Day 229 A bit of wind

Our position @ 0700 is S32º17/E171º38 and we continue under motor power. The large swells are still coming from the southeast at a 20 second interval. Looking out at the sea is like looking at a landscape of gently rolling blue hills of the same size and spacing.
By 0915 the wind picked up enough so we could make 6 knots under full sail and jib. It seems suddenly quiet without the whine of the diesel. The sky is mostly clear and the sun takes some of the chill out of the air but if we sit directly in the wind, it is obvious that we are moving toward colder climes. By 1100 the wind died again and we again added motor power to the sail’s effort in an attempt to get enough speed to complete the journey tomorrow.
A few birds have followed us for days. One is a black-brown bobby doing its acrobatics with the waves. The other may be some sort of tern. It is black on the bottom with white splotches on top, which may be the markings of an immature bird. It is smaller than the bobby and less sleek but also makes spectacular swoops and turns to stay just over the wave tops without ever flapping its wings. The most awesome bird sighting was an albatross that showed up three days ago and can be seen periodically about a quarter mile away. It also almost never flaps its wings. At one point it came close to the boat and we estimated its wingspan to be more than 6 feet - impressive. We tried to remember the rhyme of the ancient mariner but none of us could recall it.
Bluebottle jellyfish, small transparent discs with a semicircular sail, float by – a sign that we are nearing land. A pod of whales was sighted in the distance but they did not come near the boat. Sitting in the cockpit watching the huge 8 to 19 foot swells that come out of the south is reminiscent of several days on the Mexico crossing except now the waves are coming towards us rather than helping us along our way. We seem to be struggling to complete the passage with wind, wave and current against us and little Southern Star doing her best to make way against them. Fortunately, the sun shone today and it seemed warmer and the long wave pattern made the ride quite comfortable. I enjoyed the peace of the sea knowing it will not last.