August 31st.
We arrived at La Reunion shortly after sunrise. Most of the trip was a bit of a ride. Winds between 25 and 30 knots 12 - 18ft swells coming almost broadside. No Regrets was all over the place, so no lashing the tiller and falling asleep leaving the boat to sail itself. The saving grace was the autopilot which did a good job of keeping us on course but there was still a lot of motion and the seas slapping the bottom of the bridge deck between the two hulls would have scared me to death at times but Zeke didn't bat an eye lid, so hey-ho and on we go.
Despite all that it was a lovely clear night. No moon, clear skies full of stars, It really is something special to be carried along over the open ocean under a hemispherical night sky with lots of wind and a lively sea. We raised the main with a couple of reefs and let her run. By daylight we had passed Tahawus and had been in touch with port traffic control.
Entry formalities were straightforward if protracted due to an out break of Foot and Mouth disease among the Island's live stock. All foodstuffs from Mauritius were confiscated to be burned. Boats that provisioned in Port Louis for the trip on to Africa lost a significant amount.
We expect be here for just under a week waiting for a favorable weather window for the next leg to Durban, about 1,640 miles as the plane flies, rather more around the south of Madagascar. We have a professional weather guy on hand to help plan the route, but forecasts are unreliable ten days out, which is very roughly when we will approach Durban and cross the Agulhas current.
Our satellite tracker is on, so you should be able to follow he board's progress here
http://cornellsailing.com/sail-the-odyssey/blue-planet-odyssey/follow-the-rally/track-the-boats/
Sorry about the lack of photographs. the internet connections are few and far between and of limited bandwidth. I'll work on it.
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