Day 16 Squalls

We have reached the ITCZ
Our position - N06º50’ X W128º11.
Squalls - At the ITCZ, there is always some turbulence as the winds from the north meet the winds from the south. In addition, the solar heating causes evaporation columns that can result in tall cumulonimbus clouds. As the water vapor rises and cools it re-condenses and becomes rain. This mixing of warm and cold air can also result in violent lightning and thunderstorms called squalls.
At about 9 PM, I was sitting in the stern keeping watch to make sure the autopilot kept us on course and scanning the horizon every now and then for other boats. We were sailing south east in light winds of about 10 knots and making a SOG (speed over ground) of about 3 ½ knots when suddenly a 35 knot gust hit us from the port quarter (the back left side). It knocked me out of my seat and swung the boat about 90º to the left. I jumped up and grabbed the wheel to put us back on course and for the next two hours steered through a gale with 20 to 30 knot winds and horizontal rain. Mark and the crew scrambled to close all our portholes and hatches. When Kurt came on watch at 11 PM the storm was still blowing but had calmed a bit. Throughout the night there were several more squalls and we knew we had finally reached the ITCZ.