Trade Winds

I have been following the Vendee Globe, the single-handed, round-the-world non-stop with no assistance yacht race which is ending now with 21 of the 33 starters safely back in port, four still working their way up the Atlantic and the remaining eight retired, though two of them will make it to the end. It's been fascinating, as video uploads have enabled armchair watchers like me to share the experience some of the extreme stresses of 80 or more days at sea in some of the worst conditions one can imagine.

While the technology of these boats is mind-blowing - some of the fastest sit up on hydrofoils when they're at full speed - and watching the skippers has been fascinating, particularly when they have been up against severe technological problems in rough conditions with absolutely no-one to help them, what I have most enjoyed has been sitting with them in the open deck of their boats watching the sea go by - the photo of an albatross is by one of the young competitors, Alexia Barrier.

There is something wonderfully peaceful about the feeling of being alone in an immense ocean, particularly on a fine day with the trade winds blowing. This picture of Elizabeth and Mrs MW was taken on the Amersfoort on our way to Jamaica in 1973 on just such a day.

I would love to cross an ocean again, mostly to experience trade wind days like these but also the excitement of arriving, something which the participants of the Vendee are now richly enjoying.