Days 14 and 15 Cocos to Rodrigues Almost there!
June 5 2016
Every day seems like more of the same. But the winds are gradually abating, 20 to 25 kn today. The boat and crew are still rocking and rolling, but less salt water is splashing in. A reading light, timer and an ereader have died from salt water. We have a few bruises and dings in wood from things falling. But, on the bright side, all the motion has unplugged the head.
It is actually more pleasant down below than watching in the wet cockpit. We treated ourselves to watching a dvd in the afternoon yesterday. Even though we have seen Unbroken we wanted Bob to see it. Not that we wanted a reminder of what life in a liferaft might be like.
Gaia's autopilot and engine are both not working. We talked to them on the net last night. They were going to heave to overnight to get some rest. We should be quite close to them today, but not close enough to get them on the VHF or by sight yet. They should be able to sail ok and be close to the island Mon am as will we. Hopefully someone will be able to help them get into the anchorage.
We have been looking ahead at the charts and reference material on the upcoming islands. These are the Mascarene Islands, Rodrigues, Mauritius, and Le Reunion. They are high volcanic islands with surrounding coral reefs. Rodrigues belongs to Mauritius which is independent. Black slaves were employed on the sugar plantations during the time of French rule. English is the official language but French is spoken more. When slavery ended and English rule came, the blacks settled on Rodrigues. Indian indentured servants were brought in to work the plantations. Their descendants make up much of the population on Mauritius. Le Reunion remained French, and still is a dependency of France, like Martinique.
Bob's sister has cruised here on Cat's Paw4. She suggested that we not miss the great hiking on the islands. I'm looking forward to that but first finding a laundromat, having a shower and getting a good night's sleep.
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