supplies the main engine, and the rudder shaft started leaking which was repaired with a greased sock.

In case you are wondering about the picture, it was taken in Miami while they made some repairs to the exhaust manifold. It reminded us of where Mariah is probably spending most of her time right now, as they work on stopping the rudder shaft leak. Circled is Mariah.