The Diamond Coast

Thursday 22nd February dawned under heavy cloud and with a dying wind. The Atlantic high pressure had steadily dropped all night and as it did the cloud came in. We raised the Parasailor and on a dead run made our way slowly north at 4 to 5knots. Eventually the wind died and the sail came down for the night. We motored steadily along, except that the engine kept suddenly dying unexpectedly. Rather worrying since we had just had it officially serviced by Volvo in Cape Town. Possibly water in the fuel we took on there.

Warmly dressed Justin, and Mark's Malay Curry

Mark produced an excellent Malay curry for supper, which we washed down with Phoenix beers. I am definitely recovered from my sea sickness!

Now at 2am the wind has picked up again and I have unfurled the Genoa. We are now about 10 miles from the Namibian coast and all along here there are huge dredgers scooping up diamond bearing sands washed down from the Orange River which forms the border with South Africa.

The chart shows a red line about five miles offshore with scattered signs like purple circles with three lines out of the top. On investigation these are marked as Minefields! Keep Out! It seems as though the diamond mining activity is protected with rather lethal defences. Or could it be a cartographic misunderstanding about the word "minefields"?