Dying in the Heat

08/02/02

    Yesterday was a horrendously hot day.  The temperature within the cabin rose into the 90’s, and there was no escape from the heat.  At this moment I feel baked from the inside out, and can not get enough to drink.  I am going through my red zinger tea at an alarming rate, and am sure I won’t have enough to last to Cape Town at this pace.  Yesterday afternoon David asked to stop the boat so he could jump in, and this request was granted.  Also in the afternoon the boat hit some kind of buoy.  We couldn’t get a good look at it, but it was small and had a long black stick coming out of it, resembling either a radio antenna or a fishing pole.  We have also seen three ships in the last day.  It’s very strange that we can go for a week without seeing one ship, then see three in one day.

    One good thing about calm seas and no wind is that we can have pancakes for breakfast.  The bad thing is that having the engine running, and minimal breeze through the cabin contribute greatly to the heat problem, which is the most serious problem besetting us at this time.  Later this morning, we are planning to drop the main and set up the awning again, as the wind doesn’t look like it’s going to come up.