Shorts and T-shirts

Having transferred off a few passengers by boat while offshore from Vigo, it has been a run south through the Atlantic. The Bay of Biscay was fortunately calm and so far we have yet to experience bad weather. As we travel south, we pass close to various islands: Madeira, The Canaries and most recently, the Cape Verde Islands.

Madeira (with Tula, our cargo tender in the foreground)

To prevent us getting to idle as the ship settles into a routine all the FIDS out helping to re-paint the ship or at work in the engine room. (the Falkland Island Dependencies Survey was the predecessor to BAS and is used to describe all those sailing who are non-crew). Unfortunately, the paint seems to mostly end up on us rather than the ship. However, good weather has also meant Saturday night barbies on the aft deck.

This is situated under the helicopter deck (not currently used for helicopters as it has half a dozen heavy vehicles destined for Halley stowed on it) and cannot be more than a couple of feet off the water, which you can just about see in the dark above.

Rememberance Sunday was marked here by the crew and FIDS gathering for a moment of silence and a measure of rum. Being on a ship such as this is a reminder, at this time, of those merchant seaman who have lost their lives in time of war alongside the other services.

We continue south at about 11 knots per hour, from the Cape Verde Islands we head towards Fernando de Noronha off the Brazilian coast, this may all sound circuitous but is a surprisingly direct route. Before that we must traverse the equator and with that 'crossing the line'...